What do you think?
Rate this book
Sisters of the Night #1
The Angry Angel
The first book in a trilogy of horror novels features one of Count Dracula's vampire brides, named Kelene, the daughter of a Salonika olive merchant, whose mysterious guardian angel protects her from the bloody-minded Turkish army but exacts a high price.
359 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
3 people are currently reading
347 people want to read
About the author
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro
259 books477 followersA professional writer for more than forty years, Yarbro has sold over eighty books, more than seventy works of short fiction, and more than three dozen essays, introductions, and reviews. She also composes serious music. Her first professional writing - in 1961-1962 - was as a playwright for a now long-defunct children's theater company. By the mid-60s she had switched to writing stories and hasn't stopped yet.
After leaving college in 1963 and until she became a full-time writer in 1970, she worked as a demographic cartographer, and still often drafts maps for her books, and occasionally for the books of other writers.
She has a large reference library with books on a wide range of subjects, everything from food and fashion to weapons and trade routes to religion and law. She is constantly adding to it as part of her on-going fascination with history and culture; she reads incessantly, searching for interesting people and places that might provide fodder for stories.
In 1997 the Transylvanian Society of Dracula bestowed a literary knighthood on Yarbro, and in 2003 the World Horror Association presented her with a Grand Master award. In 2006 the International Horror Guild enrolled her among their Living Legends, the first woman to be so honored; the Horror Writers Association gave her a Life Achievement Award in 2009. In 2014 she won a Life Achievement Award from the World Fantasy Convention.
A skeptical occultist for forty years, she has studied everything from alchemy to zoomancy, and in the late 1970s worked occasionally as a professional tarot card reader and palmist at the Magic Cellar in San Francisco.
She has two domestic accomplishments: she is a good cook and an experienced seamstress. The rest is catch-as-catch-can.
Divorced, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area - with two cats: the irrepressible Butterscotch and Crumpet, the Gang of Two. When not busy writing, she enjoys the symphony or opera.
Her Saint-Germain series is now the longest vampire series ever. The books range widely over time and place, and were not published in historical order. They are numbered in published order.
Known pseudonyms include Vanessa Pryor, Quinn Fawcett, T.C.F. Hopkins, Trystam Kith, Camille Gabor.
After leaving college in 1963 and until she became a full-time writer in 1970, she worked as a demographic cartographer, and still often drafts maps for her books, and occasionally for the books of other writers.
She has a large reference library with books on a wide range of subjects, everything from food and fashion to weapons and trade routes to religion and law. She is constantly adding to it as part of her on-going fascination with history and culture; she reads incessantly, searching for interesting people and places that might provide fodder for stories.
In 1997 the Transylvanian Society of Dracula bestowed a literary knighthood on Yarbro, and in 2003 the World Horror Association presented her with a Grand Master award. In 2006 the International Horror Guild enrolled her among their Living Legends, the first woman to be so honored; the Horror Writers Association gave her a Life Achievement Award in 2009. In 2014 she won a Life Achievement Award from the World Fantasy Convention.
A skeptical occultist for forty years, she has studied everything from alchemy to zoomancy, and in the late 1970s worked occasionally as a professional tarot card reader and palmist at the Magic Cellar in San Francisco.
She has two domestic accomplishments: she is a good cook and an experienced seamstress. The rest is catch-as-catch-can.
Divorced, she lives in the San Francisco Bay Area - with two cats: the irrepressible Butterscotch and Crumpet, the Gang of Two. When not busy writing, she enjoys the symphony or opera.
Her Saint-Germain series is now the longest vampire series ever. The books range widely over time and place, and were not published in historical order. They are numbered in published order.
Known pseudonyms include Vanessa Pryor, Quinn Fawcett, T.C.F. Hopkins, Trystam Kith, Camille Gabor.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 6, 2010
Finally!
It has been for me a long time between truly good vampire novels. Most of the stuff put out today features self-loathing, guilt ridden vamps who are more suited for writing sappy, love poetry then sucking down blood and mind control. But I’m glad to say that’s not the case here. This is vampirism at its absolute best, or worse depending on how you look upon it, with no apologies and nothing held back.
This book is in a manner “fan fiction”, though honestly at this point the characters of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” have so taken on a life of their own that they almost warrant a genre of their own.
The first half of the book chronicles the plight of a young Greek girl growing up in the 1500s named Kelene who is gifted with visions brought to her by the Militant Angels. The story opens with her family fleeing their homeland to seek safety from the invading Turks abroad and a dire warning from her great-aunt that not all with her visions may be as it seems. But through her second sight young Kelene is able to guide her family and protect them from many dangers, gaining their praise in good times and their scorn during the bad.
In this way and in other ways in which the people around her react to Kelene’s gift the characters of this novel show themselves to be true to life. So, that when Kelene, herself, starts to have doubts about the true nature, divine or demonic, of her visions no one wants to hear her or at best they blame her for any evil involved.
The second half of the book is all about Dracula. It details Kelene’s road, both literally and figuratively, to becoming his consort and one of the three “weird sisters” briefly referenced in Stoker’s novel. But this is no vampire love story. Kelene and Dracula’s relationship is wholly something different, devoid of love but not lust.
The biggest downside to this book is you sort of know where it’s going. There aren’t too many big surprises in the main storyline, but there is just enough subplot thrown in, involving the supporting characters mostly, that it manages to not become too painfully predictable.
I’ll also give a warning and reminder to anyone with strong morals in regards to underage sex that statutory rape and the sexualization of teenage girls wasn’t as much a concern during the time period in which this book is set as it is today. In fact, it wasn’t a concern at all. Kelene, during the more heated parts of the book, is only fourteen years of age, which was woman enough by 16th century standards.
It has been for me a long time between truly good vampire novels. Most of the stuff put out today features self-loathing, guilt ridden vamps who are more suited for writing sappy, love poetry then sucking down blood and mind control. But I’m glad to say that’s not the case here. This is vampirism at its absolute best, or worse depending on how you look upon it, with no apologies and nothing held back.
This book is in a manner “fan fiction”, though honestly at this point the characters of Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” have so taken on a life of their own that they almost warrant a genre of their own.
The first half of the book chronicles the plight of a young Greek girl growing up in the 1500s named Kelene who is gifted with visions brought to her by the Militant Angels. The story opens with her family fleeing their homeland to seek safety from the invading Turks abroad and a dire warning from her great-aunt that not all with her visions may be as it seems. But through her second sight young Kelene is able to guide her family and protect them from many dangers, gaining their praise in good times and their scorn during the bad.
In this way and in other ways in which the people around her react to Kelene’s gift the characters of this novel show themselves to be true to life. So, that when Kelene, herself, starts to have doubts about the true nature, divine or demonic, of her visions no one wants to hear her or at best they blame her for any evil involved.
The second half of the book is all about Dracula. It details Kelene’s road, both literally and figuratively, to becoming his consort and one of the three “weird sisters” briefly referenced in Stoker’s novel. But this is no vampire love story. Kelene and Dracula’s relationship is wholly something different, devoid of love but not lust.
The biggest downside to this book is you sort of know where it’s going. There aren’t too many big surprises in the main storyline, but there is just enough subplot thrown in, involving the supporting characters mostly, that it manages to not become too painfully predictable.
I’ll also give a warning and reminder to anyone with strong morals in regards to underage sex that statutory rape and the sexualization of teenage girls wasn’t as much a concern during the time period in which this book is set as it is today. In fact, it wasn’t a concern at all. Kelene, during the more heated parts of the book, is only fourteen years of age, which was woman enough by 16th century standards.
November 24, 2009
Vampires do seem to fastinate us, don't they? How many incarnations has Dracula gone though? In fact, he still live while those who supposedly killed him are long forgotten. Is it the sense of power that attracts reads? Is it the outsider idea?
There's a paper in this.
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro is far better known for her long lasting (the longest running vampire series btw) series about Count St. Germain. While Yarbro does use her vampire as a quasi and at times out right, romantic lead, she never forgets that he is in fact a vampire. There are references made to the evil deeds that Count commited during his mad time. Yarbro herself has even gone on record as saying that she will not write about that time in the Count's "life" because neither she nor her readers would like the Count. At the very least, Yarbo is aware of the fact that vampires can be bad ass. This makes her different from the sea, actually, the swamp of wounded soul vampires that over populated today's urban fantasy (or paranormal romance). You know the vampires I'm talking about. They sparkle; they're wounded souls; they're the master of the city until they get whipped by the heroine of the novel. The fact that they suck blood is just a tiny, teeny, minus. They aren't bad people. (This last is true. Vampires are undead, not people).
You know, those vampires who have less bite than your kitty cat.
Shoot, they have less of a bite than a mostiquotio. Hate those bloodsuckers.
Yarbro has never written those.
Which should serve her in good stead in this series.
Yarbro knows her vampire history, both in terms of folklore and in terms of literature. Her Count might be a nice guy, now, but I sure wouldn't want him angry at me. In this series, Yarbro intended to give the history of Dracula's wives. Yes, I said Dracula's wives. Those three lovely undead ladies who almost vamped (or vamped. I'm not 100% sure where their teeth were) Jonathan Harker in Dracula. The same ones that Van Hesling had a hard tim steeling himself up to kill. The women that Dracula loved until he turned them into his undead brides. They really have little more than a brief walk on in the novel, a few lines, and they eat a baby.
They don't seem very nice, and yet they have inspired back story upon back story. Undead women are sexy. It must have something to do with the sucking bit, the sucking the blood that is.
The dedicated Yarbro reader will know that Yarbro's books in The Sisters of the Night were heavily edited and the author has disvowed any connection to the book. I've only reaed this one. It is not bad. It's blah. It's okay. It's nothing to write home about, and if Yarbro's name hadn't been on the cover, I wouldn't have known that she had anything to do with it. It doesn't read like her.
If you like Yarbro, skip this series and read in her Dracula inspired short story in Dracula in London
There's a paper in this.
Chelsea Quinn Yarbro is far better known for her long lasting (the longest running vampire series btw) series about Count St. Germain. While Yarbro does use her vampire as a quasi and at times out right, romantic lead, she never forgets that he is in fact a vampire. There are references made to the evil deeds that Count commited during his mad time. Yarbro herself has even gone on record as saying that she will not write about that time in the Count's "life" because neither she nor her readers would like the Count. At the very least, Yarbo is aware of the fact that vampires can be bad ass. This makes her different from the sea, actually, the swamp of wounded soul vampires that over populated today's urban fantasy (or paranormal romance). You know the vampires I'm talking about. They sparkle; they're wounded souls; they're the master of the city until they get whipped by the heroine of the novel. The fact that they suck blood is just a tiny, teeny, minus. They aren't bad people. (This last is true. Vampires are undead, not people).
You know, those vampires who have less bite than your kitty cat.
Shoot, they have less of a bite than a mostiquotio. Hate those bloodsuckers.
Yarbro has never written those.
Which should serve her in good stead in this series.
Yarbro knows her vampire history, both in terms of folklore and in terms of literature. Her Count might be a nice guy, now, but I sure wouldn't want him angry at me. In this series, Yarbro intended to give the history of Dracula's wives. Yes, I said Dracula's wives. Those three lovely undead ladies who almost vamped (or vamped. I'm not 100% sure where their teeth were) Jonathan Harker in Dracula. The same ones that Van Hesling had a hard tim steeling himself up to kill. The women that Dracula loved until he turned them into his undead brides. They really have little more than a brief walk on in the novel, a few lines, and they eat a baby.
They don't seem very nice, and yet they have inspired back story upon back story. Undead women are sexy. It must have something to do with the sucking bit, the sucking the blood that is.
The dedicated Yarbro reader will know that Yarbro's books in The Sisters of the Night were heavily edited and the author has disvowed any connection to the book. I've only reaed this one. It is not bad. It's blah. It's okay. It's nothing to write home about, and if Yarbro's name hadn't been on the cover, I wouldn't have known that she had anything to do with it. It doesn't read like her.
If you like Yarbro, skip this series and read in her Dracula inspired short story in Dracula in London
December 22, 2010
#1 Sisters of the Night - Dark Paranormal Historical Fantasy
4.5 Stars - Difficult Content Warning - This is NOT a happy, sparkley paranormal book
From Back Cover, which says it better than I ever could:
"In a distant age of brutal chaos [Eastern Europe, story begins in the year 1500], young Kelene is her family's salvation. An exquisite, golden-haired child just entering womanhood, she is blessed -- and cursed -- with a great gift. God's "Militant Angels" guide her [through visions], shielding Kelene, her parents and brothers and sisters, from the horror and devastation visited upon their neighbors by the bloodthirsty Ottoman hordes.
But suddenly another has invaded her dreams. This angel who speaks to Kelene in the night is far more elusive and demanding than any who came before, filling her with uncertainty and terror, while tempting her with impure thoughts and unholy desires. He will come to her, he vows, in Kelene's darkest hour ..."
I'm avoiding any hint of spoilers, but can say that this is not for the faint-of-heart. The living conditions are heartbreakingly harsh, and made more dangerous and impossible by the religious war engulfing the entire area.
This is an excellent story, MY kind of dark paranormal! This book definitely earns the label "Why didn't I read this sooner?!".
Sisters of the Night series:
#1 The Angry Angel
#2 The Soul of an Angel
#3 Zhameni: The Angel of Death
www.chelseaquinnyarbro.net
4.5 Stars - Difficult Content Warning - This is NOT a happy, sparkley paranormal book
From Back Cover, which says it better than I ever could:
"In a distant age of brutal chaos [Eastern Europe, story begins in the year 1500], young Kelene is her family's salvation. An exquisite, golden-haired child just entering womanhood, she is blessed -- and cursed -- with a great gift. God's "Militant Angels" guide her [through visions], shielding Kelene, her parents and brothers and sisters, from the horror and devastation visited upon their neighbors by the bloodthirsty Ottoman hordes.
But suddenly another has invaded her dreams. This angel who speaks to Kelene in the night is far more elusive and demanding than any who came before, filling her with uncertainty and terror, while tempting her with impure thoughts and unholy desires. He will come to her, he vows, in Kelene's darkest hour ..."
I'm avoiding any hint of spoilers, but can say that this is not for the faint-of-heart. The living conditions are heartbreakingly harsh, and made more dangerous and impossible by the religious war engulfing the entire area.
This is an excellent story, MY kind of dark paranormal! This book definitely earns the label "Why didn't I read this sooner?!".
Sisters of the Night series:
#1 The Angry Angel
#2 The Soul of an Angel
#3 Zhameni: The Angel of Death
www.chelseaquinnyarbro.net
March 15, 2021
As soon as I finished the last paragraph I could not stop myself from saying “Hoooly helll”. This is a fantastic book! The only reason why I didn’t give it 5/5 stars is because CQY has never finished the series. Supposedly there should be 3 books. She completed this first one (a bloody masterpiece), the second book (which I haven’t read) has some of the worst ratings I’ve ever seen, and the final installment never came out. So I could not give the full five stars because this is where me and Kelene must unfortunately part ways forever. This is a very good book though and I do not regret reading it, however, if I would have known the series was never (and apparently will never be) finished I would not even have started this book. But that’s just me. I carried on because I didn’t have all the details until I was almost half done and wanted to know the titles of book 2 and 3 so I could buy it. Also, it was so good and a few ratings said you really don’t need the other books, but I semi-disagree with that because when you love something, you always want more. But the time was well spent, definitely not a waste of time.
August 25, 2013
I actually would give this one a 4.5. This is the story of a young woman's journey to becoming one of the Brides of Count Dracula. I am an avid fan of vampire novels and was very excited to come across a book that took this approach to Count Dracula. Kelene is a young Greek girl whose family flees their home to prevent an invasion by the Turks. During this journey, Kelene receives visions from one of the Militant Angels that allow her to guide and protect her family. Some of these visions provide protection whereas some lead to negative consequences, leaving her family torn as to whether or not to doubt the visions as they try to rebuild their lives. Eventually, the angel, who turns out to be Dracula, enters Kelene's life in person outside of the visions and takes her away from her family to his abode. While the two characters never fall in love, there is a strong element of seduction without getting overly sexual. There are also elements of religious struggle and a twisted version on a coming of age story.
Overall, the book was well written with plenty of historical background. The character of Dracula was appropriately captured as being brooding, powerful, and seductive.
My only complaint is that it seemed as though the second half of the book, which focused primarily on Dracula entering Kelene's life, was very repetitive and almost rushed. There was more character development in the first half of the book and I really wanted more of the development of Kelene's character in the presence of Dracula. I also wanted more insight into how Dracula picked Kelene over all the other women in the world (maybe a topic for another book?)
Warning: If you have an aversion to stories involving the seduction and sexuality of very young teenage girls, then this is not the story for you, as Kelene is 14 years old.
Overall, the book was well written with plenty of historical background. The character of Dracula was appropriately captured as being brooding, powerful, and seductive.
My only complaint is that it seemed as though the second half of the book, which focused primarily on Dracula entering Kelene's life, was very repetitive and almost rushed. There was more character development in the first half of the book and I really wanted more of the development of Kelene's character in the presence of Dracula. I also wanted more insight into how Dracula picked Kelene over all the other women in the world (maybe a topic for another book?)
Warning: If you have an aversion to stories involving the seduction and sexuality of very young teenage girls, then this is not the story for you, as Kelene is 14 years old.
December 9, 2013
There are very few vampire novels that do monster seduction really well. I’m not talking Edward-the-sparkly-vampire kinda monster here, I’m talking about monsters who rip out human throats. In fact there are very few non vampire novels that do that well….Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov is one of those novels (just throwing that out there!) The Angry Angel does this so well. I wasn’t really conscious of the age of Kelene when I first read this book, being around 14 myself. But any book that can make the loss of innocence (in every way) of a 14 year old a seductive process in which the reader wants her to fall, is well written in my opinion. There is sexual tension and the pull of sensuality, but nothing too crazy over the top.
Still, this age difference didn’t bother me this second time through. Today, yes, the seduction of a 14 year-old would be against the law, but this was the 1500s when girls were commonly married at that age. So take that into consideration before taking out the “child rape!” soapbox.
My favorite part of this book is that there is no love story. Kelene is seduced into being one of Dracula’s brides not because she has fallen in love with him, but because she is a fallen character. She goes from being a religious, pure girl to being one of the infamous brides, delighting in pain, blood, and darkness. I think that wonderful character journey and development is what makes this book so fantastic, even if there isn’t a happy ending.
This book gets 4.5 stars for being so amazing, and deliciously dark!
Still, this age difference didn’t bother me this second time through. Today, yes, the seduction of a 14 year-old would be against the law, but this was the 1500s when girls were commonly married at that age. So take that into consideration before taking out the “child rape!” soapbox.
My favorite part of this book is that there is no love story. Kelene is seduced into being one of Dracula’s brides not because she has fallen in love with him, but because she is a fallen character. She goes from being a religious, pure girl to being one of the infamous brides, delighting in pain, blood, and darkness. I think that wonderful character journey and development is what makes this book so fantastic, even if there isn’t a happy ending.
This book gets 4.5 stars for being so amazing, and deliciously dark!
June 4, 2013
This is my first novel from this particular writer so I was a bit weary....especially all my vampire reading have been from Anne Rice novels.
This novel I thought was beautifully written and had such great detail. I could clearly see the Kelene's family and could relate to them on many levels. The father and mother to me ver yvery well thoughtout and described, along with the other minor characters. Kelene's character throughout most of the book was rather sad/tragic and interesting.
But one problem I did have with the book was it's treatment of Dracula's and Kelene's relationship. I thought the character of Dracula was well done...he was ominous and tragically sad at the same time, and it left me wanting more about him throughout the book. Iknow this is the first of the series so I will eargly await more info. But for his relationship with Kelene.....during the first couple parts of the book..it was very good...and griping, but towards the end it just became repetitive. During the whole journey to his castle it seems to me that thye were repeating the same scene over and over again. I felt these last couple of chapters could have been cut short.
Overall, I was pleased with this book and look forward to the next installment.
This novel I thought was beautifully written and had such great detail. I could clearly see the Kelene's family and could relate to them on many levels. The father and mother to me ver yvery well thoughtout and described, along with the other minor characters. Kelene's character throughout most of the book was rather sad/tragic and interesting.
But one problem I did have with the book was it's treatment of Dracula's and Kelene's relationship. I thought the character of Dracula was well done...he was ominous and tragically sad at the same time, and it left me wanting more about him throughout the book. Iknow this is the first of the series so I will eargly await more info. But for his relationship with Kelene.....during the first couple parts of the book..it was very good...and griping, but towards the end it just became repetitive. During the whole journey to his castle it seems to me that thye were repeating the same scene over and over again. I felt these last couple of chapters could have been cut short.
Overall, I was pleased with this book and look forward to the next installment.
March 22, 2008
There are two types of characters that I really enjoy. The first type is a powerful figure who manipulates things from the background. The second passively experiences a set of surreal circumstances and tries to make sense of them. The main character of Yarbro's book is of the second type. This book is part of a trilogy that will eventually tell the story of each of Dracula's three brides. Part of what makes the story compelling is the inevitability of the main character's fall. The story is a vivid historical fantasy that makes you feel you've lived a bit of 16th century Eastern Europe. There was so much upheaval. My initial reaction was, "Wow, things have gotten so much better." Then I realized that they really haven't. My only complaint with the book is that the place-descriptions are a little less fulsome that I would like.
July 13, 2012
A very compelling and sensual vampire novel. I loved the characterization of Dracula, seductive but monstrous and distant at the same time. He's not an epically explicit sexual symbol like the conventional vampire novels, although he is the seducer. I think what I like about him the most is that he's very inhuman, and it's really hard to "feel" for him and sympathize with him as a character...the fact that he picks a 14 year old vampire bride is both disturbing an erotic. Oh...and the ending.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this book very much...and I will be looking into the sequel. While I was reading I looked forward to Dracula's visit to Kelene's dreams as the "militant angel", and after they've finally met in real life, I was completely absorbed and so deep into the story...definitely a page turner.
Overall, I enjoyed reading this book very much...and I will be looking into the sequel. While I was reading I looked forward to Dracula's visit to Kelene's dreams as the "militant angel", and after they've finally met in real life, I was completely absorbed and so deep into the story...definitely a page turner.
June 28, 2013
I do not have a whole lot to say about this book, there really wasn't any substance to the book.
Where was the motivation behind Dracula's actions?
Where was the motivation behind Dracula's actions?
January 22, 2016
For those that have read Bram Stoker's Dracula will probably get into this book. Its about one of the wierd sisters. I need to see if there is a book on the other two. I greatly enjoyed this book and was a teenager at the time when reading it. But I really like vampires as well.
August 11, 2008
This book was okay - it has an interesting premise, but I wished that the last part wasn't so rushed - and it was hard to identify with any one character. . .
August 11, 2010
Thank god someone wrote this story...a must read
June 30, 2011
The book that tipped me over into vegetarianism!
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews