Staked
4 journalers for this copy...
An Amazon Review:
Eric is a vampire. A vampire who owns a strip club, drive a '64 1/2 Ford Mustang, and has persistent short-term memory problems thanks to having been embalmed. Unfortunately, that werewolf that he killed while defending himself had connections--and now the pack's coming to collect payment. On top of it, his girlfriend, who convinced him to turn her into one of the undead, suddenly just isn't doing it for him any more. And his partner in the strip club business may not be the best friend Eric thought he was. What's an undead guy to do?
One would think that a novel featuring a vampire-owned strip club would be pretty predictable. Same goes for vampires vs. werewolves, and, of course, the physiology of the vampires themselves. Lewis manages to not only avoid being predictable, but displays an excellent talent at worldbuilding and characterization. Eric is anything but the seedy, smarmy stereotypical strip club owner. Despite being a vampire, he still deals with very human problems, from love to paying fines and tickets. Additionally, because he's still relatively young, dying in the mid-20th century, he doesn't have the "I've been dead for so long that my culture of origin no longer matters" copout going on. Instead, the reader is treated to odd cultural references from the 1950s and 1960s, and Eric's life is still punctuated by reminders of his human life--including his would-be wife, Marilyn, who stays with him even after his undeath.
The plot is fast-paced, too, especially for a not-quite-400-page book. Rather than focusing only on the mystery at the center of the story, Lewis brings in several plot threads and fleshes them out enough to keep them interesting. He wraps them up well, though he leaves a few cliffhangers at the end--which makes me really, really want to read the next book! He has a good grasp of dialogue, too; the characters speak believably and have distinctive voices. The changing first-person perspective brings added depth to the story as a whole, and Lewis has a good sense of when to change narrators.
Overall, this is one of the most entertaining and well-developed novels I've read in a good long while. Highly, highly recommended.
Eric is a vampire. A vampire who owns a strip club, drive a '64 1/2 Ford Mustang, and has persistent short-term memory problems thanks to having been embalmed. Unfortunately, that werewolf that he killed while defending himself had connections--and now the pack's coming to collect payment. On top of it, his girlfriend, who convinced him to turn her into one of the undead, suddenly just isn't doing it for him any more. And his partner in the strip club business may not be the best friend Eric thought he was. What's an undead guy to do?
One would think that a novel featuring a vampire-owned strip club would be pretty predictable. Same goes for vampires vs. werewolves, and, of course, the physiology of the vampires themselves. Lewis manages to not only avoid being predictable, but displays an excellent talent at worldbuilding and characterization. Eric is anything but the seedy, smarmy stereotypical strip club owner. Despite being a vampire, he still deals with very human problems, from love to paying fines and tickets. Additionally, because he's still relatively young, dying in the mid-20th century, he doesn't have the "I've been dead for so long that my culture of origin no longer matters" copout going on. Instead, the reader is treated to odd cultural references from the 1950s and 1960s, and Eric's life is still punctuated by reminders of his human life--including his would-be wife, Marilyn, who stays with him even after his undeath.
The plot is fast-paced, too, especially for a not-quite-400-page book. Rather than focusing only on the mystery at the center of the story, Lewis brings in several plot threads and fleshes them out enough to keep them interesting. He wraps them up well, though he leaves a few cliffhangers at the end--which makes me really, really want to read the next book! He has a good grasp of dialogue, too; the characters speak believably and have distinctive voices. The changing first-person perspective brings added depth to the story as a whole, and Lewis has a good sense of when to change narrators.
Overall, this is one of the most entertaining and well-developed novels I've read in a good long while. Highly, highly recommended.
Received this back on Thursday but only managed to journal it now. Thank you!
Reserved for amberC. BO Paranormal VBB - Round 53.
It seems sometimes the urban fantasy genre has pretty much the same basic premise: badass girl who is special in some way fights bad guys while falling in love/having torrid affairs/engaging in love triangles with other special people. While I enjoy the genre, and haven't yet read enough of it to become completely and utterly tired of it, it is nice to find a book in the genre with a different sort of feel to it.
For one, Staked's protagonist is a guy. With all that comes with being a guy, including being an asshole who doesn't understand women and is absolutely stupid. And can't keep it in his pants. He's also kind of endearing in his cluelessness, even when you want to slap him. Eric has a good heart, which helps the likeability factor. He's also a totally Gary Stu power-wise but you can kind of let that pass because of his other character traits and flaws, including being completely dumb.
The female protagonist is a little different. It was not difficult to sympathise with Tabitha but it was easier to get frustrated at her because of her own blindness. She's strong and self-possessed, and I'm really glad she's turning out to be a pretty unique vampire in her own right, but she's also whiny and a little dumb and completely obsessed with making Eric love her and share with her a long immortal love life, even when he tries to dissuage her of such thoughts. As a woman reading it, it kind of makes you want to go 'gurrrl, snap out of it!'.
The tone of the book was an aspect I really liked. The comic timing was great, making for some really hilarious moments. Eric's dry sense of humor and his cluelessness made for an interesting rollercoaster of a ride. I liked the dual points of view. It provided a good insight into each character and allowed us to peak into different events happening in parallel. I finished the book wanting to know what the hell would happen to all these characters. What will the next books reveal about Eric? What will Tabitha do? What is Talbot? Will Eric find out about the wolf in sheep's clothing trying to manipulate him through sex?
Overall, I enjoyed this more than what I thought I would after the first chapters of idiotic maleness. And I'm looking forward to reading more in the series. At least it makes for something a little different.
For one, Staked's protagonist is a guy. With all that comes with being a guy, including being an asshole who doesn't understand women and is absolutely stupid. And can't keep it in his pants. He's also kind of endearing in his cluelessness, even when you want to slap him. Eric has a good heart, which helps the likeability factor. He's also a totally Gary Stu power-wise but you can kind of let that pass because of his other character traits and flaws, including being completely dumb.
The female protagonist is a little different. It was not difficult to sympathise with Tabitha but it was easier to get frustrated at her because of her own blindness. She's strong and self-possessed, and I'm really glad she's turning out to be a pretty unique vampire in her own right, but she's also whiny and a little dumb and completely obsessed with making Eric love her and share with her a long immortal love life, even when he tries to dissuage her of such thoughts. As a woman reading it, it kind of makes you want to go 'gurrrl, snap out of it!'.
The tone of the book was an aspect I really liked. The comic timing was great, making for some really hilarious moments. Eric's dry sense of humor and his cluelessness made for an interesting rollercoaster of a ride. I liked the dual points of view. It provided a good insight into each character and allowed us to peak into different events happening in parallel. I finished the book wanting to know what the hell would happen to all these characters. What will the next books reveal about Eric? What will Tabitha do? What is Talbot? Will Eric find out about the wolf in sheep's clothing trying to manipulate him through sex?
Overall, I enjoyed this more than what I thought I would after the first chapters of idiotic maleness. And I'm looking forward to reading more in the series. At least it makes for something a little different.
Arrived today. The package was open but fortunately the book was still inside and looks OK.
You've been tagged in the Wishlist Tag Game.
Thanks! Another book that I will have fun reading! :)
