August Book Winner Plus

The winner of this month's prize, The Outlaw Demon Wails by Kim Harrison, is rstephen8103

Congratulations!

rstephen8103 please send me your snail-mail address so that I can send your book.


Last month's winner for Small Favor by Jim Butcher never responded so I held a second drawing and the prize goes to BLACKROZE

Congratulations!

BLACKROZE please send me your snail-mail so that I can send your book

Contact me at paltner@verizon.net

Countdown for True Blood

An acquaintance of mine, because of her news reporter job, has seen the first 5 episodes and is suitably impressed. That is music to my ears. I have high hopes for this series!

Check out this video - Invitation to the Set - for HBO's True Blood. Premiere is Sept. 9.

Wellington's Vampires- Two Reviews

A Review of Two Vampire Novels by David Wellington

13 Bullets. Three Rivers Press, 2007

Special Deputy Jameson Arkeley of the US Marshall service has the permanent assignment of tracking down vampires. In a time when most humans believe vampires to be extinct Arkeley knows the truth. Twenty years earlier he had led a SWAT team against Piter Byron Lares the creature responsible for a string of vicious murders. In a graphic and bloody confrontation Lares uses his superhuman strength to destroy everyone on the team. Only Arkeley managed to escape. Eventually he destroys Lares completely eradicating this ruthless species except, that is, for their imprisoned leader Justinia Malvern.

Fast forward twenty years and Arkeley is once again on the trail of the undead. Somehow Malvern has been able, from her prison, to create vampire followers. To help his deadly search Arkeley enlists the aid of Pennsylvania State Trooper Laura Caxton. She wants no part of this assignment, but her superiors give her no choice. It proves to be worse than she ever imagined. Wellington’s vampires have no redeeming virtues. Their countenance is horrifying, with rows of sharp teeth, and huge bat like ears. They show no mercy and take great delight in tearing their victims apart.


99 Coffins Three Rivers Press, 2007.

In the sequel to 13 Bullets, we find Arkeley a shell of his former self. He never fully recovered from his hideous wounds of the last battle. Arkaley's life has been taken over by nightmares of vampires. He keeps Justinia Malvern's coffin in his lonely hotel room. He trusts no one else to guard her. The government says she has the right to live, but Arkeley makes sure that she has barely enough energy to survive a blighted existence.

Arkeley summons former partner Laura Caxton. He has heard about an excavation in Gettysberg where ninety-nine coffins crowd an underground room each containing a skeleton with no evidence of a heart. Reluctantly Caxton agrees to investigate. She discovers in one darkened corner a splintered coffin with no evidence of a body. A vampire from more than a century ago has risen as she finds later in one horrifying night.

Interspered within the novel are entries from two diaries of soldiers who fought in the Civil War and whose knowledge helps make sense of what is happening in today's world. This action, adventure will keep the reader's attention from beginning to end. Lots of graphic violence occurs so it's not for the squeamish.

August book contest and Winners of Legacy

My thanks to Jeanne Stein for a great interview and for generously offering a copy of Legacy with cover magnets to two readers.

I also want to thank everyone who came by and participated with comments, questions and/or links.

The two winners are: ReadingIsSoMuchFun and LizK

I will contact the winners with details for claiming their prize.

For everyone else remember all email subscribers are eligible for the monthly book drawing. The August selection is a copy of The Outlaw Demon Wails (Rachel Morgan book 6) by Kim Harrison. (Eos, 2008).

Each month there is a drawing for a different title.

Interview with Jeanne C. Stein

Jeanne C. Stein is the author of the bestselling series the Anna Strong Chronicles.

Despite a brutal introduction to the vampire world Anna relies on her inner strength and unflinching morality to pull her through. She is a character I like and admire. Book 4, Legacy, comes out today.

After you read the interview check the contest notes that follow.

PVN: Jeanne, it's a pleasure to welcome you to Patricia's Vampire Notes.

JS: Thanks, Patricia. It's a pleasure to be here.

PVN: How did you come up with the character of Anna? She is quite an amazing gal!

JS: Anna Strong is a character I’d carried around in my head for a long time. She’s the ultimate powerful female, confident, loyal, committed to protecting the ones she loves. She’s a little bit Buffy, a little bit everywoman. She’d make a damned good friend even if she is a vampire!

PVN: How did you decide on the characteristics of your vampires?

JS: I knew from the start that I wanted to set my books in my hometown of San Diego and that I wanted Anna to live at Mission Beach. I just couldn’t bring myself to relegating her to the dark. So I decided early on that my vampires would have adapted to sunlight. It makes sense, doesn’t it? Vampires have been around forever. Like man emerging from the primordial ooze, vampires emerged from the dark. Some things, though, had to remain the same. She had to subsist on human blood and have superhuman strength and be immortal. The one bit of lore I wish I hadn’t subscribed to, though, was the “casting no reflection” bit. It’s silly and since my vampires do retain their souls, I could easily have skipped that one. I just realized it too late! As a result, Anna has to be constantly aware of mirrors when she’s interacting with humans. It’s a pain for both of us.

PVN: Would you tell us a bit about Legacy and where Anna may be headed next?

JS: In Legacy, Anna is confronted by a woman who claims to be the widow of Avery—the vampire in book one who seduced Anna only to betray her in the worst way. The woman wants Avery’s estate and no matter how Anna tries to make it clear she’s happy to relinquish it, it soon becomes evident that there’s more than money at stake. The woman is out for Anna’s blood.

PVN: In the anthology Many Bloody Returns you write about a witch named Sophie. The story The Witch and the Wicked is very clever and funny. Would you tell us a bit about Sophie? Will we be seeing her with Anna?

JS: Sophie, the witch with a split personality, makes an appearance in book five—Retribution. She and her alter ego, Jonathan Deveraux, help Anna save Culebra’s life when he comes under the spell of Belinda Burke—the evil witch from the Watcher. I like Sophie and hope to bring her back again…maybe even in a book of her own.

PVN: Please describe your writing day and writing environment.

JS: I’m an early riser and try to be at my computer by 6 AM. My office is an alcove off my bedroom and I love it—I have my desktop MAC and reference books and a comfortable chair and when I’m there, I’m ready to work. Of course, there’s email to check and promo to work and the business stuff to take care of first so it’s about 8:30 or 9 before I’m actually writing. I work until 11, take a break for lunch and some kind of work-out (the gym or a walk) and then back at 1. I generally write until about 5 in the afternoon, later if it’s going really well. I aim for at least 5 pages a day. I’m generally done by 6, though, after that, my brain slows to a crawl. I spend the rest of the evening in “research” mode—with TV and books!

PVN: What are your favorite books and authors in the paranormal genre?

JS: I read so many different authors, it’s hard to list favorites. Charlaine Harris with her Sookie books was probably the first author after Anne Rice to capture my imagination with her original take on the vampire mythos. Then there’s LKH, of course, followed by anything Joss Whedon. More recently, I’ve added Richelle Mead, Jackie Kessler, Mark Henry, Mario Acevedo, Anthony Strout…I could go on and on. There are so many new and outstanding writers, there’s hardly enough time to read everyone I’d like to. That’s the one drawback of writing for a living—it cuts into your reading time!

PVN: And are there any paranormal favorites on TV or in the movies?

JS: Of course—I enjoyed the Sarah Connor Chronicles so I’m glad it’s coming back for a second season. I love Dexter. Lost. Heroes. Smallville. And I'm sure you know Charlaine’s Southern Vampire series is premiering on HBO this fall. I can hardly wait.

As for movies, just saw Dark Knight—I didn’t expect to like it so much. My favorite vampire movie, though, has to be Near Dark. I’m not picky when it comes to movies—if the story is good and the characters well defined, I usually enjoy them.

PVN: Jeanne, thanks once again!

JS: You're very welcome. It's always fun for me to connect with readers. I appreciate all the support Anna and I have been shown. And I'm very happy to announce I've accepted a contract for two more books-- that means Anna will be around to recount even more adventures. In fact, the next, tentatively titled Retribution, is scheduled for a spring 2009 release date.

PVN: Great news! Congratulations!!

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Now for the contest information.
Jeanne is offering a copy of Legacy (with a set of four book cover magnets) to two lucky readers.

For a chance to win do one (or more) of the following:

*Comment on any subject from the interview. Each comment on a different subject counts as an entry.

*Ask Jeanne a question. Each question counts as an entry.

*Link to Patricia's Vampire Notes and send me the URL. Each link counts as an entry.

Be sure to include enough email information so that I will be able to contact you.

This contest ends at midnight August 27, 2008.

Winners will be announced on Thursday August 28, 2008.

Jeanne Stein Interview - Upcoming Event

On Tuesday August 26 there will be an interview with Jeanne C. Stein author of the Anna Strong Chronicles. Legacy, book 4, hits the stands the same day as the interview.

Jeanne has generously offered copies of Legacy with cover magnets to two lucky readers.

Click here for a review of the series.

Zoo Welcomes Blood-Suckers

Even as babies they aren't especially cute, but this is a rather sweet little story about vampire bats including newborns. Check out this article from the Little Rock Zoo and be sure watch the video.

Internet Sites of Paranormal interest August 20, 2008

Nancy Holder writes about the world setting of her most recent book Son of the Shadows, book three in The Gifted series, on Harlequin's Paranormal Romance Blog






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Bitten by Books has an interview with Jeaniene Frost author Halfway to the Grave (Avon, 2007).

"Half-vampire Catherine Crawfield is going after the undead with a vengeance, hoping that one of these deadbeats is her father – the one responsible for ruining her mother's life. Then she's captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter, and is forced into an unlikely partnership."

Book two is One Foot in the Grave (Avon, 2008). Book three At Grave's End will be published by Avon on December 30, 2008.

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Author Justin Gustainis wrote a guest blog on Paranormality about occult detectives. He says, "My first exposure to the “occult detective” genre (although nobody was calling it that back then) was in 1977, when I stumbled upon a made-for-TV movie called “Spectre.” It features a criminologist (played by Robert Culp) and his physician friend/assistant, who are called in to investigate a case of possible demonic possession in England...."

I remember that movie! I loved it! Gustainis is correct. Spectre was a great intro to the genre of paranormal mysteries. The screenplay was written by Star Trek genius Gene Roddenberry.

Gustainis wrote Black Magic Woman. (Solaris, 2008)
Book description: "Occult investigator Quincey Morris and his "consultant", white witch Libby Chastain, are hired to free a family from a deadly curse that appears to date back to the Salem witch trials. Fraught with danger, the trail finds them stalking the mysterious occult underworlds of Boston, San Francisco, New Orleans, and New York, searching out the root of the curse. After surviving a series of terrifying attempts on their lives, the two find themselves drawn inexorably towards Salem itself—the very heart of darkness."

Evil Ways, the second Quincey Morris Supernatural Investigation, will be published in January, 2009.

Most of you may remember the name Quincey Morris from Bram Stoker's Dracula. He was the Texan who died while tracking the Count to his castle. This Quincey is his great-great grandson.

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Internet radio has become a popular medium for a variety of topics including the paranormal. Darkness on the Edge of Town in one such station. The description below I lifted verbatim from their site.

Every Saturday and Sunday night, join hosts David Schrader and Tim Dennis as they lead you on a journey into the world of unexplained phenomena with their weekly program:
The Darkness On The Edge of Town.

Based in Minnesota and streaming all over the world, they cover every aspect of the paranormal: from ghosts to UFO activity, and more. Each week, they speak with experts in every field to bring you the latest and most up to date stories and dig deeper into classic and familiar tales and urban legends.

Darkness on The Edge of Town promises to deliver interesting and thought provoking topics each week. Each new show will be made available in its entirety to download so you can listen at your leisure.

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The Middleman Recap: The Fangs of Love Are Sharp, and Apparently Wooden, On the Middleman

I have not seen The Middleman: Fighting Evil So You Don't Have To. In fact I never heard of it until I came across this post. It runs on ABC Family. Recently, as the article will show, vampire puppets were featured. Now I need to check the schedule to see if there will be reruns. Below is an excerpt from the article. Click on the title above, in red, to read the whole enchilada.

"So on the off chance that you've somehow failed to see 'The Vampiric Puppet Lamentation' yet, there were two Lacey-related shocks. First, that she's been having some very impressively lit sex dreams starring Pip, the evil plagiarist son of the building owner whose property Wendy, Lacey and the others rent illegally. Actually, Pip is quite cute, despite being evil and idiotic.."

A Rush of Wings - Vampire Book Review

A Rush of Wings by Adrian Phoenix. Pocket, 2008.

FBI special agent Heather Wallace arrives in New Orleans on the trail of a serial murderer she has dubbed CCK - the Cross-Country Killer. He has plowed a devastating path of killing across the country. He specializes in perversion and torture. The body of the young university student found in a patio near the goth Club Hell is no exception. As part of her investigation Heather meets the seductive Dante, owner of Club Hell and front for the band Inferno. He is Nightkind (vampire) and makes no effort to hide this from anyone although Heather, like many others, assumes this is part of the act that goes with the dark, heavy atmosphere of the club.

An intricate series of events take place within the next forty-eight hours. More murders occur and Heather realizes that CCK is now focusing his attention on those close to Dante and is leaving messages that trigger nightmarish visions in this young, oddly vulnerable Nightkind. Dante suffers physically and mentally from the horrors that begin to break free from his subconscious. Lucien De Noir, one of the mysterious Elohim, offers Dante as much protection as he can, but even this powerful being has limitations. As Heather is drawn further into Dante's frightening world she eventually accepts that his vampiric nature is real and that more than mortal monsters haunt the night.

Elaborate twists of plot along with gritty realism and seductive beauty create a stunning, riveting story.


On December 30, 2008 the sequel In the Blood appears in bookstores.

Black Moon Reaper - Correction

In the recent posting Evan More and More New Vampire Books for 2008

I erroneously listed the upcoming publication Black Moon Reaper (Ellora's Cave, August, 2008) by Charlotte Boyett-Compo as Blue Moon Reaper. My apologies to the author.

I have made a correction on the original post.

Go here for an excerpt of the novel. You must be 18 years of age to read this explicit content.

Evan More and More New Vampire Books for 2008

Accidentally Dead

by Dakota Cassidy
Berkley Trade (July 1, 2008)


Angel's Pain
by Maggie Shayne
Mira, October 1, 2008


BEYOND THE GRAVE
by Lina Gardiner
ImaJinn. September, 30, 2008



Bride of Casa Dracula (Casa Dracula, Book 3)
by Marta Acosta
Pocket, Sept. 16, 2008


Black Moon Reaper
by Charlotte Boyett-Compo
Ellora's Cave, August, 2008


His Forgotten Forever
by Michelle Hauf
Silhouette Nocturne, July 2008


First Blood
by Susan Sizemore, Erin McCarthy, Chris Marie Green, and Meljean Brook
Berkley, August 5, 2008



Kiss and Tell (Bloodmates, Book 1)
by Sandy Lynn
Samhain Publishing (January 1, 2008)



The Last Vampire
by Patricia Rosemoor and Marc Paoletti
Del Rey, June 24, 2008


Midnight's Daughter (Dorina Basarab, Dhampir, Book 1)
by Karen Chance
Onyx, Oct. 7, 2008


Pure Blood (Nocturne City, Book 2)
Caitlin Kitredge
St. Martin's August 26,2008


Scion Insurrection
by Patrice Michelle
Silhouette (May 1, 2008)


Shadow Kiss (Vampire Academy, Book 3)
by Richelle Mead
Razorbill, November 13, 2008


The Sweet Scent of Blood
by Suzanne McLeod
Gollancz, September 28, 2008


Stalking the Vampire: A Fable of Tonight
by Mike Resnick
Pyr, August 2008



Twilight Fall
by Lynn Viehl
Onyx, July 1, 2008


The Vampire Agent
by Patricia Rosemoor and Marc Paoletti
Del Rey, Dec. 30, 2008
0345501055


When Twilight Burns
Colleen Gleason
Signet Eclipse, August 2008


The Year of Disappearances
by Susan Hubbard
Simon & Schuster, May 6, 2008
A sequel to The Society of S (Simon & Schuster, 2007)


Zen and the Art of Vampires
by Katie MacAlister
NAL, December, 2008.


Also see:

Even More New Vampire Titles for 2008

More New Vampire Books for 2008

New Vampire Books for 2008

The Madness Seadon by C. S. Friedman

A Review of The Madness Season by C. S. Friedman (Daw, 1990)

I first heard about C. S. Friedman while doing research for Vampire Readings. Several people mentioned The Madness Season as an excellent vampire story. What I didn’t realize until I began reading it was how well it incorporated two of my favorite themes - science fiction and vampire fiction. This is an imaginative, beautifully written novel that captured my attention from the very first page.

Much of the known Galaxy has been conquered by an alien race called the Tyr. Their large reptilian bodies are covered with tough armored plaiting and lethel spikes. When Earth was vanquished they dispassionately murdered any human who had fought them and exiled to distant planets any who were likely to defy them. Only those willing to submit to their rule remained. One such person is Daetrin, a rather nondescript, middle-aged science teacher at one of the few colleges left. He is no one special or so he would like everyone, especially the Tyr, to believe. But the Tyr have discovered there is something not quite human about Daetrin. Although he has carefully changed his identity over time, they soon realize that he has lived for many centuries. No mortal should be able to do this.

All of his life, even before the coming of the Tyr, Daetrin has had to hide his difference - the need for blood ( a need he could eventually discard by using science to create a substitute), ageless immortality, aversion to sunlight, and ability to shapeshift. When told by the Kuol-Tyr. governor of Earth, that he would be taken from his planet never to return, Daetrin assumes he has been given a death sentence. Instead this journey becomes a chance for him to acknowledge his true nature and use his special abilities to fight the tyranny of the Tyr. Although Daetrin is the main character there are many others, all fully realized and believable like a particular Raayat-Tyr whose search for knowledge sets him apart from those of his race. In Daetrin he finds someone who can help him. Daetrin determines this can works both ways.

I've read The Madness Season twice, most recently last year (2007). I enjoyed it just as much the second time.

Friedman's author notes can be found here, but be careful there are minor spoilers!

Vampire Plagues: Mexico, 1850 - Review

I am not familiar with this particular book, but I thought the reviewer had an interesting perspective. I also liked the reason why the review was written. In fact I think it's a great idea! WARNING - SPOILERS!


Vampire Plagues (book 3) Mexico, 1850

(by Sebastian Rooke. Scholastic Paperbacks, 2005)

The following is a review from Igor, who read this title and wrote the review for us in order to reduce his fines at the library. In some instances we allow teens to work off their fines at a rate of $5.00 per hour. Please contact the Teen staff at the Carnegie Library in Oakland if you are interested!

I haven’t read the first book or the second book, but after reading this book I wanted to read all 3 books, the book is about three children who have this “mission” to stop this vampire lord (camazots) and he wants to rule the world with his vampire demons, as I had discovered he is a Mayan god and eventually was sealed for one thousand years, that was a thousand years ego, and now he has a small army of minions to do his bidding, he wants a amulet that will grant him power beyond all others so he must collect the 4 parts to it: the bat, the eye, the crown, and the moon, the bat is the form he takes, the crown is his rule over earth, the eye is to make him all seeing and the moon is to turn the world into full darkness, so after getting that understood the book is not bad but I got to admit I did not like the ending for there was not a battle but a trick, the vampire lord was tricked into assembling the amulet the wrong way and so he and his followers died by lightning…

good or bad? The book was good for it had me interested, but the plot was not good and the ending was a turnoff so I would say the book has a 4 star review from me.

-Igor (teen reviewer)

Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Main
CLPTeensburgh: Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Teen Services

August 13, 2008 by andertonh

Internet Sites of Paranormal Interest August 11, 2008

"Dragon*Con Dark Fantasy is a programming track held during Dragon*Con Atlanta's premiere festival for the popular arts. As the name indicates, Dark Fantasy focuses on horror, vampires, paranormal romance, and gothic entertainment. Dragon*Con 2008 will be held during Labor Day weekend, Aug. 29 - Sept. 1. The Dark Fantasy programming will take place in the Montreal/Vancouver and Cairo rooms at the Hyatt Regency Atlanta." Find out more information at the blog site.





Cathy Clamp c0-author of the vampire novel Touch of Darkness (Thrall, Book 3) writes about the Paranormal on the blog site Paranormality.

Paranormal Podcast.com

The podcast that goes bump in the night. "We interview experts, psychics and authors on everything from UFOs to crop circles -- if its paranormal you willl hear it on Paranormal Podcast. Explore the unknown with your host Jim Harold."

On August 8, 2008 Harold interviewed S. E. Schlosser author of a continuing series that tell stories of the paranormal on a state by state basis.






In Twilight's Shadow (Book 2 in the Light Warrior series) by Patti O'Shea (Tor, June, 2008) is a paranormal romance mystery. Book 1 is In the Midnight Hour (Tor, 2007)
Read and excerpt of Twilight's Shadow.

Watch the trailer:







On the Far Side Contest.

Deadline extended until August 22nd!! So get your entries ready and send them in!!

FF&P's On the Far Side contest for unpublished authors is in need of entries, especially in the romantic elements and erotica categories! Final round judges are acquiring editors and agents of all genres of paranormal romance. Take this opportunity to get your best work in front of:

Time Travel: Margo Lipschultz (Harlequin, Luna)
General Paranormal: Erika Tsang (Avon)
Romantic Elements: Lois Winston (Ashley Grayson)
Futuristic: Stacy Boyd (Harlequin)
Erotic: Caren Johnson (Caren Johnson Lit. Agency)
Fantasy: Deborah Werksman (Sourcebooks)
Young Adult: Scott Eagan (Greyhaus Lit. Agency)

For more information see post of July 25, 2008

Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk

Review of Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk. (Roc, November 4, 2008).

The setting is Portland, Oregon where Allie Beckstrom lives in an old apartment she hates because the building stinks of used magic especially when it rains. Although her father is a prominent and wealthy business man, Allie's intense dislike for him means she would rather live in poverty than take any money from him.

She makes a tiny salary by working as a Hound, someone who can trace lines of magic back to its user. In this urban fantasy, magic had been discovered 30 years ago.

Here is what she has to say about magic. "Magic, like booze, sex, and drugs, gave as good as it got. But unlike booze and the rest, magic could do incredible good. In the right hands, used the right way, it could save lives, ease pain, and streamline the complexities of the modern world.... Using magic meant it used you back. Magic always takes its due from the user, and the price is always pain."
In her Hounding work Allie must use magic and she always suffers for it, often with a migraine and a loss of bits of her memory. This day she receives a call from Mama Rossitto who lives in a run down section of the city. One of her boys is hurt. When Allie arrives she finds that magic has been Offloaded to the innocent child while the user goes on without consequences. Allie also discovers that the line of magic has her father's signature.

This event touches off the adventure that comes to take over her life. She encounters the handsome Zayvion who she soon learns works for her father. She finds Zayvion very attractive but considering his employer how could she trust him? Then she sees a newspaper headline that her father has been murdered. The tension mounts when Allie learns she is the primary suspect and is being hunted by a sinister group on the wrong side of magic.

I loved Devon Monk's intricate description of magic and how it is used in this world. Here the magic has a darker aspect than is usually found in other novels of this genre. The characters, all of them, are interesting but not always fully realized. At times it was difficult to understand why certain personalities acted as they did. One exception is a young man named Cory. He has been used, brutalized and discarded by an evil entity, still Cody finds a strength within to survive.

Despite a few misgivings, I found a strong energy and momentum that kept me reading till the last page. I will most certainly read the sequel.

Vampyres of Hollywood by Adrienne Barbeau and Michael Scott

Vampyres of Hollywood. St Martin's, August 2008.



When this book arrived in the mail, and I saw that mid-list actress Adrienne Barbeau was one of the authors, my first thought was a has-been decides, when all else fails write a book. I was certain I would hate it, and was pleasantly surprised it didn't happen.

The story begins with the gruesome murders of three Hollywood A-listers. What the police don't know is that each one is a vampyre, and they are all the progeny of the actress and high rolling producer Ovsanna Moore. Her specialties are horror movies which often focus on the nasty doings of the undead.
She introduces herself thusly. "I am Ovsanna Hovannes Garabedian, Chatelaine of the Clan Dakhanavar of the First Bloodline. I am full born, not made, pureblood, able to create other in my image. .. But you know me as Ovsanna Moore, writer and star of seventeen block buster horror films, several less than successful ones, and a few that went straight to DVD." Ovsanna is convinced a vampyre hunter has come to town but is unsure who or why.

Hunky, veteran Beverly Hills detective Peter King is assigned to investigate the murders. To call him cynical would be an understatement. "Greed and stupidity. That's how most criminals are caught. Forget the high-tech CSI/SVU stuff - Vincent D'Onofrio kneeling on the floor to chart the exact trajectory of a quarter-inch blood spatter on a burned-out halogen bulb found only on one corner of the Cloister. That kind of stuff helps keep Dick Wolf's research staff busy, but it's not the truth."

Of course Peter has no idea Hollywood is literally crawling with vampyres and his main contact, scream queen Ovsanna Moore, is leader of the pack. Eventually he figures it out but by then Peter and Ovsanna have become quite close. Together they make love and solve the crime.

Real life thespian Adrienne Barbeau has used her insider knowledge to paint a picture of a Hollywood chock full of immortal blood-suckers while normals go about their business unaware. By no stretch of the imagination is this great literature, but it is entertaining enough to make good beach reading.

August Contest - The Outlaw Demon Wails

This month's contest offers a copy of The Outlaw Demon Wails (Rachel Morgan book 6) by Kim Harrison. (Eos, 2008).

All e-mail subscribers to this blog are eligible to win. If you have not yet signed up it's very easy to do. In the right column look for Subscribe to Patricia's Vampire Notes. Click and you're on your way. Go here for a review of Dead Witch Walking, book 1 in the Rachel Morgan series.

Internet Sites of Paranormal Interest August 5, 2008

Ghost Writer

Katherine Ramsland talks about her hair-raising experiences tape-recording the voices of the dead and photographing ectoplasm.

By Suzy Hansen

This article was posted on Salon.com October 31, 2001

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The following article comes from American Chronicle

Vampires and Shipwreks in Whitby, North Yorkshire.
Cheney Anne Markun

About the author:
Cheney Anne Markun is an English writer, currently based in Windsor, Berkshire. Her main passion is for travel - and writing about it! Cheney is also a vegetarian and has written several peices about this aspect of travel, hoping to help other veggies to travel with more confidence. Cheney also writes fiction and is currently finishing her first full length novel. In case you wondered, the first name is pronounced like Shaynee - it just has a weird English spelling!

Cheney Anne Markun
July 28, 2008
I woke up suddenly to the sound of heavy rain crashing against the windows of the bed and breakfast, and quickly pulled the blankets more tightly around me. As I wondered whether the frail window frames of this 17th century building would stand up to much more of this sort of treatment, the night sky outside erupted with the loudest clap of thunder I have ever heard in my life and, as the noise reverberated around the narrow cobbled streets and bounced off the fronts of the old stone houses, I understood why the town of Whitby has a reputation for being just a little bit scary... Read more

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Bye-bye, Buffy!

Let's salute "Buffy the Vampire Slayer's" greatest accomplishment: A girl who not only kicked ass, but rejected the lonely-guy way of being a superhero... Read more

By Laura Miller

Salon.com July 29, 2008


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After All the Funerals, a Prime-Time Auteur Dig Up the Undead

By JOE RHODES

Published: August 3, 2008

LOS ANGELES

John P. Johnson/HBO

Stephen Moyer and Anna Paquin in the new HBO series “True Blood,” based on Charlaine Harris’s books.

Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer, center, on the set with Alan Ball, the executive producer, writer and director of “True Blood.”

ALAN BALL, seeking a break from the stress and high expectations that had accompanied the winding down of the high-profile series he created for HBO, the existential, darkly comic “Six Feet Under,” set in a Pasadena funeral home, was just looking for a light, entertaining diversion three years ago when he started reading Charlaine Harris’s “Southern Vampire” mysteries. Read more....

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Darque Reviews offers an interview with Caitlin Kittredge author of Pure Blood (St Martin's, August 28, 2008.

Kittredge answers questions about her new release as well at book one in the series, Night Life (St Martin's, March 2008).


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Interview with Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Author of the Saint-Germain Series
Written by Vrydolok
Published May 22, 2008 in Blogcritics magazine.

"Yarbro is best known for her meticulously researched works of historical horror fiction, especially the novels and collections featuring her character Count Ragoczy Saint-Germain. One of the first completely sympathetic and moral vampire protagonists to appear in literature, Saint-Germain broke popular vampire fiction away from the Dracula model and established the foundation for the modern vampire romance. Since his debut in Hotel Transylvania in 1978, Saint-Germain has appeared in more than twenty books, with Number Twenty-two, Dangerous Climate, scheduled to be released by Tor in September, 2008." Read more.....

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Having trouble finding the perfect gift for that hard-to-buy-for person?
Check this out - Dracula Vampire Grillz

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I wonder who wrote the copy for this.?

Excerpts of recent books

ROMANCING THE DEAD (Garnet Lacey, Book 3)
Berkley, 2008

by Tate Hallaway

"Could I really see myself married to a... vampire?

The diamond ring on my finger sparkled in the early morning light. My bicycle nearly ended up in the ditch more than once as my eyes kept straying to the golden band. Married? Me?

Read more of the EXCERPT

MIDNIGHT REIGN (Vampire Babylon book 2) Ace, 2008

by Chris Marie Green

Jessica Reese came home from her job at a Hollywood bar that night, someone was waiting in the bedroom closet. Someone hiding amidst hanging party dresses and dry cleaning wrappers that ghosted back and forth with every slight, controlled breath. Someone who sat patiently with a container of bleach and a long knife that would be used to slash the victim’s throat and quiet her before that Someone could tear the woman’s neck apart in leisurely delight. Someone was going to become a star tonight. The sheer plastic hangings leeched air out of the tiny closet, making the wait a humid, trembling vigil. Read more....

MIDNIGHT'S DAUGHTER (Dorina Basarab, Dhampir, Book 1) Onyx, Oct 7, 2008

by Karen Chance

Read an excerpt: My least favorite dead guy had his feet up on my desk. I hate that. His boots were probably cleaner than my blotter, but still. It showed a lack of respect.
I pushed the offending size tens into the floor and scowled. “Whatever it is, the answer’s no.”
“Okay, Dory. Your call.” Kyle was looking amiable–never a good sign. “I should’ve known you wouldn’t care what happened to Claire. After all, there’s not likely to be any money in it,” he paused to glance around my rathole of an office, “and you don’t appear to be in a position to do anything gratis.”

Night Life (Nocturne City, Book 1) by Caitlin Kittredge ) St Martin's, 2008

"I smelled the girl's blood and saw her body in a pool of neon light. Neon signs from a bar facing the alley painted the scene dreamlike, the pavement slick and bottomless and the body's skin pink and hard.

I could smell her blood because I'm a werewolf.

I had gotten the call because she was dead."

Read more of the Excerpt

Pure Blood (Nocturne City, Book 1) by Caitlin Kittredge ) will be published on August 26, 2008