Vampires: The Recent Undead - Vampire Book Review

Vampires: The Recent Undead
Edited by Paula Guran
Prime Books (June, 2011)

Guran's introduction gives an excellent history of the evolution of the vampire story from Bram Stoker's Dracula to the present day. All stories in this anthology were written by a variety of talented fantasy authors between 2000 and early 2010 and have appeared in other collections. Although each selection centers on the vampire there are a diversity of themes.

The first story, "The Coldest Girl in Cold Town" by Holly Black provides a bleak look at what it means to trade your humanity for immortality and a constant thirst for blood. On the other hand  Tanya Huff's heroine Vicki Nelson (from the Blood Books series) has accepted the vampire life without ever giving up her compassion or generosity. In fact in the story "No Matter Where You Go", Vicki unselfishly follows three desperate teens into a hellish alternate universe. She may be their only way out. The brilliant Tanith Lee uses her wonderfully bizarre imagination for an unusual take on the vampire theme in "La Vampiresse". Nisi Shawl's "To the Moment" combines the themes of love and the predatory nature of the vampire, while John Langan chills the reader with a horrifying tale of a creature that haunts the lives of four American soldiers recently returned from Iraq in "The Wide Carnivorous Sky". Jeanne C. Stein offers a lovely romance featuring western hero Doc Holliday. And for those who have enjoyed the works of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, an author who has inspired many with her extensive Count Saint Germain historical novels, there is "Gentleman of the Old School".

Writers such as Carrie Vaughn, Kelley Armstrong, Nancy Kilpatrick, Kim Newman and many others are well represented. This collection will appeal to readers of the vampire genre as well as fantasy in general.

[A version of this review appeared in Library Journal which sent me an arc of the book for review. I feel so lucky to be a reviewer for LJ. I have discovered many wonderful authors I would not have known about otherwise.]

Evolve: Vampire Stories of the New Undead - Vampire Book Review

Evolve: Vampire Stories of the New Undead
Edited by Nancy Kilpatrick
Edge (September 15, 2010)
[This title has already been released in Canada]

I first discovered the works of Nancy Kilpatrick when compiling information for Vampire Reading. The edgy, vampire romances in the Power of Blood series made me a convert to her writing. I mention this even though she edits but does not contribute a story to Evolve, because I trust her judgement on what makes a good vampire story.  I was not disappointed!

This is a collection of works from 25 Canadian writers including big name authors like Kelley Armstrong and Tanya Huff. The stories are a mixture of comic, dramatic and dark. This excellent collection will appeal to lovers of vampire and paranormal fiction.

I've written very briefly about each story to give you an idea of what you will find.

Let the Night In - a poem
    by Sandra Kasturi

    "Let us to the moon, he says.
     Such a relief to stand on that always
     darkened face, cratered imperfect
     cousin, beautiful  sphere flying
     into the celestial darkness....
   
[first lines of the poem}


Learning Curve by Kelley Armstrong

A vampire takes on the responsibility of training up and comping slayers on the art of survival.

Chrysalis by Ronald Hore

Snarky humor embues this coming of age story of a young dhampir.

Mother of Miscreants by Jennifer Greylyn

Lilith finds a way to connect with her much loved but long neglected children.

Resonance by Mary E. Choo

Vampires resonate with all the life around them. It should be their duty to share this knowledge.

The New Forty by Rebecca Bradley

Turned into a vampire as an old woman hundreds of years ago the narrator finds herself looking relatively youthful in the 21st century.

Red Blues by Michael Skeet

A dark, poetic telling of vampire who has set his eyes on a woman - seduced her with his mind and his music. The hunt has begun.

The Drinker by Victoria Fisher

An overwhelming thirst is a terrible gift from a stranger.

Sleepless in Calgary by Kevin Cockle

Want to become a vampire? Calgary is where it's happening. It's the perfect place, but, always, be  careful what you wish for.


Come to Me by Heather Clitheroe

A melodic tale strong with desire and death.

Quid Pro Quo by Tanya Huff

A short, sweet story featuring Vicki Nelson and Mike Celluci and the power of love and friendship.

Mama's Boy by Sandra Wickham

Never, ever underestimate the bond between mother and child.

An Ember Amongst the Fallen by Colleen Anderson

The Book of the Fallen is the bible as written for the vampiri. There are many rules and one taboo punishable by death.

The Morning After by Claude Bolduc

Edgy story of a vampire's horrifying  awakening.

All You Can Eat, All the Time by Claude Lalumiere

Jennie hopes for a new life in Montreal. She meets a seductive vampire and thinks her life complete. She could not be more wrong!

Alia's Angel by Rhea Rose

Alia believes she has found an angel, but her friend Peer recognizes a monster.

When I'm Armouring My Belly by Gemma Files

Benjamin's mother told him he was a monster but from the vampires he learned the he was something else, something unique.


A Murder of Vampires by Bev Vincent

A detective and a seductive vampires solve a murder of vampires together.

The greatest Trick by Steve Vernon

Poliical advisor Jessome learns the hard way not to trust a politician, especially if he's one of the undead.

Soulfinger by Rio Youers

Going to a smoky bar to hear the legendary Soulfinger play, Peter finds himself on the other side of reason.

Bend to Beautiful by Bradley Somer

The haunting tale of a vicious angel.

Evolving by Natash Beaulieu

Anton desperately wants to be a vampire. He looks the part; acts the part; still it's not enough. What else does he have to do!

How Magnificent is the Universal Donor by Jerome Stueart

Jacob and his husband Harlen discover the true meaning of being a hero.

The Sun Also Shines on the Wicked by Kevin Nunn

Vampire Stefan longs for the touch of the sun and builds an apparatus that just might allow him to enjoy its warmth.

Read an interview with Nancy Kilpatrick

A Story of Love from the Pen of Maria Zanini

The Scent Of Roses

by Maria Zannini

When I was a little girl, we had a neighbor who used to sun herself by an alley window in our fourth floor walk up in Chicago.

She was dying of cancer and back in the day, when there were so few options, the doctor recommended that a little sun would be good for her.

Our neighbor was a pretty woman, pale and shy. So it often startled me whenever I stuck my head out my window to find her disrobed from the waist up, and sitting on the window sill, her bare back against the warming rays of the sun.

During the twenty or so minutes she sunbathed, her husband would keep her company and play the clarinet. Some said he was once a professional musician. Others said he took up the clarinet again only after his wife became sick. Whatever the story, he serenaded her every afternoon during the short summer months in Chicago.

His devotion to her never waned. And on Fridays when the workweek was done, he always came home with a bouquet of pale pink roses. You could smell them all the way up the stairs.

Sometimes we would hear her moan in the evenings. My mother would shake her head and make the sign of the cross. "Poor woman," she'd say. "I don't see how much longer she can last."

She lasted only a little while longer. By winter she was gone and for many weeks I neither saw or heard my neighbor or his clarinet.

My parents warned us to be more quiet and mindful of our grieving neighbor. When we raced up the stairs, we came to a sudden crawl as we neared the top landing where both we and our neighbor lived. We tiptoed past his door so as not to disturb him.

Once he came out just as I was passing by, and he stunned me when he smiled. It was such a sad smile, and he had aged considerably since I'd seen him last.

Was that what love did to you when the love of your life had gone?

He didn't play anymore and when the well wishers and friends stopped coming by, we didn't see him anymore either. One day, my mother told me our neighbor was moving out and that we would take over his apartment and cut a doorway between the two homes to accommodate our growing family.

I took the room the neighbor lady had used for sunbathing, my very own room for the first time in my life. I set my little dressing table and chair catty-corner from my bed, and on summer nights I would lift the shades on my window and fall asleep as the moonlight flooded the room.

One night, I awoke to the sound of a clarinet. It seemed to come from far away and for a moment I thought I was back in my old room that I shared with my sister.

I squinted at a shadow by my bedroom window until I made out the form of a half nude woman sitting on the sill. On my chair by the dressing table was a man with a clarinet playing softly.

Terrified, I eased out of bed and was nearly at the door when both people turned to look at me. Then like a mist in a breeze, they gently disappeared along with the music. I lay awake the rest of the night wondering what I had seen.

It wasn't until many years later, I learned the man had died not long after his wife. Whether it was an accident or deliberate, I never found out, but I know that he was with her that night in my room, serenading her as he did so many times before.

And it wasn't until that moment that I realized there was something else in that room with us that night. The scent of roses.

It made me smile that even in death, he never forgot the roses.

***
Have you ever seen a ghost? Do tell.

Bio: Maria Zannini is the author of  Touch Of Fire.  In between writing paranormal romance, she homesteads on six acres of land in the middle of nowhere. Feverishly working on two new novels, she hopes to get at least one of them contracted this year.

 Visit me on my blog.  http://mariazannini.blogspot.com/

Or friend me on Goodreads.   http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1572542.Maria_Zannini

 PVN: Maria, thank you for this beautiful love story!