Review: Sunglasses After Dark

Sunglasses After Dark
by
Nancy A. Collins
Available from Amazon in trade paperback,
from Barnes and Noble as a Nook e-book,
from various other book sellers on the internet.

Good afternoon constant reader.

If you're looking for a gritty, bloody, no holds barred, in your face no-sparkling-vampires-allowed vampire tale, then this is the book for you.
While Nancy A. Collins is not a "new" author by any means, you need to run, not walk, to your nearest book source and read what you've been missing.

Allow me to introduce you to Sonja Blue. She's a vampire with an ax to grind big time.
When we first meet Sonja, she's cooped up in a loony bin and is slowly but surely starting to shrug off the drugs she's sedated with and able to figure out her predicament. Sonja's "other" is getting stronger and stronger and enables her to finally break out and into the freedom of the night, to pursue her identity and some vengeance.

Sonja is a tragic figure. Memories of who she was before she was turned into a vampire plague her and drive her to the edge of madness. Make no mistake though, when push comes to shove, Sonja reacts in true vampire style.
Blood definitely flows...or splatters, as the case may be.

Another pivotal character in our tale is Catherine Wheele. She's a powerful, enigmatic, charismatic televangelist. Add ruthless to that list and you have the ingredients for a humdinger of an antagonist.

The end scene is satisfying when certain people arrive at their just desserts.

Nancy A. Collins's world of darkness is painted from a rich palette populated not only by vampires, but demons, ogres and other bump-in-the-nighters.

The series of Sonja novels stretches 10 books, with a new one on the rise.


The Official Sonja Blue blog
Nancy A. Collins on Twitter
Nancy A. Collins on Wikipedia

13 Questions with Nancy Collins...and don't worry, a review will be forthcoming

Good evening constant reader.

I'm going to do something a little different.

Usually I post a book review, then post the author's answers to the 13 Questions.

This time it's going to be the opposite.

Nancy A. Collins, author of Sunglasses After Dark, In The Blood, Paint It Black, A Dozen Black Roses, Darkest Heart, Dead Roses For a Blue Lady, Search and Destroy, Cold Turkey, Some Velvet Morning (her Sonja Blue series) two more series, Vamps and Golgotham (both trilogies), writer for the comics Swamp Thing and Jason Vs Leatherface, a handful of novels, collections, a lot of novellas, contributor to anthologies...well, you get the idea, she's quite prolific...has answered my 13 Questions.
But I've not reviewed her...yet.

I read Sunglasses After Midnight, In The Blood and Paint It Black when they were first published, (1989, 1992 and 1995 respectively) and they were a knock out. Visceral and twisted, bloody and violent - a vampire lover's delight.
I'm going to go back and re-read Sunglasses After Midnight and publish my review after the 13 Questions.

Nancy has a new Sonja Blue novel in the works and has started a indiegogo page to fund it.
You can find all the information here: Kill City - the new Sonja Blue novel by Nancy A. Collins
If you can help fund this project, I urge you to.

1. You’re hosting a dinner party. What is the menu, and do you cook it yourself, or do you call a caterer?
Grilled shish-ka-bobs made from filet mignon, chicken breast, peppers, onion & Portabella mushrooms; par-grilled corn-on-the-cob; potato salad; and pumpkin-cheesecake with an apricot glaze for dessert. And I'd cheat and do both, because my fiance is a a professional cook and I'd let him do the grilling & the corn, while I'd make the potato salad & dessert.

2. What is your beverage of choice?
Non-alcoholic: Coke Zero.
Alcoholic: Larceny Bourbon.

3. Physical book Vs an E-Reader. Your preference and why?
I still prefer physical books, although I have been reading more and more on my Nook. The basic reason is habit more than anything else--and the fact I can't accidentally skip several pages ahead or back by where I put my thumb.

4. What kinds of books make up your personal library?
It's split between non-fiction reference materials and fiction by friends and those writers who have influenced me over the years. And graphic novels. I have a great deal of J.G. Ballard, William S. Burroughs, William Kotzwinkle, Ramsey Campbell, H.P. Lovecraft, Michael McDowell, Robert McCammon, Joe Lansdale, John Shirley, Alan Moore, Pat Mills and Neil Gaiman in my personal collection.

5. How and when did you catch the writing bug?
Around the age of 3, according to my mother. I got bored waiting for adults to read me stories and started drawing my own--since I still didn't know how to write.

6. What is your writing routine?
Well, I usually do a detailed outline in long hand, breaking the story down into chapters, with each action taken on a separate, numbered line. As I finish that section of the story, I cross it off the list. I usually don't start writing until after dinner, as I spent the afternoon handling the nuts-and-bolts of my business--answering emails, going to the bank, calling agents and editors, etc. I usually work until 2-3 in the morning.

7. If you ever encounter writer’s block, what steps do you take to get past it?
I've had more than one bout of writer's block. The only thing you can do is push your way through it. I try to write something every day, even if its only a couple of paragraphs.

8. Do you have a hidden talent?
I bake.

9. What was your best subject in school?
English, of course.

10. As in any entertainment, there are current trends. How much do these “current trends” influence what you write?
Well, I was approached to write a YA vampire series a few years back, if that answers your question.

11. Mac or PC?
PC.

12. Where do your ideas come from?
If I told you that I'd have to kill you.

13 What advice would you pass on to an aspiring author?
Write what you know. Read outside the genre you're writing for.
Grow as thick a skin as possible, and if you can't grow a skin, never read your reviews on Amazon.

Nancy A. Collins on Fantastic Fiction 
Nancy A. Collins on Facebook 

Review: Dead Until Dark

Dead Until Dark
by
Charlaine Harris
Available in paperback from Amazon, Barnes and Noble and for the Kindle from Amazon.

Good afternoon constant reader.

When I created The Written Universe, I thought I might need to pad my entries some, so I set myself the task of reviewing authors who were well known and established to review between my regular reviews. I wanted to high light earlier works or first works just in case the reading populace had forgotten what put the author on the literary map in the first place.
This entry is one of those.

If you've ever watched True Blood on HBO, you know the story: Sookie Stackhouse is a bar maid at Merlotte's in Bon Temps, Louisiana. She's 20-something and pretty, and can read minds.
As we meet Sookie, the Japanese have perfected synthetic blood, and the vampire population has come out of the coffin so to speak, trying to mainstream themselves into the human population. Since they can now drink the synthetic blood marketed under the name True Blood, vampires can live in peace and harmony amongst those they once had to feed off of to survive.

The book that started it all, Dead Until Dark starts off the same way. Sookie muses if she will ever meet a vampire, and in walks dark and handsome Bill Compton, a vampire. The attraction between Sookie and Bill builds throughout the book, but not without it's share of pitfalls. A lot of humans are not only biased against vampires, but against Sookie as well due to her ability to read minds. The fact that she can't read vampire minds is one of the reasons she is attracted to Bill - all she hears is nothing and it's a relief.

The TV show followed the first book quite closely but expanded the Tara character and introduced Lafeyette, who, well...spoilers.

The book is a lot of fun to read.
Characters are drawn with an assured imagination, and you really do like Sookie. Sookie is one of the most likeable female characters I've come across in a long time.

I liked this series so much, I went out and bought all the books in one fell swoop (with the exceptions of 10, 11, and 12) and number 13, the last Sookie Stackhouse adventure is due for release in May 2013. I plan on getting the three I lack and then I get to join the throng waiting for Sookie's final adventure.

I like watching True Blood - I finally got caught up and got to see the last season, season 5, and am anxiously awaiting season 6. Watching the show is like getting an alternate uinverse in which to enjoy seeing what the citizens of Bon Temps are dealing with regarding the supernatural. Some of the elements and plot lines of the TV show have borrowed heavily from the books; sometimes the show goes it's own way. That's okay.
Reading the books provides me the window Charlaine Harris has been looking out the entire time.
Both views are equally entertaining.

Charlaine Harris
Charlaine Harris on Facebook
True Blood on HBO

Review: A Light Against The Darkness

A Light Against The Darkness
by
A.R. Hill
Available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble on line.

Good morning constant reader.

If you like a fresh look at the vampire mythos, with lots of action, great characterization, some splatter here, there and everywhere and a captivating plot, then this book is for you.

Our tale starts by introducing us to Oni, a Japanese vampire.  He isn't pleasant in any sense of the word.  We are then introduced to his catch, Oreno, a young girl who obviously doesn't know what she's been transformed into until later.  We flash backward to meet Oreno before her turning and capture, when she was known as Samara Takeshi.
The action brings us to her fateful turning, some other business I won't give away, which in turn sends her out into the world as a vampire, learning from the ground up so to speak.  She settles for a brief time in a dockside bar/brothel where she brings her sword skills and preternatural speed to bear as a bouncer.  After some unfortunate events involving the Yakuza, she moves on to boarding a ship and sets sail for Hawaii, ending up finally in Los Angeles, and settling in Phoenix.
It is her run in with another brothel and her wholesale destruction of the operators that gets the attention of the wrong folks.  You see, this brothel is owned by some of the local vampires...and they are not pleased with the damage done to their business.
Their council convenes and it is decided Samara must be dealt with.
She ends up aligning herself with John Doe and Sir Jakob and then the action really starts.

In the character of Samara, we're shown the abject horror of becoming a vampire, what it can and will ultimately cost you when you lose your humanity, how you can rise above the monster you've become and how you handle the change that's been forced on you.
The council of vampires is many and varied, each with their own agendas and personal politics.  I found there were times I wanted a more extensive side story into all the ins and outs and interrelations going on in the background.
There's lots of blood and guts and gore, enough to satisfy the gorehounds in the audience, and tons of action, explosions, sword fights, gun battles...it's all here.

The climax was a shade rushed for all the build up, but was satisfying nonetheless.

A.R. Hill has crafted an original take on the vampire story and I'm hoping the follow up, Dark Side of The Sun will see the light of publication ASAP.

My only complaints with A Light Against The Darkness:
The cover...don't let it put you off.  No, it doesn't even hint at the fact it's a vampire novel, but trust me, the fangs are quite present. It does however, make me think of a metaphysical book rather than a horror one.  Because of this, a casual browser seeing this on the shelf is going to pass a great vampire story right on by.
The second concern, and it's a graphic complaint, not one about the writing, was the excessive use of italics, indicating when we were in the present action and when we were inside a particular character's head.  I would  have preferred section breaks within the chapters, numbered to separate them from one another and set in the regular font.  The italics after a while were tedious to read.

All in all, A. R. Hill has the story-telling skills in spades, and I look forward to more work from this author.

For more on A.R. Hill:
A. R. Hill on Goodreads

Review: Filipino Vampire

Filipino Vampire
by
Raymund Hensley
Available through Amazon for the Kindle
and from Smashwords

If a Filipino Vampire terrorizing a young girl with lots of action, snappy dialogue and fast pacing are your cup of tea, then this book is for you.

When we first meet Sasha, she's 12 years old and not a happy camper.  Her mother is of the strict variety, strict enough when she metes out punishment, she ties Sasha to the television antenna on top of their house, to spend the night and contemplate her sins.
During one of these punishments, an Aswang, (pronounced Us-wong)  or Filipino Vampire for those not familiar with the term, shows up and snatches Sasha.  It's up to Sasha to free herself and find her way back home.

An Aswang is pretty disturbing as vampires go - they appear perfectly normal during the daylight hours, but come nightfall, they detach their legs from their bodies and fly around, intestines breezing in the wind.  Yuck.  They'll attack just about anyone, but their preference is for children.

I don't want to tell much more about the story, because it will involve major spoilers.  I will say we have a fine voice in Raymund Hensley's story telling.  He sites Clive Barker as an influence and I could definitely detect that flavor in this story.  

Aimed at the 14-21 year old crowd, it's good.
Sasha's voice is that of a street savvy 12 year old, one who isn't scared to get her hands dirty if the job calls for it.  I liked her and admired her take no crap attitude.  She is smart - something horror novels often overlook in the make up of their characters.
Her mother is, well...awful and is painted as a true harpy.
The action and dialogue marry together well, even when we are definitely not in Kansas anymore Dorothy.
Make no mistake, there are some over the top gore scenes, but that was part of the fun of reading this story - As our narrator, Sasha makes no apology for giving it to you straight.

The book is short, technically considered a novella, weighing in at 44 pages (this count includes listings of Hensley's previous works), but don't let only 41 pages fool you - this is a solid read.
I want to see Mr Hensley go balls out (yes, I said "balls out") and give us a longer ride on the roller coaster the next time.  I don't think it will matter if he aims for the YA market or adult - he's got the chops to succeed at both.

For more information on Raymund Hensley please see:
Raymund Hensley on Blogspot
Raymund Hensley on Facebook
Raymund Hensley on Twitter

Review: A Sigh For Life's Completion

A Sigh For Life's Completion by Sara Kuhns
ISBN 0-7414-5395-9
Infinity Publishing
Trade paper, $19.95

In a nutshell: if you like vampires and want a new slant, read this book.

Sara Kuhns illustrates the vampire's perspective, making some parts of humanity the real 'monsters' in this story.

Lauren is running a tavern that is barely making ends meet.
Paul enters her life, she makes new friends, business at the bar turns around and life is good.
But Paul is not what he seems.
Paul is a vampire. A vampire with a conscience for the very humanity he must feed from in order to survive.

Kuhns weaves an intricate story whose characters fairly leap off the page. The characters are all clearly defined and could easily support books on their own. Even supporting players are given enough depth to keep them interesting.
Alex, Lauren's partner in running the bar, forever the skeptic, but affable; the Twins - Jael and Jaytee who play pivotal parts in the story as it unfolds; Jasper, the quintessential bar fly; Jonathan, Paul's first in command; Lily, Jonathan's lady; Lou, the retired police detective; Jerry, the priest. All these characters are written so distinctly, you'd swear you've been hovering in the background watching the action of this story play out.
While the city is never specified, it's easy to imagine the neighborhood the bar is located in, the bar itself, Paul's home...all these places come to vivid life.

Vampires with a conscience is not a new theme by any means, but Kuhns succeeds where I believe Anne Rice failed - none of Kuhns's vampires whine about what they are, and they have a true respect and appreciation for the human condition, oftentimes seeming more human than the humans they move amongst.
Kuhns's vampires are able to push thoughts and emotions to one another and to the humans they encounter. As this capability grew more prevalent as the story unfolded, I got to where I wished it really were that easy to calm someone or communicate with them.
Make no mistake though, these vampires can and do mean business when conditions warrant.
I was happy that certain plot twists didn't twist the way I thought they would and that one of the main conflicts I saw coming took a left turn I wasn't expecting.
Kuhns's writing is sure, painting vibrant characters one really cares about, and crafting a plot that maintains your interest.

I found myself taking a bit longer than usual to read this, not because it lagged, but because I wanted it to last and didn't want to end it too soon.
If you are a dedicated vampire fiction reader, then you do not want to miss this book.

This is Sara Kuhns's first novel. I look forward to more from this gifted writer.

For more on Sara, please go to her website: http://www.sighforlife.net/

The first book is on it's way!

Good evening constant reader.
(and yes, if you've heard that before, it's the way Stephen King addresses his readers. I like it, I like him, so I've borrowed it, giving Mr. King full credit).

The first book to be reviewed on The Written Universe will be Sara Kuhn's A Sigh For Life's Completion. It's a vampire tale and one I am looking forward to reading. As soon as the book arrives, I will post that it has and set myself to getting it read, digested and reviewed as soon as possible.

In other news, every author on my MySpace friends list I've contacted regarding this blog and my intent have been unanimous in saying it's a good idea, and have supplied me with suggestions I hadn't considered, but will be, and possibly implementing.
Others have generously provided leads to other people who may be interested in providing content at a later date.

I'm very excited about this blog and I can already foresee it going to a web site as soon as the ways and means are made available. However, this will do for now.