Live Girls

Davey Owen #1

by Ray Garton

Davey Owen was looking for a little entertainment. He finds instead a nightmare in the form of a beautiful but strangely pale woman. A woman who offers him passion, ecstasy - and eternal life - but takes in exchange his lifeblood and his very soul.

Genres: Horror, Vampires, Fiction, Splatterpunk, Fantasy, Paranormal, Supernatural

311 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Ray Garton is the author of several books, including horror novels such as LIVE GIRLS (which has a movie in the works), CRUCIFAX, E4 AUTUMN, and THE FOLKS; thrillers like TRADE SECRETS and SHACKLED; and numerous short stories and novellas. He's also written a number of movie and television tie-ins for young readers. He lives with his wife, Dawn, in California.

Reviews

[Karl · Rating 5 out of 5]

People are found dead but their blood is missing.

Corpses disappear from mortuaries. Ordinary, decent men keep returning to a certain seedy sex peep-show called Live Girls. The police know nothing and do even less.

When Walter Benedek, a respectable, middle-aged reporter working for the New York Times, finds his sister and niece dead his world falls apart. He decides to spend the rest of his holiday looking for their potential murderer – his brother-in-law, Vernon Macy. Vernon was last seen near Live Girls but Walter is strangely unwilling to go inside that establishment – he has a hunch and he is very healthily afraid. Still while hanging around he accosts Davey, a young, naive assistant editor who doesn’t hesitate to enter. Davey has been dumped by his latest good-for-nothing girlfriend and hasn't been promoted as he expected to – small wonder he tries to enliven his life by looking for some new experiences. A visit to an obscure peep-show? Why not? Plenty of people do it every day.

[Dave Edmunds · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 ⭐'s

Initial Thoughts

It was a cold October night and I'd just finished reading Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix, my first read for Spooky season. A fantastic read, and if you want to hear more about that then see my review. But the reason I mention it is because inside is a recommended reading list and for the rest of October I decided to read books that featured on it. Starting with The Other by Thomas Tryon and followed by this one...Live Girls by Ray Garton.

I'm not going to lie. Garton is a bit of an unknown outside of the horror community and although I had heard of him, this is the first time I've read him. Looking at his back catalogue though he has written over fifty books! Which leaves me thinking is there a good reason most folk haven't heard of him?

Anyway, Live Girls is well regarded as his crowning achievement. So I'm starting with it and if it turns out to be an absolute waste of my time I'll know not to bother with anything else by him. Published in 1987 I'm expecting some good old, pulpy, 80s style horror. Looking forward to it.

Let's go!

The Story

This a story about Davey Owen, a hapless magazine editor who's down on his luck. Recently ditched by his deadbeat girlfriend and stuck in a dead-end job, missing out on a rare promotion opportunity looks like the final straw for him. So he does what any of us guys would do when faced with that kind of adversity. Head straight to the strip club!

But this isn't just any old type of strip joint and boy does Dave get more than he bargained for. I'm not spoiling anything here as the front cover tells you all you need to know about what's lurking inside...just a coven of female vampires who prey on the dregs of society who frequent the establishment.



There's always been a bit of sexual allure to vampires. What with the piercing gaze followed by a bit of neck biting. Hands up who else is a fan of that...thought so. But Garton goes way beyond that. Talk about glory holes with added bite. I think it's time for that cold shower.

It's not long before Davey's close friend and colleague, Casey, is noticing a change in him. And it's not for the best. You can see what's coming here so I better shut up before I completely spoil this one. Sorry guys!

The Writing

This is classic horror pulp that's jam packed with terror, horror, and gross-out moments. And for the most part, it’s a fun, fast paced read. Though the pace does lag somewhat in the middle.

The writing is straight to the point (no pun intended) and Garton's style is very reminiscent of the late Richard Laymon. You know what I mean. There are some great scenes that manage to be sleezy, horrifying and entertaining all at the same time. And after some of the bloodier set pieces you may be thankful for a breather.

So this certainly isn't highbrow literature. But the author does manage to paint a fantastic picture of Times Square in all its squalid neon-soaked glory. It's a place I'd love to go back in time for and visit. And the sex and horror are graphically detailed. Yes, if you're prudish about that kind of thing then definitely give this a miss. It's very recognisable as an 80s horror novel when all that thing was the rage. Bring those days back!

The Characters

I'll be straight up with you guys. The characterisation in Live Girls could be better. Don't get me wrong, for a pulpy, sleezy 80s horror it's certainly ok. But it's not going to win any awards. If I'm being honest, there wasn't a single character the grabbed a hold of me and demanded my attention. Was I expecting too much? Probably.

The main character of Davey initially got me interested, but he was so spineless he ended up being annoying. Then when bad things started happening to him, I didn't really have the required empathy. Honestly, he could have died halfway through and I wouldn't have batted an eyelid.

And another point. All the characterisation in this is centred around the mortals. There was initially a lot of intrigue around the Vampires, but Garton doesn't explore them at all. They've got just enough humanity to pass as one of us. Probably as intended, but it did feel like a missed opportunity in my book.

Final Thoughts

So to wrap things up, I got exactly what I expected from Live Girls. And that's a pulpy and bloody horror novel about vampires. Was that enough? I'm sad to say I do like a little bit more from my literature in my old age.

It did fly in the face of Anne Rice's high culture take on the blood-suckling fiends. And I did appreciate that. But there was nothing special about it that would make me want to recommend it.

You know what? For the most part I did enjoy it. Although as it dragged on toward the end, I was glad it had finished and could move on to something else.

Something I will say though is that this would make a great 80s vibe horror movie. Something like Near Dark. And I read somewhere it was being worked on, but it looks like it fell by the way side. That's a shame. Oh well, who needs movies when you read?

Will I be reading anymore from Ray Garton. Probably not.

Thanks for reading and...cheers!

[image error]
Ray Garton 1962 - 2024

[Gianfranco Mancini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Happy 55th birthday, Salma Hayek (Salma del Carmen Hayek Jiménez-Pinault) !!!



Neon city lights of New York City’s Times Square can be very seductive at times, the promises of dark pleasures on the seedier side streets to, so when Davey Owen falls to the lure of a glowing sign advertising “Live Girls”, he's going to find there much more than the little entertainment he was looking for...

Vernon Macy stepped forward. The sounds of traffic and voices and music, the pulse of the whole city seemed to diminish behind him as he neared the curtained doorway. His muscles tensed and he almost paused, almost turned and caught a cab to go home to that goddamned dinner. But he didn’t. He stepped through the midnight-black curtain of Live Girls.

I've read Ray Garton's Live Girls for the first time in 1990, I was just starting to play Vampire the Masquerade RPG with my friends and this was one of the books inspiring the gothic-punk setting of White Wolf's World of Darkness setting, so I wanted to read it and  I couldn’t believe my eyes when I've seen it released here in Italy for Urania Horror a short-lived mass-market paperback horror novels from various authors series, spin-off of most popular sci-fi, and still running, Urania.

Benedek gagged once, twice, bent over gasping for air as he spun around and stepped out of the bathroom. It wasn’t that there was a great deal of blood, it was knowing from whom the blood had come. He stood outside the bathroom for several minutes. Then, when he was finally sure of himself, he went to the phone and called the police.

My previious vampire readings were just Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Ann Rice's Vampire Chronicles, Charles L. Grant's The Soft Whisper of the Dead, J. Sheridan Le Fanu's Carmilla, Richard Laymon's The Stake and many others, but I was probably still too young and unprepared for the sex and violence overload waiting for me among these pages, together with one of the mist lurid depictions of New York I ever read in my life, and few scenes so disturbing to hunt my nightmares for twenty years... just imagine something like Vamp (1986) starring Grace Jones, meets Tales from the Crypt Presents: Bordello of Blood (1996) and Robert Rodriguez/Quentin Tarantino's From Dusk till Dawn all in one, set in a dirty Big Apple filled with drug/sex addicts, pimps, dealers, nightclubs, hookers and , of course, vampires with mostly all of the comedy replaced by high doses of sex, blood, and gore.

He stopped on the sidewalk and looked up at the sign. In the dim light of the overcast day, the flashing red letters glowed faintly. The black curtain in the doorway was fluttered gently by the wind. The curtains parted occasionally as they shifted and Davey tilted his head to see inside, but there was only darkness. The absence of garish lights and signs, obnoxious hawkers, made it somehow appealing.

No spoilers, but just wait for the infamous "love" scene between Davey and Casey to see yourself with your eyes.

He burst from the booth and hurried through the shadows of Live Girls. He passed the cage by the entrance and looked through the bars as he went by. He saw nothing in the darkness, but he knew that someone was sitting there, someone with large, beautiful, pale hands. Someone watching him.

But I'm meandering now... let's say that I wanted to read another novel from Ray Garton after his short tale The Man in the Palace Theatre, purchased for free on my kindle a few years ago, sparked my interest in him again.
Night Life, sequel to Live Girls set by chance 20 years later, could have been the perfect choice, but besides  a couple of disturbing overmentioned scenes, and some steamy sex ones too, I reminded not much of it, so I was considering to read Ravenous or another book from the splatterpunk american writer.

He watched Live Girls for a long time. Even as night began to fall, Benedek watched the black-curtained doorway and tried to see in whenever someone walked in or out. But all he saw was darkness. And that darkness made him strangely uneasy. He finally gave up and took a cab home.

Then, looking for reviews on the internet, I've found out (read author's interview here if you want know more) that private investigators Karen Moffett and Gavin Keoph, who first appeared in Night Life, are main characters into Bestial, the follow-up to werewolves novel Ravenous.

“So what’s your friend into?” she asked. “I don’t do just anything, you know.” “Sucking.” “Into sucking, huh? Two hundred bucks just for me to come suck her?” He turned his head to her only slightly, one cheek raising with a gentle smile. “No. She does it.” After a few blocks of silent walking, Roger slowed in front of a small black storefront with a flashing sign that read LIVE GIRLS.

The four books were connected and a fifth one was upcoming too sooner or later: that was just enough to make my buy all of them on kindle and starting to read again, after twenty years, Live Girls.

The applause swelled; there were more cheers. When the dancers slipped back into the darkness, the audience quieted down. “Welcome to the Midnight Club,” the woman continued. “For those new to this establishment, I’m Shideh, your host.” There was more applause, but she raised a quieting hand. “Thank you, but that’s not necessary. We have a full evening of entertainment ahead and we’ve hardly begun.”

A pleasant, compelling and entertaining, classic vampire re-read for me, but if explicit M/F - F/F sex scenes, violence, and gore are not your cup of blood tea, just stay away from these series.

He hadn’t lost his job, Beth hadn’t left him, he didn’t live in a huge, dirty city that sat on an island like a dark, hunkering beast waiting to gulp down anything that wandered by. His whole body quivered as he fought the urge to furiously devour her beneath him.

You've been warned, o' kindly reader who patiently arrived at the end of this, hope not much boring, review.

He opened his mouth. What did you do to me? he wanted to ask. What’s wrong with you? But those eyes calmed him, reassured him, and made more silent promises. “Will I … see you again?” he asked, his voice forced. She said, “Of course. And soon.” Then, very softly, as she closed the door: “You’ll have to.” The lock clicked on the other side.

Onward to book two, it took twenty years but Night Life is waiting for me at last.

He looked away from Benedek. “I’m going to be fine.” He shrugged. “Well, maybe I picked up something in that place. If it doesn’t go away, I’ll see someone.” “Okay, fine. But will you at least do one thing?” The cab stopped at Davey’s building. Benedek asked, “Will you stay away from Live Girls? From Anya?” Davey turned to him again, his brow creased as he shook his head slowly. “I don’t know if I can.

[Grady Hendrix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sleazy, but satisfying, retrograde and inappropriate, but entertaining, dirty old New York City squalor.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Garton really serves up a winner here! Not really my intention, but vampires have featured in several books I have read lately (The Lesser Dead, Blindsight). Definitely an old and tired trope today, with scads of 'lovable' vampires featuring in paranormal romance and urban fantasy, but Garton's LG is something of a classic in the genre and his vampires are not lovable at all. First published in 1987, LG features Davey Owen as the main protagonist; a 'nice guy' who makes horrible choices with women. Davey works as an editor for a sleazy publisher in NYC. One day after his latest romance turned sour (she walked out) Davey was wondering around the streets and stumbled into Times Square-- you know, at one time the center of sleaze in NYC. Amid all the loud, bright storefronts advertising nude gals, Davey finds a dark, quite establishment with "Live Girls" under a sedate neon sign; he goes in (his first time in such a place), buys some tokens and enters a booth. One thing leads to another and Davey gets a blow job from hell! Felt great, but he noticed he is bleeding a bit down there...

Garton does a nice job capturing the sleazy side of the big apple here, back when it still had a sleazy side. The pages of LG are populated by hookers, drug users/pushers, and of course, vampires. There is nothing really unique about the vampires here except the sun does not kill them (crosses are a joke as well) and that they run Live Girls and another sex club in TriBeCa. Entrepreneurial vampires then, who discovered a unique way to feed. Davey is a fun lead-- mousey to be sure, but when he finally finds his spine things get very interesting. LG is a little slow off the get go, but like a snowball rolling downhill, it really picks up momentum as it goes and builds to a nice denouement. 4 toothy stars!!

[Will Errickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cult '80s horror novel bursting with sleaze, gore & pornography. No wonder I loved it when I was 19! It's still pretty cool today. Set in once-squalid, now long-gone Times Square, LIVE GIRLS features a strip club filled with vampires both grotesque and alluring. Sure, it's corny, not all that well-written, but earnest and quick-moving, original and inventive. I suppose "glory hole" is something you'd never hear in either DRACULA or TWILIGHT. Oh well. Would've made a helluva an '80s horror movie.

[Kenneth McKinley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprises happen all the time - getting that lady in the drive-thru that is refreshingly pleasant and doesn't bitch about how shitty of a job she has, finding a $20 bill in your pants pocket that you didn't know you had, randomly finding that gem of a horror movie that you've never heard of before on Netflix by nothing more than sheer accident - you get the idea. LIVE GIRLS was my pleasant surprise. I'd probably had it sitting patiently on my TBR pile 4-5 years after I had bought it. Finally, it's time had come and I couldn't be more pleased.

Davy Owen is having a shitty day. He gets passed over for a much deserved promotion. After getting all pissed off and telling his boss to go to hell, now he's out of a job. On top of that, his girl left him because he could never stand up for himself. Down on his luck, he happens on a NYC peep show called Live Girls. An odd and strange attraction pulls him inside. When the panel slides up in his booth, he gets more than just a show and a boner. This one comes with a happy ending...well, sort of. What he took home was more than a smile on his face.

Garton does a great job taking a story that could've been hokey and breathing life into it, in a tongue-in-cheek sort of way. This is a vampire story filled with sex and blood and not one of those bastards sparkled. LIVE GIRLS oozes grime and grittiness, just like the seedy NYC streets from the 1980s where the story was set. You feel for Davey and his predicament and close your eyes when you know he's being pulled in the wrong direction. LIVE GIRLS is a wild, joy ride of a vamp tale, just like how they should be. Surprises can be found in the most unlikeliest places, like being buried deep in my TBR pile. I really need to dig through that more often!

4 1/2 Hickies on Your Dicky out of 5


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[Lizz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t write reviews.

And I truly believe that being a vampire is a terrible curse. It’s not sexy or fun. It’s a constant, ugly hunger with a coppery aftertaste. It seems that Ray Garton agrees with me.

Now remember that 5 stars doesn’t mean it’s the best book I’ve read; it means the work has fulfilled its potential. I did find the story gripping and dark. There were some wild splatter scenes done well.

The three main characters were likable. Yet with the peripheral group, there was some strangeness concerning human motivation. A lady leaves her middle-income, kind, attractive, but unmotivated boyfriend to run back to her abusive, unattractive, drugged-up, dangerously criminal, STD-ridden ex-boyfriend, and she immediately allows him to beat her again. Sounds about right…?? Sadly, vampires have to be careful whose blood they drink or it will cripple them for the rest of their death. Davy gets revenge on the speed-freak bruiser, but hurts himself through the ingestion of poison blood. Nobody pays attention during small info-dumps!!!

Oh and they accidentally allow most of the vampires to escape before the explosion. Oops.

[Tara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though a bit lighter in tone, this definitely felt similar to 1980’s Maniac; both take place in a grim, seedy, oppressively filthy NYC. Only here you have these highly seductive, predatory “sex worker” type vampires to contend with, rather than a mannequin-loving serial killer with raging mommy issues. There was some awesome gore in this one too, though. Plus, it had freakin mutant vampires locked up in the basement of the grimy peep show establishment, kept beneath a trapdoor that they rattled incessantly with their, like, claws and wings and tails and shit. Oh yeah. Anyway, overall this was a dark yet fun read, highly recommended for fans of trashy 80s horror.

[11811 (Eleven) · Rating 4 out of 5]

1987 Times Square before Rudy Giuliani cleaned up all the sleazy vampire strip joints. Other than Dracula and Salem's Lot, this may be the best vampire novel I've read. Compulsive reading at its best.

[Adam Light · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent vampire story!

LIVE GIRLS is the most fun I've had reading a book in a while.

Ray Garton knows how to write. There isn't a wasted word here. I loved it.

Fast paced, drenched in gore, sex, and all around craziness. Just the way a good vampire novel should be.

[Jordan Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spooktober 2022 Book 2

Making vampires sexy again!

Finally, a vampire story that wasn’t stale, boring, or full of moody suburban teenagers who just want love.

Live Girls is sleazy, scummy, and dirty. Dark, depressing and Full of blood, sex, and an incredibly bleak tone that encapsulated the seedy undertone of 1980s New York, THIS is how all vampire novels should read.

It’s clear why this one was a Bram Stoker finalist back in 87 and why it’s still usually regarded as one of the best in the business.

[Teipu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was exited to start a perpetual challenge I had in mind for quite a while: Read through the Bram Stoker Award short-list and winners! (I want to do the same with the Man Booker Prize, though that's even more insane). Too bad I kind of started on the wrong foot.

I got this book because it was short-listed for Best Novel so I assumed it must be just as great as the winner novel Misery by Stephen King (which tied with Swan Song by Robert R. McCammon which I haven't read yet). Unfortunately, it wasn't.

Let's start with the good stuff!
It's a decent vampire novel with evil, selfish bloodsuckers as opposed to all those romanticized, pale vegan-vampires we have in lots of vampire novels nowadays. I prefer the evil version a lot more!
The two main vampires Shideh and Anya were sexy, dangerous and ruthless and I liked that they could walk in daylight (Garton even explained that well) and were not invulnerable. What would happen to a vampire if he/she drinks "poisoned" blood was a great touch and actually one of the most creepy parts.

There was a lot of sex in the story, pretty explicit at times, but when you write about a vampire-run peep-show and nightclub, I think that's unavoidable. Some of it was a little bit disgusting though (biting male patrons penises or sucking the menstruation blood out of someone, yuck).

Now for the part why I didn't enjoy the book much: the main character.
The male lead Davey Owen (how can you name your main character DAVEY? It sound like he's 5 years old) was just so weak and annoying! Half of the book he was whining about his job, his ex-girlfriend and life in general, friendzoning the female lead who did her best to make him feel better. Then he gets bitten by a vampire prostitute and then he keeps emphasizing how weak he feels, every five pages someone thinks how pale and sick he looks and how thin he got...

And how exactly didn't he notice that Anya was a vampire? She bit your little buddy! TWICE! She makes you bite her and drink her blood! She's really pale and cold! You found an album of newspaper clippings from her dating back to the 1920s! And she looks still the same!
And you're still wondering what's happening to you? Come on...

It got better with Davey in the second half of the book (he manned-up) but I still couldn't warm up to him. The female lead, Casey, was okay though I didn't like how she played the emotional rubbish bin for Davey and hoping that he would fall in love with her someday. Benedek was the most interesting character for me. His sister got killed by vampires and he seeks revenge for that which was a nice plot point.

The ending finally catched up on the action part and was pretty cool, but the 250 pages before that weren't thrilling me at all.
All in all, it wasn't a bad vampire novel, but it wasn't a good one either.

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope I don't offend anyone with this review, but here it goes.
Let me start by saying, I loved this book, and I am going to read the sequel for sure.
Now to get down to the nitty gritty: This is my version of a trashy sleazy beachy speed read book.
I could have read this in one gulp while laying out in the sun, or perhaps on an airplane.
Instead I powered through it in 2 nights, last night being wide awake at 2am blatantly refusing to put it down.
Its a story! Plain and simple and down to the guts, it is an easy breezy BAD romance novel with GORE instead of glitter. There is no stylistic writing that hurts your brain to decipher, no metaphors or anything to hurt your brain meats.
So, when I say trashy and sleazy, I mean there are some raunchy porn scenes that are pretty intense and bound to make you uncomfortable in public. I sometimes need a reprieve from the heavy stuff I normally need. And this was pure unalderated Fun, with a capital F.
I enjoyed it, and that being said: it is not for everyone.
I am basically a reformed sewer rat. I do have supreme taste in literature, BUT I still can't help running straight back down to the sewer sometimes. I need my fix.
This is identical to those 2-3am Taco Bell trips after a long night of drinking and dancing. Disgusting, but at the time: it is pure EXTACY.

[Mason · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another winner found for less than a dollar at a thrift store! This book got progressively better as it lead up to the fucking awesome last scene. a few points:

- Vampire strippers??? Sign me the fuck up.
- I wasn't thrilled with this book until just after the halfway mark. Then I was hooked.
- A grown ass man named Davey, really? And his girlfriend is named Casey? If I were his editor, those names would be the first thing to go.
- Love Garton's take on vampires and the process of turning into one.
- Love the part about ping pong balls.
- LOVE the creepy ass basement full of deformities.
- Apparently religious paraphernalia doesn't work against vampires, but garlic sure as hell does.
- BUCKETS of gore.

Moral of the story: don't go into sketchy strip clubs AND ESPECIALLY don't let a stripper blow you.

[Dustin · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 rounded up.

This was a fun sleazy ride, and a good introduction to the works of Ray Garton. It’s a terrific setting for a vampire novel, and Garton certainly introduces some unique elements to the genre, which he uses to very entertaining effect. There were a couple of characters that I liked very much, though I did frequently find myself frustrated with the main protagonist in this story. That said, Garton clearly created him that way with intent, so I can’t hold it too much against him, as it does serve the narrative. I’ll definitely be reading more of his work in the future.

[Craig "NEEDS MORE DAMN TIME TO READ !!!!" · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this vampiric tale! I think it's one of the only times that the vampires actually attack and feed in bat form, just a little thought. Interesting slant on the vampire lore with some nice sexy parts haha mixed with good old fashioned horror. Good fun!

[Plagued by Visions · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read Garton's Ravenous and Bestial, and really liked his take on the werewolf legends. Now I'm moving on to his vampires with Live Girls. I love the idea of vampires as sex workers, they can avoid scrutiny by working in the seedy underbelly of New York.

Davey Owen has just lost his girlfriend and his job. Looking for something new, he enters Live Girls and has an experience he can't forget. As he is drawn to return, he begins to realize something is wrong with him and the club. But the club won't let him go so easily.

This story was fast paced and I enjoyed reading it. I liked the way the vampire's were portrayed. And also liked the supporting characters of Casey and Benedek. I had fun reading this and am going on to the next in the series.

[Chris Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolute, top-quality, best I've read in decades vampire story!

Live Girls is a LOT of fun and paced very quickly. Though the plot moves along quickly, we get time to know our characters and grow to care for or abhor them, and they are very well fleshed out. Davey Owen has a really bad day, and wanders into peep show joint on Times Square called 'Live Girls'. It isn't perversion or lust drawing him in, but genuine curiosity. But his curiosity brings him more trouble than he knows what to do with.

This was the first Ray Garton book I've read, and I will CERTAINLY be picking up some more. His writing is fluid and his prose elegant. His characters are realistic and his use of foreboding exceptional. The vampires in this story are at once sexy and seductive, but also genuinely terrifying. They are nightmare creatures. The way vampires ought to be.

If you're tired of young, good-looking weeny vampires and want something dark and gritty and which delivers the goods in folds, look no further. Live Girls is for you. I'd recommend this to any fan of horror. Though I wouldn't quite say this is extreme horror, it does have some extremely graphic scenes of violence and sex, which might turn some off. But if not, you're in for the treat of your life. So step in to Live Girls and have a bite.

[William M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 AND 1/2 STARS

While not as impressed as some of the other readers, this 1987 outing by veteran Ray Garton is certainly one of the better modern vampire tales. It has all the mystery, gore, violence, and sex that one expect from a book like this, but certain scenes felt awkward and the dialogue a bit melodramatic at times. Although I saw many plot points coming way ahead, I still had a lot of fun with this book. Definitely better than Garton's THE LOVELIEST DEAD, but not the classic I was hoping for.

[Mya · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I learned from this book is that garlic is my best bet when encountering vampires, not crosses or bibles or holy water or even stakes. Garlic should do the trick! But seriously, this is my second book by Ray Garton and I enjoyed it so much that I finished it fairly quickly. What I really enjoyed about "Live Girls" is something that I'm hoping appears in all his work, which is the dark, truly horrifying portrayal of any monster that he deals with. This book is about vampires that are beasts, disgusting and seductive and horrifying.

The story is based around a peep-show/club called Live Girls. It is one of two havens for vampires in the book. During the narrative, several people fall victim to its allure and its danger. I found myself breezing through the pages, curious and shocked by every event. One thing I will say about Garton is that I definitely could not guess the ending.

Like "Ravenous" his werewolf novel, I was still left with questions... all involving backstory and details. Don't get me wrong, Garton fleshes his monsters out and gives you exactly what you need to turn the page...but damn...there seemed to be at least 3 types of vampires in the book and I wanted more DETAILS...yeah, I'm greedy.

Great horror read though, definitely!

[Cody | CodysBookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grim, sleazy, scary: a vampire novel in ‘80s NYC, Live Girls is better than it has any right to be. After not enjoying The Light at the End I was hesitant to read any other New York-set horror novels published in the splatterpunk era, but Ray Garton’s solid grip on the language makes this one work. His short story “Sinema” was one of my favorites in Silver Scream, so maybe I should check out more of this guy’s work.

I knocked a star off for the rushed ending. It’s not a bad ending . . . just rushed. I could’ve done with this novel being longer, I wanted to spend more time in this world. It’s seedy and sexy and bloody. A fun little vintage horror novel: perfect for Paperbacks from Hell fans.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dark and violent. Writing reminds me of Jason starr; white collar noir infused with horror to create a perfect cult blend of vampire goodness. Loved it.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book that's stuck in the back of my mind for almost thirty years. I remember being intrigued by a review in Twilight Zone Magazine back in the day, but I never did find a copy until now.* One of those holy grail books. The book was considered pretty extreme for its time, but realizing that things have gone much further since then (and also that my interests and tastes weren't quite the same as when I was a teenager) I kept my expectations low, and I enjoyed the book. It's about a man who, after losing his live-in girlfriend, decides to visit a strip club and gets a little more than he expected. The book chronicles Danny's gradual descent into vampirism and also a reporter's quest for the truth about his sister's murder. You can guess that these two things are related.

*Leisure Books reprinted it many years later but it had a hideous cover and I refused to purchase it.

[Sun Goddess Moon Witch]

DNF @ 45%.
You can see the plot coming a mile away, someones going to turn into a vampire! Basically, Davey gets a blow job and gets bit during the process. Then he goes back to the vampire because he’s a horny desperate loser and is eventually persuaded to bite her in return during their sexual antics without thinking twice. I couldn't finish this, it was SO boring and slow. Everyone in this book is very stupid and unobservant to these sex worker vampires. I’m actually surprised they haven’t taken over the whole town at this point. However, what made me drop this book was Davey's turning process into a vampire. It’s taking him way to long to do it and I just don’t care anymore.

[Bandit · Rating 4 out of 5]

First experience with Garton and what a pleasant one. This book was great, exactly the kind of visceral, bloody, violent, crazy ride that vampire fiction should be but keeps forgetting to be or getting confused and watered down by sparkly vampires. Alternatively, this was a clever metaphor for how dangerous random sex was in the 1980s in NY. Either way a great read. Highly recommended.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ray Garton delivered again! I had heard great things about this book and was not disappointed. I really enjoyed this dark, erotic vampire tale and look forward to reading the sequel as soon as I can get my hands on a copy. What fate awaits Davey and Casey, I wonder?

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I had first heard of Ray Garton's Live Girls, I checked out a few reviews. There was one Amazon reviewer who enticed me by saying something like, "Nothing can prepare you for Live Girls. I went into this expecting to be shocked, and felt I was prepared. But nothing can prepare you for this".

Well, I went into this prepared to be shocked. It didn't happen.

This was a pretty good story, though, and it is a novel that is driven by the story alone.
That's the problem I have with a lot of horror lately. My favorite novels have all been heavily character driven. I need to really
care about them and what they are pulled through to garner a high rating.
Garton doesn't spend a lot of time developing his characters, but I have to say, it's impressive that the surface treatment he does give them saves them from being totally cardboard. He shows a fine economy of words.
The dialog, however, I found to be very awkward. The exchanges between Beth and her abusive boyfriend reminded me of my struggled attempts at creative writing in grade 9.

Live Girls is what it is, a fast paced vampire adventure. I guess if deep characterization is to take a back seat to story, then it's good that the story not waste any time and keep moving forward. And it does. I burned through it.

I was just expecting more depth, and some real shocks. In the long run, I don't think it will take me very long to forget it, really.
A two-star rating here translates to "it was ok", so 2 it is.

[Mika Lietzen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sleazy sex vampires in 80's New York! All vampire fiction alludes to sex in one way or another, so it makes perfect sense that these 80's bloodsuckers have set up a strip club or two. They offer full service to discerning clientele and in return receive a ready and willing supply of the red stuff.

Hapless magazine editor Davey Owen stumbles into the nondescript Live Girls venue and is immediately smitten by the alluring featured performer who goes way further than is legal. While the bitemarks on his penis and continued bleeding cause him some worry, Davey is well and truly hooked and keeps coming back for more. Meanwhile Walter Benedek, a reporter, is investigating his sister's gruesome murder which somehow also ties into the same sex joint. Soon Benedek and Owen are figuring out how to fight vampires. Crosses don't work, garlic does.

Like most good horror fiction, Live Girls uses a (more or less) realistic background to root the supernatural horrors in a certain time and place. It works beautifully and gives the novel a certain degree of believability. Indeed, the modus operandi of the vampires in Live Girls actually makes a lot of sense: an industry which already operates in the shadows and involves close contact with random strangers is a perfect opportunity for someone who needs to feed on humans. The traditional method of biting the neck also seems somewhat old-fashioned after the methods employed by the Live Girls.

And how about that title? It's perfect.