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Lure of the Vampire: A Pop Culture Reference Book of Lists, Websites and Very Personal Essays
Lure of the Vampire is a pop culture reference book that begins with history and mythology and ends with modern living vampires. The author has provided "fun" lists like the Powers of Dracula, Real Live Vampire Murders, Television Shows and African Americans who have Played Vampires. There are also websites in each section that show the most popular vampire books and even children's shows and books. But, there is a personal twist when it comes to Lure of the Vampire. The author has provided personal essays from national and international vampire authors as well as her own. They range from a personal look at vampires in mythology to the romantic lust filled vampire. There are also interviews with various groups and individuals involved in the vampire community. Lure of the Vampire: A Pop Culture Refence Book of Lists, Websites, and "Very Telling" Personal Essays is a perfect quick to grab reference book for the vampire fan or author. It is concise enough to assist you in finding links to what you are looking for without our being too cumbersome and confusing.
Lure of the Vampire is great for any writer who would like to find fun facts to give their vampires in their story. For example, what powers have vampires in mythology possessed or the first literary vampires? There’s a section for that.
What if you are a vampire fan who is looking for new YA or adult authors- there is a section with titles, authors and their websites.
What about vampire games? There’s a section for that too.
Sections include: Mythology, History, Literature, Movies, Television, Recreation, Children’s Vampires, On the Web, Education, and Real Life Vampires. There are lists, websites, essays, and interviews included in throughout the book.
Lure of the Vampire: A Pop Culture Reference Book of Lists, Websites, and "Very Telling" Personal Essays is a perfect quick to grab reference book for the vampire fan or author. It's concise enough to assist you in finding links to what you are looking for without our being too cumbersome and confusing.
Lure of the Vampire is great for any writer who would like to find fun facts to give their vampires in their story. For example, what powers have vampires in mythology possessed or the first literary vampires? There’s a section for that.
What if you are a vampire fan who is looking for new YA or adult authors- there is a section with titles, authors and their websites.
What about vampire games? There’s a section for that too.
Sections include: Mythology, History, Literature, Movies, Television, Recreation, Children’s Vampires, On the Web, Education, and Real Life Vampires. There are lists, websites, essays, and interviews included in throughout the book.
Lure of the Vampire: A Pop Culture Reference Book of Lists, Websites, and "Very Telling" Personal Essays is a perfect quick to grab reference book for the vampire fan or author. It's concise enough to assist you in finding links to what you are looking for without our being too cumbersome and confusing.
- GenresVampires
176 pages, Paperback
First published June 13, 2011
1 person is currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
Bertena Varney
53 books61 followersBertena Varney began her studies at Morehead State University. Her studies included the following:
- B.A. in Social Science and Education
- M.A. in Social Science and Education
- M.A. in Sociology and Criminology
- Rank 2 Secondary Education
Certification
She used all of her extra essays, projects and independent study classes to study vampires in pop culture. Thus the creation of Lure of the Vampire.
She has worked in education as both a middle and high school teacher and college professor. She has also been a department director in a business college, and a substance abuse, youth, and domestic violence counselor.
She is a RYT - 500 Yoga Teacher, Meditation Teacher and Reiki Master.
She can be found on Facebook here http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bertena...
Her writing website is www.midnightmusings.blogspot.com
- B.A. in Social Science and Education
- M.A. in Social Science and Education
- M.A. in Sociology and Criminology
- Rank 2 Secondary Education
Certification
She used all of her extra essays, projects and independent study classes to study vampires in pop culture. Thus the creation of Lure of the Vampire.
She has worked in education as both a middle and high school teacher and college professor. She has also been a department director in a business college, and a substance abuse, youth, and domestic violence counselor.
She is a RYT - 500 Yoga Teacher, Meditation Teacher and Reiki Master.
She can be found on Facebook here http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bertena...
Her writing website is www.midnightmusings.blogspot.com
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 10, 2011
Lure of the Vampire
by
Bertena Varney
I remember my first introduction to the vampire. It was when I was a kid and a series came out called Dark Shadows. Oh, I didn't know what to make of it, I just knew it was scary yet I could not take my eyes away from the television and I could by no means miss a episode. As I grew up, and lived my life I drew away from the vampire until I met an author named Maggie Shayne and her "the original" Twilight series as she puts it, for grown-ups. After the first book, I was totally hooked and I could not read enough, it was like having a box of chocolate in front of me and I could not stop after one. I found myself getting my hands on every new vampire novel that came out no matter the author. I was hooked and mesmerized!
Of course over the years I have my own version of what I want 'my' vampire to look like and what qualities I want 'my' vampire to have. Because you see, I truly want them to be real! My vampire I want to have long dark hair, be tall and tanned with some abs. He must have piercing blue eyes, and a essence about him that makes a woman want to have wet dreams during the daylight hours! But I digress. I have read The Lure of the Vampire by Bertena Varney and I must applaud all of the hard work and research she has done about the type of creature that enters my dreams at night. She has gone to the very beginning when the vampire first 'was'.
I found a lot of variations in the vampire from different writers, artists, and creators over the years from different countries and I found it totally fascinating and she has done a great justice here. I didn't realize the different ways 'my' vampire was depicted over the centuries, even down to the 'lesbian' vampire Camilla. I found myself smiling in comparison to the way the vampire was portrayed way before I was born, the different powers they had, the different ways they could be killed and turned. I thought I knew everything there was to know about my nighttime creature, but I found I in reality knew very little.
This book, Lure of the Vampire is a must read for ALL vampire lovers, admirers, or if you are just curious. Even for those of you who practice vampirism, this is a book you need on your shelf. Bertena covers everything there is to know out there by using tons of resources, to let us vampire lovers know just how it all began. How the lure of the vampire has become so powerful to those of us who can only dream and wish that one night when we would leave our window open, we'd awaken to those piercing blue eyes looking at us with lust in the dark.
I give Lure of the Vampire by Bertena Varney five stars all the way! *****
Reviewed by
Nora Barteau
http://norachipleybarteau.blogspot.com/
by
Bertena Varney
I remember my first introduction to the vampire. It was when I was a kid and a series came out called Dark Shadows. Oh, I didn't know what to make of it, I just knew it was scary yet I could not take my eyes away from the television and I could by no means miss a episode. As I grew up, and lived my life I drew away from the vampire until I met an author named Maggie Shayne and her "the original" Twilight series as she puts it, for grown-ups. After the first book, I was totally hooked and I could not read enough, it was like having a box of chocolate in front of me and I could not stop after one. I found myself getting my hands on every new vampire novel that came out no matter the author. I was hooked and mesmerized!
Of course over the years I have my own version of what I want 'my' vampire to look like and what qualities I want 'my' vampire to have. Because you see, I truly want them to be real! My vampire I want to have long dark hair, be tall and tanned with some abs. He must have piercing blue eyes, and a essence about him that makes a woman want to have wet dreams during the daylight hours! But I digress. I have read The Lure of the Vampire by Bertena Varney and I must applaud all of the hard work and research she has done about the type of creature that enters my dreams at night. She has gone to the very beginning when the vampire first 'was'.
I found a lot of variations in the vampire from different writers, artists, and creators over the years from different countries and I found it totally fascinating and she has done a great justice here. I didn't realize the different ways 'my' vampire was depicted over the centuries, even down to the 'lesbian' vampire Camilla. I found myself smiling in comparison to the way the vampire was portrayed way before I was born, the different powers they had, the different ways they could be killed and turned. I thought I knew everything there was to know about my nighttime creature, but I found I in reality knew very little.
This book, Lure of the Vampire is a must read for ALL vampire lovers, admirers, or if you are just curious. Even for those of you who practice vampirism, this is a book you need on your shelf. Bertena covers everything there is to know out there by using tons of resources, to let us vampire lovers know just how it all began. How the lure of the vampire has become so powerful to those of us who can only dream and wish that one night when we would leave our window open, we'd awaken to those piercing blue eyes looking at us with lust in the dark.
I give Lure of the Vampire by Bertena Varney five stars all the way! *****
Reviewed by
Nora Barteau
http://norachipleybarteau.blogspot.com/
July 19, 2011
Lure of the Vampire is an informative voyage through the many lives of the vampire; origins in the 1800’s through the morphing of Dracula into the modern age. The amount of research Ms. Varney has done on the subject of vampires is vast, making this book a “must have” for anyone who loves vampires—like myself!
Some interesting points noted in the book:
Eastern European folklore inspired several legends associated with vampires. However, the act of vampire biting a victim in order to turn them into a vampire more of a modern idea.
There is a section that connects vampirism with religion; Hebrew mythology and Judeo-Christianity.
Lists of vampire murderers, various historical areas, and true origins of vampires.
Ms. Varney has also compiled a list of books, movies, and TV shows about vampires.
My love for vampires came at an early age; think “Lost Boys” circa 1987 (I was 11), and has grown over the years. My obsession for everything vampire has included Dark Shadows (the original show, the remake, and the movies), 1970’s versions of Dracula movies (of which I own), Underworld and the sequels, the book Bunnicula (which currently sits on my bookshelf), and a never-ending “To Be Read” list of vampire books by some of today’s hottest authors, just to name a few. This written vampiric voyage by Bertena Varney investigates, unravels, and highlights so much about vampires and their popularity making “Lure of the Vampire” a great reference tool for scholars, hardcore fans, and novices.
Some interesting points noted in the book:
Eastern European folklore inspired several legends associated with vampires. However, the act of vampire biting a victim in order to turn them into a vampire more of a modern idea.
There is a section that connects vampirism with religion; Hebrew mythology and Judeo-Christianity.
Lists of vampire murderers, various historical areas, and true origins of vampires.
Ms. Varney has also compiled a list of books, movies, and TV shows about vampires.
My love for vampires came at an early age; think “Lost Boys” circa 1987 (I was 11), and has grown over the years. My obsession for everything vampire has included Dark Shadows (the original show, the remake, and the movies), 1970’s versions of Dracula movies (of which I own), Underworld and the sequels, the book Bunnicula (which currently sits on my bookshelf), and a never-ending “To Be Read” list of vampire books by some of today’s hottest authors, just to name a few. This written vampiric voyage by Bertena Varney investigates, unravels, and highlights so much about vampires and their popularity making “Lure of the Vampire” a great reference tool for scholars, hardcore fans, and novices.
April 14, 2012
I read “Lure of the Vampire” by Bertena Varney. The book is basically a survey of everything you could possibly want to know about vampires. It has a lot of good information, some of it very strange and off the wall. However, the main sections that had writing from the author had misspellings and incorrect word choice (every instead of very for example). I am not a huge fan of vampires to start with. What really got to me though is that the last section of the book is an about me section in which the author states this will be used as a textbook for a college class that she is teaching. She has two masters degrees and she didn’t bother to spell check a novel/textbook that was published.
However much the writing style bothered me, there was a lot of good and interesting information presented in the book. It had information (easy to read lists) on a multitude of topics related to vampires starting with their history and moving to film and people who believe they are real life vampires. It also included essays written by various contributors (which had a much more polished writing style) and a few interviews with various “vampires” of today. I believed the information was good due to a very extensive bibliography in the back of the book which did show that a great deal of research had been done.
Personally, vampires are not my cup of tea and I skimmed over portions of this book, however, for a true vampire aficionado, this would be a great and thought-provoking book. I would give it 2.5 out of 5 stars – good information, but it needed some more revision before it went to press.
Reviewed for Read2Review.com
However much the writing style bothered me, there was a lot of good and interesting information presented in the book. It had information (easy to read lists) on a multitude of topics related to vampires starting with their history and moving to film and people who believe they are real life vampires. It also included essays written by various contributors (which had a much more polished writing style) and a few interviews with various “vampires” of today. I believed the information was good due to a very extensive bibliography in the back of the book which did show that a great deal of research had been done.
Personally, vampires are not my cup of tea and I skimmed over portions of this book, however, for a true vampire aficionado, this would be a great and thought-provoking book. I would give it 2.5 out of 5 stars – good information, but it needed some more revision before it went to press.
Reviewed for Read2Review.com
February 5, 2013
I read “Lure of the Vampire” by Bertena Varney. The book is basically a survey of everything you could possibly want to know about vampires. It has a lot of good information, some of it very strange and off the wall. However, the main sections that had writing from the author had misspellings and incorrect word choice (every instead of very for example). I am not a huge fan of vampires to start with. What really got to me though is that the last section of the book is an about me section in which the author states this will be used as a *textbook* for a college class that she is teaching. She has two masters degrees and she didn’t bother to spell check a novel/textbook that was published.
However much the writing style bothered me, there was a lot of good and interesting information presented in the book. It had information (easy to read lists) on a multitude of topics related to vampires starting with their history and moving to film and people who believe they are real life vampires. It also included essays written by various contributors (which had a much more polished writing style) and a few interviews with various “vampires” of today. I believed the information was good due to a very extensive bibliography in the back of the book which did show that a great deal of research had been done.
Personally, vampires are not my cup of tea and I skimmed over portions of this book, however, for a true vampire aficionado, this would be a great and thought-provoking book.
I would give it 2.5 out of 5 stars – good information, but it needed some more revision before it went to press.
However much the writing style bothered me, there was a lot of good and interesting information presented in the book. It had information (easy to read lists) on a multitude of topics related to vampires starting with their history and moving to film and people who believe they are real life vampires. It also included essays written by various contributors (which had a much more polished writing style) and a few interviews with various “vampires” of today. I believed the information was good due to a very extensive bibliography in the back of the book which did show that a great deal of research had been done.
Personally, vampires are not my cup of tea and I skimmed over portions of this book, however, for a true vampire aficionado, this would be a great and thought-provoking book.
I would give it 2.5 out of 5 stars – good information, but it needed some more revision before it went to press.
January 2, 2013
Excellent survey of vampires in popular culture, and the attraction that vampires have. Really liked the essays in each chapter and the analysis of the works discussed. Would have liked more attention paid to the folklore and history of vampires, but understand why it wasn't done.
March 17, 2012
ALL vampire lovers should read, own and re read this book!! For real!
July 12, 2012
Very informational book about the history of vampires. I especially enjoyed the interviews with people who consider themselves vampires. Great reference book for anyone who writes about vampires.
September 14, 2012
This book is for anything that you want to know about vampires. Great read!
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews