Starred review from July 27, 2015
The notion of the romantic vampire is transcended to chilling and even heartbreaking effect in this stellar anthology of tales collected by Golden (Tin Men). The best is Laird Barron’s atmospheric, Alaska-set “In a Cavern, in a Canyon,” in which one woman examines her past as she confronts a very present horror. Other highlights include Michael Koryta’s “On the Dark Side of Sunlight Basin,” in which one vampire meets his match; Seanan McGuire’s dark and lovely “Something Lost, Something Gained”; Brian Keene’s restrained, heart-wrenching “The Last Supper,” in which a vampire’s loneliness eclipses his need to feed in a plague-devastated world; and Rio Youers’s “Separator,” set in a typhoon-devastated Philippines where a land developer gets a brutal taste of local legend. These stories move smoothly from the subtle to the horrifying, often shot through with a thick vein of irony, and there’s enough variety and talent to make up for the few stories that aren’t quite as strong. Agent: Howard Morhaim, Howard Morhaim Literary Agency.
December 20, 2004
What do you get when you pair a vivacious female vampire hunter with a cool, punctilious immortal Dark-Hunter and pit them against a bunch of blood- and soul-sucking Daemons? This taut, rollicking romance from Kenyon (Kiss of the Night
, etc.), who's fast becoming a grand dame of the paranormal romance arena. Steely Dark-Hunter Valerius Magnus and gutsy, wisecracking Tabitha Deveraux are two of Kenyon's most appealing creations. Brought together by a humorous twist of fate—Tabitha stabs Valerius, mistaking him for a Daemon—they light up every scene in which they're together. Unfortunately, their romance seems doomed. The husband of Tabitha's twin has a 2,000-year-old grudge against Valerius, many of Tabitha's friends hate him for atrocities he supposedly committed many years ago and a group of unusually powerful Daemons are intent on annihilating Tabitha, her sisters and anyone who stands in their way. Tabitha and Valerius are aided by Kenyon's familiar crew of Dark-Hunters and Dark-Hunter friends, including their enigmatic ringleader, Acheron, who is explored in more depth here than in the author's earlier novels. Though Kenyon doesn't skirt melodrama entirely with this tale—evidenced by the flashbacks to Valerius's unbelievably tortured past—she succeeds in offering a lively read containing her signature blend of brisk action, sensual thrills and light humor.