Title: Love You to Death: The Unofficial Companion to the Vampire Diaries
Author: Crissy Calhoun
Release: September 2010
Pages: 240
If you watch Vampire Diaries, then you know what a great show it is. It is so much more than just another Gothic retelling of vampires, and because it is there is so much more to it then what you see on the surface of the show.
This unofficial companion to the series will give you more insight into the characters, the background on the development of the original book series as well as on the author L.J. Smith and why she decided to write The Vampire Diaries. It is also packed with info on all the actors in the series, explorations of the different themes in the first season and of course episode by episode discussions.
In Love You to Death you will also get a look at the thinking behind the adaptation of the books into the show with great in-depth interviews with show creators Kevin Williamson and Julie Plec. There is even a section where they interview some of the biggest fans and bloggers of the show, and of course plenty of great photos.
From time to time I like to take a look at what is coming out from the world of comic books and the new grown-up versions called Graphic Novels. There are some amazing books coming out and I thought I would highlight a pair of them coming out this month that actually feature vampires. Check these guys out, the art is beautiful and the stories top notch!
American Vampire Volume 3 by Scott Snyder
Title: American Vampire – Volume 3
Author: Scott Snyder
Release: February 7, 2012
Pages: 288
Genre: Urban Vampire
This time around we follow our hero Pearl and her husband Henry during the time of World War II. A shadowy group of vampire hunters have decided to enlist the help of Henry to see if he can discover for them if a rumored new group of vampires exist in Japan. It is not the best of times to be going to Japan, and Pearl is not happy about this. In the background, there is a feeling that the infamous vampire Skinner Sweet is behind the recruitment – but who can be sure?
Once again, acclaimed comic book creator Scott Snyder does an incredible job bringing this story to some startling conclusions. How the guy finds time between writing for Batman and Swamp Thing in addition to his regular gig on American Vampire to do his regular teaching job at Columbia University is beyond me. American Vampire is being noted as one of the books to watch for, and it shows in this GN reprint. This is a great way to introduce yourself to the man’s work.
My Boyfriend is a Vampire by Yu-Rang Han
Title: My Boyfriend is a Vampire
Author: Yu-Rang Han
Release: February 14 2012
Pages: 320
Genre: Young Adult Vampire
Sometimes being beautiful isn’t as easy as it looks, and it certainly isn’t for Ryu, who is always being teased for looking like a girl because of his delicate features. But Ryu is far from delicate, as he has a tendency to prove often in the boy’s gang where he goes to school. But one day Ryu has a situation happen that even his tough acts and beautiful looks can’t get him out of, when he stumbles upon a secret in the forest. By accident he stumbles upon a vampire secret and soon finds himself caught up in a world of dangerous romance and menacing intrigue.
With gorgeous art by Korean superstar manga artist Yu-Rang Han it is easy to see why this series has really taken off, particularly amongst young girls. Ryu is a different sort of hero, pretty much a reluctant one and Yu-Rang’s mastery at shoujo, the Japanese art of storytelling that tends towards the sweet for young girls is evident on every page.
Okay, you know that vampires have become just another part of the culture, and in some ways an accepted part of the culture, when a superbowl ad is made that features them. That’s right, you heard me – this year we are gonna see an ad running on the superbowl that features our favorite creatures – vampires!
It is not the scariest depiction of vampires, that’s for sure. In fact, the first time I saw it I had to laugh out loud. But hey – Audi makes some pretty cool cars and I love that they used vampires as a way to show that their latest headlights are just like daylight. In fact, for a bunch of vampires who just like to party, a bit too much like sunlight.
Check it out!
If you love vampires then you probably know that one of the most influential books for the entire horror genre is coming up on a big anniversary. This March will see the 100th anniversary of the death of Bram Stocker, the author of the granddaddy of all vampire books – Dracula! To help celebrate this major landmark, the Horror Writers of America are going to award one book as the most influential vampire novel in the 100 years since the death of Bram Stoker. This make the time period we are talking about to be from 1912 to 2011.
They have already narrowed the choices down to six novels, all of which could easily in my humble opinion be worthy of the choice. It is really amazing to think of how many great vampire books have been written over the last 100 years and I would imagine that coming down with this final group of six must have taken some work and probably a certain amount of politics, with various members pushing for their favorite.
The Six Finalists
No matter how you look at it, these final six choices that the judges will vote on to decide the final winner are all winners already. I think it is fair to say that they would make a great “got to read” list for anyone who is coming to this site. Here are the six books they have winnowed it down, before the announcement in March:
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson
Some may argue that this short story disguised as a novel isn’t even a vampire tale, since he doesn’t really state that is what they are. It is the basic tale of the earth being hit by an epidemic that leaves people acting like vampires, except for our hero. For many- this is the classic post-apocalyptic tale.
This is one of King’s earliest works, and it still packs a punch today. Of course, being King it takes place in a small New England town, and centers Kurt Barlow, a vampire who is running the town until a writer shows up in town to put things back the way they should be. Sorta. But it is classic King.
Interview with a Vampire by Anne Rice
For many this is the book that introduced the modern interpretation of a vampire. Dark, gothic and more than a little homo-erotic, the tale of Lestat and how he became a vampire is told to a young reporter in flash-backs. The New Orleans setting doesn’t hurt the atmosphere, either.
Hotel Transylvania by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
This is from a wonderful series that has the vampire Count Saint Germain travelling through Europe (and time) as we follow his adventurous life. A great fun romp through history and a well told set of stories that bring a bit of fun to the vampire genre.
The Soft Whisper of the Dead by Charles L. Grant
This is a classic tale of evil vampires taking over a small town, but done with such classic horror style as only Grant can do. It takes place in a small town in Connecticut as we follow the evil Count Braslov and his attempts to take over bend the population of the town of Oxrun to his will. It is part of a trilogy but is easily read on its own.
What if Dracula, instead of being defeated by Van Helsing, was to survive? What if he went on to marry Queen Victoria and in fact had a life full of adventures with other great historical and fictional vampires? That is the premise to this wonderful alternate world vampire tale. Published in the early 1990s, it went on to be so successful that Newman followed it up with The Bloody Red Baron and a few other fun little vampire alternate world concepts.
Making the Vote
So there you have it, the six finalists for the title of most influential vampire book of the past century as named by the Horror Writers of America. I even made sure to link them, in case you got curious and decided you just needed to read one of them once again. Or maybe even, for the first time! They are all great books, and some might have even been forgotten in the recent slew of vampire tales, so be sure to check them out.
As far as what I think is the best of the lot, well anyone who reads this site knows how partial I am to Anne Rice. That would be my vote for the most influential. So let us know – what would your vote be?
I know that this isn’t really a feud online, but the media is trying hard to make it like one. If you follow the three ring circus that is the celebrity website circuit, you may have heard something about a comment that Daniel Radcliff made recently on an English talk show called The Jonathan Ross Show. If you follow the career of Robert Pattison you know that before he became Edward on the Twilight franchise, he was in a Harry Potter film playing the role of the heroic Cedric Diggory. In the talk show, Ross asked Radcliff if Harry Potter could beat the vampires in Twilight and Radcliff didn’t miss a beat – he instantly said they could. Basically, in a heartbeat. Now, I am sure that this was all just said as a throwaway line that no one meant anything by, just as Radcliff’s comment that the two are not exactly buddies was not a dig. He just meant they weren’t bosom buddies and Robert Pattison wasn’t too likely to even consider calling up Radcliff for career advice, as was suggested by Ross.
What I find hilarious is that the comment that Harry Potter could beat vampires is all over the web, and is being couched in terms of Radcliff dissing Pattison. Well, anyone that has looked at the clip of the show would know right away that it was just a quick comment that neither the host nor guest gave much thought to. I am pretty sure Radcliff was there to promote some new project and the fact that Twilight just came out is what started this comment.
But don’t take my word for it; here is a clip from the show. See for yourself.
Now- who do you think is stronger? Harry Potter or the vampires from Twilight?
I am always fascinated by the story of how some writer came to start on their current project. With university professor and author N.E. Tovell, that beginning was simply a desire to allow her granddaughter to read a story. When her eleven year old granddaughter became engrossed in the Twilight series, the child’s mother did not want her to read “Breaking Dawn” because she felt her daughter was not old enough for be reading the birth scenes. So Tovell said she would rewrite a PG version for her to read.
In the course of writing it, she began to think about the implications of a half-human half-vampire being. What kind of child would that be and when they grew up, what kind of person would they be? It is the kind of question authors often ask of characters. In this case, it led to her writing A Vampire Trilogy and the latest in the series: Tides of the UnDead.
She describes the second book in the series as a look at the lives of two newlyweds named Galian and Delbeth McDermot. Theirs is an arranged vampire marriage that looks to fulfill an old Celtic prophesy, one that places them in Ireland as the heralds of a new world order. This story follow up the coming-of-age story in book one, and takes us into a world of two species that mirrors so much of our racial tensions.
She calls it a tale of contemporary love surviving in a modern world. But here, the stakes are high as Galian’s headstrong ways and gifts from the world of Faerie clash with Delbeth’s dark vampire ways. It will take their discovery of humility and courage together to overcome the differences and triumph in a world filled with dangerous enemies looking for them to go down in defeat.
Title: The Darkening Dream
Author: Andy Gavin
Release: January 2012
Pages: 392
Genre: Young Adult Vampire
It is Salem, and the year is 1913 when we first meet Sarah, a young Jewish girl with all the dreams of every young girl. Her scholar father has given her a bit of free reign so she has come to know and understand the myths of many lands, including the tales of vampires in Europe. But her life is soon disrupted when a dream vision complete with the trumpeting of a horn leaves her shaken. Worse yet is the day she comes upon a corpse, just like the one in her dream. Was it a premonition?
Then she sees the boy again, through the bodies of others at an amusement park. A new friend, Alex, may be able to help her understand the truth of what she is seeing. But soon even the young Greek immigrant is overwhelmed with the dark reality of what they face. Pursued through the hellholes of factory workshops and fighting for their lives, Sarah and Alex face the fact that they may have brought an ancient horror into their family’s lives.
Can Alex’s grandfather, who has hunted vampires all his life, and Sarah’s scripture-wise father stop the inevitable? As the legendary Gabriel’s Horn sounds in Sarah’s dreams, they band with a group of unlikely brothers to end a centuries-long battle. If they can!
Andy Gavin has delivered an amazing and dark portrayal of vampires unlike much of what you will see in most of today’s fiction. Using the religious imagery of both Christian and Jewish faiths to portray an ancient battle between good and evil, this is a story that is rich in visual and verbal treasures. The Darkening Dream is an unbelievable first novel. I can’t wait to see what Gavin comes up with next!
USA Today had an interesting little story the other day. It looked at the popularity of vampires and asked some leading romance writers what they thought was the reason for this popularity. While it is true that only a year or so ago most editors in traditional publishing were announcing the death (pun intended) of vampire stories, it seems that they are still here and going strong. How could some supposedly well-informed publishing-types be so wrong?
It isn’t that surprising to find that the end result is the same as it has always been. The whole “forbidden love” and “dangerous romance” concept continues to fascinate us, and we aren’t about to give it up just because a couple of desk jockeys in New York have decided that vampires are so yesterday. When romance authors the likes of Jenny Jones and Elizabeth Naughton agree that vampires are the dangerous lovers that so many readers are drawn to, someone is on to something.
Avery Flynn (Up a Dry Creek) calls them the “ultimate in the tortured alpha hero” and I have to agree with her on that one. True Blood may just be the poster child for this kind of hero, but it seems to me that most of the vampires in the “romantic” styled vampire books continue to portray our dark heroes as angst-driven and doomed.
Jane Graves (Heartstrings and Diamond Rings) commented that in vampire tales we ultimately have heroines who control the hero; something I never considered before, but she is right! In the end, most of the vampires find that no matter how big and dangerous they are; love is the thing that holds them. And the heroine, usually a human, is the one that holds that love.
So I guess the end result is always the same – we love our vampires because even though they are the ultimate dangerous bad boy, in the end we love the stories because it is the woman who saves him. For all his dark majesty he is bound and held by a simple thing called love.
