Lost Souls

At a club in Missing Mile, just outside New Orleans, the children of the night gather.  They dress in black and they're looking for acceptance.  There's Ghost, who sees what others do not; Ann, looking for love; and Jason, whose real name is Nothing, seeking the deathless truth about his father - and himself.
  But into Missing Mile tonight come three beautiful, hip vagabonds.  They are on their own lost journey, slaking their ancient thirst for blood, aching for supple young flesh.
  They find it in Nothing and Ann.  Now Ghost must pursue them all to save Ann from her new friends, to save Nothing from himself.


When telling my Mum about this book she was sure she had read it.  However, upon reading the blurb to her she was all, "that's not what my copy said...and mine had a green cover', which is to be expected when the book is about 20-years-old.  When I started reading Lost Souls I realised that both the blurb and the cover had been re-done to appeal to a Twilight obsessed market looking for their next fix of those lovable people of the night.  The problem with this is that Lost Souls is most certainly not Twilight.  Poppy Z. Brite's book is dark and twisty to the extreme, and most certainly an adult read where anything (and I am not using that word lightly...) goes.  It has shades of Interview with the Vampire, not just because of it's partial New Orleans setting, but with it's non romanticised concept of what a vampire truly is. 

I'll be the first to admit that I was disturbed by some of the content.  Nonetheless, I couldn't stop reading this book.  I did wonder if Brite wanted her story to be as offensive as possible, to get a rise out of her readers, but then I'm always complaining that all vampire stories have merged into one huge sparkly love fest.  It was nice that behind all this sometimes heinous activity, there was complexity and interesting discussion points; the standout being only a few lines with Ghost's musings on, and if you can even define, what is evil.  I'm not sure I would read it again, even if I did enjoy the ride, but it did help me realise that maybe I have been reading books that have been written in the wrong decade.  Obviously, pre-noughties is the way to go for original vampire fiction.

Changeless

The second installment of Gail Carriger's Parasol Protectorate, Changeless, is a brilliant caper that proves that Carriger is more than capable of expanding a complex series beyond one book.   The ending is a little 'squiffy', as a certain character acts completely irrationally, but this has set up a perfectly workable concept for book three.

  Moving the plot out of London and northwards to rural Scotland, Changeless reveals more of Lord Maccon's past before he became Alpha of the Woolsey pack.  While trying not to reveal anything that could be considered as spoilers, Changeless includes: A hat shop, a dirigible ride that has almost fatal consequences and the transmission mission.  With the Parasol Protectorate, Carriger has created the perfect blend of futuristic Victoriana and the paranormal species.

Soulless

Gail Carriger's books have been on my radar for a while, but for some absurd reason the cover always put me off.  This changed recently, after finally reading the blurb on the back of the book, and I decided to give Soulless, the first in the parasol protectorate series, a chance.

  After finishing Soulless I couldn't express how glad that I finally decided to read this fantastic series.  Alexia Tarrabotti is an intriguing, and somewhat refreshing, character, as are the other colourful creations to be found in Soulless.  In the beginning, it becomes evident that Carriger is extremely adept at developing a world all of her own for her strange characters to inhabit.  Her description of Tarrabotti's world is so vivid and detailed that I wondered if  I had picked up the second book by mistake. 
  The only negative is that perhaps the plot is not as strong as it could have been, but this was a capable entry into what will hopefully be a fascinating series.

99 Coffins

David Wellington's first Laura Caxton novel was impressive, but reading about her second outing in 99 Coffins was a constant struggle.  While somewhat endearing in 13 Bullets, Caxton hasn't changed.  She may have gotten a promotion, and embarked on a new romance, but she still lacks the confidence, or even fore sight, to be a good vampire hunter. 

Set in Gettysburg, 99 Coffins are found on an archaeological dig.  Wellington splits the narrative between the present and the civil war, which details how the coffins found their resting place,and it is pretty much the same story different town.  There's plenty of gore and a battle between a human army and 99 freshly arisen vampires through the abandoned streets of Gettysburg.  I just wish there had been more character development.  Also, Wellington mentioned in the previous book about Laura's susceptibility to the mind tricks of the paranormal, but this is not acknowledged.  I hope there is some further elaboration in the next story as it was the plot point that I had the most interest for in the previous book.  However, I still find Wellington's take on the vampire genre a breath of fresh air, and the final chapter sets up an intriguing storyline for the third book, but I may put off reading the next instalment for a couple of months.

'Salem's Lot

I had begun to worry on day two (of seven) of my holiday that I had nearly run out of books to read.  Luckily I had chosen to pack Stephen King's cross between Dracula and Moby Dick.  I had been reading a reference book on the evolution of horror and while I hadn't enjoyed my previous encounters with King's writing, I wanted a chance to read a vampire novel that didn't have a place within the genre boom that has occurred in the last five years.


Set (like many of King's novels) in Maine; Ben Mears is returning to Jerusalem's Lot, the small town in which he grew up in, to face his childhood fears.  His arrival happens to coincide with that of a mysterious stranger, who with his often absent partner, has purchased the eerie Marsten House which looms over the town.  Not long after do the strange occurrences that have made King the master of the horror genre.

'Salem's Lot  is packed to the brim with detail, and I got frustrated at the beginning trying to figure out who was who as a few of the names are very similar.  I didn't feel scared when I was reading it but while residing in a small town's hotel room which had open slats for windows, and then to top it off while on the beach having a stake wash up right next to me, I couldn't help but feel unnerved.  There was a need within myself to constantly discuss the ending, up until the point where I was raving like the father in Poltergeist when he discovers that only the tombstones have been moved and not the bodies.  The continuing discussion cemented my like for it, and I look forward to re-reading, which is a rare event.  For me it had everything: mystery, history, romance, murder. A perfect holiday read.