QUESTION 1: About the title, does Fury’s Kiss refers to Dorina, opposed to Dory, since Midnight’s Daughter was Dory and Death’s Mistress was Christine?
Yes, it was Dorina who received the kiss (from the Irin child) which allowed her and Dory’s natures to meet and do what they did.
QUESTON 2: In Death’s Mistress, Mircea said he and Marlowe had worked to select master vampires with political views similar to their own and skilled in combat, but did any of those masters manage to get a senate seat, apart from Louis-Cesare, who was supposed to be banned, and Dory?
You’ll find out all about the senate in the next book—I promise! But I will say that Mircea and Marlowe’s faction wasn’t as successful as they had hoped, which was one reason the Consul was willing to do what she did. Simply put, they needed the extra vote.
QUESTION 3: Did Mircea know of the traditional gift to children who become masters when he changed his brothers? If so, what did he give Radu? And did Radu ever give anything to Louis-Cesare, maybe anonymously or later when they could meet again?
Yes, Mircea knew. He’d had to trap Radu (in the kind of magical snare you see him use on Vlad in Claimed by Shadow) to stop his aging, because he wasn’t a master yet when Radu became seriously ill. So by the time Mircea finally was able to change his brother, he’d had a chance to learn a little more about the vampire world. As for what he gave him–the villa in Tuscany that Radu mentions in Fury’s Kiss. It was where ‘Du became so fond of making wine!
And no, Radu couldn’t give anything to Louis-Cesare, because he wasn’t supposed to have any contact with him at all (see Midnight’s Daughter for why). He wasn’t there when Louis attained master status, as a result. So now he’s doing his best to rectify that oversight and give him Dory!
QUESTION 4: If it’s not a spoiler, does Dorina see the type and intensity of magic, when she sees the auras? How does it relate to her seeing vampires’ family line?
I think you might be confusing two of her abilities. Dory can see the bonds between vampires (or their family aura, if you like) as can some other vamps. But one of her master’s gifts, which never manifested until this book because it was carried on Dorina’s side of the mind, was also related to sight. Dorina sees further along the electromagnetic spectrum than humans, or even most vampires, including infrared. In other words, she sees heat signatures, and can therefore identify what she’s hunting even in pure darkness.
QUESTION 5: At which age did Dory begin to have problems with her powers, when did Mircea began to separate her two sides and how long did it take him to complete the barrier?
Dory began to have trouble between her two halves early, with minor blackouts even before she met Mircea. But it didn’t become a serious threat to her health until they’d been in Venice for several years. Mircea then began trying to find a solution by traveling (at great risk, because he belonged to no one and was therefore under no one’s protection) to various areas of Italy and beyond to talk to well-known healers. Incidentally, that’s why he never demonstrates any of the fear most vamps show about using the ley line system. He had to use it early on to go and come quickly, because he couldn’t afford to leave Dory for long, but he also couldn’t take her with him due to the danger.
In any case, when he failed to find help, he returned to Venice, where the family was based because it was an open port (and they therefore weren’t violating any family’s territory by being there). It made it safer for them, but nothing was safer for Dory, who was having more and more trouble as time went on. Mircea was finally left with no choice but to try his novel approach to the problem and to separate her two natures. But remember, he was not a master then. He was weak, and it drained him greatly to do what he did. He got a little help, as you’ll see in “Masks”, but it was still an uphill battle to contain a vampire half that was gaining in strength almost as fast as he was.
It took decades to isolate Dory from her other nature. But Mircea never “completed” the barrier because Dorina never stopped growing in power and thereby threatening its integrity. He managed to stabilize Dory a few decades after he gained master status, which was lucky, because having a dhampir attached to his growing court was gaining her too much attention. It was likely to get her killed if she stayed with him any longer (because dhampirs were a no-no in the vampire world), so he had to let her go. But he erased much of her memory before doing so. He was afraid that, if she knew about Dorina, it would have been impossible to keep her from reaching out to her other side and thereby to maintain the barrier.
And it required maintaining. That was one reason, beyond wanting to see her, that Mircea reconnected with her every decade or so. He had to check on the stability of the wall, and to add to it as necessary, or risk a breech. Dorina had inherited his mental abilities, and while she was completely untrained and also handicapped by only being “out” occasionally, she had nonetheless gained master status. And containing a mentally adept master is not so easy.
Hope that clarifies things!
QUESTION 6: Marlowe has some diehard fans and we’re a little obsessed with his sex life, since it seems he hasn’t been laid for about 400 years. This would clearly explain why he’s perpetually angry! Maybe this also explains why, after reading Fury’s Kiss, some of us are now speculating wildly about him and Dory. I mean, what was that ‘searing look’ about at the end? Any words of comfort for frustrated Marlowe fans?
Lol! Where do you guys come up with this stuff? Honestly!
But you asked, so firstly, Marlowe has never been celibate, much less for 400 years! Secondly, he isn’t perpetually angry, just when he’s around Dory. Third, I honestly applaud the creativity, but no. Just…no. It is safe to say that Dory and Marlowe loathe each other (see Q&A #33 for why, beyond the obvious). However, I will say that Dory’s love life has some…ups and downs…headed her way. Or should I say, Dorina’s does? :-)