Main character page can be found here.
The Harmans
The most famous and prestigious of the witch clans, directly descended from the legendary Hellewise Hearth-Woman and by extension, her mother Hecate Witch-Queen. They are sometimes seen as royalty by the witches and indeed many of them hold prominent positions in the Night World's government. Their surname was originally Hearth-Woman, before being modernised as Harman over time.Warning: Contains some unmarked spoilers for the series
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In General
In General
- Badass Family: They are directly descended from the legendary Hellewise Hearth-Woman and are some of the most powerful witches in the world. They also have a Wild Power amongst their ranks.
- Big, Screwed-Up Family: Mostly averted, as the family generally gets along well. However, things tend to go south when they involve themselves with the Redferns, who are a very screwed-up family; their ancestress Hellewise also had lots of problems with her sister Maya...
- Family Eye Resemblance: Many members have violet eyes, or blue/gray eyes that look close to violet. A notable exception is Hellewise and Thea, who both have brown eyes.
- Family Theme Naming: Witches have a habit of naming their children after deities or legendary/mythological figures (or names associated with one of these) and the Harmans are no different. The Harmans also tend to have names meaning or associated with "light" or "brightness". There's also Grandma Harman and her siblings, who are named Edgith, Emmeth and Elspeth.
- Famous Ancestor: Hellewise Hearth-Woman to all the Harmans. To a lesser extent, Maeve Harman as well to any Harmans born after the 17th century.
- Feuding Families: With the Redferns in the past, but they resolved it via a 'blood-tie' and some Altar Diplomacy.
- Heir Club for Men: Inverted. Witches are matriarchal, so lineage is passed down through the women.
- Hereditary Twinhood: Hinted at with the Harman family. Edgith's younger siblings, Elspeth and Emmeth, are fraternal twins, and Edgith's daughters were also twins. Hellewise, the ancient founder of the family, was a twin too.
- Long-Lost Relative: Two family members, Emmeth and Elspeth, went missing as babies and were presumed to be dead. Turns out they actually survived and had kids of their own, so there are several characters who discover they're actually long-lost Harmans, or related to them.
- Mystical White Hair: A common trait for the family is white-blonde or silver-gold hair.
- Really Royalty Reveal: The lost Harmans who discover their lineage, most notably Iliana and Gillian, the latter of whom literally refers to herself as a "witch princess".
Grandma Harman
Edgith 'Grandma' Harman
Appears in: Spellbinder | Witchlight
The matriarch of the Harmans and Crone of All the Witches. She's also the grandmother of Thea and Blaise.
- Apron Matron: Comes across as this, particularly in regards to her granddaughters and apprentices. It's very clear that she's the boss of the Harman family and what she says generally goes.
- Big Good: To the witches and Circle Daybreak.
- Cool Old Lady: She doesn't take crap from anyone, leads a resistance, is Crone of all the Witches, and she's close to a hundred years old.
- Dark and Troubled Past: When she was young, her twin siblings were somehow separated from her and presumed dead, with Edgith only learning they actually survived decades later. As if that weren't bad enough, her twin daughters both died in childbirth.
- Disappointed in You: Towards Thea when she learns she broke the rules and performed a forbidden summoning spell. She says that she expected this kind of behavior from Blaise, but thought that Thea "had more sense".
- Honor Before Reason: She refuses to force or coerce Iliana into helping them, even though as the Witch Child and a Wild Power, she's vital to their plans. She instead tries to talk her into doing the right thing and let her make up her own mind. When she refuses, Grandma Harman insists she be taken home, despite Keller's protests. Eventually, though, Iliana realises Grandma Harman is right and accepts her role as The Chosen One.
- Iron Lady: She got to be the matriarch of the Harmans, co-leader of Circle Daybreak and co-leader of the witches for a very good reason.
- Killed Off for Real: In Witchlight, she is mauled to death by shapeshifters.
- The Mentor: She's had several students over the years; her current apprentice is Tobias. She also acts as a bit of one to Thea, providing her with advice on her spells.
- Miniature Senior Citizens: She's very short, almost bent double.
- The Paragon: To an extent. Thea tries to avoid getting into trouble partly because she doesn't want to bring any shame or embarrassment to Grandma Harman and is very upset when she expresses great disappointment in her behaviour. Edgith is able to persuade the Inner Circle and almost all the witches to join Circle Daybreak and inspires Iliana to embrace her destiny as a Wild Power and help stop the Night World. Even after her death the protagonists are determined to carry on with their mission in her memory.
- The Paragon Always Rebels: Inverted. When she and the rest of the Inner Circle secede from the Night World and formally join Circle Daybreak, the majority of witches follow them.
- Rebel Leader: Revealed to co-lead Circle Daybreak.
- Sacrificial Lion: In a rather shocking twist, Grandma Harman is murdered by rogue shapeshifters working for the Night World Council midway through Witchlight. It helps show that the Night World really does mean business and ups the stakes for the protagonists, who are deeply shaken by the death of their leader.
- Screw Politeness, I'm a Senior!: Lives and breathes this trope, though it could also be that she just prefers to cut the crap and get to the point quickly.
- So Proud of You: Towards Thea after witnessing her successfully sending Suzanne's ghost back to the spirit realm almost single-handedly.
- Supporting Leader: Of the witches and Circle Daybreak.
- Universally Beloved Leader: She's universally loved and respected by all the witches (and later by most of Circle Daybreak, too.
Blaise Harman
Blaise Harman
Appears in: Secret Vampire | Spellbinder
"It's so fun to be a bitch when you want to be."
Grandma Harman's granddaughter and cousin to Thea, whom she thinks of as a sister.
- Anti-Hero / Anti-Villain: Blaise generally does what Blaise wants, consequences be damned, but there are some lines she won't cross, she truly loves her family (especially Thea) and she's capable of doing good things that don't benefit her in any way - a notable example is switching out the Cup of Lethe - a powerful memory potion - with iced tea, so that Thea will remember her family and being a witch, and still gets to be with Eric. Thea herself states she can never be too sure what Blaise will do.
- Big Sister Bully: She can be a bit of one towards Thea at times, but if she's in trouble she will do what she can to help her.
- Big Sister Instinct: Towards Thea if she's really in trouble. Unfortunately, she tends to take it a bit far – she's prepared to potentially kill Eric to keep Thea safe. Her protective instinct works in Thea and Eric's favor at the end of the novel, though, as Blaise finds a way to help them stay together and for Thea to keep her powers.
- Black Sheep: She's sometimes considered this to the modern Harmans, given her tendency wreak havoc with love spells and her open interest in joining Circle Midnight (most Harmans appear to be members of Circle Twilight, who are more tolerant of humans, while Circle Midnight are very much into witch supremacy and black magic).
- The Casanova: She's a female version, seducing dozens of boys, often stringing along more than one at the same time, fooling around with them for a bit then ditching them once she gets bored.
- Color-Coded Eyes: She's described as having "smoldering" grey eyes, both highlighting her attractiveness and mysterious nature, as well as the fact she's a 'morally gray' character.
- Curves in All the Right Places: Thea describes her as having "curves galore".
- Delinquent: Though not elaborated on, her misbehavior has resulted in her and Thea being expelled from at least five different schools since they were sophomores. At their last school, she somehow persuaded her boyfriend to burn down the gym for her. She also uses forbidden spells and materials, has no issues stealing ingredients and frequently casts love spells on boys that effectively enslaves them to her and makes them do bad or humiliating things for her own amusement.
- Disappeared Dad: Her father died when she was young.
- Disc-One Final Boss: She starts out as the main antagonist in Spellbinder, threatening to get Thea expelled with her antics or steal away her Love Interest and possibly harm him...until the middle of the story, when Thea accidentally summons the ghost of Suzanne Blanchet, who is far more dangerous than Blaise. Although Blaise continues to make trouble for Thea, it's clear that Suzanne is the bigger threat and Blaise puts herself firmly in Anti-Hero territory by helping out Thea and Eric in the end.
- Dude Magnet: She "reels guys in by just being". And she loves every minute of it.
- Favors for the Sexy: This happens to Blaise wherever she goes. She is definitely aware of it and finds it very amusing.
- Femme Fatale: Oh, yes. Thea even compares her to Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, for her love schemes (though what Blaise creates with her spells seems to be closer to obsessive infatuation than true love).
- Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: They're not quite siblings, but she's generally the 'foolish' sibling to Thea's 'responsible'.
- Everyone Has Standards: As foolhardy as Blaise is, even she thinks Thea is crazy for trying to summon spirits.
- Fetishized Abuser: She's this to her numerous dates and boyfriends (though it’s usually in the form psychological/emotional abuse rather than physical abuse). They all still find her incredibly hot. In Blaise's case it's deconstructed a bit as her treatment of one of her boyfriends led him to have Sanity Slippage, which is depicted as disturbing.
- Girl Posse: Moments after arriving at her new school, she teams up with two Circle Midnight witches, Vivienne and Selene, to make trouble. Even though she's the newcomer, Blaise quickly establishes herself as the ringleader.
- Girly Girl with a Tomboy Streak: She is boy-crazy, makes jewellery in her spare time and loves to dress up. She also wears a tuxedo to the Homecoming Dance (paired with stilettos) and never keeps her room clean.
- The Glorious War of Sisterly Rivalry: She competes with Thea for Eric's affections (although they're technically cousins, they were raised together and refer to each other as sisters). Blaise is the Beautiful Sister, being far more flirtatious and outgoing than Thea and largely concerning herself with boys and partying, though she's far from stupid either.
- Head-Turning Beauty: She never has any shortage of boys going gaga over her.
- Hot Witch: She's considered insanely attractive even by Night People standards.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: For all her flaws, Blaise genuinely loves her family (especially Thea) and in the end she switches the memory potion with iced tea so that Thea and Eric can live together in peace.
- Ironic Name: One meaning of Blaise is "to lisp or stammer", while Blaise Harman herself is quite a bold and unflappable individual. The homonym "blaze" - meaning a large and fiercely burning fire - seems more appropriate.
- Kick the Morality Pet: She plots to seduce and either drive away or kill Eric, Thea's soulmate. However, this is only because she fears that Thea will be executed for breaking Night World law - in Blaise's mind, she's doing the right thing. Ultimately subverted, as Blaise's love spells don't work and she later helps Thea and Eric stay together.
- Last of Her Kind: Somewhat. It’s mentioned that she and Thea are the last generation of Harmans even more so for Blaise when Thea leaves the Night World to be with Eric at the end of Spellbinder. Subverted when female descendants of their missing great aunt Elspeth turn up later on.
- Light Feminine Dark Feminine: Blaise is the 'night' to her cousin Thea's 'day'.
- Nephewism: She and Thea have been raised by a number of different relatives, including aunts and uncles, over the years (mostly because Blaise keeps getting them expelled from school).
- Missing Mom: Her mother died giving birth to her.
- Nerves of Steel: She doesn't so much as flinch when an obviously unstable Randy threatens her with a straight razor and when she’s brought before the Inner Circle to answer for her crimes, she simply tosses her hair, looks bored and complains about missing the Samhain celebrations.
- Not So Similar: Blaise is often compared to Maya. However, her actions at the end of Spellbinder, as well as the detailed look we get at Maya in Soulmate, makes it clear that the two have distinct differences - in particular, Blaise truly loves Thea and tries to help and protect her (even though her idea of 'helping' may not be appreciated by Thea); Maya, on the other hand, was bitterly jealous of Hellewise and even tried to kill her.
- Proud Beauty: She is well-aware of her good looks and the effect she has on men, frequently choosing outfits she knows will highlight or enhance her beauty further.
- Raised by Grandparents: At the start of the series, she and Thea have just moved in with their Grandma Harman after she got them kicked out of their last school.
- Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: Has this look, like Maya, whom she is said to resemble.
- Red Oni, Blue Oni: The Red to Thea's Blue.
- Screw the Rules, I'm Beautiful!: Seems to have this mentality. It's worked for her so far but her Karma Houdini Warranty finally runs out in the climax of Spellbinder.
- Secret-Keeper: She tells no one about Thea falling in love with Eric and her forbidden attempt to summon a spirit.
- Sent Off to Work for Relatives: After it's discovered she was working illegal love spells, she gets packed off to live with her strict Aunt Ursula at her fortress-like home, the Convent, as punishment.
- Shipper on Deck: Played with in the case of Thea and Eric. She initially wants to help them get together, but only because she assumes Thea just wants to fool around with Eric. When Thea confides that Eric is her soulmate, Blaise does everything she can to keep them apart, due to the fact it endangers Thea. In the end though, she seems happy for them, defending them to the Inner Circle and even switching the memory potion they have to take to be together so that Thea will remember being a witch, giving her the best of both worlds.
- Ship Tease: In Secret Vampire, she and Ash are quite flirty with each other and she seems a bit jealous of the attention he gives Poppy. However, it never comes up again, especially seeing as Ash meets his soulmate in the next book.
- The Tease: One of her main tactics when toying with boys.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Apparently to Maya, the evil sister of Hellewise. However, Blaise is much nicer than her and has a much better relationship with her family.
Sophia and Nissa Harman
Sophia Harman and Nissa Harman
The late daughters of Grandma Harman. They were twin sisters and the mothers of Thea and Blaise, respectively.- All There in the Manual: Their names are mentioned in expanded material.
- Death by Childbirth: They both died giving birth to their daughters.
- Death by Origin Story: The sisters dying in childbirth and their husbands' deaths not long after resulted in Blaise and Thea being raised by other relatives.
- Missing Mom: Sophia to Thea, Nissa to Blaise.
- One-Steve Limit: Averted. Nissa has the same first name as the vampire Nissa Johnson, a supporting character in Witchlight (although Nissa Harman's name is only mentioned in expanded material rather than the novels themselves).
Circe Harman
Circe Harman
Appears in: Secret Vampire
A minor character who has small roles in Secret Vampire and Soulmate.
- All There in the Manual: The fact she's a Harman is only mentioned on the family tree, not the novels themselves. According to the tree, she's also Mother Cybele's daughter.
- Bit Character: In her only on-page appearance in the series, she's a guest at Thierry's Summer Solstice party, with Ash pointing her out.
- Chekhov's Gunman: Subverted. After her minor introduction in Secret Vampire, Thierry later asks her to meet with him and place powerful wards around Hannah to provide her with magical protection wherever she goes. However, Circe is late to the meeting and when Maya shows up and tauntingly mentions having seen Hannah, Thierry immediately runs off to check on his soulmate before Circe appears.
- Famed In-Story: Downplayed. Ash describes her as being "a witch of renown" and Thierry later employs her to place magical wards around Hannah, saying she's the only witch he knows powerful enough to pull it off.
- Hot Witch / Informed Attractiveness: The only details we're given on her appearance is that she's "tall and lovely".
- Meaningful Name: Circe is a sorceress from Greek mythology, prominently featured in the stories of Odysseus.
Mother Cybele
Cybele 'Mother Cybele' Harman
Appears in: Spellbinder | Witchlight
"Maybe the Old Powers are waking up again. Maybe they're trying to tell us something."
The Mother of all the Witches, who has a recurring role in the series.
- All There in the Manual: Shes confirmed to be a Harman on the family tree. According to the tree, she's also the mother of Circe and sister to Aunt Ursula.
- Big Fun: She's described as being short, plump and "dumpling-like" and is a kind and reasonable person.
- Big Good: Becomes this to the witches due to Grandma Harman being killed in Witchlight.
- Hidden Depths: Despite her sweet, chubby appearance, she's got a hidden toughness to her and speaks with authority. Notably, after Grandma Harman's sudden, violent death, Cybele immediately takes over leadership of the witches with no issues and doesn't visibly let the tragedy affect her judgement.
- Meaningful Name: Cybele is a mother goddess worshipped in Asia Minor.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Though she can be stern, she's always very fair and empathetic towards the protagonists.
- Rebel Leader: She eventually joins Circle Daybreak and presumably becomes one of the main leaders after Grandma Harman's death.
- Supporting Leader: Of the witches and Circle Daybreak in Witchlight.
- Team Mom: To the witches especially after the death of Grandma Harman. Probably intentional, given she's supposed to be a 'mother figure' to all witches.
Elspeth and Emmeth Harman
Elspeth Harman and Emmeth Harman
Younger siblings to Grandma Harman, who were separated from the family as babies during World War One. They were believed to have died, but it eventually turns out they survived and were adopted in England, losing their connection to the Night World and becoming lost witches.- Doting Grandparent: Elspeth is apparently a bit of a doting great-grandparent, at least to Gillian; she once sent her a trendy black camisole as a Christmas present, which Gillian digs out of her drawer for the first time as part of her make-over.
- Granny Classic: Gillian describes Elspeth as being an elderly lady with "white hair and white glasses" who owns a small dog.
- Hot Witch: Elspeth was apparently this when she was younger; see I Was Quite a Looker.
- I Was Quite a Looker: Elspeth was known to be very beautiful in her youth; Iliana states that it was said she was so beautiful "a prince fell in love with her".
- Long Lost Sibling: Both of them are this to Grandma Harman. She doesn't find out they survived until around eight decades after they disappeared.
- Noodle Incident: Iliana's anecdote about a prince supposedly falling for Elspeth is left quite vague.
- Out of Focus: Emmeth gets much less focus compared to Elspeth; the only novel where he is significantly mentioned is Dark Angel, due to the revelation he's Angel's great-grandfather. This may be partly justified in that Elspeth's female descendants are all considered to be 'true' Harmans due to witches being matrilineal, which forms plot points in three novels (Dark Angel, Black Dawn and Witchlight); the Wild Power prophecies also indicate that one of the Wild Powers will be a lost Harman ("one from the hearth which still holds the spark"), meaning one of her descendants is the most likely candidate. As it turns out, she's the great-grandmother of two major characters, Gillian (The Protagonist of Dark Angel, who was considered a possibility for the Wild Power) and Iliana (the Deuteragonist of Witchlight and the true Wild Power).
- Theme Twin Naming: Elspeth and Emmeth. Also counts as Family Theme Naming when you include their older sister, Edgith.
Gwen Lennox
Gwen Lennox
Appears in: Dark Angel
Gillian Lennox's mother; a supporting character in Dark Angel.
- Alcoholic Parent: To Gillian. Very much Played for Drama, as her drinking causes her to neglect Gillian and she can't hold down a job.
- Awful Wedded Life: It's strongly implied her drinking and depressive states have ruined her relationship with her husband; Gillian indicates they fight a lot and that her dad sometimes doesn't even bother coming home. He actually moves out early in the story. He comes back in the end though and has his arm around Gwen, suggesting a possible reconciliation.
- Drowning My Sorrows: She's implied to be depressed and copes with it by drinking. It's later confirmed that she first began drinking as she believed she was losing her mind due to having 'hallucinations', which she didn't realise were actually psychic abilities.
- No Name Given: In Dark Angel, she's simply referred to as Mrs Lennox or Gillian's mother. The fanguide and family tree reveal her first name is Gwen.
- Parents as People: Although neglectful, it's obvious she does love her daughter; a notable example being when she helps straighten up Gillian's new haircut and compliments her on how well it suits her. Gillian, for her part, flips out when people mock her mother's alcoholism and gains a new understanding and sympathy for her when Angel reveals she's a lost witch too.
- Pink Elephants: She often hallucinates when she drinks heavily, seeing or hearing things that aren't there. It's actually subverted later on; it turns out that she began 'hallucinating' before she began drinking, and that her 'hallucinations' are actually her latent witch powers playing up.
- The Reveal: She's actually a descendent of Elspeth Harman and a lost witch, passing on her abilities to her daughter.
Iliana Dominick
Iliana Dominick
Appears in: Witchlight
"I'm the Witch Child. They'd better listen to me."
One of the main protagonists of Witchlight. She is a lost Harman, the third Wild Power and the Witch Child, destined to unite the witches and shapeshifters and save the world.
- Arranged Marriage: With Galen. Averted, much to Keller's relief.
- Badass Boast: In the climax of Witchlight:Azhdeha! Hashteher! Tiamat! Poisonous Serpent! Cold-blooded Biter! Rastaban! Anguis! I am a witch and the daughter of a witch. Mine was the hand that took your power; mine was the hand that buried you in silence. Hecate was the most ancient of my mothers. Hecate's hand is my hand now. Mine is the hand that sends you back! Mine is the power of the ages! Mine is the power OF THE END OF THE WORLD!
- Betty and Veronica: The Betty to Keller's Veronica for Galen.
- The Chosen One: Is one of the Wild Powers and is the Witch Child.
- Classical Anti-Hero: She's rather flighty, prone to hysterics and has no confidence in her abilities whatsoever, nor any initial desire to help the Daybreakers. However, she is a very compassionate person deep down, with much of her story arc revolving around her realising what is truly at stake and overcoming her doubts to do the right thing.
- Did Not Get The Guy: She starts to get feelings for Galen, her betrothed, but in the end she arranges things so he and Keller can be together, and is genuinely happy for them both.
- The Dragonslayer: In the end, she is the one who takes down Azhdeha.
- Elemental Motifs: She's associated with air. She's noted to be delicate-looking and flighty, but is stronger than she seems. One of her titles is also "Mistress of Air".
- Fire-Forged Friends: Eventually with Keller.
- The Heart: She’s the most gentle and compassionate of the group in Witchlight, though also rather delicate and helpless…at first, anyway.
- Hidden Depths: She initially comes across as a self-absorbed ditz, but is revealed to genuinely well-liked amongst her peers and very compassionate and altruistic, often helping out her classmates and their families and doing community work. That, and being an incredibly powerful witch, though she only embraces her true potential near the end.
- I Just Want to Be Normal / Refusal of the Call: For most of Witchlight.
- The Ingenue: Invoked when Winnie explains that Iliana is "Too pure for this stuff," not a coward. Not to mention Iliana's silver-gold hair, violet eyes, 'glow,' and the fact that a small character is described as almost as small as she is.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: She tells Keller that she had started to develop feelings for Galen, despite her initial hesitation about marrying him, but that she saw that he and Keller belonged together and arranged for them to be a couple.
- Let's Get Dangerous!: In the climax, after spending the entire book as The Load, she is the only hero left standing and manages to finally summon blue fire and single handedly finishes off Azhdeha, whilst making an incredibly Badass Boast.
- The Load: For most of Witchlight, before taking some serious levels in badass.
- Lovable Alpha Bitch: She's the most popular girl at her school, very beautiful and a bit ditzy and shallow with Skewed Priorities...but it turns out the reason she's so popular is because she's genuinely very nice to everyone.
- Magnetic Hero: She is known to be very charismatic and friendly, easily attracting and befriending other people.
- Meaningful Name: Iliana means "bright" or "shining light".
- Mystical White Hair: Has silver-gold hair.
- The Ojou: Keller observes that almost the entire school seems to be "in love" with Iliana and that she easily draws respect and influence from her peers. Of course, she was unaware for much of her life that she technically is royalty.
- Playing with Fire: As a Wild Power, she possesses the ability to use blue fire. She can also use witchlight, a similar (though less powerful) ability that manifests as colored flames.
- The Poorly Chosen One: Comes across as this for much of Witchlight. Iliana refuses to have anything to do with the Night World and doesn’t even seem to be able to summon blue fire, despite her efforts. She only grudgingly accepts her role because she realises how many people are depending on her, but still doesn’t believe she’s a Wild Power. Even Keller starts to have doubts...until the climax of the novel, where Iliana stands alone against Azhdeha and incinerates him with blue fire, after which she fully embraces her destiny.
- Princess Classic: She's compared to a classic fairy-tale princess in appearance and demeanor, especially next to Galen. However, though kind, gentle and beautiful, she's a lot flightier than the average Princess Classic (and revealed to be tougher than she looks by the end).
- Prophecy Twist: In her capacity as the Witch Child, Iliana is told that she is destined to secure an alliance between shapeshifters and witches by marrying the crown prince of the royal shapeshifter house. Instead she declares herself blood sister to werepanther Keller, who is Galen's soulmate, and declares that this form the basis of the alliance.
- Protectorate: To Keller and her team, who have sworn to protect her from the Night World. As Iliana is a Wild Power, the fate of the world depends on her survival, although the team eventually comes to protect Iliana as their friend, too.
- Shipper on Deck: It's revealed in the end that she thinks Galen and Keller should be together; she even alters the terms of the witch-shapeshifter alliance so that she and Galen don't have to marry, saying he and Keller should get hitched instead because "she's the one he loves".
- Spoiled Brat: Keller accuses her of being one at first, given her flightiness and apparent selfishness, but from what we eventually see she's very sweet; although quite sheltered, pampered and feisty at times, she is a genuinely good and kind person.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Grandma Harman states she looks "exactly" like her own mother when she was her age.
- Sworn Brothers: She declares herself blood sisters with Keller after performing a blood tie with her.
- Technicolor Eyes: Has light violet eyes.
- Took a Level in Badass: Starts out as a flighty Damsel in Distress. In the end, she's able to nearly singlehandedly fight and take down a dragon and heal her friends' injuries with magic.
Anna Dominick
Anna Dominick
Appears in: Witchlight
The mother of Iliana and Alex. She's a lost witch descended from Elspeth Harman.
- Accidental Misnaming: She begins calling Keller 'Kelly'. Keller thinks it because she can't handle the fact her despised first name means "demon".
- Good Parents: She seems to be a loving mother and Iliana turned out pretty well, all things considered. Alex is also a very friendly and chipper little boy.
- Happily Married: To Iliana and Alex's father.
- Interspecies Romance / Muggle–Mage Romance: With her human husband, although she's unware she's actually a witch.
- Mystical White Hair: Has white-gold hair, a clear indicator of her Harman lineage.
- Nice Girl: She's very kind and amiable.
- Series Continuity Error: The family tree indicates her name is Anya and that she's not a lost Harman, but a human woman, whilst her husband is a lost witch. However, this blatantly contradicts the books, where she's explicitly called Anna and has features typical of the Harman family. Iliana is also regarded as a 'true' Harman, descended from the female line, which means she can't have gained her witch heritage through her dad.
- Technicolor Eyes: She has violet eyes like her daughter (and other members of her maternal family).
Sybil Harman
Sybil Harman
Mother to Edgith (Grandma Harman), Elspeth and Emmeth. She is briefly mentioned in Witchlight.- Bit Character: All we really know about her is that she's the mother of Edgith and her Long Lost Siblings, and she's only mentioned in passing or vaguely referred to. Given she's apparently been deceased for quite some time, this is justified.
- No Name Given: Her first name isn't mentioned in the novels themselves, only on the family tree.
- Mystical White Hair: A given, seeing as she's said to greatly resemble Iliana, who has silvery blonde hair.
- Posthumous Character: She's been deceased for some time by the main events of the series (the family tree states she was born in 1889).
- Strong Family Resemblance: Grandma Harman says she looked "exactly" like her great-great granddaughter Iliana when she was her age. As a result, Grandma Harman can tell right away that Iliana truly is a lost Harman witch.
- Technicolor Eyes: It can be inferred she had violet eyes like Iliana, on account of their noted resemblance.
Mal Harman
Mal Harman
One of the main characters of Strange Fate. He's one of the soulmates of Sarah Strange and, unusually, is stated as being a vampire-witch hybrid, with a Harman mother and Redfern father.- Childhood Friend Romance: Possibly with Sarah.
- Friendly Rivalry: Seems to have a bit of one with Kierlan, especially in regards to Sarah.
- Love Triangle: He's stated as being one of Sarah's soulmates, the other being Kierlan Drache.
- Nom de Mom: For whatever reason, he's known as Mal Harman (his mother's surname), instead of Mal Redfern.
- Non-Human Humanoid Hybrid: He's stated to be a vampire-witch hybrid - his mother is a witch and his father is a lamia, though usually the offspring of a lamia-witch pairing will be either or, rather than a true hybrid. Whether or not he'll have any kind of Hybrid Power due to his lineage remains to be seen.
- The Stoic: He's seems to have a rather aloof demeanour and is "the master of the cold stare", though he's warmer towards Sarah.
- Those Two Guys: With Kierlan. They're both constantly hanging around with Sarah.
Historical Harmans
Hellewise Hearth-Woman
Hellewise Hearth-Woman
Appears in: Soulmate note | Black Dawn
A legendary figure in witch history. She was leader of the prehistoric witch tribes, who sacrificed herself to fight her twin sister Maya to protect her people. She's revered as a hero by the witches and is the direct ancestor of the Harmans.
- Alliterative Name: Hellewise Hearth-Woman.
- Beauty Equals Goodness: She was very beautiful and also very kind and goodhearted. This is a sharp contrast to her sister, who whilst beautiful, is definitely not a nice person.
- Benevolent Mage Ruler: Served as the ruler of the witches after her mother's passing, though it's unclear if she inherited Hecate's title of queen along with her position, as she's never exactly addressed this way. She is depicted as a caring, compassionate leader who gave her own life to protect her people; she also created a law preventing witches from harming humans with their powers, encouraging the two species to live in harmony.
- Big Good: Was this back in the Stone Age to the witches and humans, during the war against Maya.
- Cain and Abel: Her twin sister Maya challenged her to single combat for the right to control their tribe. Hellewise succeeded in driving her away, but died of her injuries.
- Famous Ancestor: To all the Harmans, although Thea in particular strongly identifies with her and is said to resemble her.
- Good Is Not Soft: Maya was sorely mistaken in believing her sister was too gentle and loving to try and stop her. Although no details of their duel are given, Hellewise managed to defeat Maya despite the fact she was a vampire - with enhanced strength, speed, senses etc. - who retained her witch abilities too.
- Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Had blonde hair and was very compassionate and purehearted.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Died of her injuries after fighting her twin sister to the death, to protect her tribe.
- Meaningful Name: She was said to be very "wise".
- Morality Chain: For Thierry to an extent. When he first rose as a vampire, in his confused and blood-deprived state he tried to attack his own brother...but immediately stopped when he saw Hellewise looking on in horror, tears in her eyes.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: It's mentioned that she actually helped Maya in her research to become immortal, but refused to go through with it when she learnt it would involve human sacrifice. Maya, however, had no such compunctions and the rest is history.
- Offscreen Moment of Awesome: Her defeat of Maya in a duel. See Good Is Not Soft.
- Polar Opposite Twins: With Maya, both in looks and personality. Maya is black-haired with ever-changing eyes, while Hellewise was fair-haired with brown eyes. Where Maya is sultry, vicious, power-hungry and self-centered to the point of possible narcissism, Hellewise was gentle (for the most part), compassionate, devoted to her people and didn't pursue power if it meant innocent people would be harmed.
- Posthumous Character: She's been dead for thousands of years by the events of the series.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: When Thierry came to her for help after Maya turned him into a vampire, Hellewise willingly listened to his story without judgement and then freely offered him help, giving him herbs that would let him sleep for centuries until his soulmate Hannah was reborn.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: She was quite an active ruler, even picking her own herbs rather than getting someone else to do it for her, and making good on her promise to stop Maya.
- Ship Tease: With Thierry, although it ultimately doesn't go anywhere. Given that the family tree and fanguide state she married Thierry's brother, this may add an element of Settle for Sibling.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: Her modern-day descendant Thea is said to greatly resemble her in both appearance and demeanour.
- Universally Beloved Leader: The only people who don't seem to love and respect her are her twin sister and her nephew. Even thousands of years after her death, she continues to be beloved by witches everywhere, who often refer to themselves as "the Sons/Daughters of Hellewise" in her honor (although only the Harmans are her direct descendents).
Iluna Hearth-Woman
Iluna Hearth-Woman
The daughter of Hellewise Hearth-Woman and Conlan Spearthrower, who presumably ruled the witch clans after her mother's death.- All There in the Manual: She's only mentioned directly and by name on the family tree.
- Benevolent Mage Ruler: It can be assumed she became this to the witch clans, succeeding her mother.
- Connected All Along: The family tree and fanguide reveal she is Thierry's niece through his brother Conlan, though he never mentions this in the books.
- Meaningful Name: Her name is from the Basque language, possibly meaning "obscure" or "mysterious" (it also potentially means "darkness", "gloomy" or "somber"), which seems appropriate for a witch character with few known details. It's also possibly a variation of Ilona – a Hungarian name potentially meaning "bright"; Ilona was also the Queen of the Fairies in Magyar folklore – or Luna – an Italian/Spanish name meaning "moon" and the name of the Latin counterpart of the Greek moon goddess Selene – both of which are equally appropriate for a witch queen.
- Missing Mom: Her mother Hellewise died fighting her Evil Aunt Maya in a duel.
- Posthumous Character: A given, seeing as she lived during the Stone Age.
- Unknown Character: She's only vaguely or indirectly alluded to in the books, but we know she existed because Hellewise had to have given birth to at least one daughter before her death to carry on the Hearth-Woman/Harman line. Iluna gets a little bit more detail in expanded material.
Maeve Harman
Maeve Harman
The matriarch of the Harmans in the 17th century. Wife of Hunter Redfern, mother of Garnet, Lily, Dove and Roseclear. She’s responsible for uniting the witches and lamia.- Altar Diplomacy: She (reluctantly) married Hunter to bring peace between their families and unite the Night People in the face of extinction from humankind.
- Baby Factory: This was apparently how Hunter viewed her, not caring for her beyond her ability to give him an heir. Maeve wasn't too impressed and she left him after she gave him children (she got the last laugh though, because they only had girls, four of them in fact).
- Famous Ancestor: To the Harmans born after her; not quite to the same extent as Hellewise, but she is still very well-known for being the one who ended the feud between the Harmans and Redferns and helped found the Night World. She's technically this to the Redferns descended from her as well, though they tend to sideline her in favor of Hunter.
- Mama Bear: Downplayed. When she left Hunter, she took their youngest daughter with her so that Hunter wouldn’t negatively influence her (seeing how Lily turned out, this was probably a very wise decision) and she created powerful protective spells over the lamia enclaves to keep her remaining daughters and their descendants safe from harm after Dove’s death.
- Meaningful Name: Maeve means "she who intoxicates" and is the Anglicanized version of Medb; in Irish legend Medb was the warrior queen of Connacht who insisted on being equal to her husbands; she even started a war with one husband because he was slightly wealthier than her and generally didn't get along with her lovers and husbands. It's also an alternate name for Mab, the queen of the fairies in some folklore who also has connections to Medb; both seem quite fitting for Maeve Harman, the ruler of the witches who didn't much care for her husband (although Maeve's marriage to Hunter was intended to end war between them). Queen Medb is believed by some historians to have originated as a 'sovereignity goddess', whom kings would ritually wed as part of their inauguration; Hunter became a Night World Elder after he performed a blood tie with Maeve and took her as his wife.
- Outliving One's Offspring: Maeve lived during the Burning Times and the main reason she agreed to a blood tie and marriage with Hunter was to provide protection for the witches. However, it still wasn't enough to protect her daughter Dove, who was killed by a human minister - the father of the boy she hoped to marry, no less - purely for being a vampire. Which prompted her to briefly return to the Redferns, though only to help create the lamia enclaves to protect her remaining daughters.
- Parental Favouritism: She possibly liked Roseclear best, as she was her only daughter who was a witch like her and the only one she took with her when she left her husband. Not to say that she didn’t love her lamia daughters too; it’s even possible Hunter wouldn’t let her take any of her other daughters with her.
- Posthumous Character: She lived and died centuries before the main events of the series.
- Small Role, Big Impact: She’s only mentioned a few times, but is a very important character in the grand scheme of things; without her, the Night World would not exist, witches and lamia could well have been driven to extinction, many modern Redferns and Harmans that are major characters wouldn’t have been born (they being directly descended from her) and there would be no lamia enclaves.
- Taking the Kids: Downplayed. When Roseclear was still young, Maeve left Hunter and took Roseclear with her, raising her apart from him (although Garnet, Lily and Dove remained with their father). Hunter didn't seem all that concerned by this, though.
- Unwanted Spouse: She despised Hunter, eventually separating from him altogether and living elsewhere with their youngest daughter, Roseclear (the only one of their daughters who was born a witch), as she didn’t want him influencing her. The feeling was apparently mutual, with Hunter later admitting in Black Dawn that he would "never have married that witch" if he didn't need an heir.
Roseclear Harman
Roseclear Harman
The youngest daughter of Hunter Redfern and Maeve Harman. Unlike her three older sisters, she was born a witch, not a lamia, and was raised in witch culture by her mother. She’s the direct ancestor of most, if not all, modern Harmans.- Disappeared Dad: She was raised away from her father and apparently had very limited contact with him. Considering the kind of guy Hunter is, this was probably a good thing.
- Flat Character: Out of all of Hunter and Maeve’s daughters, we know the least about her; we don’t even know what she looked like. note
- Lineage Comes from the Father: Inverted. She was born a witch like her mother. Maeve solidified this by raising her away from her father’s influence, she bore the surname of Harman, not Redfern, and passed this down to her own daughter.
- Nom de Mom: Probably because she had dominant witch genes, she went by her mother's surname of Harman; she's only ever referred to as Roseclear Redfern on the family tree (and even then it's double-barrelled with Harman).
- Posthumous Character: She’s been deceased for centuries by the timeline of the main events of the series.
- The Un-Favourite: Implied. Hunter always wanted sons as it is, so he was bitterly disappointed to get four daughters. Given his general disdain for witches and the fact he never seemed very bothered that Maeve took Roseclear to live with her when she left him, it can be assumed he cared for Roseclear the least out of all his daughters. On the other hand, her mother apparently liked her best out of all her daughters, as she was the only one who was a witch like her, and she raised her to be her heir and carry on the Harman line.
