Review: Engaging and inventive take on the vampire tale
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 03 31, 2012
I was really expecting the typical vampire romance story that has beenall the rage for several years now. This story differs from that genrein a few ways (some of them are very much spoilers) so the noveldoesn't feel stale or overdone like a more standard product mighthave. Julie Harris's vampire lore is a very interesting take on thesubject.Charlie, the heroine of this tale, is the author of a famous novelthat is being turned into a movie. The lead actor for the movie isMicheal Dunne, an attractive American actor that is so like Annarchie,the immortal character he is to play. As Micheal Dunne gets closer toCharlie, the blood-drained bodies of young women begin to pile up andCharlie begins to question whether Micheal is as much a stranger toher as she thinks. A tale of obsessive love that spans hundreds ofyears.The characters felt fairly believable. They're flawed, and often awareof their shortcomings. Michael does have the super-possessive andcontrolling traits that you see in vamp fiction these days, but foronce these qualities are not played up as the qualities of a perfectmale. Some of the other characters do suffer from a lack ofdevelopment, and ultimately they're just there are chess pieces tomove the story along. There is a lot of drama that deals primarilywith relationships, so if this isn't your cup of tea you may not enjoythem. There is some strong sexuality in this book that mostly has todo with feeding, but it's not very graphic or too intrusive.The story contains elements of vampire fiction, detective story,sci-fi, and more. I think the blending of genres works out in favor ofthis story, giving it a fresh feeling.There are some noticeable spelling errors, but the formattinggenerally seemed to be good. The prose if clear and easy tounderstand, but still retains a bit of poetry. Nothing special, but itworks. The ending is a big surprise, and I partly feel satisfied thatI couldn't predict it and partly unsatisfied that it leaves some plotthreads dangling. It seems to set up for a sequel. This is far fromground-breaking, but it is interesting enough to give it a whirl ifyou're into the supernatural romance genre.