Mark Haeuser takes his training as a police officer, Swat team sniper, and martial arts expert and turns it into a very exciting read. HUNTERS OF THE SHADOWS is about a group of vampire hunters who literally decimate hundreds of evil vampires and their human minions to save a young girl and prevent the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy. Creed is a thousand year old Gypsy prince, his life extend by gypsy magic so that he might fight the undead. For hundreds of years he has fought alone, but in this battle he won't be alone. Selma is a gypsy witch, destined to be his mate and to bear the next prince, if she survives. Jake is a martial arts expert and weapon collector who becomes caught up in vampire hunting when he buys the wrong, or rather the right weapon, a magical sword that turns him into a Vampire hunter. Then there is Taz, the alley cat, a cat but not just any cat, but one of the ancient Trillii warrior princes, who from the time of the Pharaohs have protected mankind from the undead. Then there is Father Joe, not your ordinary Catholic priest, but trained in exorcism and other means for dealing with Satan's minions.
And perhaps the oddest ally, Creed's long time enemy, Lord Rasmere, a 2000-year-old True Blood vampire, who chooses to fight with Creed against the upstart Vampire lord Pakur, the new breed of turned, not born vampires, who seek to destroy the old order and take over power of not only the vampires, but the whole world.
This book is non-stop action. It reminded me of CAIN by James Byron Huggins, another action / adventure story with lots and lots of fighting as the heros struggle to save the world from Satan's power. What made this book for me was the richness of detail. Not just the fight sequences, although they are very detailed and I am sure accurate. You certainly could picture the action. But the backgrounds of the characters, their history, their lives, and the use of legends. The characters are well defined and different from each other. Jake is a wise-cracking modern man, Rasmere a likeable bad guy, Taz, definitely the arrogant cat, and Creed is just tortured enough. It is in fact loaded with interesting characters, men, ghosts, and demons.
Although it could have done with a better copyedting job, the writing is vivid and well done. I enjoyed Hunters of the Shadows.
Those Who Hunt The Night
Ballantine Books
Copyright 1988
ISBN: 0-345-36132-6
Series:
Genre: Mystery Vampire
I just had the pleasure of re-reading one of my all time favorite vampire novels. Those Who Hunt The Night is a true mystery, one of those late Victorian mysteries made popular by Arthur Conan Doyle and later Anne Perry and others. It is set in the dark foggy London, among the mews and cribs of the lower caste, the musty museums, and the homes of the rich.
The oldest Vampire in London, Don Simon Ysidro approaches James Ashe, a retired player of the Great Game and now Oxford lecturer. Ysidro wants to hire James to find a vampire killer who is killing his fellow vampires. Hire is not quite the right word, coerce is more like it, for Ysidro threatens not only James' life, but the life of his beloved wife Lydia.
Lydia is very much the modern heroine, beautiful, but also bright. She is trained as a doctor and appreciates a husband that treats her with respect and as a partner. Their relationship reminds me of several of my favorite mystery heroines, Amelia Peabody by Elizabeth Peters, and Mary Russell by Laurie R. King. Unknown to the vampires, James brings Lydia to London with him, and while he deals with the vampires, Lydia does her own hunting, through the records and the museums and medical journals. In fact it is Lydia who discovers who the killer is and almost loses her life for it.
What makes this book special is the creative and subtle way that Barbara Hambly weaves the background of the vampires in through the story, making them an integral part. By the time you finish, the vampires have become very real, with true personalities, not only to you but to the hero and heroine. Today, authors tend to lump together explanations of the background of the vampires in large indigestible chunks of exposition or just repeat what everyone already knows and has read in every other vampire book or uses a sort of short hand without bothering to flesh out the vampires and their background. For lovers of the vampire, Those Who Hunt the Night is an exceptional book. For aspiring vampire authors, it is an excellent example of how it should be done.
Though I make a policy not to review books that are out of print, because I hate reading about a good book that you can't find, Those Who Hunt the Night and its sequel Traveling With The Dead are too good not to mention. I checked and they are still available at Amazon.com used books and I assume other used book sellers.
I really wish she had spent more time writing about Vampires, but these two books and a short story in Sisters of the Night is all there is so far. According to her official website,
http://www.barbarahambly.com, there may be more vampire books in the future, but not any time soon. Babara Hambly is a prolific writer, with books that range from Star Trek and Star Wars novels, fantasies and historical novels, and a mystery series about Benjamin January, a free black man in New Orleans in the early 1800's. You can check out her website to find out more about her and her books.
Narcissus
in Chains
By Laurell K. Hamilton
Berkley Publishing Group
Copyright October 2001
ISBN: 0425181685
Series: "Anita Blake Vampire Hunter - #10
NARCISSUS IN CHAINS is the latest in Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita
Blake series. One friend who read it commented that if he wanted to read
pornography he would have bought pornography and thought it was her
worst book so far. Another thought it was her absolutely best book. I’m
somewhere in the middle. Almost gone is the mystery element of the
earlier stories, the detective trying to solve a crime and catch the
prenatural monster. Oh yes, there is still definitely a new monster out
to get Anita, and this one is one really sick and horrible bastard. But
the mystery element is gone. Anita just reacts instead of trying to
solve a crime. Since I love mysteries, I was disappointed with that part
of the book. But as someone who is absolutely addicted to the soap opera
that is Anita’s life, I certainly wasn’t disappointed. Her
relationship with Jean Claude and Richard certainly got more complicated
with the addition of another new man-- monster--in her life, a
wereleopard named Micah. Or should I say several new men in her life, as
Nathaniel and Damien take on new roles. Laurell has always been accused
of writing erotic horror and she certainly has taken it to a higher
level in this book, a direction her books have been moving, echoing the
style of A KISS OF SHADOWS, the beginning of her fairy series. Her books
have always reflected an interest in BDSM, sexual bondage, and Dominance
and submissive games. If reading about such things makes you
uncomfortable, you won’t enjoy NARCISSUS IN CHAINS. But is it
pornography? I would say a definite no! But it is very much erotica with
Anita involved in sexual situations throughout the majority of the book.
It definitely deserves an R rating. NARCISSUS IN CHAINS is not the book
to start reading the series with. If you aren’t familiar with what has
happened before, you aren’t going to understand what is going on and
the story isn’t strong enough to hold your interest. NARCISSUS IN
CHAINS was both deeply satisfying and disappointing, but well written in
her usual enjoyable style, and as with all her stories, once I had
begun, I couldn’t put it down.
CERULEAN SINS by Laurell K. Hamilton
Published by Berkley Books
Copyright 2003
ISBN: # 0-425-18836-1
SERIES: "Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #11"
Genre and Sub-Genre: Fantasy, Vampire
In CERULEAN SINS, writer Laurell K. Hamilton has finally found a
balance of the themes that make her books so interesting. Returning to
the format of her earliest books, Anita is once again working with the
police to solve a series of particularly vicious werewolf attacks, but
this time as the new delegated U.S. Marshal Blake. But gone is the
camaraderie between her, Dolph and the other members of the RIPT team.
When she brings a werewolf, Jason, to a crime scene, the leader of the
unit, Dolph, goes ballistic, even arresting Jason, forcing Anita to
reveal more of her private life than she wants.
Thanks to her relationship as servant of Jean Claude, Master Vampire
of the City, Anita suffers from the ardeur, a condition that
forces her to feed on sexual energy at least once every twelve hours.
The condition presents big problems for Anita, who doesn’t believe in
casual sex. It was hard enough when she was in love with two men, Jean
Claude and Richard. Now her life is much more complicated. Richard hates
her, sees her as more a monster than himself. In his place is Micah, the
leader of the wereleopards and her soul mate and of course her beloved
Jean Claude. In CERULEAN SINS, Anita is confronted with more challenges
with two new lovers. The author manages very well to walk that tightrope
that has been there from the beginning, as Anita struggles to remain
true to herself and her morals in the face of overwhelming male beauty
and sensuality. Treating the reader to some truly memorable moments of
pleasure.
Of course, Anita and Jean Claude are up against another all powerful
vampire out to destroy them. As horrific as La Belle is, the sick, sado-masochistic
horror has been toned down.
Any fan of Anita Blake will find CERULEAN SINS utterly satisfying.
One of the best so far. As for newcomers to the series, I am sure once
they read CERULEAN SINS, they will want to read to
whole series and will be waiting eagerly for the next volume as I am.
INCUBUS
DREAMS by Laurell K. Hamilton Published by Penguin Books
Copyright 2004
ISBN: 0-425-19824-3
Series: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter #12
Genre Subgenre: Vampire Erotica
A long time ago someone labeled Laurell K. Hamilton as an erotic
horror writer. Now I would call her just a plain author of erotica. If
you do not enjoy reading erotica, I can no longer recommend her books
especially INCUBUS DREAMS. But with that one caveat I highly recommend
INCUBUS DREAMS. I found it very satisfying on so many levels. For one,
she and Richard are back together. Or should I say, she and Richard and
Jean Claude. That’s right. And as always with Anita and Richard and
Jean Claude, it is tension packed and highly sexual, satisfyingly so.
Oh, and Anita is back doing what she does best, working with the police
to hunt the monsters. She’s going in armed and dangerous and ready to
kill. This time a vampire serial killer or rather a kiss of vampire
serial killers, who are leaving a string of dead strippers across St.
Louis. Don’t you love the term, kiss. A gaggle of geese, a pride of
lions, and a kiss of vampires.
But more than anything this book is about relationships, not just
Anita’s, but her best friend Ronnie has problems. Even Richard has his
own problems with his new girlfriend and comes to Anita for advice. And
of course, Anita has big problems. The book is about coming to terms
with ourselves and letting go of attitudes and the expectations of
others that keep us from what we truly want. I found what the author has
to say extremely insightful. As Anita Blake says, maybe she is getting
wiser.
Did I call Laurell K. Hamilton just a plain author of erotica?
Actually she is a very good erotic author, extremely imaginative and
highly skilled at description. There are no cliches here and no
repetitions in all 9 sexual encounters, with 13 partners, but then who
is counting. I may have missed some. But I guess I am a little amazed at
the breathe of Anita’s experiences, because not one is the same. This
is an extremely long book, 650 pages, and I would say over half of it is
involved with sex scenes. Is it too much? Probably. But they are tied
into the story, and the problems that Anita is having with the ardeur
and reaching another power plateau as she adds another triumvirate to
the one that already exists between Jean Claude, Richard and her.
Fans of Anita who have enjoyed the direction the series has taken,
moving into the area of ever increasing eroticism, will love this book
and feel exceptionally satisfied. Those who have been fans and aren’t
quite sure they enjoy the new direction, probably still should read it,
as the book resolves many issues and brings a clearness and a sense of
completion as Anita emerges much more mature and less conflicted. One
thing I will say, this author can’t be accused of writing the same
story over and over as this series continues to grow and expand. I think
it is about time that I re-read the whole series. That is the sign of a
good series, when it can be reread over and over again and you still
look forward to the next book.
A KISS OF SHADOWS
By Laurell K. Hamilton
Published by Ballantine Books
Copyright 2000
ISBN# 0-345-42339-9
Series: "Merry Gentry #1"
Genre Sub-genre: Paranormal
A KISS OF SHADOWS is the first in a series about the fey by Laurell
K. Hamilton, author of the Anita Blake Vampire Slayer series. When I was
growing up, It used to be just fairies, with wings and pointed ears, an
occasional troll or brownie or elf. Now it is Faerie, fey, Sidhe, Seelie
and Unseelie Court. We’ve gotten more sophisticated about such things.
Now there are lot more interesting creatures. Merry Gentry is a royal
princess of the Unseelie Court, the first born on American soil since
the fey immigrated from Europe about 200 years ago and took up residence
in Cahokia, Illinois. But life as a faerie princess is downright
dangerous, at least for Merry. She is part human and mortal. She has
royal blood from the Seelie Court, but they won’t accept her mixed
heritage. Her Aunt is Queen of the Unseelie Court, but that doesn’t
mean that Merry is particularly accept there either. She hasn’t
manifested any real power and her cousin Cel keeps plotting to kill her.
So she ran away and has been hiding in Los Angeles for three years,
working for the Grey Detective Agency, which specializes in the
supernatural. Everything is fine until she goes undercover to catch an
abusive man who is using magic to seduce women with faerie blood. She
discovers that he is using Branywn’s Tears, a mighty aphrodisiac which
will turn a mortal into a Sidhe for the night. When she tries to warn
the police of the dangers of having such a drug among the human
population by demonstrating its power, she causes a riot at the police
station. But in the meantime she is outed as the missing princess and
before she can escape, her Aunt’s bodyguards are sent to kill her.
Then coming to her rescue is the Queen’s own Darkness, Doyle, the
captain of her guard. It seems the Queen doesn’t want her dead,
instead she offers to make her heir to the throne if she can conceive a
child before her cousin Cel does and to make it interesting the Queen
offers her royal bodyguard as suitors, some of the most handsome fey in
the whole kingdom, all of whom have been forbidden to touch another
woman except the Queen. For some it has been as long as 1000 years
without any SEX.
What can I say, Laurell K. Hamilton may be a national best selling
author, but she also clearly falls in the category of an erotic writer.
Over time her Anita Blake series has become more and more erotic, with
the heroine have more and more sexual partners. This has lost her some
fans, but certainly gained her others and she continues to make the best
sellers list. With her Merry Gentry series, it is set up from the very
beginning. Merry is to have sex with as many of the guard as she can
until one of them gets her pregnant and then he will be her king. By the
end of the story, she has 6 lovers, although she hasn’t yet bedded all
of them. Laurell K. Hamilton is a master at erotic writing, making the
scenes of sexual tension hot, hot, hot, even if it is only a love bite.
But what makes this book a real winner is the complex storyline, the
political intrigue, the assassination attempts, and the myriad of
different kinds of fey. Then there is her growing relationship with each
of the characters. Like Anita Blake, Merry takes responsibility for
those around her, she cares about them. She is strong, but
compassionate, intelligent, and tough. This is no shrinking violet or
pampered princess. If you enjoy some real meat with your erotica, where
the story is more important than the sex, but the sex is great too, then
A KISS OF SHADOWS is for you.
A CARESS
OF TWILIGHT By: Laurell K. Hamilton
Ballantine Books
C Copyright 2002
ISBN: # 0-345-43527-3
SERIES: "Meredith Gentry (#2)"
Genre and Sub-Genre: Paranormal
A CARESS OF TWILIGHT is the second book in Laurell K. Hamilton’s
new faerie series. As in her Anita Blake series, faeries and other fey
creature exist in our real world and are recognized politically by our
government. The U.S.A. has become the last home of the faerie. The
majority of the Seelie and Unseelie courts live in Illinois, which
definitely seems like an unlikely place to attract the faerie.
In the first book, A KISS OF SHADOWS, Princess Meredith NicEssus,
Merry, the first real-live American born faerie princess was named heir
to the throne of the Unseelie court. There is just one catch, it is a
race between her and Queen Andais’ son Cel to see who can produce an
heir first. Merry has a head start since Cel is being punished for six
months for trying to kill Merry. To help Merry, Queen Andais has given
her the pick of her bodyguards to guard her and serve as, to be blunt,
studs. There is Doyle, also called Darkness, Frost, Rhys, Nicca, Galen,
the serpant-goblin Kitto, and added to the list in this book, a demi-fae
named Sage, who most of the time is no bigger than a Barbie Doll with
butterfly wings. Having that many men in your life is bound to make
things a bit complicated, especially when you have feelings for all of
them and know that which ever one gets you pregnant will become your
King for all time.
Although there is peace between the two courts, it hasn’t ended the
political infighting that has been going on for centuries. Merry must
walk a political tightrope, learning lessons that will make her a good
Queen. Then bad things start happening. Masses of people are found
suffocated to death. The police aren’t willing to accept a
supernatural cause, but Rhys is sure that it is the ancient ghosts of
the gods. No one should have the power to cast the spell to bring them
to life, but someone has. Then the Nameless escapes. When the faerie
moved to America, they gave up many of their more terrifying powers to
be able to live here, the last country that would have them. All those
powers were bound up into the Nameless and now the Nameless has escaped
and threatens disaster unless it can be stopped.
As with all Laurell K. Hamilton’s books, there is plenty of sex,
action, and interesting characters. Her books grab you and suck you into
a rich and vibrant world and keep you there. A CARESS OF
TWILIGHT is classical Laurell K. Hamilton and well worth reading.
SEDUCED BY MOONLIGHT
By Laurell K. Hamilton
Published by Ballantine Books
Copyright 2004
ISBN#: 0-345-44356-X
Series: "Merry Gentry #3"
Genre: Paranormal
If you like stories that are complex, that you can never guess what
is going to happen next, that capture your interest and carry you along
on a wild ride, then you are certain to like SEDUCED BY MOONLIGHT. That
is if you like the fantastical and the faerie. In this third in the
Merry Gentry series, the court politics among the fey, the magical
happenings, and the sex are even more, well just more.
It seems that many of the older Sidhe were worshiped as gods, were
actually gods, but have relinquished many of their powers in a series of
weirdings (spell castings) that stripped them of their powers so that
they might living in harmony with their neighbors. The last time was
when they immigrated to America, when in exchange for sanctuary they
bound some of their more frightening powers into the Nameless. In book
2, A CARESS OF TWILIGHT, the King of the Seelie court sends the Nameless
to Los Angeles and Merry and her guards must defeat it before it
destroys the whole city. They do, and in doing so, some of the powers
that were lost are returned.
Now more strange things are happening. With a kiss or a touch, Merry
is the vehicle which returns the godhood to some of those around her and
bringing out new powers to others. Doyle can once again shape-shift,
Nicca, whose demi-fey heritage was shown by an elaborate marking of
wings on his back, suddenly sprouts actual wings. This is not without
consequences in the real world. When she awakens the god of oceans, the
rivers all flood, Nicca’s brings an unusual windstorm. Not only that,
Merry starts having dreams where she meets the Goddess and her Consort,
and suddenly the chalice, a lost relic of great power, follows her home
from the dream. She and the reader have no idea what unusual thing is
going to happen next.
With all the strange goings on, it isn’t a really good time to go
home for a visit, but they must. At home, things get really messed up
with attempts not only on Merry’s life, but against the Queen. The
Queen, sent into a berserker’s rage by a spell, is slicing up all of
her guard and Merry’s guards as well. Suddenly Merry must pit herself
against her aunt’s power, can she stop her and live? Can they find out
who is behind the plots? Is it the Queen’s own son Cel, who has tried
to kill Merry before? Or some other Sidhe?
This book is dramatic and exciting and definitely kept me page
turning to see what Laurell K. Hamilton’s creative imagination would
think up next. It is not a book to be read out of order, there is just
too much built up from the previous two books. In fact, I would
recommend reading the series as I did, one right after the other, just
as quickly as possible. I am a quick reader and I had a whole weekend to
myself with my family gone and I treated myself to devouring the books
and I am eagerly looking forward to the next book in the series. I’m
lucky. STROKE OF MIDNIGHT will be published in April 2005. I don’t
have long to wait. Because when Merry is finished with the Unseelie
Court, she has a date with the King and the Seelie Court and there is
bound to be more dramatic events.
BLUE MOON
By Lori Handeland
Published by St. Martin Paperbacks
Copyright 2004
ISBN#: 0-312-99134-7
Series: Jäger-Suchers #1
Genre Subgenre: Romance Werewolf
Lori Handeland dishes out a wild new take on the werewolf legend.
Government conspiracies, Nazis, old Indian legends form a fascinatingly
mix worthy of Fox Mulder.
Jessie McQuade is a small town police officer. She isn’t at all
into what she derisively refers to as "woo-woo". She isn’t
about to believe that her small town in the northern Wisconsin woods has
been overrun by werewolves, still the story that there is a new viral
strain of rabies doesn’t sit well either. But then Edward Mandenauer,
an octogenarian hunter supposedly sent by the DNR to hunt down the rabid
wolves, carries silver bullets. Things are getting very weird, not to
mention the stark naked man Jessie finds in the woods. Jessie can’t
understand why the absolutely beautiful hunk, Professor Will Cadotte, is
interested in her. Definitely Beauty and the Beast, with her as the
beast. She has never been what is called attractive, but Will makes her
feel all those things. Against her will and afraid she will get hurt in
the end, she finds herself succumbing to the attraction and the passion.
But could Will just be using her? Could he be the werewolf? Is there
really someone out there building a werewolf army?
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The heroine is as hard as nails with
a sarcastic twist of humor. There is a delightful lack of the usual
romantic cliches and stupid misunderstandings. When Jessie is sure that
she has been betrayed by Will, she’s got good reason. Of course, we
know that if Will turns out to be the werewolf, he will be a good one,
but that isn’t what happens at all. This book certainly twists your
expectations upside down and leaves you howling at the moon for more.
Night Fires
By Karen Harbaugh Published by Dell Books
Copyright 2003
ISBN#: 0-553-58418-9
Genre Subgenre: Historical Romance Vampire
Michael is a secret agent sent to uncover and kill a man responsible
for the gruesome murders of two British agents and the massacre of whole
families. This mysterious man is suspected of being behind one bloody
revolution and now has turned his attentions toward England. Michael
must discover who he is and somehow stop him.
Simone is the last of her family. When she found them slaughtered by
soldiers, she killed the murderers. Now as penance for her sin, she
helps the innocent caught up in the revolution’s bloody insanity to
escape. Sounds like a modern thriller, but it takes place in France in
1793.
Simone is a wanted criminal, La Flamme, a hunchback, a hooded Robin
Hood, who outsmarts the authorities at every turn and frees Aristocrats
from the prisons and smuggles them out of the country. As Michael lands
on French soil, he sees La Flamme bringing a group of escaped prisoners
to the smugglers’ boat. When they are attacked by the authorities, he
helps them to escape. Michael needs someone who knows Paris to help him
complete his mission and he tries to coerce La Flamme. He manages to
follow and learn her secret identity. They end up married, posing as man
and wife, to throw the government agents off the track. It is an
exciting spy thriller. Can they complete their mission and identify and
eliminate the man behind all the atrocities?
And where do the vampires come in? After all, it is a vampire
romance. Simone was a young innocent, seduced and turned into a vampire.
Since then she has struggled against it, seeking through the church to
find a way for the curse to be lifted. Overcome with guilt at the
murders she committed, she willingly accepts the penance of helping
others without killing, hoping eventually she will have paid the penalty
and be restored to grace. In the meantime, she uses her vampire powers
to help others. I won’t give away the ending, if she succeeds or not,
you will just have to read.
It is very much a historical romance, more so than a vampire romance.
But for some reason, I just didn’t find the romance rang true. The
author sets up an easy going relationship between Simone and Michael,
with a lot of humor, intelligence, and wit. This is a definite
improvement over the often typical comedy of misunderstandings and
stupidity that some romances are plagued with, but the author didn’t
manage to sell the relationship for me. The dialogue often seemed forced
or just off center. The sex wasn’t particularly inspired, very low
keyed. The relationship too easily achieved.
If you are looking for a good vampire story, it only rates an ok,
although certain aspects are of interest such as having the heroine as
the vampire, instead of a male vampire. It gives her power to stand
against the males of her world, although she is handicapped by the 18th
century attitudes held by and toward females. The religious angle and
the possibility of redemption is also of interest. Unfortunately, it
wasn’t enough for me to rate it high on my list of vampire favorites.
DEAD
UNTIL DARK Charlaine Harris
Published by Ace Books
Copyright 2001
ISBN 0-441-00853-4
Series: "A Southern Vampire Mystery #1"
Genre / Subgenre: Romantic Mystery Vampire
Charlaine Harris, a well known mystery writer, has entered into the
field of vampire fiction with a unique take on the subject. Reminiscent
of Laurell K. Hamilton, Charlaine Harris builds a story about a world
where vampires have just been declared legal citizens of the United
States. But there all similarity ends. Set in the rural south, Sookie
Stackhouse is a cocktail waitress, who isn’t very well educated, but
that doesn’t mean she’s dumb. She also has a problem, her disability
she calls it, an ability to read minds. Then one day into the bar comes
a vampire, named Bill. Bill has returned to the ancestral home that he
left after the Civil War. He just wants to settle down and try to
mainstream. Sookie is fascinated, especially when she realizes that here
is one person whose mind she can’t read.
When cocktail waitresses start turning up strangled with vampire
bites, Sookie is terrified that her new friend will be blamed. Then her
grandmother is brutally murdered and suspicion points to her brother.
Sookie starts listening, trying to discover who the real killer is, but
all too soon she realizes that she is next on the killer’s list.
I have enjoyed Charlaine Harris’ other mysteries, but adding a
vampire made this even more enjoyable. A well written mystery. A very
nice romance. A very interest take on vampires and shapeshifters. It is
a winner all the way around.
Science Fiction Book Club has combined the first three books into one
book, DEAD IN DIXIE available from Amazon.com
LIVING
DEAD IN DALLAS Charlaine Harris
Published by Ace Books
Copyright 2002
ISBN 0-441-00923-9
Series: "A Southern Vampire Mystery #2"
Genre / Subgenre: Romantic Mystery Vampire
Charlaine Harris’ second novel in the Southern Vampire Mysteries,
bring Sookie Stackhouse, the waitress, together again with Bill the
Vampire.
When a co-worker is murdered and rumors begin spreading that the
murdered man was involved in a sex club in Bon Temps, no one can believe
that such a thing is happening in their little town.
But that isn’t the only problem in town. An ancient immortal
creature, a maenad, is roaming the woods, demanding tribute. Sookie is
almost killed by the creature.
To add to Sookie’s problems, she had promised Eric, the head
vampire, that she would do favors for him in exchange for leaving her
and Bill alone. Well, Eric wants a favor. The vampires of Dallas have
lost someone and they need Sookie’s talents to find out where he is.
So Sookie and Bill find themselves in Dallas where they run into some
religious fanatics who plan to serve BBQ vampire at sunrise and they
want to include Sookie in the party.
Sookie escapes with the help of a shapeshifter and in the process
learns that there is quite an organized group of the creatures. She can
hardly wait until she can tell Sam, her friend and her boss, who
sometimes is a big friendly collie.
Problems solved in Dallas, she and Bill return to Bon Temps, only to
find things getting hotter when Sookie is invited to join the sex club.
Charlaine Harris has a real winner here. The southern fried charm of
Sookie and her crazy neighbors makes for interesting reading. And Sookie
has real problems, real emotions, for not everything is going smoothly
between her and Bill. The book is imaginative and creative and well
worth reading.
Science Fiction Book Club has combined the first three books into one
book, DEAD IN DIXIE available from Amazon.com
CLUB DEAD Charlaine Harris
Published by Ace Books
Copyright: April 1, 2003
ISBN: 0441010512
Series: "A Southern Vampire Mystery #3"
Genre Subgenre: Romantic Mystery Vampire
The love of Sookie Stackhouse life, Vampire Bill, is missing. He has
been kidnaped, and Sookie is determined to rescue him, but she isn’t
quit sure how she feels about him anymore. He has been spending all his
time working on some secret vampire computer project and has almost no
time for her. Then he tells her he has to go away, to Seattle. Sookie
senses he is lying and she doesn’t like the idea of being kept in the
dark, but she doesn’t know if she likes it any better when she finally
learns what is supposedly going on.
Bill’s boss, Eric, tells her Bill is leaving her for another woman,
well another vampire. When he was kidnaped, he was returning to make
arrangements with Eric for her. Sookie feels betrayed and she certainly
doesn’t like the idea of just being handed over to Eric, like a piece
of property. But she still loves Bill or does she?
Eric convinces her she must go to Mississippi to use her telepathic
abilities to find Bill. If they don’t save Bill and find the project
he was working on, the Queen of Louisiana is going to hurt them all.
Besides, the kidnappers have already tried to grab Sookie once, and are
sure to make another attempt.
With her Eric sends Alcide, a handsome werewolf. She finds herself
very attracted to him, but it is definitely the wrong time. Alcide isn’t
over his girlfriend dumping him and Sookie doesn’t know where she
stands with Bill.
Lots happens to Sookie before Bill is safely home. From never having
even one boyfriend, suddenly she has four men, well creatures, who want
her love, at least her body. Pretty heady stuff for this Southern girl.
Shades of Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake.
CLUB DEAD is the third in the series and definitely left me wanting
more, as so many issues were unresolved. In fact the book has a sort of
an unfinished quality and an unsatisfying ending, and then again in
someways, the ending was rather satisfying as Sookie stands up for
herself and takes her life back. This series is getting very exciting
and I can hardly wait until the next book, but I do hope that it doesn’t
get bogged down in relationship problems and sticks to solving
mysteries.
Science Fiction Book Club has combined the first three books into one
book, DEAD IN DIXIE available from Amazon.com
DEAD
TO THE WORLD
By Charlaine Harris
Published by Ace Books
Copyright 2004
ISBN #: 0-441-01167-5
Series: "Southern Vampire Mystery #4"
Genre Subgenre: Romantic mystery Vampire
DEAD TO THE WORLD picks up where the previous book, CLUB DEAD, left
off. Sookie has broken up with her boyfriend Bill. Bill had planned on
leaving her for another woman, well vampire. He tries to explain that it
was for her own good, that he had to obey Lorene because she was the
vampire who made him, but Sookie isn’t about to forgive him the fact
that he lied to her and made decisions without talking to her. Even the
fact that Lorene kidnaped and tortured Bill to make him turn over his
secret project doesn’t make Sookie any more forgiving. Nor does the
fact that Bill is leaving again, this time on a business trip to Peru.
On her way home from work New Years Eve, she see a man, barefoot,
shirtless, running for his life down the deserted road. When she stops
to help him, she discovers that it is Eric, Bill’s boss. Only
something is wrong with him. He has absolutely no memory of who he is.
Gone is the brash, over-confident, arrogant vampire. Gone are the
constant sexual innuendos and the self assurance that some day he will
bed Sookie. In his place is a frighten, gentle creature that clings to
Sookie for reassurance and comfort. What can she do, but take him home.
When she finally gets through to Pam, Eric’s partner in the bar
Fangtasia and his second-in-command, she learns that Eric is under a
witch’s curse. A coven of witches are trying to take over the business
and have posted a $50,000 reward for information on Eric’s
whereabouts. Thanks to her brother, Jason, Sookie finds herself being
paid the money to hide and protect Eric. Then her brother goes missing.
So now Sookie is desperately trying to find her brother, battling
evil witches with a coalition of local witches, werewolves, and
vampires. And the new and improved Eric is literally climbing in bed
with her.
Yes, in the love and relationship department things are getting
really, really complicated. From never having a date, Sookie finds
herself surrounded by men, well creatures, who would like to get to know
her better.
Charlaine Harris continues her series of Southern Vampire mysteries,
although this one is rather weak on the mystery part and long on
complicated relationships and blood and gore. Sookie is reminding me
more and more of Laurell K. Hamilton’s best selling Anita Blake.
Instead of having one romantic interest, there are now multiple romantic
possibilities, with much of the book taken up with her emotional
struggles. Also Sookie is becoming harder. In the previous book, she
killed a vampire. It was an accident. In the fight, Lorene, Bill’s
lover, impaled herself on a stake Sookie was defending herself with, but
it was still murder. In this book, she uses a shotgun and deliberately
kills a woman/shapeshifter who had shot Eric and was trying to shoot
her. Then she and Eric hide the body. It was self-defense, but in not
calling the police, she has taken a step outside the law. I have to
wonder how the series would have developed without the pressure from the
publishers to promote the series as another "Anita Blake."
But taking that approach has been highly successful. It started out
in mass paperback, but with DEAD TO THE WORLD the series has moved up to
hardback and the first three books have been republished together by
SFBC as DEAD IN DIXIE.
I don’t want to leave the impression that this is a pale imitation
of Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake series, because it is far from
that. With the quirky characters, down home charm, and interesting
storylines, this series stands on its own. But if you are a fan of Anita
Blake, especially the earlier Anita Blakes, before sexual hijinks became
such a major part of the series, you will probably like Sookie
Stackhouse very much. You may even find you like her better.
DEAD
WITCH WALKING
By Kim Harrison Published by Harper Torch
Copyright 2004
ISBN#: 0-06-057296-5
Series:
Genre Subgenre: Mystery Paranormal
One reviewer says, "It isn’t easy to write a protagonist who
blends the qualities of Anita Blake and Stephanie Plum, but Kim Harrison
does it with style." And I agree. I loved DEAD WITCH WALKING and
have added it to my list of must own series, along with Janet Evanovich’s
Stephanie Plum and Laurell K. Hamilton’s Anita Blake. Rachel is a
witch, a sort of police officer working for the I.S., the force made up
of witches, vampires, shapeshifters, pixies, fairies. She’s tired of
being given all the shitty jobs and decides to quit. But no one quits
I.S.. She might have gotten away with it, but Ivy, one of the I.S. top
operators, decides to join her and quits too. Deren, Rachel’s boss,
wants to get even and puts out a contract on Rachel’s life. Suddenly
assassins are coming out of the woodwork, fairies, Were, even a demon.
The only way Rachel can save her life, is if she manages to make a big
arrest and earn enough money to buy them off. Her target is Councilman
Trent, whom she believes is selling the illegal chemical Brimstone. She
sets out to prove him guilty and gets in lots and lots of trouble.
Kim Harrison has created an absolutely fascinating world where humans
are scared to death of the tomato. It seems that the bio-engineering
trend managed to cause a mutation which hid in a tomato and killed more
than half of humanity. The only ones immune were the Inlanders, the fae
creatures. Suddenly they almost out number the humans and so decide to
come out of the closet, changing the whole world. Now some 50 years
later, the world has become a very interesting place, with humanity not
quite second class citizens and still a lot of prejudice against the
creatures, tomatoes, and bio-engineered drugs. This book left enough
unanswered questions to hint at future books. There is the touch of
humor in the first person narration that is reminiscent of Stephanie
Plum, there is the bravery and wild magic of Anita Blake, and there are
some very interesting characters, like Jenk, the pixie, Ivy, the
non-practicing vampire, Nick, the human who spent 3 months as a rat, and
Trent, who is, well, we don’t know what, but he is so good looking and
so evil. So far it lacks the romance and erotica of an Anita Blake,
which will be just fine with many of the former fans of Anita Blake, who
haven’t enjoyed the direction the series has taken lately. But the
fascinating peek into a world where the unreal are real, the strong
mystery, and the engaging characters make this book a real winner.
DHAMPIR
By Barb & J. C. Hendee Published by Roc Books
Copyright 2003
ISBN#:
Series: "Saga of the Noble Dead"
Genre: Fantasy Vampire
For a change, not a vampire romance. Dhampir is a well written
fantasy.
Magiere and her half-elf partner Lessil have made a living fleecing
superstitious villagers by pretending to be vampire hunters. As far as
Magiere is concerned vampires don’t exist, but she is willing to use
the fear of the peasants to make money. Grown tired of the game and
unsettled by having killed a crazed villager, she and Lessil purchase a
tavern in the small coastal town of Miiska. But instead of peace, they
find themselves in the midst of having to fight vampires. Real vampires.
The so-called Noble Dead.
Barb and J. C. Hendee have built an interesting world populated by
likeable and complex characters. Magiere is a reluctant hero, not
understanding what she is and what is happening to her as she fights the
monsters. When she finally learns that the father who abandoned her must
have been a vampire and that she is a creature created to fight and kill
vampires, she isn’t sure she wants to accept herself.
Even the vampires turn out to be likeable, at least to be pitied, as
they try to make a home and a life for themselves until they are drawn
into the conflict. Neither side wants to fight, but they are manipulated
into it by a mysterious stranger, Welstiel Massing, who seems to be the
only one who really understands what’s going on.
This is the beginning of a series about Magiere, Lessil, and their
vampire hunting dog, Chap. It is a good beginning for what appears to be
a very interesting series. The series so far includes THE DHAMPIR, THIEF
OF LIVES, SISTER OF THE DEAD, and coming January 2006, TRAITOR OF THE
BLOOD.
The Darkness Therein By Kate Hill Was originally published by RFI West
Copyright 2002
Series: “First in Kate Hill’s Vampire Trilogy”
Genre and Sub-genre: Paranormal (Vampire) Romance
Revise and published
by Ellora's Cave www.EllorasCave.com
Copyright 2004
ISBN #1-84360-822-7
Series: "Book 6 Ancient Blood"
Six hundred years ago, Gamel created a vampire companion, Edrick, to
ease his loneliness. Instead he got an immortal monster of unthinkable
evil. He spent the rest of his life trying to destroy the demon. In the
end it destroyed him, but not before he imprisoned Edrick. Knowing that
the prison would not hold forever, Gamel gave the gift of immortality to
Jocelyn, the one man who had ridden beside him, the one man who hated
Edrick more than life itself.
So for the last six hundred years, Jocelyn has prepared for Edrick's
return, honing his skills as a fighter, waiting for the day when he can
kill Edrick. That day has finally come, Edrick has escaped and the reign
of terror has begun.
Charlie, returning from an evening spent visiting her best friend
Mara, is attacked. A handsome stranger saves her, but is injured. After
inviting the stranger in, she learns that Jocelyn is a member of the
Coven, a secret group of witches that was founded by Gamel, and that
she, by right of having been given her grandmother's ring during her
initiation into the Coven when she was five years old, now possess the
means to kill Edrick and is therefore in danger from him. Jocelyn also
tells her that she is to become his apprentice. Charlie is skeptical,
even when her own mother confirms all Jocelyn told her. Nor does
Jocelyn's coldness and high-handed attitude sit well with the
independent, modern young woman.
When she shows Jocelyn her paintings, they are both shocked to
discover that she has been painting scenes from his life, including a
haunting portrait of a young girl he calls Sybil. Sybil was Jocelyn's
daughter, whom Edrick slaughtered. It is Jocelyn's own guilt and his
desire for revenge that has driven him all these years.
Edrick thinks that Jocelyn has given Charlie the secret to making
more vampires and stalks her. She and Jocelyn escape, but not before
Charlie's friend Mara is brutalized. Bound together by their hate of
Edrick, Jocelyn begins to teach Charlie the rituals and spells and
skills she must know to battle a vampire.
Despite her mother's warnings that Jocelyn is incapable of human
emotions and is bound to hurt her, Charlie finds herself perversely
attracted to him and their enforced closeness shows Charlie that Jocelyn
is not a man lacking in emotions. Their attraction grows until finally
she wins her way with him, breaking through his mistrust and reserve to
touch his heart. Despite their growing love for each other, Jocelyn
knows he must stop Edrick, though it will probably mean his own death.
They have the poison, which was contained in her ring, but they need
a staff especially made by Gamel as a weapon. Jocelyn and Charlie
journey to Spain to recover the staff and to the final showdown with
Edrick.
Though the story is about witches, there is very little witchcraft.
The Coven is simply a form of worship and a belief system, albeit a
secret one. Charlie complains that growing up she wished she could be
like other kids and invite them to her church, and though Jocelyn
teaches her the spells and rituals, she never once resorts to a spell.
The members of the Coven are just ordinary people, although as in the
case of Charlie's parents and herself, a bit more psychic than most.
As for the vampires, these too are rather plain vanilla vampires.
Immortality, quick regeneration, mind control, and they must be invited
in order to enter a house. There are a couple of interesting touches.
First, it is the taking of blood that brings out the vampire qualities
and strength. Without blood, they have only normal human strength. No
insane blood craving or need to take blood every night, but they do need
blood to heal. Second, is the idea that the vampire takes on the
qualities of the person they feed on, so as Jocelyn takes blood from
Charlie, he becomes more human, more caring, and when he is about to go
against Edrick, he goes out and finds a bunch of the meanest, evil
bastards that he can and stocks up to increase his vampire powers. At
the beginning of the story, it seems as though there are only two
vampires, one good and one evil, but later in the story, Jocelyn meets
another vampire, and we discover though rare, other vampires do exist,
although they are mostly solitary creatures.
Despite the fact that Kate Hill's story follows closely the
paranormal romance formula--can the love of the right woman save the
monster, it is well written and captures and holds one's attention.
Jocelyn makes for a very interesting character as we delve into his past
as a young slave to a perverted master in Istanbul, to the love he feels
for his daughter, to his consuming hatred of Edrick, and his dark past
as a warrior. Charlie is a likable, no nonsense heroine, who though
Jocelyn thinks she goes off half- cocked, really doesn't. The dynamic
between them is very good. The Darkness Therein is well worth
reading.
Reviewed by Linda Suzane. Originally published by Suite101.com,
October 21, 2001
The
Immaculate By Kate Hill Was originally published by RFI West
Copyright 2002
ISBN #
Series: “Second in Kate Hill’s Vampire Trilogy”
Genre and Sub-genre: Paranormal (Vampire) Romance
Scheduled for re-release from Ellora's Cave sometime 2005.
The year before Mara had been attacked by the evil vampire Edrick.
Though her friends assume she remembers nothing of the attack, bits and
pieces remain, and despite feeling she is crazy for believing she was
attacked by something more than human, she begins a search for
information about vampires.
In a library in Spain, she meets Adam, who offers to translate a book
for her. She finds herself, for the first time in over a year,
attracted, even comfortable and safe in a man's presence.
When Adam hears her story, he realizes that for Mara's sanity, she
must know the truth about him, about her friends Charlie and Joycelyn,
and about vampires. Adam is an Immaculate, a rarity, a vampire actually
born, not made. Adam is much stronger than the normal vampire and exists
on the blood of other vampires, not human blood. Because of a prophecy
that he will be the one to kill the First Father, one of the original
vampires and the most evil, Adam has spent his life training and
preparing, mentally and physically.
Mara takes Adam's revelations quite well, having fallen in love with
him. She watches Adam train for his upcoming battle, which includes
sparring matches against multiple opponents and fighting live tigers.
When Adam meets Vincent, another Immaculate who almost beats him, he
begins to doubt he has the strength to defeat the First Father. Then he
is stricken by a mysterious illness, and the only doctor who might be
able to save him turns out to be his twin brother, Matthew. To hide them
from the First Father, both boys were adopted into human families. Adam
with an abusive minister, who saw him as the devil's spawn, a weapon to
be trained and used to rid the world of a greater evil, while Matthew
was raised in a loving home, but who suffered because he did not realize
he was a vampire.
Vincent returns. Though Adam is desperately ill, he tries to fight
him. It is Mara who proves the key to saving him for it is Mara's blood,
poisoned by Edrick, that has made him sick in the first place and it is
her magic that heals him.
Having defeated Vincent, Vincent reveals that once he was thought to
be the fulfillment of the prophecy and failed, ending up as a servant to
the First Father. Now Vincent offers to help Adam and Matthew defeat the
First Father, and despite not trusting him, they agree.
Where The Darkness Therein created little in the way of a
vampire society, The Immaculate creates a complex world of half
breeds, Immaculates, and even goes on to talk of space aliens and
Atlantis, as well as magical spells that change the course of the
universe. It is a very interesting world.
As with The Darkness Therein, it definitely falls within the
strict formula of a paranormal romance, but this story is very different
from its predecessor, although characters that appeared in the first,
appear here as well. I greatly enjoyed both books and am looking forward
to the third in the series.
Reviewed by Linda Suzane. Originally published by Suite101.com,
October 21, 2001
This book is currently unavailable. Should be re-published sometime
in 2005.
GOD
OF GRIM
By Kate Hill Was originally published by RFI West
Copyright 2002
ISBN # 1-58697-425-4
Series: “Third in Kate Hill’s Vampire Trilogy”
Genre and Sub-genre: Paranormal (Vampire) Romance
Scheduled for re-release from Ellora's Cave sometime 2005.
GOD OF GRIM is the third in Kate Hill's series that began with THE
DARKNESS WITHIN and THE IMMACULATE. You can find reviews of these two
books in my previous column http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/vamp...
GOD OF GRIM is Matthew’s story. Matthew was adopted into a human
family, grew to maturity not knowing what he was. When vampire puberty
set in, the feelings, hungers, and physical changes almost drove him
mad, but he overcame them to attain his goal of being a doctor. Then he
met Dulcie and learned that he wasn’t crazy, that he was a vampire. An
Immaculate Vampire. Immaculates are born vampires, not hybrids who
become vampires after being bitten. In THE IMMACULATE Matthew meets his
twin brother Adam. Together, they fulfill the prophecy that an
Immaculate will kill the evil First Father, the last surviving Original,
one of the alien race who came to earth eons ago.
Now, eight years later, Matthew’s life is full of love for his wife
Dulcie and a passion for his work as a hematologist, studying both human
and vampire blood diseases. His brother, Adam, has become the head of
the Network, which rules the vampires. When Jay Ashford offers Matthew a
chance to work at an all vampire research facility, Matthew is tempted
but refuses. He enjoys working among mortals and he loves his job.
Besides he doesn’t like or trust Ashford. Suddenly his whole world
crumbles as he is accused of tampering with test results to gain
approval of an unsafe drug which results in several people dying. What
is worse, he is accused of profiting by investing in the drug company.
Angry Matthew quits the hospital. When Ashford shows up expressing his
belief in Matthew’s innocence and offering him a job, Matthew accepts.
He finds himself enjoying working among the vampires, but there is
something dark and suspicious going on in a secret lab. He is horrified
when he discovers the truth. First Father wasn’t the last Original. He
had a son. A son who is being kept in a cage and tortured in the name of
science. He takes the matter before his brother and the Network and is
disappointed when Ashford, who has been a member of the Network for over
1000 years, manages to convince the elder vampires that the boy is
nothing more than a wild animal who was declawed and defanged for his
own safety. Matthew goes back to work for Ashford, pretending to accept
the situation, all the while making plans to help the trapped boy.
He successfully breaks the boy out, but soon learns he is being
accused of killing three researchers, stealing valuable data, and
destroying millions of dollars worth of equipment. Now not only is
Ashford and his brother and Network hunting him and the boy, but so are
the human police. Matthew’s belief that the boy is not an unteachable,
wild creature, but capable of learning is quickly proven true. He names
the boy Sage.
He must figure a way to keep Sage safe and prove he is innocent of
murder, but most important, he must stop Ashford. He finds some unlike
assistance in the sewers of New York, along with a werewolf threat, the
results of more of Ashford’s unprincipled and unholy experiments.
GOD OF GRIM really hooked me in the prologue, then got off to a very
slow start. Part of the problem is that this is book three of the series
and there is a lot of back story to reveal. There are a lot of
characters whose stories were told in books one and two who make their
appearance in this one which adds up to a lot of baggage, and I think
perhaps unnecessary baggage. Once the story gets going, it moves along,
with some very exciting and desperate moments.
It is billed as the third in a trilogy of vampire romances, but it
focuses more on Matthew discovering who and what he is than on romance,
as the desperate circumstances force Matthew to face his vampiric
nature. Matthew and Dulcie have been married for years and are still
passionately in lust and deeply in love and they steadfastly remain so
even though separated by circumstances. Their relationship is almost too
perfect. Dulcie is far too understanding and forgiving. I certainly
wouldn’t have been so ready to forgive my husband who basically left
me behind while he went out adventuring all in the name of keeping me
safe. Modern women expect to be full partners, especially if you too are
an Immaculate vampire and strong enough to take care of yourself, much
stronger than any human and most vampires. If GOD OF GRIM lacked the
usual contrived problems between the sexes, it didn’t lack for plenty
of good old fashion lust. Matthew is a workaholic who spends his little
free time tearing the clothes off his very willing wife. Their frequent
love making includes claw marks, bitting, and lots of howling. It is a
good thing he is a well paid doctor, his clothing bill must be
astronomical, torn clothes, buttons missing, blood stains.
It is the development of Kate Hill’s vampire world that makes this
book so interesting. In THE DARKNESS WITHIN, we basically met two
vampires, one good and one bad. In the second book in the series, THE
IMMACULATE, we discover a whole world of vampires, a strange melding of
vampires as alien, vampires both made and born, and thousands year old
culture ruled by the mysterious Network. The explanation for vampires is
both scientific and magical. Now in GOD OF GRIM Kate explores her
vampires in detail. Matthew was raised by humans, has survived by
blending in and submerging his vampiric nature. He is very controlled
because he needed to be, but he is also afraid of what he is. Now he is
confronted with a situation that forces him to give in to his vampire
nature. He must put aside his methodical scientific side to explore the
realms of improbability and magic. Kate Hill has crafted a complex,
creative, and ultimately very interesting vampire world combining many
different elements to fashion a world that this reader hopes very much
she will continue to explore.
Reviewed by Linda Suzane, originally published by Suite101.com., July
3, 2002. For
more about this author check out http://www.suite101.com/
This book is currently unavailable. Should be re-published sometime
in 2005.
HAWKES HARBOR
by S. E. Hinton
Published by Tor Tom Doherty Associates
Copyright 2004
ISBN: 0-765-30563-1
Genre: General Fiction
First thing I will say about this book is read it with a box of
Kleenex handy, a really big box! HAWKES HARBOR is the life story of
Jamie Sommer. This is a young man we quickly come to care a lot about.
His wild escapades around the world with his friend Kells are filled
with adventure and sound almost unbelievable: pirates, gunrunners,
treasure hunts, scams and outright cons among the wealthy.
But when Jamie releases a 200 year old vampire his life takes a
totally unexpected and terrifying turn. The story begins with Jamie in a
mental hospital, withdrawn, depressed, and with large chunks of his
memory gone. Slowly his past is revealed as he talks to his doctor,
remembering what happened in bits and pieces. The happy and sad times
climaxed with the horrible tragedy that literally broke Jamie. Much of
the story is confusing because it is told in flashbacks, jumping around
through time. It is a jumble of pieces, a puzzle which the reader must
fit together. But it is worth the effort.
At the heart of the story is the relationship between Jamie and the
vampire, Grenville. Treasure hunting, Jamie opens a coffin and releases
an imprisoned vampire, a creature filled with 200 years of hatred and
unbearable thirst. Jamie becomes his guide to the modern world, his
creature, bound by blood and need. Jamie must break the bondage to save
a young woman from Grenville. But his act leads to him being shot,
accused of kidnaping the woman, imprisoned, and eventually in the mental
hospital.
If it was a horror story, it might end there, but it isn’t a horror
story. Jamie starts to recover. The vampire Grenville, who manages to
break the curse and become human once again, feels responsible for Jamie
and offers to take care of him. And what starts out as a relationship of
fear and unwilling submission becomes through the years a strong
friendship filled with trust as both men struggle to put behind them
their personal demons and build anew their lives. There are no happy
Hollywood endings, but triumph and happiness of a sort.
HAWKES HARBOR is like no other vampire story I have ever read. It is
a unique experience. My only complaint is since this is Jamie’s story,
we only learn about the vampire in bits and pieces, surmising how he
became a vampire and how he broke the curse to become human. I found it
a bit frustrating since I wanted to know more about the vampire.
Although the vampire is integral to the story, it would be hard to
classify the book as a vampire novel.
But it is an emotionally powerful novel that will touch the reader,
sometimes bring a tear to the eye or a smile to the lips. It is the kind
of book that stays with a reader, that draws the mind back time and
again to the story. A true reading experience beyond and above the
ordinary.
I read Tanya Huff’s detective series years ago. I recently treated
myself to the pleasure of re-reading it. BLOOD PRICE, BLOOD TRAIL, BLOOD
LINES, BLOOD PACT, BLOOD DEBT are often mentioned in vampire
bibliographies. The first was published in 1991, the last 1997. I was
lucky that my local libraries had all the books. Since they were
originally in paperback, I assumed they are out of print, but diligent
search of the Internet says they are still in print and therefore
available if you want to get them without having to hunt the used
bookstores.
Vicki Nelson is an ex-homicide cop, who quit the force when she
learned she had Retinitis Pigmentosa. She has lost her night vision and
her peripheral vision keeps decreasing. She is slowly going blind. The
only thing she ever wanted to do was be a cop, but she doesn’t want to
be tied to a desk, so she becomes a Private Investigator. Then she meets
Henry Friztroy, the bastard son of Henry VIII and a vampire. They are
both hunting the same killer, and they decide to join forces to stop an
unspeakable evil out for world domination.
They become friends, lovers, and partners in a series of
investigations. But all is not easy for also in Vicki’s life is Mike
Celluci, Vicki’s former partner and lover. Both men want Vicki and are
jealous of each other. To Vicki’s disgust, there is a lot of macho
posturing between the two of them. But there is one thing that both men
can agree on, they will do anything for Vicki, even put aside their
feelings and work together when absolutely necessary.
This is an excellent mystery series, each book in the series is about
a different subject. It takes some of the old movie cliches, such as The
Mummy Returns and Frankenstein and puts new twists on them. The drama is
high, there is lot of excitement, and the characters definitely capture
your interest.
There are only five books in the series. I wish there were more, but
the series as it stands does sort of come to an end. There is a new
series, featuring Tony Foster, a street wise kid from the first series,
who is working for a TV station on a show about a vampire detective. The
first book of the trilogy is called SMOKE AND SHADOWS. I haven’t get
read it yet, but I like this series so well, that I will certainly read
it.
BLOOD PRICE By Tanya Huff
Published by DAW Books
Copyright 1991
ISBN#:
Series: Vicki Nelson Blood Series #1
Genre: Mystery Vampire
When Vicki finds a body in the subway, she sees something, but isn’t
sure what. More bodies follow and the newspapers start talking about
vampires. Later Vicki is hired by the dead man’s girlfriend to find
the vampire. Although she doesn’t believe it is a vampire, she takes
the job determined to find the killer. Then she discovers a man standing
over the latest body and learns that there are such things as vampires.
But the killer isn’t a vampire. It is a demon and if she doesn’t
help Henry stop the demon, it will be the end of the world time.
BLOOD TRAIL By Tanya Huff
Published by DAW Books
Copyright 1993
ISBN#:
Series: Vicki Nelson #2
Genre: Mystery Vampire
Henry’s friends are being killed and he asks Vicki to help find out
who is using silver bullets to kill the werewolves. Leaving the city for
the country, she finds the pack of werewolves nothing like she expected.
From Shadow, the youngest pup, to the problems of alpha males and
teenagers, not to mention the nudity. It seems that werewolves dislike
clothing, keeps them from changing, and these wolves like to change back
and forth rapidly. Not only at the full moon. Vicki begins investigating
the neighborhood. Who could know what they are? Who could have seen the
werewolves change? Mostly she eliminates suspects, but someone is out to
get them. Henry’s car is tampered with and Vicki is almost killed in
the car crash. Then her ex-partner shows up. Mike Celluci is jealous of
Henry and discovered some disturbing things while checking his
background or lack of background. He is sure Henry is organized crime
and comes to warn Vicki and walks in and learns more than he bargained
for, when he sees an injured werewolf change and almost gets attacked by
the pack leader trying to protect his pack. Vicki finds out who is the
killer, but almost isn’t in time to save the young Peter who has gone
off investigating on his own and may end up as a trophy pelt.
BLOOD LINES By Tanya Huff
Published by DAW Books
Copyright 1993
ISBN#:
Series: Victoria Nelson #3
Genre: Mystery Vampire
Shades of the Mummy Returns, BLOOD LINES is about a unopened
sarcophagus bought by the Royal Ontario Museum. Inside is a 3000 year
old Egyptian wizard-priest of the god Akhekh held trapped by an ancient
spell. When the museum employees break seal, they free the mummy. The
mummy feeds on life, killing first a museum custodian and then the
department head. To protect itself, it removes all memory that there was
a mummy, and then taking the name Tawfik, it sets out to gain followers
for its god. It chooses to put those high in the government and the
police force under its spell first. Tawfik’s presence in the city
causes Fiztroy to dream for the first time in 450 years. He wakens
seeing the sun and is afraid that it is a sign that he is about to die.
Vicki agrees to help keep himself safe. Then Mike Celluci is called in
to investigate the deaths at the museum and when the two officers, who
saw the mummy, die in an accident and everyone else denies the mummy
existence, Mike begins to hunt the creature and hires Vicki to help.
Unfortunately, that brings Vicki to Akhekh’s attention. Akhekh is a
god who feeds on despair and misery and Tawfik arranges for Vicki to be
arrested on false charges to put her in a position of ultimate
helplessness and hopelessness for the pleasure of his god. Even Fiztroy
isn’t sure he can defeat Tawfik’s power, but if they don’t manage
to keep him from swearing in half the police force to the service of the
god and establishing a temple in Toronto, they may find themselves in a
world ruled by Akhekh, a world of pain and suffering.
BLOOD PACT By Tanya Huff
Published by DAW Books
Copyright 1993
ISBN#:
Series: Vicki Nelson #4
Genre: Mystery Vampire
This book certainly is the most compelling and dramatic of the series
so far. The two men in Vicki’s life have both said they love her and
both of them want her exclusively. Vicki, who has big time problems with
commitment, was happy just the way things were and she certainly doesn’t
want to choose. Then her mother drops dead of a heart attack. Vicki is
devastated and guilt ridden for not answering the phone messages to call
her mother. But strong-willed Vicki refuses to cry. Both Mike and Henry
show up, managing to put aside their differences and work together to
support Vicki. At the funeral, they discover that someone has stolen her
mother’s body. Vicki is determined to get it back and find out who
took it and why. Then Vicki sees her mother, dead and yet walking.
Everything points to the scientists at the University and some
Frankenstein-like experiment. When Henry goes missing while
investigating, Vicki is determined not to fail him like she failed her
mother. If she and Mike can’t find him, he may end up nothing more
than a helpless lab rat. But what happens will change the three of them
forever and make you want to read the next book.
BLOOD
DEBT By Tanya Huff
Published by DAW Books
Copyright 1997
ISBN#:
Series: Vicki Nelson #5
Genre: Mystery Vampire
Although this is the last book so far in the series, it wouldn’t
necessarily have to be, although the series would certainly have to take
a different direction In BLOOD PACT, Vicki is dying, to save her, Henry
brings her across. Mike Celluci assumes it means that he has lost her
forever, but that isn’t the case, for it seems that vampires can’t
function together, once the parent-child bond is broken. Henry teaches
her what she needs to know and releases her, supposedly never to see her
again, but that isn’t what Vicki has in mind. She insists on keeping
in contact via phone and email.
Things are fine with Henry and his friend Tony living in Vancouver,
British Columbia and Vicki and Mike living in Toronto.
Then Henry wakes up to find a ghost standing at the end of his bed.
It is obvious the ghost wants something. It is also obvious from the
fact that the ghost in missing his hands that it wasn’t a natural
death. When Henry asks a question, if the answer is yes, the ghost
vanishes, but if it is no, the ghost screams and people die. Desperate
to find a way to stop the ghost, he asks Vicki for help.
Henry and Vicki’s first meeting isn’t too successful. She loses
control and tries to kill him. It seems that tradition is correct, two
vampires can’t occupy the same territory. But when Henry tries to
leave, the ghost follows him and he is forced to return. Somehow Henry
and Vicki must find a way to deal with the territorial instinct that
makes them want to kill each other.
The mystery revolves around organ-legging. Blackmarket kidneys. Mike,
working the days, finds himself in trouble, on the waiting list to
donate, whether he wants to or not. Can Vicki and Henry work together to
find him before it is too late?
As I said, this book doesn’t have the feeling of the end of the
series. But in the end they all go their separate ways. It is not quite
as dramatic as the fourth book in the series, but it is definitely
dramatic.
SMOKE AND SHADOWS By Tanya Huff
Published by Daw Books
Copyright 2004
ISBN#:
Series: "Smoke #1"
Genre Subgenre: Fantasy Mystery
Tanya Huff’s Blood series follows the adventures of Vicki Nelson,
homicide cop turned private investigator turned vampire, and the bastard
son of Henry VIII, Henry Friztroy, who is a 400 year-old-vampire making
his living writing historical romances. In that series, Tony Foster was
a street kid and Vicki’s snitch, who helps Vicki save Henry and
becomes a blood donor, a lover and a friend of Henry’s. In this
spin-off series, thanks to Henry, Tony has gotten off the street, moved
to Vancouver with Henry, and gone back to school. He is trying to build
his own life, having moved out of Henry’s condo, and is currently
working as a PA, production assistant, at CB Productions on a syndicated
TV show about a vampire detective. Although after his experiences with
Henry, demons, ghosts, 3000-year-old mummies, Tony could serve as an
expert consultant to the show, he has learned to keep his mouth shut.
Even here, no one wants to believe in vampires or other things that go
bump in the night. But Tony begins noticing strange things happening to
people’s shadows, shadows behaving like shadows shouldn’t, then an
actress is killed. Tony’s search for answers leads him to the shows
special effects wizard, Arra, who turns out to be a real wizard from an
alternate dimension. Seven years ago, Arra escaped the evil Shadowlord
through a gate into this world that opens up in the middle of the sound
studio. Now the Shadowlord has learned how to open the gate and is
sending his shadow spies in preparation to an invasion. At first, Arra
refuses to help, saying that it is hopeless, that this world will be
destroyed, just as her world was destroy, but Tony goes to Henry for
help. Together they manage to use light to destroy the shadow spy who
has taken over the body of one of the show’s actors, but the next time
the gate opens the Shadowlord just sends more of his minions. Still,
Tony refuses to give up the fight.
While I enjoyed the story very much, not quite as much as the Blood
series. The problem was the whole cast and crew of the TV show seemed to
be an overworked cliche from the main actor with overwhelming ego
problems to the unseen, quirky writers in the bullpen. A parody of the
current vampire shows. There were also a lot of insider Canadian and TV
references, some of which I got, but a lot I didn’t. How many people
know who Joss Whedon is? I think that it would have been a much better
book if she hadn’t worked so hard at poking fun at the industry. And
while there is a vampire in the story, it really isn’t a vampire
novel. Henry Fiztroy is almost a minor character, merely hired vampire
muscle, a sidekick for Tony. After all, vampires sleep during the day,
and shadows, well they operate best in the day when there is plenty of
light. This is Tony Foster’s story and he definitely is the hero. But
having read the whole Blood series, I wouldn’t have wanted to miss
another peek at the characters from there. I always did like Tony,
although in that series he was a minor character. There are at least two
more in this series scheduled and I look forward to reading them. One
thing that Tanya Huff has done has taken vampire novels off in a
completely different direction. In the Blood series and in this series,
we find none of the vampire cliches. In Smoke and Shadows, Tanya Huff
blends magic, fantasy and wizards with vampires and the modern world,
and makes it work. She has an extremely creative and fertile
imagination. I understand in the next book we are going to be treated to
a genuine haunted house. I can hardly wait.
Cain
Simon & Schuster
Copyright: 1997.
ISBN# : 0684834030
Pocket Book Edition
copyright: September 1, 1998
ISBN#: 067100378X
Genre / subgenre: Thriller / End of the World
Cain is a vampire novel of sorts. It is more an end of the world story. Scientists in seeking to create the perfect soldier, have created a Frankenstein monster, rebuilding and reanimating the body of a dead soldier, Cain. There are two problems, well more than two problems. But something goes wrong with their genetic tinkering and they are left with a creature that must consume quantities of blood. A vampire. But that's not the worst of it. Because the body is soulless golem, a demon, Satan to be exact, is able to inhabit the body. Now it is a race against time, as a mercenary, a priest, and a scientist try to stop the end of the world.
It was a very enjoyable read. Fast paced, action packed, as the battle between good and evil keeps escalating until the very dramatic conclusion. Even if the vampire is man-made, he is still a vampire, although being a vampire is a small part of the story.
Reviewed by Linda Suzane June 16, 2004
The paperback edition of this book is still available from
