Review: Quirky, Engrossing, Paranormal Romp!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 27, 2014
I found myself totally engrossed in this book about a small-town restaurant cook turned vampire by the end of the first chapter. I read the entire book within two days because I had to find out what was going to happen to Wisconsin Vamp Herb, a.k.a. Herby to his friends. The author has a talent for creating descriptive phrases. Two of my favorite lines from the book include a description of Herb after he begins his transformation: "his lips pulled back like two dehydrated worms left on the sidewalk in the sun", and "[Herb] was involved in a complicated game of stalk, suck and whammy, his new favorite pastime."Herb is a very likable character, as are his buddies Dallas and Stanley. Dallas is the over-the-top obnoxious friend who everyone in town seems to like, but not entirely trust because of his drinking and womanizing. Stanley is the off-beat individual who was struck by lightning in high school and was never quite the same afterward. Add a slew of secondary barfly/drunk bowlers and brawlers and the ground is laid for this vamp tale.Poor Herb finds himself turned into a vampire due to an unexpected, but totally believable, incident in New Orleans. Once back home in Wisconsin, he is left to figure out how to be a vampire on his own. While the story was a little gory in the beginning, I found myself rooting for this underdog vampire as he makes tries to make his way in 'life' with fangs and a dirt bed.While Herb's body changes and he fights a growing desire to eat everyone in town, a little bit of good still remains. He falls in love with a waitress, but his buddy Dallas is also in love with her.Things eventually get ugly between Dallas and Herb because of the love triangle and the reader won't know for sure who will come out of their final, epic bar fight alive. I'm not going to tell you because that would spoil the fun!I recommend this book to anyone who loves quirky, humorous books with a paranormal slant. If you enjoy the Sookie Stackhouse novels by Charlaine Harris, you'll probably enjoy this book as well.Kudos Scott - I can't wait to read your next installment in this series!