Traveling with the Dead
2 journalers for this copy...
One of the customer at my work told me about this book and the one that follows. I thinking about starting a vampire book club with all of my co-vampire junkie friends and customers. I think I might let one of my friends read this on 1st because I'm slacking on the reading thing right now because of school. I can also let her feel the books out for me 1st.
Book Synopsis:
Down through the deathless centuries, the vampires had drunk human blood for sustenance and for sport. They preyed where they willed, for no mortal humans could resist their unclean powers. But now came the ultimate perversion, the unthinkable: someone was conscripting the vampires into the secret service of a foreign power. No government agency or bureaucrat could control the Undead. The idea was absurd, as Dr. James Asher knew all too well. Years in His Majesty's service had taught Asher the finer points of espionage. And he knew the secrets of the vampires - a familiarity hard-won in unwilling service to Don Simon Ysidro, oldest and most subtle of the hunters of the London night. What Asher didn't know was why one of England's established vampires would risk everything to travel across the European continent at the behest of a ruthless spymaster. But he could see the terrifying potential of such an unholy alliance...
Book Synopsis:
Down through the deathless centuries, the vampires had drunk human blood for sustenance and for sport. They preyed where they willed, for no mortal humans could resist their unclean powers. But now came the ultimate perversion, the unthinkable: someone was conscripting the vampires into the secret service of a foreign power. No government agency or bureaucrat could control the Undead. The idea was absurd, as Dr. James Asher knew all too well. Years in His Majesty's service had taught Asher the finer points of espionage. And he knew the secrets of the vampires - a familiarity hard-won in unwilling service to Don Simon Ysidro, oldest and most subtle of the hunters of the London night. What Asher didn't know was why one of England's established vampires would risk everything to travel across the European continent at the behest of a ruthless spymaster. But he could see the terrifying potential of such an unholy alliance...
Between this and the first one, I enjoyed the first one better. This pulls Asher's wife, Lydia, into the story a lot more, but more characters doesn't mean better story. One element of the story I wasn't fond of, was the fact that the author would switch between the two (husband and wife), but they would often be at different points in the time-line. For example, the book makes mention of Lydia showing the main vampire, Don Ysidro, a telegram from her husband. Shortly after that we're following the husband's story-line at the end of which it has him sending Lydia the telegram previously mentioned. At another point we lose track of Asher entirely and are left to try and figure out what exactly happened to him during several days before he is kidnapped. I'm not entirely sure it ever explains.
We are also left to try and decide whether or not we actually like the vampires introduced. We start to feel for them only to have them change drastically in personality and explain it by saying "You cannot expect us to be other than we are." The end leaves us waxing poetical about feelings better left never introduced and frankly not much at all. As with the first, not bad, but you can do better.
We are also left to try and decide whether or not we actually like the vampires introduced. We start to feel for them only to have them change drastically in personality and explain it by saying "You cannot expect us to be other than we are." The end leaves us waxing poetical about feelings better left never introduced and frankly not much at all. As with the first, not bad, but you can do better.
