Dust jacket illustration by François Vaillancourt

About the Book:

In this pair of stories set in the Sookie Stackhouse universe, novella “Dancers in the Dark” and short story “Layla Steps Up,” #1 New York Times’ bestselling author Charlaine Harris chronicles the tumultuous beginning of the love story between an unlikely couple.

In “Dancers in the Dark,” Rue LeMay is desperate to leave the past behind. Badly in need of money to start over, she takes a job at Blue Moon entertainment, where she’ll be dancing with vampires at fancy parties and events. When she ends up paired with a 300-year-old Irish vampire, Sean McClendon, nicknamed the “Aristocrat,” he senses she’s hiding a secret. At first, his only concern is that whatever it is doesn’t pose a danger to him. But as the two dance together, Sean begins to care deeply about keeping Rue--real name Layla--safe from what threatens her: past, present, and future.

With “Layla Steps Up,” Harris adds a new chapter to this fan favorite tale with an original short story. Set one year after the novella, Sean and Layla are still together, but on the cusp of upheaval. When a sadist with an eye for Sean comes to town, it will be Layla’s turn to see if she can protect the man she loves.

The Layla Collection brings these stories together for the first time and features a new introduction by Harris.

Limited: 200 signed numbered hardcover copies, bound in leather

Trade: Fully cloth bound hardcover copies

From Publishers Weekly:

“Though the characters and conflicts are new, the spirit and human-vampire dynamics of these stories mark them as clearly of a piece with the rest of the series. Sookie Stackhouse fans will enjoy revisiting this romantic, paranormal universe.”

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