S J Harper: Who is Emma Monroe?

She’s the protagonist in S.J. Harper’s new Fallen Siren Series—CURSED. Samantha Sommersby (aka the “S” in S.J. Harper) and Jeanne C. Stein (aka the “J” in S.J. Harper) began to talk about collaborating on a new series about two years during Comic-Con San Diego. Shortly thereafter, Emma Monroe was born.

Emma is a Siren, one of three sisters born of Gaia, ejected from Mount Olympus by Zeus, and cursed by Demeter for failing to prevent Hades from kidnapping Persephone. Stripped of her wings, she’s been bound to Earth for thousands of years. During that time she’s had many names and saved many lives—but not enough to satisfy Demeter. Sometimes, Emma wonders if it will ever be enough to satisfy Demeter.

But she doesn’t indulge long in second-guessing. Emma can’t afford to. She’s all about the mission and her job as an FBI Agent in San Diego’s Missing Persons Unit is the perfect fit. Every time she finds one of the missing, saves them, the scales tip in her direction. Using her magic, however, incurs a penalty, not to mention risking Demeter’s wrath. Demeter frowns on anything that might draw attention to an Immortal on Earth.

 And, yes, Emma is Immortal. In her true form, she’s a beautiful and powerful seductress, capable of infiltrating the minds of others in order to extract truth. A tempting skill for a detective. Having the power is a burden. Not using it, a constant struggle. As is hiding her real nature. Thank the gods and goddesses for her BFF, Liz, the most gifted witch west of the Mississippi. Liz’s spell-casting abilities are legendary and she works two for Emma—a reverse glamour to hide Emma’s true appearance and a dampening spell to diminish her innate powers of seduction.

Unfortunately, there’s nothing Liz can do about the curse. Guys Emma gets into meaningful relationships with tend to end up dead, courtesy of her favorite vindictive goddess. To make Emma’s life more complicated, she’s just been assigned a new partnering—Zack Armstrong. They have a history no one knows about, after working together for months on a case they slept together. Once. They agreed that after, they’d go their separate ways. There would be no telephone calls. No texts. No e-mails. No contact. Period. With twenty-four hundred miles between them, it seemed safe. Now that Zack and Emma are working together again, they risk a rekindling of whatever was between them. Something that could prove exceedingly dangerous. Even lethal. For Zack.

What’s a Siren to do?

SALVATION TAKES TEAMWORK

Meet FBI Agents Emma Monroe and Zack Armstrong.

She's cursed. He's damned. Together, they make one hell of a team.

Emma Monroe is a Siren, cursed by the gods and bound to earth to atone for an ancient failure. She’s had many names and many lives, but only one mission: redemption. Now that she works missing persons cases for the FBI, it could be just a rescue away. Unless her new partner leads her astray.

Special Agent Zack Armstrong just transferred into the San Diego Field Office. He’s a werewolf, doing his best to beat back the demons from his dark and dangerous past. As a former Black Ops sniper, he’s taken enough lives. Now he’s doing penance by saving them. 

Emma and Zack’s very first case draws them deep into the realm of the paranormal, and forces them to use their own supernatural abilities. But that leaves each of them vulnerable, and there are lines partners should not cross. As secrets are revealed and more women go missing, one thing becomes clear: as they race to save the victims, Emma and Zack risk losing themselves.

READ THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS FREE

S.J. Harper is the pen name for the writing team of Samantha Sommersby and Jeanne C. Stein, two friends who met at Comic-Con in San Diego and quickly bonded over a mutual love of good wine, edgy urban fantasy, and everything Joss Whedon. Check out their website or sign up for their newsletter here. Follow Sam and Jeanne on Twitter. Friend Sam and Jeanne on Facebook!