Review: Moon Child - a compelling, supernatural mystery and emotional journey
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 07 16, 2011
In Moon Child, author J.R. Rain continues his bestselling Vampire for Hire series with the triumphs and travails of Samantha Moon, intrepid private investigator and divorced, devoted mother of two children, one of whom is very sick, close to dying, in fact. Sam's vampirism is simultaneously as empowering as it is self-limiting, as she delves further into her powers, and dances back and forth on the decisions she must make, striving to find a way to save the life of her sickly, dying son. Nothing could have prepared me, as a reader, for what she does in book 4. It is both sacrificial and shocking in its God-play but along the way, there are reasons for her decisions: children are in serious jeopardy, bad guys pursue her, good guys are in doubt, and there are colorful new characters to meet, as well as recurring characters with whom she furthers relationships.As a mother myself, this story gripped me from first page to last, the compelling emotion meeting the mystery at its challenging core to combat the danger and expose the enchanted contemporary world with bills to pay, an ex-husband who knows she is a vampire and loathes her for it, and the thwarting of supernatural criminals, both mortal and undead. The internal conflict is very strong in Moon Child, and the characterization of the heroine deepens as her senses of who to trust gets sharpened like a fang and her instincts land right on target.A vampire who needs blood to continue her existence wars with the mother of children in the same body and psyche, Sam races against the ticking clock to try to save her son and solve the mystery of an artifact that holds the key to life, death, and immortality. As the ultimate evil creature who strives to achieve the ultimate good, Samantha Moon, creature of the night -- complete with huge flapping wings and fangs -- rises up to become the quintessential vampire heroine who delicately balances the limitations of her humanity against the power of her vampirism. She finds out what it is like to walk the tightrope between goodness and mercy, evil and immortality.This book is fast paced and will have readers guessing the outcome until the very end.  Moon Child is a recommended read and a don't-miss for fans of the series.  Drink in this book and be swept away by the strength of its sacrifices and the journey of a shining light who must live on the dark side but not be taken prisoner by it.Loved it. Get it. Read it. - Eve Paludan, editor of Vampires, Zombies and Ghosts, Oh My! anthology