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The Vampire Musketeers #1
Sword & Blood: The Vampire Musketeers
In a world where vampires have taken every humble chapel, defiled every grand cathedral, subdued most nations, and treated every human as cattle, Dumas' hero musketeers rise to a greater challenge than they ever met in their original adventures. Athos has spent a decade fighting vampires in the king's musketeers. He never expected to see his wife again - he'd discovered Charlotte was a vampiric servant, hanged and left for dead ten years before - yet it is she who turns Athos into a vampire. Or does she? Despite the craving for blood and overwhelming sexual hunger, Athos walks the fine line between the worlds, remaining human enough to fight vampires. Only his commitment and loyalty to his friends - fellow musketeers Porthos and Aramis - and a young Gascon named D'Artagnan, allows him to keep his soul through an adventure that tests the heights of his heroism and the depth of his darkest desires.
336 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2012
8 people are currently reading
328 people want to read
About the author
Sarah Marques
13 books6 followersA pseudonym used by Sarah A. Hoyt
Note: There are two authors with that name in the database
Note: There are two authors with that name in the database
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 34 reviews
August 14, 2020
The idea is not bad at all, combining the original Dumas story with a new twist: It’s the Musketeers against Richelieu and his Red Guard all over, but this time, the cardinal is a vampire, and so are his men. Athos, most melancholic and tormented of the Musketeers, is bitten by a vampire - none other than Milady, his wife, presumed dead after being executed on Athos’ orders. Athos is now a “halfling” who will completely turn into a vampire if he gives in to the urge to bite and drink blood. It’s up to the new Musketeer d’Artagnan and to Aramis and Porthos to not only defend Paris against the vampire hordes, but also to help their friend Athos withstand becoming one.
So far, so clever, and not only does this AU idea make a certain sense, it also begins with very familiar scenes from the original novel, entertainingly altered to fit the new situation.
But. BUT! The writing style. The whole book is written like overly dramatic fan fiction. And no offense to fan fiction writers! There are some great fan-written stories out there, up to par with “real” books! But this one overdoes it: too many tropes, too many gratuitous descriptions of our muscular, Greek god-like Musketeers, too many plump, overused analogies, too much of everything. Also, the unfolding of the plot: the whole affair veers off into silly erotic magical fantasy that’s involuntarily comical in parts.
I mean, seriously - masturbation to ward off a seductive vampire? Magical deflowering of an (under-age!) Musketeer as defense against the evil forces?!
It’s a shame, really, since the story contains several entertaining sword fights, and the final clash with the vampire army IS suspenseful. And the character of Athos lends himself so beautifully to tormented suffering!
But the author is laying it all on too thick and, frankly, ridiculing our heroes instead of doing them justice. Yes, Dumas loves drama. Even melodrama. But this is over the top and eventually ruins a good idea.
Oh, and why did the author re-christen Athos “Raphael” and Milady “Charlotte”? Their first names, as per Dumas, are Olivier and Anne. Why change that?
I listened to the audiobook, and while the narrator wasn’t bad, he went with a few weird choices, e.g. he gave the four Musketeers an American accent while Tréville, Milady and several others have a French accent. Why?
He also could have helped tone down the melodrama a bit with a darker, more serious narration, instead he did the opposite and emphasized the exaggerated style. Not helpful.
Only giving this two stars for the interesting idea, the entertaining first scenes and the chance to meet up with my favorite fictional characters again.
So far, so clever, and not only does this AU idea make a certain sense, it also begins with very familiar scenes from the original novel, entertainingly altered to fit the new situation.
But. BUT! The writing style. The whole book is written like overly dramatic fan fiction. And no offense to fan fiction writers! There are some great fan-written stories out there, up to par with “real” books! But this one overdoes it: too many tropes, too many gratuitous descriptions of our muscular, Greek god-like Musketeers, too many plump, overused analogies, too much of everything. Also, the unfolding of the plot: the whole affair veers off into silly erotic magical fantasy that’s involuntarily comical in parts.
I mean, seriously - masturbation to ward off a seductive vampire? Magical deflowering of an (under-age!) Musketeer as defense against the evil forces?!
It’s a shame, really, since the story contains several entertaining sword fights, and the final clash with the vampire army IS suspenseful. And the character of Athos lends himself so beautifully to tormented suffering!
But the author is laying it all on too thick and, frankly, ridiculing our heroes instead of doing them justice. Yes, Dumas loves drama. Even melodrama. But this is over the top and eventually ruins a good idea.
Oh, and why did the author re-christen Athos “Raphael” and Milady “Charlotte”? Their first names, as per Dumas, are Olivier and Anne. Why change that?
I listened to the audiobook, and while the narrator wasn’t bad, he went with a few weird choices, e.g. he gave the four Musketeers an American accent while Tréville, Milady and several others have a French accent. Why?
He also could have helped tone down the melodrama a bit with a darker, more serious narration, instead he did the opposite and emphasized the exaggerated style. Not helpful.
Only giving this two stars for the interesting idea, the entertaining first scenes and the chance to meet up with my favorite fictional characters again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 1, 2016
Oh Lord, the books I spend my time with. I'm almost embarrassed to admit I read this, but then I had fun, so who gives a toss?
Sword & Blood is just as much a page-turner as the classic piece of literature it is inspired by, if for very (very, very!) different reasons. Don't get me wrong, both are fluff and a bit silly when you break them down to it. But Sword & Blood caters to a distinctly contemporary audience, what with all the added existential angst and eroticism, and the fantastical elements.
So, like the book this novel is based on Sword & Blood is pretty much all fluff. But the re-imagination's plot is less complex and less coherent. There is no great scheme of court intrigue to foil. We're not on to what Constance is doing for the Queen. And the Evil of the Vampires is rather less subtle or anti-villainous than the cardinal's scheming in the classic.
All in all the book's plot is pretty loose. They heroes don't appear to have a clear goal apart from fighting vampires and freeing humankind (well, France,) from their scourge. They don't even have a concrete plan how to achieve that. This only changes during the very last third of the book. Incidentally this is also where the book lost a lot of its appeal to me. First an infodump happens. Then randomly more and more fantastic elements apart from vampires show up. Then we get more exposition about things that should have been alluded to more clearly earlier in the book. Its plot, the rush towards the big finale, and the final showdown where something of a letdown.
So, yeah, I found the plot to be a bit simplistic, which is not helped by the rather shallow world building: It is serviceable for the tale that is told, but it is not extremely detailed nor anything to sink your teeth into.
I must also say that I am not a fan of vampires in any form of media. I don't hate them quite as much as I hate zombies, but it's close. I'm simply not a fan of the undead.
Why am I even reading this book, if I'm not into vampires at all? I don't know. Someone (they know who they are) posted a link to the excerpt on amazon and it sounded like fun, and I thought I'd try the thing since I'm on a musketeer kick right now (thanks, BBC!).
And it's not as if this book was completely awful. The vampires here are vampires that I can actually sorta get behind. They are not overly romanticised (which is a weird thing to say, since the vampire in Western literature owes a lot to Romanticism). They are still monsters, while being very sexual. More precisely, they are sexual in a very predatory way -- the way vampires have always been in modern literature since before Stoker's Dracula. Their sexual violence in this version is dehumanising, humiliating as much as it is pleasurable and painful. There is no romance to it, no pining. It is simple lust and animal attraction. And this is why these vampires work for me, even if I still don't get positively excited over the idea of them.
And speaking of vampires: Poor Athos! I like me some existential angst but I kept hoping they would find a way to un-vampire him. Clearly I am doing vampire fiction wrong!
But, boy, these are the bits where the book really gets good, if you're into this kind of thing. It really milks the anguish of having to build a whole new life from scratch after a traumatising event, without any hopes of getting back to your old ways. So, yeah, I liked how being turned was ultimately treated as traumatic, even likened to a form of rape, as the vampiric act in this book's world is an extremely sexual one. All the explicit scenes will fittingly mix arousal with a horror that will make you cringe.
However, this is also what clearly marks this book as one intended for adults, or at least older teens. Despite the shallow plot, the purply prose, the trivial words, there are some pretty hefty topics alluded to if you take the time to think about the psychology of it all (and I don't just mean the rape or the sex rituals. And let's not even talk about Aramis' religious practices. Ouch).
On to the characters: One thing that bothered me about this novel in comparison to the book it's based on was how the characters were re-written.
Of course in a world with vampires you're allowed (even obliged) to change the characters back stories and even personalities a little bit. But casting Porthos, of all people, as the shy one, struck me as odd. Unless you made him the shy one so you had a reason to write less dialogue for him. In other words I'm pretty disappointed that Porthos has been sidelined so much (He is my favourite, damn you!).
Aramis gets a tiny little bit more page-time, which is why I won't mope too much. I guess it would have been too much to expect the book to focus on the three musketeers + d'Artagnan as an ensemble rather than focusing on Athos and d'Artagnan.
This is my very own special curse, however, so I will shut up about it now. I always fall in love with the sidekicks more than the heroes.
Additionally, and this is the real tragedy, there are only one or two scenes that play up the strong friendship that was so essential to the original book, which I find a bit weak for an adaptation no matter how lose. I really missed the comradeship that was such a big part of the charm of the original classic tale. Come on! They're facing a vampire-apocalypse! They really could have shown a bit more concern for each other under these circumstances! The book might as well have been set in the same period playing with the same tropes, without these same characters. Only I guess it wouldn’t have gotten as much attention then.
In the same vein, for being one of two main protagonists d'Artagnan feels underwritten as a character. In contrast, despite her being hardly recognisable as the same character, even this version's Constance has some more meat to her than d'Artagnan does.
So, yeah, this book is alright for a piece of pulp fiction, but I can't help but feel even something as silly sounding as "vampire musketeers" could have been pulled off a bit more ambitiously.
If there ever is a second volume will I read it? Very likely. Sword & Blood certainly isn't great literature but it's audacious, exciting fun in a kind of B-movie way. Reading it was certainly a kind of guilty pleasure that people simply have to seek out from time to time.
Sword & Blood is just as much a page-turner as the classic piece of literature it is inspired by, if for very (very, very!) different reasons. Don't get me wrong, both are fluff and a bit silly when you break them down to it. But Sword & Blood caters to a distinctly contemporary audience, what with all the added existential angst and eroticism, and the fantastical elements.
So, like the book this novel is based on Sword & Blood is pretty much all fluff. But the re-imagination's plot is less complex and less coherent. There is no great scheme of court intrigue to foil. We're not on to what Constance is doing for the Queen. And the Evil of the Vampires is rather less subtle or anti-villainous than the cardinal's scheming in the classic.
All in all the book's plot is pretty loose. They heroes don't appear to have a clear goal apart from fighting vampires and freeing humankind (well, France,) from their scourge. They don't even have a concrete plan how to achieve that. This only changes during the very last third of the book. Incidentally this is also where the book lost a lot of its appeal to me. First an infodump happens. Then randomly more and more fantastic elements apart from vampires show up. Then we get more exposition about things that should have been alluded to more clearly earlier in the book. Its plot, the rush towards the big finale, and the final showdown where something of a letdown.
So, yeah, I found the plot to be a bit simplistic, which is not helped by the rather shallow world building: It is serviceable for the tale that is told, but it is not extremely detailed nor anything to sink your teeth into.
I must also say that I am not a fan of vampires in any form of media. I don't hate them quite as much as I hate zombies, but it's close. I'm simply not a fan of the undead.
Why am I even reading this book, if I'm not into vampires at all? I don't know. Someone (they know who they are) posted a link to the excerpt on amazon and it sounded like fun, and I thought I'd try the thing since I'm on a musketeer kick right now (thanks, BBC!).
And it's not as if this book was completely awful. The vampires here are vampires that I can actually sorta get behind. They are not overly romanticised (which is a weird thing to say, since the vampire in Western literature owes a lot to Romanticism). They are still monsters, while being very sexual. More precisely, they are sexual in a very predatory way -- the way vampires have always been in modern literature since before Stoker's Dracula. Their sexual violence in this version is dehumanising, humiliating as much as it is pleasurable and painful. There is no romance to it, no pining. It is simple lust and animal attraction. And this is why these vampires work for me, even if I still don't get positively excited over the idea of them.
And speaking of vampires: Poor Athos! I like me some existential angst but I kept hoping they would find a way to un-vampire him. Clearly I am doing vampire fiction wrong!
But, boy, these are the bits where the book really gets good, if you're into this kind of thing. It really milks the anguish of having to build a whole new life from scratch after a traumatising event, without any hopes of getting back to your old ways. So, yeah, I liked how being turned was ultimately treated as traumatic, even likened to a form of rape, as the vampiric act in this book's world is an extremely sexual one. All the explicit scenes will fittingly mix arousal with a horror that will make you cringe.
However, this is also what clearly marks this book as one intended for adults, or at least older teens. Despite the shallow plot, the purply prose, the trivial words, there are some pretty hefty topics alluded to if you take the time to think about the psychology of it all (and I don't just mean the rape or the sex rituals. And let's not even talk about Aramis' religious practices. Ouch).
On to the characters: One thing that bothered me about this novel in comparison to the book it's based on was how the characters were re-written.
Of course in a world with vampires you're allowed (even obliged) to change the characters back stories and even personalities a little bit. But casting Porthos, of all people, as the shy one, struck me as odd. Unless you made him the shy one so you had a reason to write less dialogue for him. In other words I'm pretty disappointed that Porthos has been sidelined so much (He is my favourite, damn you!).
Aramis gets a tiny little bit more page-time, which is why I won't mope too much. I guess it would have been too much to expect the book to focus on the three musketeers + d'Artagnan as an ensemble rather than focusing on Athos and d'Artagnan.
This is my very own special curse, however, so I will shut up about it now. I always fall in love with the sidekicks more than the heroes.
Additionally, and this is the real tragedy, there are only one or two scenes that play up the strong friendship that was so essential to the original book, which I find a bit weak for an adaptation no matter how lose. I really missed the comradeship that was such a big part of the charm of the original classic tale. Come on! They're facing a vampire-apocalypse! They really could have shown a bit more concern for each other under these circumstances! The book might as well have been set in the same period playing with the same tropes, without these same characters. Only I guess it wouldn’t have gotten as much attention then.
In the same vein, for being one of two main protagonists d'Artagnan feels underwritten as a character. In contrast, despite her being hardly recognisable as the same character, even this version's Constance has some more meat to her than d'Artagnan does.
So, yeah, this book is alright for a piece of pulp fiction, but I can't help but feel even something as silly sounding as "vampire musketeers" could have been pulled off a bit more ambitiously.
If there ever is a second volume will I read it? Very likely. Sword & Blood certainly isn't great literature but it's audacious, exciting fun in a kind of B-movie way. Reading it was certainly a kind of guilty pleasure that people simply have to seek out from time to time.
May 1, 2012
What’s not to love about the idea of vampire musketeers? The idea bites me about as much as honest-to-bad-ass vampirates, and I admit it freely, that I love stories of swashbuckling and derring-do. If you’re looking for Anne Rice’s self-absorbed wangst-filled Louis, or Meyer’s glittery fangless offerings, then step away from this book please, and allow those of us who love dark adventure with an undercurrent of eroticism to enjoy the story.
Marques treads familiar turf for fans of Porthos, Athos, Aramis and D’Artagnan, and she adds a twist by plunging France into the depths of darkness. Vampires walk among men, and they are enjoying an ascendancy over mankind. Humanity is under siege, and the church has fallen, for Cardinal Richelieu is a vampire. The musketeers are the only force that stands between the king and queen of France and eternal damnation; and the lusciously evil Milady is the seductress who aims to tip the balance in favour of the undead.
While the musketeers pay lip service to the truce between man and vampire, they go out at night to wage a desperate war to stem the tide of darkness. Of course matters become less clear-cut for them when Athos himself is turned, and exists tenuously in that grey area that leaves him not wholly human.
First off, kudos to Marques for creating a believably grim setting. I could feel the characters’ desperation and gained the impression that civilisation as a whole was slowly plunging into a new dark age. We follow the story from the points of view of Athos and D’Artagnan, who each find themselves dragged deeper and deeper into trouble. Each has to fight preconceptions and, as the story progresses, find their fates inextricably bound.
Overall, the writing is clean and fast, though Marques does occasionally lapse into wordiness, which makes the pace uneven at times. There were a few moments where I felt she went a bit too quickly on key scenes, but this did not detract much from the overall experience. I’d also have liked a bit more detail on the actual sword-fighting, since this is key to the action sequences. Only one part felt a bit shoe-horned in—Athos’s scene involving a wolf cub—it seemed a bit random and too convenient, and could have safely been left out without damaging the narrative flow.
Will I read the rest of the series? Hellyeah. I’ll be honest and say I don’t think this is going to appeal to everyone, as the writing style tends toward classic, historical literature, and absolutely lush, gorgeous descriptions, but this is a novel that worked for me on many counts. I cared about the characters, and I was left wanting more, and that’s what matters. At the heart of it, this is a tale of high adventure that’s packed with action, which revisits an old favourite and paints it with a Gothic palette.
Marques treads familiar turf for fans of Porthos, Athos, Aramis and D’Artagnan, and she adds a twist by plunging France into the depths of darkness. Vampires walk among men, and they are enjoying an ascendancy over mankind. Humanity is under siege, and the church has fallen, for Cardinal Richelieu is a vampire. The musketeers are the only force that stands between the king and queen of France and eternal damnation; and the lusciously evil Milady is the seductress who aims to tip the balance in favour of the undead.
While the musketeers pay lip service to the truce between man and vampire, they go out at night to wage a desperate war to stem the tide of darkness. Of course matters become less clear-cut for them when Athos himself is turned, and exists tenuously in that grey area that leaves him not wholly human.
First off, kudos to Marques for creating a believably grim setting. I could feel the characters’ desperation and gained the impression that civilisation as a whole was slowly plunging into a new dark age. We follow the story from the points of view of Athos and D’Artagnan, who each find themselves dragged deeper and deeper into trouble. Each has to fight preconceptions and, as the story progresses, find their fates inextricably bound.
Overall, the writing is clean and fast, though Marques does occasionally lapse into wordiness, which makes the pace uneven at times. There were a few moments where I felt she went a bit too quickly on key scenes, but this did not detract much from the overall experience. I’d also have liked a bit more detail on the actual sword-fighting, since this is key to the action sequences. Only one part felt a bit shoe-horned in—Athos’s scene involving a wolf cub—it seemed a bit random and too convenient, and could have safely been left out without damaging the narrative flow.
Will I read the rest of the series? Hellyeah. I’ll be honest and say I don’t think this is going to appeal to everyone, as the writing style tends toward classic, historical literature, and absolutely lush, gorgeous descriptions, but this is a novel that worked for me on many counts. I cared about the characters, and I was left wanting more, and that’s what matters. At the heart of it, this is a tale of high adventure that’s packed with action, which revisits an old favourite and paints it with a Gothic palette.
August 4, 2014
As Vampire-book Sword & Blood is entertaining. You might take that with a grain of salt as it comes from somebody whose knowledge of vampire-literature is limited to Dracula (and that only because the audio-book-narrator was Richard E. Grant). I enjoyed the portrayal of vampires in this book. They are proper monsters, and the world which they rule is a grim and dystopian place. Also Athos' suffering after being turned into a vampire gets described in painful detail. For him there is no getting used to it or accepting his fate, he suffers all through the book. Despite this the rest of the book is cheesy and silly at times. (Sex-magic. There is sex-magic. And soul-saving masturbation).
As Musketeer-pastiche it's sadly only mediocre. D'Artagnan's name is misspelled throughout the whole book but at least his characterization is well-done. He is a rash teenager, both in Dumas' novel and in this book. Aramis' characterization is also well-done, even including some of his uglier character-traits. Athos is somewhat different from the original book but he is also (even more) traumatized than the original one and most differences can be attributed to that.
The only qualms I have characterization-wise are with Porthos for he doesn't get any. He gets described as shy, says about 10 sentences in the whole book and that's it. I also missed the feeling of genuine friendship that was so prominent in the original.
Those were men who without hesitation would risk their lives for each other without even demanding an explanation. There are dangerous situations here as well but the musketeers are united by the desire to fight vampires rather than friendship.
The book also contains my favourite pet-peeve: ending almost every chapter on a cliff-hanger. But at least it is combined with alternating POVs so it works more or less. (I still found the number of times d'Artagnan gets abducted ridiculous but at least it's done in a way that makes it exiting.)
As Musketeer-pastiche it's sadly only mediocre. D'Artagnan's name is misspelled throughout the whole book but at least his characterization is well-done. He is a rash teenager, both in Dumas' novel and in this book. Aramis' characterization is also well-done, even including some of his uglier character-traits. Athos is somewhat different from the original book but he is also (even more) traumatized than the original one and most differences can be attributed to that.
The only qualms I have characterization-wise are with Porthos for he doesn't get any. He gets described as shy, says about 10 sentences in the whole book and that's it. I also missed the feeling of genuine friendship that was so prominent in the original.
Those were men who without hesitation would risk their lives for each other without even demanding an explanation. There are dangerous situations here as well but the musketeers are united by the desire to fight vampires rather than friendship.
The book also contains my favourite pet-peeve: ending almost every chapter on a cliff-hanger. But at least it is combined with alternating POVs so it works more or less. (I still found the number of times d'Artagnan gets abducted ridiculous but at least it's done in a way that makes it exiting.)
June 8, 2022
…I was lured in by the mention of Vampires and musketeers. Two things I love! While this story could have been interesting, it just wasn’t.
First of all; bro, you are a Vampire. I know it’s a difficult adjustment when you’ve been turned by your vamp wife, but lamenting every time it’s brought up is just so exhausting. And we get it, it’s exciting to know your wife, who you thought was dead, is alive. But do we need to hear about how much you lust for her? Every freakin chapter practically.
And look, sure I love some spice in my reading at times, but holy wow was there an over-usage of the word “erect”. The spicy scenes were written in more depth than the fight scenes or any other scenes. The book moved at such a fast pace, but when the spice came, it was agonizingly slow. And one of the spicy parts used a character’s religion as an excuse to do the deed? And it did NOTHING?? What was the point?
I was so close to finishing the book, but the mention of “erections” painted on an ancient tomb wall just had me nope outta this one. This is my first ever DNF. Could have been interesting. Just executed poorly :(
First of all; bro, you are a Vampire. I know it’s a difficult adjustment when you’ve been turned by your vamp wife, but lamenting every time it’s brought up is just so exhausting. And we get it, it’s exciting to know your wife, who you thought was dead, is alive. But do we need to hear about how much you lust for her? Every freakin chapter practically.
And look, sure I love some spice in my reading at times, but holy wow was there an over-usage of the word “erect”. The spicy scenes were written in more depth than the fight scenes or any other scenes. The book moved at such a fast pace, but when the spice came, it was agonizingly slow. And one of the spicy parts used a character’s religion as an excuse to do the deed? And it did NOTHING?? What was the point?
I was so close to finishing the book, but the mention of “erections” painted on an ancient tomb wall just had me nope outta this one. This is my first ever DNF. Could have been interesting. Just executed poorly :(
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2022
CAUTION; PORN
May 23, 2012
ARC Approved by NetGalley
I love the classics—and I love genre novels. So when I read the words “vampire musketeers” I was hooked. Seriously, how could I not read a book about sword-wielding, honor-bound men that battle deadly, vicious, blood-sucking monsters in an effort to protect the remaining human men and women of their country?
The familiar phrase of “one for all and all for one” takes on a new twist, but doesn’t change its strong, underlying meaning. Porthos, Athos, Aramis and D’Artagnan prove their dedication to their cause, and each other, many times over in their fight against the dark plague spreading across Europe. These men understood that only by banding together and fighting as one could they hope to stop the vampires from completely taking over.
Action-packed scenes propel this swashbuckling adventure forward on a tide of fear, horror and dark eroticism that grabs the reader from the first page and never lets go. I thoroughly enjoyed my trip through Ms. Marques’ alternate historical paranormal world—and I can’t wait to visit it again!
I love the classics—and I love genre novels. So when I read the words “vampire musketeers” I was hooked. Seriously, how could I not read a book about sword-wielding, honor-bound men that battle deadly, vicious, blood-sucking monsters in an effort to protect the remaining human men and women of their country?
The familiar phrase of “one for all and all for one” takes on a new twist, but doesn’t change its strong, underlying meaning. Porthos, Athos, Aramis and D’Artagnan prove their dedication to their cause, and each other, many times over in their fight against the dark plague spreading across Europe. These men understood that only by banding together and fighting as one could they hope to stop the vampires from completely taking over.
Action-packed scenes propel this swashbuckling adventure forward on a tide of fear, horror and dark eroticism that grabs the reader from the first page and never lets go. I thoroughly enjoyed my trip through Ms. Marques’ alternate historical paranormal world—and I can’t wait to visit it again!
December 24, 2012
ok - you can't just take any old story and add vampires to it and expect to get something good - and this is a first rate example of it not working. First of all - how can you improve on Dumas' Three Musketeers? You can't do it by adding vampires - at least in this case it can't be done. The story is silly and at times tedious - I mean how many times can D'Artagnan escape?
There wasn't anything new here and I think it's just a case of an author mashing the popularity of vampires to something already created by another author instead of writing something completely original.
Want a good vampire story - read Salem's Lot or Dracula. Want a good swash-buckling story - read the original Three Musketeers. This book doesn't provide either.
There wasn't anything new here and I think it's just a case of an author mashing the popularity of vampires to something already created by another author instead of writing something completely original.
Want a good vampire story - read Salem's Lot or Dracula. Want a good swash-buckling story - read the original Three Musketeers. This book doesn't provide either.
June 20, 2013
If you like the classics and you're not a purist and don't mind a little paranormal twist, this is a nice choice. It had several elements that I enjoy in a storyline; interesting characters, and the three musketeers are certainly interesting, a deep camaraderie between the characters, loyalty to friends despite the danger to self, a character who has to rise above his demons, in this case a vampire nature,and hold on to his humanity, sword fights, good vs. evil.... I will be watching for the next book which premise is set up at the end of this one.
May 31, 2016
A cracking good yarn, which read fast and held my attention the whole way through. The sex was a bit much at times, but it always served the story. I felt at times that the plot twists were a little obvious, but it was such a good read that it didn't much bother me. What did bother me was the lack of editing in this edition. Hopefully the handful of double periods and incorrect spellings can be corrected in the future. If you're a fan of either the Musketeers or vampire stories then I highly recommend this book.
September 7, 2019
You may also find this review on my blog,Papa Pat Rambles, and on Amazon as well.
“To me, musketeers! To me, of the king! TO ME, MUSKETEERS! TO ME, OF THE KING! "
SWORD AND BLOOD!
Why in the HECK do they call them Musketeers? There is not a musket in evidence, EVER, in any of the literature or the movies. It's all swords and swordplay, and dashing to and fro.
Here's what I think: I think this is all elitist propaganda, designed to convince us that the ferocity and training of heroes is supreme. That's crap. If you want to triumph, ask the guys who are 5'6" and 130 pounds to get the job done, and the moderately sized sized non-heroic people will use muskets (or the modern equivalent) to win yer war for you and save civilization. Average guys, not some privileged small- brained aristocracy with feathers in their hats, flouncy capes, waving around sharp pointy things.
Anyway.
France, the jewel of the world (HA!) is overrun with vampires. Since this is before America, they have no one to turn to for rescue, and so they make a truce with the enemy.
Wow. Couldn't see THAT one coming, could ya? The French making a treaty with the enemy? Oh. My.
And of course, Athos, one of the Famous Guys With Sharp Pointy Things gets bitten, and then we are off to the races.
Secret truth, here: there is a good reason he became a Famous Guy instead of living out his life as a Fabulous Aristocrat. It seems he killed his wife by hanging her, and has since then been filled with remorse. Seems he had spotted the sign of the COLLABORATORS (this is before the treaty) on her neck, and strung her up.
The incompetent Fabulous Aristocrat can't allow himself to do a competent job of his impulsive act, though, and carelessly leaves her body intact, instead of whacking off her head, driving a stake through her heart, burning her body to a crisp on the barby, etc. He's a Fabulous Aristocrat, and can't be bothered with doing things correctly, so, picking the absolutely worst choice available due to a combination of fear, shame, and the grinding edges of a broken heart, he runs away from her inviolate corpse to Paris. where he allows himself to marinate in guilt, brandy, self-hatred and doubt, while becoming a Famous Guy With A Sharp Pointy Thing.
Because there are no other options. It's a planned economy.
Meanwhile, D'Artagnan, a brave and talented, though unschooled, member of the country gentry arrives in Paris in the nick of time to hook up with Famous Guys With Sharp Pointy Things. They are killing vampires, and that's what he wants to do, since the vampires have killed his parents, among others.
Lots of running around and hiding secrets from friends and enemies, and some fighting.
Turns out that having yer blud sucked out is a lot like sex, at least for some people in some circumstances.
Wow. Never saw THAT coming, either!
(Okay, I jest, I jest. I know that there are certain tropes that are essential to the story, and that one is key. If you don't include the sensual aspect, you are betraying every writer in the genre since Bram Stoker, and also eliminating a lot of the reasons the vamps aren't all killed in about 15 minutes after discovery. Everybody wants good sex, it seems, and in a country formerly ruled/heavily influenced by a celibate clergy, vampires mean you can dance around the issue in confession. A bit. Until you die, or turn. )
BUT! Where do the vampires come from? What's the origin myth? It's been a LONG time since I read "Dracula," and I don't follow the genre, but I recall nothing about the origin of the monsters in Bram Stoker's . The Sparkly Vampire literature, of which I know nothing at all, may give a back story, but the letters of Jonathan Harker don't mention it. (I could be wrong about this. It has been some years since I read the original.)
I LOVE a good back story, and TA-DA!!! "Sword and Blood" provides it, quite nicely, thank you very much. AND that's one of my two favorite things about the book. Well, three, if you include 'it gives me an opportunity to mock the French.'
My favorite thing? Read the BOLD WORDS at the top of the page.
( In my opinion, it's quite as well done as "Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father! Prepare to die!")
“To me, musketeers! To me, of the king! TO ME, MUSKETEERS! TO ME, OF THE KING! "
SWORD AND BLOOD!
Why in the HECK do they call them Musketeers? There is not a musket in evidence, EVER, in any of the literature or the movies. It's all swords and swordplay, and dashing to and fro.
Here's what I think: I think this is all elitist propaganda, designed to convince us that the ferocity and training of heroes is supreme. That's crap. If you want to triumph, ask the guys who are 5'6" and 130 pounds to get the job done, and the moderately sized sized non-heroic people will use muskets (or the modern equivalent) to win yer war for you and save civilization. Average guys, not some privileged small- brained aristocracy with feathers in their hats, flouncy capes, waving around sharp pointy things.
Anyway.
France, the jewel of the world (HA!) is overrun with vampires. Since this is before America, they have no one to turn to for rescue, and so they make a truce with the enemy.
Wow. Couldn't see THAT one coming, could ya? The French making a treaty with the enemy? Oh. My.
And of course, Athos, one of the Famous Guys With Sharp Pointy Things gets bitten, and then we are off to the races.
Secret truth, here: there is a good reason he became a Famous Guy instead of living out his life as a Fabulous Aristocrat. It seems he killed his wife by hanging her, and has since then been filled with remorse. Seems he had spotted the sign of the COLLABORATORS (this is before the treaty) on her neck, and strung her up.
The incompetent Fabulous Aristocrat can't allow himself to do a competent job of his impulsive act, though, and carelessly leaves her body intact, instead of whacking off her head, driving a stake through her heart, burning her body to a crisp on the barby, etc. He's a Fabulous Aristocrat, and can't be bothered with doing things correctly, so, picking the absolutely worst choice available due to a combination of fear, shame, and the grinding edges of a broken heart, he runs away from her inviolate corpse to Paris. where he allows himself to marinate in guilt, brandy, self-hatred and doubt, while becoming a Famous Guy With A Sharp Pointy Thing.
Because there are no other options. It's a planned economy.
Meanwhile, D'Artagnan, a brave and talented, though unschooled, member of the country gentry arrives in Paris in the nick of time to hook up with Famous Guys With Sharp Pointy Things. They are killing vampires, and that's what he wants to do, since the vampires have killed his parents, among others.
Lots of running around and hiding secrets from friends and enemies, and some fighting.
Turns out that having yer blud sucked out is a lot like sex, at least for some people in some circumstances.
Wow. Never saw THAT coming, either!
(Okay, I jest, I jest. I know that there are certain tropes that are essential to the story, and that one is key. If you don't include the sensual aspect, you are betraying every writer in the genre since Bram Stoker, and also eliminating a lot of the reasons the vamps aren't all killed in about 15 minutes after discovery. Everybody wants good sex, it seems, and in a country formerly ruled/heavily influenced by a celibate clergy, vampires mean you can dance around the issue in confession. A bit. Until you die, or turn. )
BUT! Where do the vampires come from? What's the origin myth? It's been a LONG time since I read "Dracula," and I don't follow the genre, but I recall nothing about the origin of the monsters in Bram Stoker's . The Sparkly Vampire literature, of which I know nothing at all, may give a back story, but the letters of Jonathan Harker don't mention it. (I could be wrong about this. It has been some years since I read the original.)
I LOVE a good back story, and TA-DA!!! "Sword and Blood" provides it, quite nicely, thank you very much. AND that's one of my two favorite things about the book. Well, three, if you include 'it gives me an opportunity to mock the French.'
My favorite thing? Read the BOLD WORDS at the top of the page.
( In my opinion, it's quite as well done as "Hello! My name is Inigo Montoya! You killed my father! Prepare to die!")
September 16, 2020
I'm giving this an extra pity star. It looked really promising, but I found reading it to be kind of light and fluffy. That just isn't what I'm needing right now. Additionally, a character wants to be a pirate, and seems to only have knowledge of pirates from Romances. Despite really hard living conditions, she is excessively (to me) optimistic about pirating as a lifestyle. I have FEELINGS about my pirates, and tend to prefer more realistic depictions - the real story of the Golden Age of Piracy is stunning and this won't be the last book I put down because it dealt reductively with that age.
May 3, 2018
Dumas meets Stoker
I'm not usually a fan of "vampire" books (other than Bram Stoker), but this being a Sarah Hoyt novel I thought I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did.
Looking forward to the next one.
I'm not usually a fan of "vampire" books (other than Bram Stoker), but this being a Sarah Hoyt novel I thought I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did.
Looking forward to the next one.
December 2, 2019
Good story
I loved the story it was fascinating I love all the musketeers books and movies and I enjoy stories and movies about vampires and the combination of both was amazingly written
I loved the story it was fascinating I love all the musketeers books and movies and I enjoy stories and movies about vampires and the combination of both was amazingly written
April 23, 2018
Sexy and engrossing
I loved this book. It drew me in from the start and kept me reading. I would recommend it to vampire fans and those who enjoy historical romance.
I loved this book. It drew me in from the start and kept me reading. I would recommend it to vampire fans and those who enjoy historical romance.
April 9, 2019
Oh. My gods. My brain hurts from this terrible book. The author is in love with gratuitous descriptions and overblown dramatics.
March 16, 2020
Honestly it was a good fantasy read! Really unique but SO MANY UNNECESSARY parts!😒
December 2, 2020
Interesting vampiric take on a classic story.
May 5, 2012
4.25/5
Egalley thanks to Prime Books
I tell you what, Sword & Blood was exactly what I wanted to get from that book at that moment, - fast, easy, atmospheric, straightforward action flick, and I applaud Miss Marques for that. I had fun, I didn't get bored and I wanted to read more of this when I got to the last page.
This is basically one of popular interpretations of classics we see so often this days, in this case, Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas. I love Dumas! I pretty much read all his books at some point in the past.
So what happens if you make vampires a scourge of the world, a disease like plague slowly taking over Europe? Across the Chanel in England there are riots and constant fighting, but in France cardinal Richelieu gets bitten, and between vampires and people a treaty gets drawn. All the churches are desecrated, priesthood is disbanded, musketeers can not grow over a fixed number unless one of them dies and gets replaced.... In turn vampires will only take the blood from the willing victims. Of course this is not the case.
At night Paris is filled with wraiths - old crazy vampires who feed mindlessly on anything that is alive, young and evil group of vamps grab whole families and drag to the churches to do a blood Mass - group feeding which either kills the victim or turns them into a vampire, and only musketeers patrolling the streets can save you.
On the night d'Artagnan comes to Paris Athos falls victim to one of the blood Masses by order of Milady, his ex-wife. Porthos and Aramis cover his ass while he struggles not to give in to his savage nature and typical vampire mass consciousness.
D'Artagnan accidentally gets caught in between battles with Cardinal's vampires, saving Athos, protecting one of the handmaidens/witches of the Queen, Constance de Bonacieux, and nefarious plans of Rochefort to use the boy in an ancient ritual of resurrecting a vampire God. You know, the usual.
It's fun, it's in a way playful and feels like a movie instead of a book. Aramis as usual is my favorite, but the rest of the characters are not bad as well, although Porthos hardly says anything during the whole book.
Otherwise, it's a great read, and I can't wait for the book #2 to come out this fall!
Egalley thanks to Prime Books
I tell you what, Sword & Blood was exactly what I wanted to get from that book at that moment, - fast, easy, atmospheric, straightforward action flick, and I applaud Miss Marques for that. I had fun, I didn't get bored and I wanted to read more of this when I got to the last page.
This is basically one of popular interpretations of classics we see so often this days, in this case, Three Musketeers by Alexander Dumas. I love Dumas! I pretty much read all his books at some point in the past.
So what happens if you make vampires a scourge of the world, a disease like plague slowly taking over Europe? Across the Chanel in England there are riots and constant fighting, but in France cardinal Richelieu gets bitten, and between vampires and people a treaty gets drawn. All the churches are desecrated, priesthood is disbanded, musketeers can not grow over a fixed number unless one of them dies and gets replaced.... In turn vampires will only take the blood from the willing victims. Of course this is not the case.
At night Paris is filled with wraiths - old crazy vampires who feed mindlessly on anything that is alive, young and evil group of vamps grab whole families and drag to the churches to do a blood Mass - group feeding which either kills the victim or turns them into a vampire, and only musketeers patrolling the streets can save you.
On the night d'Artagnan comes to Paris Athos falls victim to one of the blood Masses by order of Milady, his ex-wife. Porthos and Aramis cover his ass while he struggles not to give in to his savage nature and typical vampire mass consciousness.
D'Artagnan accidentally gets caught in between battles with Cardinal's vampires, saving Athos, protecting one of the handmaidens/witches of the Queen, Constance de Bonacieux, and nefarious plans of Rochefort to use the boy in an ancient ritual of resurrecting a vampire God. You know, the usual.
It's fun, it's in a way playful and feels like a movie instead of a book. Aramis as usual is my favorite, but the rest of the characters are not bad as well, although Porthos hardly says anything during the whole book.
Otherwise, it's a great read, and I can't wait for the book #2 to come out this fall!
April 16, 2016
Rounded up to 4 from 3.5
This is a fun story where the Three Musketeers are fighting the good fight in post-vampire apocalyptic France. Poor Athos has been "half-turned" and will surely be executed if anyone finds out so Porthos and Aramis are scrambling to keep his secret. There's a new kid in town named D'Artagnan who idolizes the Musketeers and has his own grief to bear, but he proves reliable ... or is he a mole for the vampires? There are also signs of something BIG going down with the vamps and it seems like our friends are always playing catch-up.
To be honest, it took almost 50% of the book for me to get truly invested. That may have been me just coming back to the real world from vacation. But the latter half of the book definitely had my attention.
This is an older work by this author, originally published under another name. The rights reverted back to her and she put it out independently. Knowing it was professionally published first, I have to complain a bit about the editing. There are some odd typos (could be the ebook conversion) but there's a huge, glaring, continuity error that no pro-pub editor should have missed. I know this is a regular complaint from me, but I will do it every time a pro-pub (supposedly so much better than indy) has shoddy editing. When a character is described as being naked from the waist up and then, in two pages is pulling off his doublet and shirt, someone has not done their job. Not huge, but for the reader resentful of publishers on the whole, it irks.
Ultimately, however, I really enjoyed this take on the classic. The whole time I kept thinking, "this would be an awesome anime". I will delve into Hoyt's backlist to see if there were further installments, because more story was implied at the end.
This is an inexpensive book and, as always, I support independent publishing efforts. Hoyt's a reliable author and in this work, the prose also resonates in a timely way.
This is a fun story where the Three Musketeers are fighting the good fight in post-vampire apocalyptic France. Poor Athos has been "half-turned" and will surely be executed if anyone finds out so Porthos and Aramis are scrambling to keep his secret. There's a new kid in town named D'Artagnan who idolizes the Musketeers and has his own grief to bear, but he proves reliable ... or is he a mole for the vampires? There are also signs of something BIG going down with the vamps and it seems like our friends are always playing catch-up.
To be honest, it took almost 50% of the book for me to get truly invested. That may have been me just coming back to the real world from vacation. But the latter half of the book definitely had my attention.
This is an older work by this author, originally published under another name. The rights reverted back to her and she put it out independently. Knowing it was professionally published first, I have to complain a bit about the editing. There are some odd typos (could be the ebook conversion) but there's a huge, glaring, continuity error that no pro-pub editor should have missed. I know this is a regular complaint from me, but I will do it every time a pro-pub (supposedly so much better than indy) has shoddy editing. When a character is described as being naked from the waist up and then, in two pages is pulling off his doublet and shirt, someone has not done their job. Not huge, but for the reader resentful of publishers on the whole, it irks.
Ultimately, however, I really enjoyed this take on the classic. The whole time I kept thinking, "this would be an awesome anime". I will delve into Hoyt's backlist to see if there were further installments, because more story was implied at the end.
This is an inexpensive book and, as always, I support independent publishing efforts. Hoyt's a reliable author and in this work, the prose also resonates in a timely way.
May 23, 2012
The Musketeers, Athos, Porthos and Aramis accompanied by a young (17 yr old) Gascon named D'Artagnan must face a world where the vampires have pretty much taken over. While secretly fighting to rid the vampire inhabitants of France, Athos is captured and turned by a wife he thought 10 years deceased. Athos must fight the blood lust and temptations of vampirism to keep from turning “evil”… he finds out quickly that he can only do this by leaning on his Musketeer friends for help. Together Athos, Porthos, Aramis and D’Artagnan fight for the human side of Athos, to thwart the evil vampire epidemic, and keep up the pretense of the tentative truce between Cardinal Richelieu/vampires and the King of France/humans…all the while Milady, master seducer and vampire will do anything in her power to turn the tides against the humans.
Wow! Musketeer and vampires, what a great concept! I really enjoyed the desperate setting and believable chaos of the world Marques created. It showed true heroism…the fight to keep their friendship strong, their loyalty to one another and the ability to go against the taught preconceptions (mainly the turning of Athos and what decides if you are good or evil). This story was action packed, erotic and dark. My only complaint was it occasionally got a little wordy which slowed the story down and not meaning to be completely contrary - but some of the pivotal scenes seemed a little rushed and I wished they lasted longer. All in all GREAT READ, very vivid and extremely creative and original writing by Marques! I’m definitely looking forward to seeing more from Sarah Marques.
This copy was given to me by Goodreads First Reads and Prime Books in exchange for an honest review.
Wow! Musketeer and vampires, what a great concept! I really enjoyed the desperate setting and believable chaos of the world Marques created. It showed true heroism…the fight to keep their friendship strong, their loyalty to one another and the ability to go against the taught preconceptions (mainly the turning of Athos and what decides if you are good or evil). This story was action packed, erotic and dark. My only complaint was it occasionally got a little wordy which slowed the story down and not meaning to be completely contrary - but some of the pivotal scenes seemed a little rushed and I wished they lasted longer. All in all GREAT READ, very vivid and extremely creative and original writing by Marques! I’m definitely looking forward to seeing more from Sarah Marques.
This copy was given to me by Goodreads First Reads and Prime Books in exchange for an honest review.
May 18, 2012
I wasn't quite sure what to think about Sword & Blood. I've always loved stories about the Musketeers, but it took a lot to twist my mind around one of them being a vampire. (Also? Seeing the abbreviation "vamp" in the context of 1700s France just threw me out of the story every time.) There are some slow bits and some good action, though I put this book down several times because it got on the wrong side of "show, don't tell." The sensual bits sometimes appeared out of nowhere, but they're well done, so that gets a pass. The second half of the book works much better than the beginning, when many dangling threads pull together at the climax. There are plenty of historical details to make the story seem real. Sometimes the characters seem to conveniently spout information which seems like it ought to have been disseminated to everyone a lot earlier and save folks the trouble of finding it out the hard way. Overall it was a fun read, once I was able to get over my previous experience with Musketeer stories. Hopefully the next books in the series will tighten up the action and feature more witty repartee between the swordsmen.
I received this as a digital ARC from Netgalley and the publishers.
I received this as a digital ARC from Netgalley and the publishers.
June 15, 2012
I won this book through the Goodreads giveaways. Pretty good read. I was pleasantly surprised at how well it was written/editing despite being an Advanced Reader Copy. The book moved along at a decent pace and had some good twists to it. I also like the retelling of the musketeers plus vampires. This book might have been 4 stars if the only the Pagan depicted didn't perform sex rituals for power >_< Really? As a Wiccan, I was kind of offended by this. However, I do like that character otherwise. I chose to overlook this and attribute it more to this book being a borderline romance novel, and thus using this to create a unique sex scene to add to the paranormal mix rather than implying that "real" Pagans would have sex for power. At least she didn't eat babies or sacrifice virgins lol. Further, the author did portray this religion as being equally effective against "evil" as christianity, so at least it was a positive (mostly) portrayal. Not sure if I'm interested enough to read the next book in this series, we shall see :)
June 8, 2015
I got this book on audible because it sounded interesting and the plot even moreso. The actual story did not disappoint. It was pretty good and tied in a lot of elements from The Three Musketeers. And I love Aramis and Constance' relationship in the books since they're both of different faiths. And I liked the audio for the most part. The voices for the main four were perfect. There was just enough change to their voices that made Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan distinguishable and fit with their personalities. Everyone else though...I honestly was confused why everyone else in the book apart from the Musketeers had French accents. It was distracting at times and didn't really fit especially if the main four had normal American accents.
The ending seemed a little repetitive because I swear I heard "Musketeers, to me! Of the king!" at least 20 times within the last three chapters. But other than that I enjoyed it. I'm very unhappy though that I can't seem to find actual copies of the sequel(s) though because they've been discontinued.
The ending seemed a little repetitive because I swear I heard "Musketeers, to me! Of the king!" at least 20 times within the last three chapters. But other than that I enjoyed it. I'm very unhappy though that I can't seem to find actual copies of the sequel(s) though because they've been discontinued.
July 1, 2024
Sword and Blood was a slow read. It was too narrative and it didn't have enough dialogue which really made it a challenge to finish the book. Although the plot took a turn for the dark, I was at least hoping that The Three Musketeers retained their candor, balance all the loss and killings and not just dwell on the drama. Pages would go by without anybody talking, Marques would just narrate what's going on or what the character is thinking. But I want reactions! I want expletives! I want to feel the rush of running and fighting off the urge and the blood lust. But I didn't get any of that. I was looking for a little comedic relief in between battling those evil vampires especially between Por thos and Aramis but I didn't find it here. Instead it was too serious and though there are some sexy scenes, the way it all went down didn't feel sweeping.
October 5, 2016
Although this is an older book that I came across (4/3/2012 copyright); the storyline was very slow for a very long time (almost to the point I put the book down). But the author was very meticulous in providing details about how "vampires" have more or less taken over and now there are still a few "Musketeers" around who have the will and courage to fight the perverse evil that has invaded their country. It is a new twist on vampires in general. There is a second part to this book called Royal and Blood (but is out of print and not found as an ebook as of yet either). It is not one of the better books out there on vampires, but you have to give credit to the thoughts of a new direction and I am at least interested in reading the last book; especially knowing what happened at the end and wanting to see the resolution.
April 12, 2016
The Three Musketeers as vampire hunters works really well. Be aware this is not another monster parody like Jane Slayer, and I think it is more enjoyable for it. Hoyt obviously knows the source material, and she has a great time with it.
So, why three stars rather than four? The author follows the standard convention of linking vampirism with sex, which is not to say that these are emo, sparkly vampires. They're not, at all. But the link is there, and the sections dealing with it were too much for my tastes. Maybe it's from being a father, or just getting old, but I think those aspects of the story could have been more implied than described, and the book would have been stronger for it.
So, why three stars rather than four? The author follows the standard convention of linking vampirism with sex, which is not to say that these are emo, sparkly vampires. They're not, at all. But the link is there, and the sections dealing with it were too much for my tastes. Maybe it's from being a father, or just getting old, but I think those aspects of the story could have been more implied than described, and the book would have been stronger for it.
January 25, 2016
There doesn't seem to be a clear storyline or objective throughout, other than hunt vampires, & the same things are told & explained over & over again (doubly annoying bacause the writing is so wordy, it just goes on & on long after the point's been made). It's an interesting premise but simply chucking these beloved characters into a fantasy story is not enough, especially when taking it so stockily from the original story with the introduction of D'Artagnan which in this alteration feels unmotivated and grossly underdeveloped.
January 13, 2015
At first I was embarrassed to be reading this, but by the end of the book, I found it to be a very enjoyable read. I will definitely have to read the original Dumas story after reading this, as I'm sure that some parts of the story were lost to me because I hadn't read it.
There was some romance in this book and at first I was a little bit put off by it, but by the end of the story it just blended into the rest of the book and didn't annoy me as much.
Overall, if you like vampire books then this would be a good one to read.
There was some romance in this book and at first I was a little bit put off by it, but by the end of the story it just blended into the rest of the book and didn't annoy me as much.
Overall, if you like vampire books then this would be a good one to read.
May 31, 2012
An interesting take on the classic story of the Three Musketeers. In a world where vampires have been reborn, Athos, Porthos, Aramis and d'Artangan must fight for king and country while monsters rule the night. Marques does an excellent job paying homage to the classic Dumas style while adding her own touches. This is a great summer read.
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