Quickie: The Strain (Book 1 of The Stain Trilogy) by Guillermo Del Toro & Chuck Hogan

I read this book in fits and starts during the end of my pregnancy and the first weeks after my daughter was born. That was over two months ago so the exact details of The Strain escape me, but I remember enjoying it!

Basically a jet lands at JFK and dies; it’s completely dark, no one gets off, and law enforcement isn’t sure if anyone on board is alive. Lo-and-behold a couple poor souls survive but they’re infected with a nasty blood-sucking-wormy-vampire-creating disease and Eph Goodweather of the CDC is the first guy to figure out not all is well. It gets pretty gruesome, especially when the newly infected people escape and run rampant all over New York with slimy blood-sucking tongues. Apparently this infection stems from one super old vampire who is one of a few really old vamps, and has decided to break the truce these old dead-dudes had with one another and start creating new vampires. I’m sure books two and three will about the older vampires getting this guy under control.

Overall, super gross, but in a good, I-don’t-want-to-put-this-book-down way. The dialogue writing got to be a bit repetitive, lots of “he said,” and “she said,” which is amateur, but it’s easy to look past. Definitely recommended for fans of vampire science-fiction thrillers. Book two, The Fall, is already out and I plan to get my hands on it sometime in the future.

4 stars

Review: Dracula in Love by Karen Essex

The advertisement for Dracula in Love by Karen Essex said: “If you read only one more vampire novel, let it be this one.” That’s a pretty bold statement so I took the bait. Dracula as told by Mina? Sounds pretty tasty, right? I bit (pun intended) on the posting for an advance copy. In hindsight, I should have probably just followed my gut telling me there’s too much vampire-fiction out there for all of it to be worthy of the hype.

While reading, I found myself comparing Essex’s retelling of Dracula with the original (how could I not?). It’s been several years since I read Stoker’s Dracula so I don’t remember all the details, but everyone knows the basic plot. Nearing the end of Dracula in Love I pondered the basic question any reader should think of when perusing a spin-off: Is the spin worthy of the original? I asked myself if Essex’s retelling was really anything new or original or markedly better. In the end I decided that Bram Stoker’s novel is a classic tragedy, making Karen Essex’s version a copy of a tragedy which came out underwhelming and fairly lifeless (which, although necessary for a vampire, is not so good for a novel). Her love scenes were hot and heavy, but her frequent use of the word “preternatural” annoyed me to no end. Knowing what happens in Dracula meant I knew what would happen in Dracula in Love, and although the story should to be in the telling, Essex didn’t inspire me with her version like good historical-fiction should.

For those of you in search for the next vampire novel, sure, maybe you’ll enjoy Dracula in Love because it’s got vampires and they’re attractive and it’s got women taking control and all that good stuff. But for me, if a writer is going to tackle something as venerable as DRACULA, they had better do it well. In this case, the aim fell far from the mark and the resulting product was another paperback to add to the growing pile of fang-related books on the market these days. Sigh.

1 star

(I received an advance copy for review)

Review: Club Dead by Charlaine Harris

**WARNING** May contain spoilers if you haven’t read Living Dead in Dallas (review) and Dead Until Dark (review)

Sookie Stackhouse is in a pickle again, but this time her vampire boyfriend Bill can’t save her… because she’s the one that has to save him.

When Bill is kidnapped only Sookie can listen for clues to his whereabouts. But what she learns about where Bill was when he was kidnapped, and why he stayed away, may be too much for her to handle. Torn between a deep sense of betrayal and a deeper bond of loyalty, Sookie must decide who to help, and how far she’s willing to go.

This is the third book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries series and to be honest, I sometimes wonder why I waste my brain-power. Once again the writing is nothing special, bordering on amateurish. Harris has written Sookie as a frequenly annoying and grating narrator. I don’t care to know what exact color, pattern, and fabric your pajamas are every single time you put on a pair. Likewise, I don’t give a crap about your word-a-day calendar unless that calendar is going to cut someone’s head off at the end of the book (it doesn’t).

So many times throughout this book I wanted to yell at Sookie. I wanted to say, “Sookie, Bill bit the bejeesus out of your neck. Just because your body feels good nestled against his is no reason to cuddle!” I wanted to tell her that Eric just wants to get into her pants, so though it’s nice that he seems all warm and fuzzy toward her now, it’s not okay for him to do gross things while she drinks his blood. And Alcide!? Alcide is a hot werewolf, for those who haven’t read the book. And in order to listen to the clues for Bill, Sookie has to pretend to be Alcide’s girlfriend, and of course things get complicated there. I don’t even know what shape I could use to define Sookie’s love life, but it’s definitely one with many sides. Three books into the series and I really wish she’d get her act together and start thinking with her brain instead of her lady-business.

I’m also really tired of Sookie always being the victim of abuse. This is not to say she doesn’t defend herself, because she does, every time. But several times in the last three books she’s been completely torn apart and beaten to shreds. Bloodied and bruised and broken to the point of death, I’m really tired of everyone trying to kill her.

In conclusion, I may read the fourth book in the series at some time in the future, but I think it’s possible this is one of the rare examples where the screen version is better than the book in my estimation. The acting on TrueBlood is more genuine to me than Sookie’s narration in the novel. This is the kind of series I would download on an eReader if I had one, because though it’s entertaining, it’s not anything that’s going to enrich my physical book collection.

3 stars

(I received this book as a gift)

Review: The Passage by Justin Cronin

“I don’t know what we’ll find in Colorado, if we ever get there. I’m not even sure it matters. All those years, waiting for the Army, and it turns out the Army is us.” 
The Passage – Justin Cronin

Close your eyes and put yourself far into the future. Imagine a newly discovered virus is being experimented with, that the people experimenting with it are the military. That out of twelve experiments they’ve created human-vampire-like monsters. Beings that glow, that fear light, that live off the blood of humans and animals, that kill and massacre and destroy the entire North American continent. That no one will survive their bloodlust, except a handful of the population, living in a Colony in California. So goes The Passage.

Epically long, fantastically detailed, The Passage starts with the discovery of the virus and the creation of Project NOAH and takes us on an insanely intense journey. It’s the end of the world as we know it, and Cronin has created our destruction. But he’s also created our heros, a band of survivors from the Colony who embark on a journey to find the source of a signal. A signal embedded in a chip implanted at the base of the neck of a young girl named Amy. A girl who doesn’t speak, but sees and knows. A special girl.

With Amy, a few survivors must risk their lives to save the world. The first part of a trilogy, The Passage is headed to the bestseller list and beyond. There’s a reason the buzz is so loud about this book: it’s amazing. It’s dark and suspenseful; it’s not a lighthearted read and many people die, but there is hope. There is always hope. And love, and destiny.

It is impossible not to be immersed in the story, fully living with the characters and the things that happen to them. The virals are everywhere, and you can feel them in the dark, you fear for the lights to go out. Cronin has created an alter-universe where his imagination knows no bounds, but is creatively reigned in by the plot. Truly remarkable, this is a phenomenal book, thrilling and captivating, and the future movie had better do it justice.

June 8, 2010. Mark that day on your calendars. Pre-order, get to the store, do whatever you want to get the book, but know that if you don’t, you’ll find yourself left in the dark. Read it and then wait, like me, for 2012 (The Twelve) and 2014 (The City of Mirrors).

5 stars

(I received this book from the publisher for review)

Review: Living Dead in Dallas by Charlaine Harris

Their fear was subsiding, and my body began to calm again. The awful pressure eased in my head. But as it ebbed, a new force began to build, and it was indescribably beautiful and absolutely evil.
Living Dead in Dallas – Charlaine Harris

**WARNING** May contain spoilers (If you haven’t read Dead Until Dark - review here)

Poor Sookie Stackhouse has a slew of issue in book two of the Southern Vampire Mysteries/True Blood/Sookie series. She’s still dating Vampire Bill, who has been begrudgingly accepted in Bon Temps, but that’s about the only good thing going for her. On top of being attacked by a maenad (a boozy hussy who worships Dionysus – see picture), she’s shipped off to Dallas to use her “talent” of mind-reading to find out who (or what) has kidnapped a vampire from the Dallas nest. With that puzzle solved she returns to Bon Temps to see if she can find out who killed a man and planted him in Detective Andy Bellefleur’s car one night. She’s quite the busy bee in Living Dead in Dallas. On top of all the sleuthing, it’s also apparent that she’s very addicted to sex, since every man (living or dead) seems to make her libido spin. Goodness, now that I realize everything that was going on in this book I wonder how it’s only 291 pages. Oh yeah, the writing isn’t exactly… Pulitzer worthy? Amongst other things.

Book two is better than Book one (Dead Until Dark review here), because the plot is more intense, and the vampires are more attractive. There’s also a new group of shapeshifters introduced (including werewolves!), which is fun and I hope am sure they’ll return in the future. So, if you liked Dead Until Dark, you should definitely continue with the series. I do not feel that these books deserve all the hype they’re getting, if I’m honest with you, but yes, I will continue to read them. Maybe it’s a waste of time, but I like vampires, and I like the television show, and for a quick escapist read, it’ll do.

Sticking to the 3 stars.

Review: Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris

I received this book as a birthday gift and was quite excited (see earlier mentions of squeals and dances when books are received as gifts). I was hesitant to read this series because I love “True Blood” and have heard that the show differs in a few ways from the books, but that’s to be expected. Initially when I started reading Dead Until Dark I hated it. I thought Sookie’s personality was ditzy and annoying. It’s all first-person point of view, so I thought the whole book would be trouble for me, having to be in her head the whole time. But I took a breath, and relaxed, and once I got used to it I was able to set aside my preconceptions from HBO and read the book pretending I didn’t know anything about it. Having said that, I am not a huge fan. I liked it, but I like the show more. I think the characters are more enjoyable in the show since the first person POV in the book tends to make any other character development impossible. I also think the book would have been very bland if I hadn’t already seen the show and had images in my head. I was annoyed by the amount of detail given to Sookie’s every wardrobe change, whether it be denim dress, or shorts and Grateful Dead t-shirt. Granted it was only one or two lines, but it was every time she decided to change, which was frequently. And at one point she put a scrunchy over her ponytail, and I have major issues with anything from the 80s happening in a book written this century. It’s the reason I no longer read the Women’s Murder Club series. 

There were some good things about it, it wasn’t complete nonsense. It was a very quick read; I could have finished it in a day if I wanted to. And it’s a light read, I didn’t feel weighed down in the process which was nice. It’s obviously a good idea and a good plot, but I hope the next book is better. My favorite part by far was Bubba, the man from Memphis. All I will say is that it involved Googling on my part because I thought I had missed something, and then when I did Google, I laughed hysterically because I was kinda-sorta right. If you’ve read the book you might know what I mean (but don’t spoil it for anyone else!) but if you have read the book and don’t know what I mean, you should Google. But don’t read too much because I inadvertantly read a spoiler and am SO annoyed by people who don’t warn.

In my mind, Dead Until Dark doesn’t yet match up to the emotional connection of Twilight, or the suspense of Harry Potter. But it’s only the first book in the series, so I’m not writing Ms. Harris off just yet. I’m giving it 2-3 stars (sorry, I usually try to avoid half stars) and will read the second one a few books down the road.

Happy Halloween!!!

WWVD: What Would Vampires Do?

Add me to the list of vampire-related book readers this week. I’ve found The Bluestocking Guide’s amusing review of How to Catch and Keep a Vampire here, and Tripping Toward Lucidity recently reviewed Life Sucks here, but my vamp-related choice is Dead Until Dark, the first Southern Vampire Mysteries novel, also known as the Sookie Stackhouse/True Blood series (review coming soon).

As everyone else points out, vampires and their kin are taking entertainment and book culture by storm lately. It makes me wonder why everyone’s obsessed all of a sudden. Stuart Townsend was h.o.t. in ”Queen of the Damned” and “The Lost Boys” is a classic. But lately it seems like there’s a new fangled fad for all things nightwalker and once you start, you can’t stop. I’m not sure which came first for me in the recent media: “True Blood” on HBO, or Twilight in paperback. Either way, I’ve read and seen a bunch, but definitely not all. I loved “Buffy,” never really got in to “Angel,” and I do watch “Vampire Diaries” for fun (don’t shoot!), but I will not be spending my money on the recently released movie ”Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant.” Really, John C. Reilly?

It’s hard to keep track of the different series and their associated rules of what makes a vampire vampy. What special powers do vampires have? How does one beome a bloodsucker? Edward can go into the sunlight, but “unfortunately” it makes him all glittery and beautiful and you can’t stop looking at him as he broods at you with those golden eyes. Bill on the other hand, with his southern twang, would explode in stringy-gooey-muck and eventually crumble into ashes if the sun touched him. But Stefan (if you believe the show), well he has a special ring that protects him from the sun’s harmful rays, so he’s all set for the life of a normal seventeen year old, but his brother is sooooo evil. It’s tricky to remember, so why do we try? What makes vampire tales so intriguing? The chance to pretend life is more magical and mysterious than it really is? Do we read these seductive tales and feel empowered and ready to bite someone? Of course not. But we like to have fun, we like to smile. We like to be seduced and enamored. We like the hero saving the damsel, or we like the damsel kicking butt. We like to be entertained for as long as possible. So we go from one tale to the next and can’t wait for the newest series to be released, whether in film or paper. We deny the addiction, we “don’t watch” the cheesy CW shows, and we “don’t know” what the Volturi are. But look around you… vampires are everywhere and if you haven’t read, seen, or heard of the crazy rush, then you must be one of them and only emerge at night. Assuming you don’t have a special trinket that allows you to peek your head out in the middle of the day. Right?

What do you think of all the recent vampish entertainment?