VAMPS is book one in a series about the vampire teens of Bathory Academy, a prestigious night school for the richest and most powerful members of the vampire race. The first book introduces the characters and sets up the overall plot arc but doesn’t have much of a resolution.
Lilith Todd is the “mean popular girl” at Bathory. Unfortunately, she’s also the primary point of view character in most of this book. Snobbish beyond belief, paranoid and utterly unlikeable, she has her whole life planned out, fairy princess style. She even already has her Prince Charming, betrothed to her in a vampiric contract
VAMPS really picked up when the point of view switched to Cally Monture, a half-blood from a much lower tax bracket, and a much more sympathetic character…
The Lesser of Two Evils is a perfect example of why readers shouldn’t dismiss every book with a self-published label.
Davis Briggs, sheriff of the small Texas town of Devine has a hell of a mess on his hands when children start showing up dead and a drifter and a thirteen year old psychic seem to be the only ones who can help. Jobe, not the typical hero, comes to Devine via possibly divine intervention (haha, get it?), not just because he’s laying low from his last botched bombing which killed more than just the cop it was intended for. Meanwhile, Wendy, thirteen and already having faced more reality than most people do in their lives, is trying to keep her brother alive, and be the parent while her actual parents are out of town on a job. She’s the first to sense a supernatural doom descend on the town and has to convince Davis to trust her instincts before more lives are lost. And when things start to get real bad she and Jobe must team up to take down the killer.
The Lesser of Two Evils is a well paced serial killer story with strong, unique characters. It combines science and fantasy in explaining the paranormal aspects of the plot. The antiheroes rule the show, sharing their own twisted pasts, morals and going through an emotional shift to become something else. While much of the book isn’t graphic there are spectacular murders and an unrelenting, unstoppable killer than keeps the readers swept away for all 363 pages.
An example of “the cream that rises to the top” of the self publishing world, The Lesser of Two Evils is definitely on the Buy list.
“The Heist” is an excellent theme setter for this collection. This story has an urban fantasy flavor, only instead of the default setting of the world being based in nature worship-style paganism or Christianity the magic comes from a very distinct Jewish flavor.
Jimmy the Rat (a Jewish vampire), The Tzaddick (an immortal), The Rabbi (a powerful Jewish mystic) and his wickedly constructed golem Goldie come together to take down a mysterious and magical blood bank. Along the way they encounter peculiar versions of zombies and angels and a fortress that will boggle readers with its incredible level of security. It’s the motley crew’s job to break the fortress, to take down the blood bank and of course, collect their fee.
From there HebrewPunk moves to stories focusing on the trio individually.
“Transylvania Mission” pits The Rat against a band of Nazi werewolves searching for Dracula in the hopes of enlisting his help in their war. More could be said, but that, and awesome, sums up this tale.
“Uganda” mixes the Jewish flavor with distinct African ingredients. In this tale it’s the turn of the century and The Rabbi is asked to investigate a tract of land in Eastern Africa which some people hope will become a new Jewish Homeland. Recognized as a mystic by a local tribe, he walks with them, getting a glimpse into the truth of the land, and possibly even the future. While this is a solid, interesting and richly flavored tale it feels unfinished at the end, perhaps because it’s written as if compiled by a third party from multiple sources, a style that lends better to longer works.
Finally comes The Tzaddick in “The Dope Fiend”, a 1920s set tale of voodoo and ghosts and how they surface in the Jewish mythos. Unfortunately this one is the weakest of the four. There are many major secondary characters that move in and out of the story, playing fairly important roles, but there’s a feeling to them as if the reader should know who they are. It’s not, however, guaranteed that they will.
Also a point of discontent with this story is The Tzaddick himself, who often comes off as if being a drug addict is all that he is. While there is a level of realism to this portrayal, in this story it keeps the reader from connecting with The Tzaddick as anything but a drug addict. This, and the previously mentioned crew of secondary characters, overpower the plot itself, as if Tidhar had more fun writing the characters than the story.
Altogether HebrewPunk is a collection that reveals interesting possibilities, especially for the Urban Fantasy genre who should sit up and take notice at how much space there still is in the genre outside the realm of nature based magic systems and romance melodramas.
A lush, nearly decadent book, A Practical Guide to Faeries is exactly what it advertises, a guide to finding, dealing with and surviving faeries. With beautiful art on every page, along with textured spots and even recipes, it teases every sense, pulling children (and adults) into the world of the Feywild. This book is high fantasy, but doesn’t forget the darker side of fae…Full review at Monster Librarian.
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