TANANARIVE DUE

The author of THE BLACK ROSE, the fictionalized biography of Madame CJ Walker, and now the supernatural thriller, THE LIVING BLOOD, Tananarive Due keeps pushing the limits. The latest book explores two issues - power and child-rearing. "I really wanted to know how it would be to raise a child who is [as] powerful [as Fana]. I believe that young children are pure emotion and their strongest drive is to be loved. They react off love - whether they don''t get enough or they get the wrong kind. Also I wanted to [explore] the line between good and evil, does it have meaning? Is power good or bad or does it depend on how it''s used?"

As a writer who enjoys suspense such as Valerie Wilson Wesley, she feels that genre is a good bridge to supernatural suspense, such as THE LIVING BLOOD. "I''m glad I''m writing at a time when I can write suspense and have black people as characters."

Ms. Due''s work will be on peopleb s lips much in the next few years. Look for the upcoming Blair Underwood movie of the prequel to BLOOD, MY SOUL TO KEEP.