Review: A solid anthology of "risque" vampire stories: 4.5 stars
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 5, 2013
"Vampires: Romance to Rippers. An Anthology of Risque Stories" is, self-explanatory, a collection of "risque" vampire stories. A couple of the pieces stand out:"The Making of Marea" by Scarlette D'Noire is a short story that describes a "making" of a vampire. Sounds like we've read this before, right? Well, here's the thing: as long as these stories are freshly told, have unexpected plot twists, and craftfully written, we'll be chasing the high again and again. The story is set in a plantation, where Marea, an ex-slave girl, is an object of desire of both the Master, and Delano, the vampire. Delano turns Marea, hoping to bind her to him. Sounds simple, but it isn't. Marea is not a "simple" girl, not a plaything to those who have more power. Read on to find some nice plot twists and get yourself surprised. It's a very neatly constructed story set in the vampire lore.Charity Parkerson's "Double the Sin" is a short story that is an interlude for her "Sinner's" series of novels. It tells the tale of a love that was almost lost, found again, and the protagonists reunited. In a very steamy action, that should come with a medical warning, I might add. Ms. Parkerson's short stories are usually the pick of the bunch. It seems that it doesn't matter what she writes: erotica, romance, etc., she handles the format extremely well. She could probably write a recipe book and we'll be talking about the story structure and trying to find the hidden allegories in it as we write our reviews. Good stuff, as usual.The rest of the stories are pretty good as well, competently written, and will appeal to the broad vampire-loving audience. Check out "Hot Dark Comfort" and "My Vampire Lover."The book starts with prefaces that give us a "behind-the-scenes" glimpse into the evolution of "vampire" in literature, especially in romance.Altogether, a solid anthology. 4.5 stars.