Dede Sophie

Mercedes-Benz is to build a global branded charging network for its electric car  customers, starting in the US and Canada this year and rolling it out later in Europe and China, writes Brian Byrne. Announced at last week’s CES show in Las Vegas, the system in the US is envisaged to have 2,500 chargers across 400 strategically located hubs by 2027. The German carmaker will partner with local EV charging and technology companies in the scheme, which will also utilise the Mercedes me Charge system whereby the charge unit communicates directly with the vehicle without the need for manual use of a charging card or fob. Partnering with companies that provide ‘green’ electricity will be a feature of the scheme. Mercedes-Benz intends to go all-electric wherever market conditions allow by the end of this decade. 

CONGRATS TO LUCKY WINNER – MARIE! Readers, please join me welcoming Chelsea Quinn Yarbro , author of the popular Saint Germain series who’s guest blogging here today! If you have not read the series, Quinn Yarbro is well-known for her impeccable historical research and her Saint-Germain books are among her most popular works. This past summer, Quinn was a co-recipient of the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award from the Horror Writers Association. She was also the first woman to be named a Living Legend by the International Horror Guild (2006) and she is one of two women to be named a Grand Master of the World Horror Convention (2003). Her latest book is  Burning Shadows. More information can be found on http://www.chelseaquinnyarbro.net . Saint Germain and a Star’s Entrance  In any long-running series about a single character, it is important to give that character a star’s entrance in every book — that is, a way of introducing the character to the reader in such a way as to focus