This is a list of most of the significant characters that appear in the series, including a brief summary of who they are and what book they appear in. Necessarily contains (mild) spoilers.
Mortals
Kate Kane: hard-drinking, down-at-heel private investigator. Dated a vampire when she was 17, swore she’d never do it again. She’s one half faery princess, which is less fun than you’d think. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Miles Archer: Kate’s former partner, now deceased. Murdered by Corin Black for reasons never fully explained. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet (yet to appear in the series)
Thom & Jenny Kane: Kate’s father and step-mother. He’s the former consort of The Queen of the Wild Hunt. She got him got out of the Deep Wild at the cost of his eyes. They don’t fight crime but they do have a nice allotment in Consett. First Mentioned in: Iron & Velvet (yet to appear in the series)
Eve Locke: Kate’s ex-girlfriend, now a dotcom billionaire. It ended badly after five years. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Sofia Kyprianides: Seventeen year old schoolgirl, plagued by visions and the subject of one of Patrick’s frequent obsessions. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
The Merchant of Dreams: genderqueer faeblooded pawnbroker. Drives a hard bargain and always pays their debts. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Natasha Shawcross: Also known as Tash the Teatotal Lesbian, tries to pull Kate in The Candy Bar, later has need of a paranormal detective. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Hugh Shawcross: Tash’s brother, reported missing at the beginning of Shadows & Dreams. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Corin Black: Art thief, conwoman and femme fatale. Currently serving a life sentence for the murder of Miles Archer. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams.
Vampires
Julian Saint-Germain: Prince of Cups, presiding over vice, pleasure and entertainment. An eight hundred year old vampire: utterly hedonistic, largely amoral and easily distracted by attractive mortals in fedoras. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Thomas Pryce: Prince of Coins, governing trade, high finance and law. Reserved and calculating, with a puritanical streak. Not a big fan of Kate. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Aeglica Thrice-Risen: Prince of Swords, head of vampire security. A man of few words. He has a history of bloodshed stretching back to approximately the 5th century. Kate calls him a Viking but he’s technically a Jute. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Sebastian Douglas: Prince of Wands, keeper of secrets. This golden-haired Oxford resident favours white suits, straw boaters and centuries long intrigues. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Patrick Knight: Kate’s highschool sweetheart. A hundred year old vampire with the boyish good looks and emotional maturity of a 17 year old. Hasn’t quite worked she out dumped him yet. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Mercy: Progeny of Aeglica Thrice-Risen. Scary beyond all reason. Was once the most celebrated courtesan in Venice. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Sir Caradoc: Progeny of Agelica Thrice-Risen. One-time knight of the Hospital of St John, turned vampire enforcer. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Kauri Kalili aka Miss Parma Violet: Respected boylesque performer of Julian’s bloodline. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
The Morrigan: One-time Vampire Queen of the British Isles, cast down by the Council in the 17th Century. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Sybil: Called the High Priestess, member of the vampire Council, rumoured to be a prophetess, she carries a snake and seldom speaks. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Abu Ishaq Jibril al-Rashid: Called The Emperor, member of the vampire Council. Killed by Sir Caradoc during the First Crusade, he rose again as a vampire and now holds a position of power in Istanbul. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Zelda Fey: Called the Wheel of Fortune, member of the vampire Council. A socialite turned in the 1920s, how she got a seat on the Council remains a mystery. She claims won it in a game of cards. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Kemsit: Called Justice, member of the vampire Council. An ancient vampire of terrifying power with the physical appearance of a 12 year old girl. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Diego de Flores: Called Death, member of the vampire Council. Once an Inquisitor, always an Inquisitor. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Acton Knight: Called Temperance, member of the vampire Council. Patrick’s adoptive father, he and his husband, Emile, have been caring for the waifs and strays of the undead community for four hundred years. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams.
Thierry Chevalier: Acton’s husband and maker, a French nobleman taken hostage at Agincourt. Enjoys landscape gardening and throwing dinner parties. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Endymion Knight: one of the Knight’s many children, turned by Acton at the end of the 19th century. Golden-haired and dissolute, he plays the piano beautifully and incessantly. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Werewolves
Tara Vane-Tempest: IT Girl, polo-player, lingerie model, and alpha werewolf. Seldom takes no for an answer. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Henry Vane-Tempest: son of the previous Alpha but exiled from the pack following gender assignment surgery. Returned as Tara’s second in command after she assumed control the family. Also plays polo. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
The Dowager Duchess of Safernoc: former Alpha of the Vane-Tempests and still matriarch of Safernoc Hall. Fiercely loyal to her family and will let nothing stand in its way. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
‘Jumbo’: The Vane-Tempest family’s portly PR man. He likes port, armchairs and the sound of his own voice. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Andrew Vane-Tempest: minor member of the Vane-Tempest family, found mysteriously dead outside The Velvet. First appears in: Iron & Velvet (but he’s dead at the time)
Louise Vane-Tempest: Tara’s mother, brought shame on the family by marrying and then divorcing an American werewolf in London. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet
Tuffy & Smudge Vane-Tempest: Two slightly interchangeable members of the Vane-Tempest dynasty. First appears in: um, I actually can’t remember on account of them being so interchangeable.
Mages
Nimue One of Kate’s many exes and the present Witch Queen of London. Hers is the subtle power of mists and dreams. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Gabriel: Guardian of the Watchtower of the North, Nimue’s court seer and dedicated house husband. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Michelle: Guardian of the Watchtower of the South, biker chick with a thing for fire, and Nimue’s sheriff. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Rachel: Guardian of the Watchtower of the East, does telecommunications magic out of a call centre in Hackney, and Nimue’s herald. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet
Jacob Guardian of the Watchtower of the West, necromancer and Transport for London employee, Nimue’s advisor on dark and forbidden magic. First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
Maeve Fiery, red-headed blood witch, worships old mad gods that are probably faeries. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Russell: Somehow unlocked the secret of breathing life into inanimate matter, created Elise. Little more is known about him. First mentioned in: Iron & Velvet
Tarquin Only really exists in my head but there is a scene in Iron & Velvet in which someone conjure a flock of fiery birds to attack their enemy and I took to calling this individual Tarquin the Effeminate Fire Mage. First appears in: Iron & Velvet Gratuitously mentioned in: Shadows & Dreams.
Artie King: East end gangster who fought Nimue for the demesne of London about six years before the events of Iron & Velvet. Now serving a 10 stretch for GBH. Will appear in: Fire & Water.
Faeries
The Queen of the Wild Hunt: Kate’s absentee mother, a living embodiment of the wild, the chase and the lust for blood. Not winning any good parenting awards any time soon. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
The King of the Court of Love: A living embodiment of the ideals of courtly love, thought destroyed of the Order of St Agrippina in the late 12th century. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
The Queen of Winter the King of Shadows: A living embodiment of darkness, cold and bargains better left unmade. First mentioned in: Shadows & Dreams (yet to appear in the series)
The Pale Stag: A living embodiment of death, decay and withered things. His realm abuts the forest of Safernoc and he has a long-standing feud with the Vane-Tempests. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Demons & Angels
Ashriel: Fallen angel and reformed incubus, Julian Saint-Germain’s confidente and right-hand man. Currently the only demon in the series but watch this space. First appears in:Iron & Velvet
Gethsemane: Either an incubus or a succubus depending on who you are or what mood you catch them in. A compatriot of Ashriel’s from back in the day (the day being the War in Heaven). First appears in: Shadows & Dreams
The Angel of St Pauls: A sinister avarice demon who takes the form of a harmless old man who sits on the steps of St Pauls, feeds the pigeons, and grants wishes you probably don’t wanted granted. First appears: Shadows & Dreams
Others
Elise: Technically less than a year old, Elise is a statue animated by ancient and secret magic. She has a fondness for gadgets and hot water. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Edmund Carew: The Voice of Multitude. Speaks for the gestalt rat consciousness that lurks beneath the city of London. First appears in: Iron & Velvet
Jack & Nancy: A brother and sister team who sell information and miscellaneous bling from a stall in Camden. PS, they’re rats. First appear in: Iron & Velvet
Hephaistion Another animated statue, working for and presumably created by The Prince of Wands First appears in: Shadows & Dreams