Fantasy writer Richelle Mead understands the allure of a bad boy. Honorable, duty-bound Dmitri may be the hero of her best-selling young adult series Vampire Academy, but readers have always had a weakness for Adrian, the impudent scamp. Now her fans may get their wishes answered with Bloodlines, the first book of a new young adult series featuring minor characters from Vampire Academy. Adrian is back (although Mead isn't revealing exactly how), and the new heroine is Sydney Sage, an alchemist trained to conceal the supernatural world and protect ordinary humans. Known for her robust and resilient female leads, the prolific writer (18 books in six years) also helms the adult fantasy series Georgina Kincaid and Dark Swan. Mead reveals to Goodreads her thoughts on vampire popularity and feminine characters with oomph.

Goodreads: Bloodlines picks up the stories of characters we met in the Vampire Academy series. Do you think Bloodlines will be accessible to readers not familiar with Vampire Academy?

Richelle Mead: It is, actually, and it's kind of refreshing to start hearing reviews come in from people who didn't read the first series. For those who know it, it's a great continuation, and those who don't know it can follow along and catch up.

GR: With teen alchemist Sydney Sage now front and center (she played a supporting role to Vampire Academy's tough heroine Rose Hathaway), Bloodlines delves further into the arcane world of alchemy. What were your sources of inspiration or topics of research for the centuries-old tradition of alchemy in Sydney's family?

RM: It's pretty loosely based on history. It's my own interpretation, so I'm sure there are purists who will say, "Hey, I've read about medieval alchemists, and I don't remember them doing anything with vampires!" I liked the idea of a "Men in Black" society of people trying to keep vampires secret from the world. So that was part of the inspiration. And then at the same time, because I do like tying everything to mythology and folklore if I can, the alchemist idea came in—people dabbling in half magic, half science. They were particularly fascinated with magical substances—that was where the whole lead-into-gold idea came from. So I thought if ever there was a substance you could do wild things with, vampire blood was it. So I borrowed from that history and mixed it back into the "Men in Black" idea, and they sort of spawned from there.

Fantasy writer Richelle Mead understands the allure of a bad boy. Honorable, duty-bound Dmitri may be the hero of her best-selling young adult series Vampire Academy, but readers have always had a weakness for Adrian, the impudent scamp. Now her fans may get their wishes answered with Bloodlines, the first book of a new young adult series featuring minor characters from Vampire Academy. Adrian is back (although Mead isn't revealing exactly how), and the new heroine is Sydney Sage, an alchemist trained to conceal the supernatural world and protect ordinary humans. Known for her robust and resilient female leads, the prolific writer (18 books in six years) also helms the adult fantasy series Georgina Kincaid and Dark Swan. Mead reveals to Goodreads her thoughts on vampire popularity and feminine characters with oomph.

Goodreads: Bloodlines picks up the stories of characters we met in the Vampire Academy series. Do you think Bloodlines will be accessible to readers not familiar with Vampire Academy?

Richelle Mead: It is, actually, and it's kind of refreshing to start hearing reviews come in from people who didn't read the first series. For those who know it, it's a great continuation, and those who don't know it can follow along and catch up.

GR: With teen alchemist Sydney Sage now front and center (she played a supporting role to Vampire Academy's tough heroine Rose Hathaway), Bloodlines delves further into the arcane world of alchemy. What were your sources of inspiration or topics of research for the centuries-old tradition of alchemy in Sydney's family?

RM: It's pretty loosely based on history. It's my own interpretation, so I'm sure there are purists who will say, "Hey, I've read about medieval alchemists, and I don't remember them doing anything with vampires!" I liked the idea of a "Men in Black" society of people trying to keep vampires secret from the world. So that was part of the inspiration. And then at the same time, because I do like tying everything to mythology and folklore if I can, the alchemist idea came in—people dabbling in half magic, half science. They were particularly fascinated with magical substances—that was where the whole lead-into-gold idea came from. So I thought if ever there was a substance you could do wild things with, vampire blood was it. So I borrowed from that history and mixed it back into the "Men in Black" idea, and they sort of spawned from there.

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