Tag Archives: Vampires: The Recent Undead

Conquistador de la Noche by Carrie Vaughn

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for kittys' greatest hits book cover

Title: Conquistador de la Noche
Author: Carrie Vaughn
Series: Kitty Norville #0.4
In: Kitty’s Greatest Hits (Carrie Vaughn) & Vampires: The Recent Undead (Paula Guran)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy, Werewolves
Dates read: 8th November 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tor
Year: 20
5th sentence, 74th page: When will Ruiz return?

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Synopsis

Ruiz has been made into something he never dreamt existed. Never wanted to be and would rather didn’t exist at all. But he might be able to find a new beginning for himself, and just a small spot of revenge.

Thoughts

I don’t know much about the Spanish settlement of the Americas. Actually, Zorro is my only exposure to such a time period and theme. Which of course meant that this short story fascinated me from the outset. Especially since Ricardo was a particularly noble and honourable lead. One who was thrown into the world of the paranormal incredibly unwillingly.

Most stories I read about vampires feature a character who is turned against their will. And this paranormal rape is frequently overlooked or glossed over. Yet, that doesn’t happen in this short story. Actually, the main focuses of this is on the horrors and atrociousness of being turned against your will. It makes you feel incredibly sympathetic towards Ricardo and make you question all of the vampires you’ve read about in books so far.

There is a bit of a Christian overture to this story. One which seriously begs the question – how do you live when your life is a sin? But suicide is also a sin? How can you balance your belief against such a horror and intensity?

 <- A Princess of Spain ReviewThe Temptation of Robin Green Review ->
Image source: Amazon

The Ghost of Leadville by Jeanne C. Stein

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for the mammoth book of vampire romance 2 book cover

Title: The Ghost of Leadville
Author: Jeanne C. Stein
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance 2 (Trisha Telep) & Vampires: The Recent Undead (Paula Guran)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires, Westerns, Wild west
Dates read: 29th October 2019
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2009
5th sentence, 74th page: We do not.

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Synopsis

She’s lived in Leadville before. But it was a different time, a different place, and full of fond memories. The Wild West meets vampires and a life full of regret.

Thoughts

This is a beautiful, bittersweet short story about loss and the possibilities of a future. It’s kind of sweet, incredibly nostalgic and a nice little read to occupy your time for about 10 minutes. I loved the narrative voice of this tale – she’s waxing nostaligic about her past love, but not in a way that makes you completely regret her past.

I thoroughly enjoyed the time travelling aspects of this – it starts in the present, flickers to the past, and then shudders back into the present again. Giving the reader not only an insight into modern-day vampiric life, but also the joys and tragedies of her past as she works towards a more interesting future. Or at least one that she’s a little happier with and more involved in.

I loved the fact that this is a Western Vampire story. you have Doc Holliday and Billy the Kid. A saloon. And a prostitute. All aspects of stories which I quite enjoyed and want to find out more about in the future…

 <- Eternity Embraced ReviewThe Vampire, the Witch and the Yenko Review ->
Image source: Bookdepository

Dancing with the Star by Susan Sizemore

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: Dancing with the Star
Author: Susan Sizemore
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep) & Vampires: The Recent Undead (Paula Guran)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: The problem is what are we going to do for a bartender now?

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Synopsis

She’s a vampire with a little ennui and a ghoul for a best friend. But a car accident might leave her with the best hope of a future that she could ask for… and a star worth dancing the night away with.

Thoughts

This was a really cute little story. Sephora has a major case of ennui and is kind of bored with her life. And she has a best friend who is a ghoul. All of which in and of itself would make a great short story. After all, this is the kind of story that has a great outline of characters and creatures. But then it gets better with the dream sequence.

I haven’t read a story with a good dream sequence for quite a while. And this one ticked all of my boxes. It was slightly confusing and opaque, but also clear in other moments. Which, for me at least, is what a dream is really like. The fact that it leads Sephora to her own leading man and helps to rescue him just makes it all the better.

I was expecting an entirely different story from what the title suggested. I was kind of expecting some kind of dancing with the stars dance competition to be honest. But this was so much better and more interesting…

 <- To Ease the Rage ReviewPlay Dead Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

Zen and the Art of Vampirism by Kelley Armstrong

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview
otherworld-secrets

Title: Zen and the Art of Vampirism
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Series: Women of the Otherworld #9.2
In: Otherworld Secrets (Kelley Armstrong) & Vampires: The Recent Undead (Paula Guran)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Paranormal fantasy, Strong women
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Orbit
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: I just thought –

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Synopsis

Zoe is forced to protect her turf in Toronto, and in doing so, some of her past comes to light.

Thoughts

I really liked meeting Zoe Tanako in Broken – she is the exact opposite to every other vampire that I have met, not only in this series, but also throughout the many other paranormal fantasy books that I’ve read. Zen and the Art of Vampirism gives a better insight into not only her character, but also her past. It also explained one of the two ways of being turned into a vampire better – the non-genetic way. Although it took a little while to understand why this short story was named thus, it did make a lot more sense in the light of her complex and incredibly surprising past.

Tee’s reappearance, and Zoe’s ability to manipulate her surrounds to suit her were thoroughly enjoyable in this story. As was the true reason behind just why she refuses to become violent with the encroachers on her territory. It is a great reminder that just because someone isn’t willing to fight, that doesn’t mean that they are unable to.

<- KitsunegariAngelic ->

Image source: Goodreads