WARNING–SPOILER ALERT

If you’ve not yet read “Miles” and “House of Shadows” then read no further, because otherwise… you’re not ready for this information.  You just aren’t, so exercise self-control and walk away!  When you read the first two books in the House of Bannerman Series, you’ll be glad you did.  And if you don’t, you’ll feel like the person who brushed her teeth with strong minty toothpaste right before eating a Chile Relleno Burrito from the burrito lady at the Farmer’s and Crafts Market in Las Cruces, New Mexico.  Filled with regret.  And maybe, a painful burning sensation.  But definitely the regret.

But… if you have read the first two books in the HOB series, then feel free to read on without fear of painful repercussions.

So what is the deal with Miles’s “superpowers,” as Anika likes to call them.

When Miles was semi-transparent he was granted abilities which he chose to use in helping others.  As covertly as possible, of course.  He was a decent guy to begin with and there was a plan for his life which didn’t include ending it, but rather extending it, and so his last prayer was answered the way in which it was.  He used those 140 years of isolation well and proved he could be trusted with the power he was given.

Then at the right point in time Anika came along.  There was a lot more to her than being her great-great-great grandmother Sarah Lawrence’s granddaughter.  There was, in fact, a very different reason why she was able to see and hear Miles.  Read about that in “Darkness Falls.”

So the two met, they clicked, they “got” each other like no one else ever had, they fell in love.  They loved each other so much, they each wanted what they believed to be best for the other, regardless of personal cost.

So Miles was freed.  But just as his prayer was answered very differently than he thought it would, the freedom he had wasn’t at all what either of them expected.  It was so much better!  Miles returned, he and Anika became engaged, they went to college, and all sorts of strange things happened that year which culminated–well, in a wedding, but before that it culminated in a show off with two extremely evil people.

How in the world would they get out of this?  Not at all the way in which I expected them to.

I thought Miles was a regular guy again.  I thought he and Anika would continue on to solve other mysteries along the lines of those found in “Stonecastle Inn” and the “Mystery Lane” series.

Then I was using my Mom as a sounding board as I often do.  And she said, “It’s too bad Miles lost his superpowers.”

Well… why did he, exactly?  He lost them because I wanted this series to become a “normal” series.  But… why?  I never saw myself as a paranormal writer.  Even though I finished the book I started when I was in junior high.  If I hadn’t started “Miles” way back then, I never would have thought to write it.  Thank you, junior high self, because these are my favorite characters!  I never saw myself as a paranormal writer, and that isn’t a genre I intend to continue outside of the House of Bannerman series.  But, what about supernatural?  Those few words my Mom said set off an avalanche of thoughts and ideas and I rethought everything I intended for Miles and Anika, and this series.  Instead of “Miles” being separate from the other books, a part of their past never to overlap their present and future, it became part of a very big plan.  Those two have a purpose in life, and they need each other to fulfill it.  Every experience in their lives and Miles’s past wasn’t random and unrelated after all.  There’s a plan.

So BAM, Miles didn’t lose his abilities after all.  When Anika tried to sacrifice herself to save him, 140 years of habit came back, and then some!  George Frank should consider himself lucky, during those very few seconds of life he had left before his girlfriend shot him anyway, and be thankful Miles didn’t send him all the way through an exterior wall and out into the street.

Then, as Miles and Anika are talking over the crazy events of that night, she discovers that Miles’s semi-transparent state wasn’t the only thing she could/can see that others can’t.

Those two have a purpose.  If you haven’t read it already, you can learn more about what that is in “Darkness Falls.”

If you love Miles and Anika and the HOB series, then be reassured.  So do I.  Their stories are plotted out, and book 10, yes 10, is halfway written.  The House of Bannerman series will continue as long as I do.