The ''Cal Leandros'' series was an ongoing series of ''The New York Times'' Best Selling novels by American author

Rob Thurman Robyn Thurman, writing under the name Rob Thurman, is a ''New York Times'' Best Selling American novelist. To date, she has written three series and two short stories, totaling 17 books, and has been published in the US, UK, Germany, and Japan. ...

about the fictional character of Caliban "Cal" Leandros. The first novel, ''Nightlife'', was published on March 7, 2006 through Roc Fantasy.

Synopsis

The series follows Cal, a man that is half-monster and half-human. His mother was impregnated by an Auphe, a bloodthirsty creature also referred to as a "

Grendel Grendel is a character in the Anglo-Saxon epic poem '' Beowulf'' (700–1000). He is one of the poem's three antagonists (along with his mother and the dragon), all aligned in opposition against the protagonist Beowulf. Grendel is feared by a ...

". The series begins with Cal and his brother Niko living in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, struggling to keep Cal's heritage a secret as they battle to survive those that would see them dead. Later novels deal more heavily with Cal's attempts to balance the dark nature of his father's race with his impulse to protect and defend others against the supernatural.

Major Characters

*Caliban "Cal" Leandros Caliban is the result of his mother mating with an otherworldly creature, a

(Auphe). He is, as Thurman describes him, "half-human, half-monster, and all attitude." Cal inherited his Greek-

Romani Romani may refer to: Ethnicities * Romani people, an ethnic group of Northern Indian origin, living dispersed in Europe, the Americas and Asia ** Romani genocide, under Nazi rule * Romani language, any of several Indo-Aryan languages of the Roma ...

mother's raven hair, but has the pale skin of his father. Technically, Cal begins the books as 17 years old, but he was once kidnapped by the Auphe and spent two years in their home dimension called Tumulus, making him 19, since time in that place follows different laws than on Earth. *Niko Leandros Niko is Cal's older half-brother and only sibling. He is described as being handsome, with the nose of a Roman soldier. Because of this he is often referred to by Cal as

Cyrano Cyrano may refer to: Astronomy * 3582 Cyrano, a small main belt asteroid * Cyrano (crater), a lunar impact crater that lies on the far side of the Moon Stage and film * ''Cyrano'' (Damrosch), a 1913 opera by Walter Damrosch * ''Cyrano'', a 195 ...

, which is a nickname given as a reference to Niko's nose. As their mother was neglectful and really didn't pay much attention to them, Niko took to looking out for his younger brother at a young age. Considered the "practical" one of the pair, Niko is calm, and enjoys meditation and natural foods. Although Niko has no relation to the Auphe, he is as tough as nails and practices many types of

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

. Thurman compares him to

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

Genghis Khan ''Chinggis Khaan'' ͡ʃʰiŋɡɪs xaːŋbr />Mongol script: ''Chinggis Qa(gh)an/ Chinggis Khagan'' , birth_name = Temüjin , successor = Tolui (as regent)Ögedei Khan , spouse = , issue = , house = Borjigin , ...

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...

, and Sun-Tzu. *Robin Goodfellow Robin Goodfellow, also known as Rob Fellows, is one of the last known Pucks in existence. He poses as a car salesman and due to his sly, sneaky nature, fits in very naturally. Having been alive for an extremely long time, he has made his way through history, and crossed paths with the likes of

Caligula Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), better known by his nickname Caligula (), was the third Roman emperor, ruling from 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the popular Roman general Germanicu ...

, Salome,

Bacchus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

, and

Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies explained as originatin ...

to name a few. Although seemingly hedonistic and selfish, he eventually proves to be useful to the brothers and becomes a good friend. * Promise Nottinger Promise is a vampire. She has an otherworldly beauty with an ageless quality. In several books her age is alluded to, but never explicitly given. She has had five rich, older husbands whose fortunes she inherited after their deaths. Caliban and Niko meet up with her after one of her husbands' descendants attempts to kill her. She denies having drunk blood for many years and instead relies on iron supplements. Promise has a romantic relationship with Niko.

Minor Characters

* Georgina “George” George is a human female, who is a psychic. In numerous instances she has helped the Leandros brothers out by seeing events in their futures. She refuses to look far into her own future or to try to change future events. She is also capable of seeing certain past events. Her romantic attraction to Caliban was never fully reciprocated, due to Cal's fear of how his Auphe heritage would affect any relationship they could have.

Bibliography

#''Nightlife'' (2006) #''Moonshine'' (2007) #''Madhouse'' (2008) #''Deathwish'' (2009) #''Roadkill'' (2010) #''Blackout'' (2011) #''Doubletake'' (2012) #''Slashback'' (2013) #''DownFall'' (2014) #''Nevermore'' (2015) #''Everwar'' (Uncertain - Publisher cancelled)

Reception

Critical reception for the series has been mostly positive, with

RT Book Reviews ''Romantic Times'' was an American genre magazine specializing in romance novel A romance novel or romantic novel generally refers to a type of genre fiction novel which places its primary focus on the relationship and romantic love betwee ...

rating several of the books highly and nominating ''Blackout'' for their 2011 ''Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Urban Fantasy Novel''. Sales for the series have been good, with several of the novels placing on ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list for

mass market paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, and often held together with glue rather than stitches or staples. In contrast, hardcover (hardback) books are bound with cardboard covered with cloth, lea ...

References

{{reflist, 2

External links

Rob Thurman's websiteRob Thurman's Livejournal
American horror novels American fantasy novels Novels by Rob Thurman Contemporary fantasy novels Novels set in New York City