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Classic World of Darkness Fiction
Vampire Diary
In the shadows of Los Angeles, an ancient vamper courts Auston Jacobson, a nightclub bartender. Slowly but surely, Auston succumbs to the dark call. Can he resist the Embrace, the gateway to an eternity of damnation? And will his master's dark command threaten the most beautiful, most perfect love he has ever felt?
110 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1994
5 people are currently reading
180 people want to read
About the author
Robert Weinberg
192 books54 followersAlso published as Harrison Denmark.
Robert Weinberg (also credited as Bob Weinberg) was an American author. His work spans several genres including non-fiction, science fiction, horror, and comic books.
Weinberg sold his first story in 1967. Most of his writing career was conducted part-time while also owning a bookstore; he became a full time writer after 1997.
Weinberg was also an editor, and edited books in the fields of horror, science fiction and western. In comics, Weinberg wrote for Marvel Comics; his first job was on the series Cable, and he later created the series Nightside.
Wikipedia entry: Robert Weinberg
Robert Weinberg (also credited as Bob Weinberg) was an American author. His work spans several genres including non-fiction, science fiction, horror, and comic books.
Weinberg sold his first story in 1967. Most of his writing career was conducted part-time while also owning a bookstore; he became a full time writer after 1997.
Weinberg was also an editor, and edited books in the fields of horror, science fiction and western. In comics, Weinberg wrote for Marvel Comics; his first job was on the series Cable, and he later created the series Nightside.
Wikipedia entry: Robert Weinberg
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 24, 2012
This book has earned one of the "best of all times" awards in my collection. It stands the proud king of the Vampire books, because it excels in all categories: engaging characters, top notch setting (courtesy of the World of Darkness game line), solid (if now usual) story. And after re-reading it -- I remembered why -- not that I did need much being reminded.
I first read it compiled in the "Essential World of Darkness", a gathering of tales of the five World of Darkness games (Vampire, Werewolf, Mage, Wraith and Changeling), and I was surprised by it to the point of me spending time tracking down an original copy.
The tale is, at it's core, very simple: a competent young man does his job so well that he draws the attention of his boss, who happens to be a vampire. He ends up turned into a vampire, and in the stages of denial, he refuses to drink blood -- ending up accidentally killing his lover.
Now, this is a short novel, and the thing that makes it so extraordinary is the fact that it's narrated as a diary - but not any diary. The diary of someone with an amazing talent for drawing. Pictures and words mingle, organic, handwritten - at no moment you see a computer interfering. The reason why I went out of my way to find the original is because I discovered they had actually published it in an ACTUAL diary format, with folded letters and postcards stuck between the pages, and an actual lock.
You can hold this book, and easily think it is someone's diary. And that, I think, is part of the magic.
Another thing that the original book had better than the compilation is the use of colour. Red, to be precise. The whole thing is written in black, except a certain tale tell moment -- in the WOD, vampires weep tears of blood, and seeing the red droplets with the smudges of red after the main character tries to make sense of what happened become visceral, much better than if they had been just words.
Even when he tries to grab his last shreds of sanity writing in irregular, violent letters, "I AM MY OWN MASTER" you are struck much more deeply by the tragedy than if it had just been clinically and sterily written in ARIAL 12, no matter how good the description.
I'm not easily moved reader. I've read too much to feel sympathy for simple plots or cliché, rehashed tales.
But this one, as rehashed, reused and retold as might be touched me. Maybe because it was simple. Maybe because it had no pretensions to be anything more than it was. Maybe because you know so little of the monster that turns the main character, and you are as lost as the main character. You are trapped at his side, in his head, fighting the beast. His loss is your loss.
And in the end -- you get a reason why this journal kept having entries. After spoiling so much, I will leave this unspoilt. But there is a reason for everything. What starts as a journal written to stave off boredom, soon becomes an artistic release of a man both excited with his job and love, then turns into a struggle to retain one's identity-- but in the end, the last few entries left me with a chill, as I realized what the mysterious letter folded in an envelope in the beginning of the book meant.
And then, then you hit that last, scribbled note -- not an entry, just a note. And you realize that this man-turned-vampire's tale is just beginning... and the worst is yet to come.
Even for a short novel, it's quite short (probably not even reaching 10.000 words), but the story is written in it with more than words. Entire stories are told with the use of the props, the art, the tiny notations and remarks. It's one of those cases where less is more.
If you're a fan of vampires, and tragedy, pick this one up -- in the original format, if you can (White Wolf published it recently as a PDF). It's definitely worth it.
I first read it compiled in the "Essential World of Darkness", a gathering of tales of the five World of Darkness games (Vampire, Werewolf, Mage, Wraith and Changeling), and I was surprised by it to the point of me spending time tracking down an original copy.
The tale is, at it's core, very simple: a competent young man does his job so well that he draws the attention of his boss, who happens to be a vampire. He ends up turned into a vampire, and in the stages of denial, he refuses to drink blood -- ending up accidentally killing his lover.
Now, this is a short novel, and the thing that makes it so extraordinary is the fact that it's narrated as a diary - but not any diary. The diary of someone with an amazing talent for drawing. Pictures and words mingle, organic, handwritten - at no moment you see a computer interfering. The reason why I went out of my way to find the original is because I discovered they had actually published it in an ACTUAL diary format, with folded letters and postcards stuck between the pages, and an actual lock.
You can hold this book, and easily think it is someone's diary. And that, I think, is part of the magic.
Another thing that the original book had better than the compilation is the use of colour. Red, to be precise. The whole thing is written in black, except a certain tale tell moment -- in the WOD, vampires weep tears of blood, and seeing the red droplets with the smudges of red after the main character tries to make sense of what happened become visceral, much better than if they had been just words.
Even when he tries to grab his last shreds of sanity writing in irregular, violent letters, "I AM MY OWN MASTER" you are struck much more deeply by the tragedy than if it had just been clinically and sterily written in ARIAL 12, no matter how good the description.
I'm not easily moved reader. I've read too much to feel sympathy for simple plots or cliché, rehashed tales.
But this one, as rehashed, reused and retold as might be touched me. Maybe because it was simple. Maybe because it had no pretensions to be anything more than it was. Maybe because you know so little of the monster that turns the main character, and you are as lost as the main character. You are trapped at his side, in his head, fighting the beast. His loss is your loss.
And in the end -- you get a reason why this journal kept having entries. After spoiling so much, I will leave this unspoilt. But there is a reason for everything. What starts as a journal written to stave off boredom, soon becomes an artistic release of a man both excited with his job and love, then turns into a struggle to retain one's identity-- but in the end, the last few entries left me with a chill, as I realized what the mysterious letter folded in an envelope in the beginning of the book meant.
And then, then you hit that last, scribbled note -- not an entry, just a note. And you realize that this man-turned-vampire's tale is just beginning... and the worst is yet to come.
Even for a short novel, it's quite short (probably not even reaching 10.000 words), but the story is written in it with more than words. Entire stories are told with the use of the props, the art, the tiny notations and remarks. It's one of those cases where less is more.
If you're a fan of vampires, and tragedy, pick this one up -- in the original format, if you can (White Wolf published it recently as a PDF). It's definitely worth it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 16, 2018
Love this book, it looks like an actual handwritten diary along with artwork.
June 16, 2008
What I love about this book is how it tells the story through a journal, doodles and all. I really enjoyed how the book was laid out, how visually the book itself plays a part in the story. The author starts out bored with little to say, but as the story grows he has more to get out and onto the page and his handwriting changes.
I only wish I hadn't lost the little keys that came with it. It's such a nice touch that the exterior of the book says, "my diary" on it and it even has a lock on it. The lock doesn't actually lock though, even if you do have the key.
I only wish I hadn't lost the little keys that came with it. It's such a nice touch that the exterior of the book says, "my diary" on it and it even has a lock on it. The lock doesn't actually lock though, even if you do have the key.
November 10, 2022
Ugh. I really wanted this to be good. Though I completely appreciate the attempt to make an immersive experience out of this, including even fake letters, in the end the story itself is trite. The way it is told is appreciated, but the actual content no better than a junior high attempt at sounding adult. If you've read other VTM novels with longer plots you've read this before and then some. The only aspect you might find novel are the detailed attempts at explaining the hunger transition of a new vampire. Otherwise it's a banal novelty book at best.
July 29, 2019
I've had a copy of this book since 1994 and have read it a few times. I just love how it's like an actual diary, complete with a letter and card stuck in it.
July 28, 2020
Pretty basic vampire book. But good art work. Entertaining
September 14, 2024
Fantastic first person narrative of a young man who finds himself in a fight for his sanity as nightmare of killing and bloodlust consume him
October 23, 2011
"The pain is getting worse. Deserve it. You deserve it. I deserve nothing, not even my own pity. I won't even give myself that. Poor fucking Kary. I must not drink again never never... never. I am my own master."
WARNING: This review does contain spoilers.
Vampire Diary: The Embrace is a short book written by Robert Weinberg and Mark Rein-Hagen and published in 1994 by White Wolf Publishing.
It was the first book written within the World of Darkness setting. The book itself is written as the diary of a young man who finds himself in the World of Darkness and chronicles his 'embrace' into the undead life of the Ventrue clan of vampires. It requires no prior-knowledge of the World of Darkness setting and reads as a standalone piece of vampire fiction.
The book features a lockable clasp (complete with key) on the cover, no cover art, and hand written entries and sketches within. The hard cover diary is enclosed in a card slip-case illustrated with a black rose and a disturbing marionette entangled in its strings.
The fictional author of the diary is an L.A. bartender working at a nightclub patronized by vampires. He is an innocent mortal employee who knows nothing of the true nature of his customers other than they are strangely cool and a little intimidating. The diary, which covers only four months worth of entries, begins by detailing his new relationship with an intriguing girlfriend, his trials and tribulations with his supervisor at the nightclub and some very disturbing recurring dreams that he suffers with.
The entries themselves are written on unlined white paper, as if written in a real diary. The fonts used are as if the entries were hand-written, and the language used is personal and informal rather than grammatically accurate. The written entries are illustrated throughout with images of the author's dreams, thoughts and doodles.
Within the front inside cover is an envelope containing a letter (written on the LA nightclub's stationary) written to the brother of the diary's author. It is clear from this beginning that some awful fate has befallen the writer of the diary and that he is sending his diary to his brother to explain his own disappearance. In the rear inside cover is a card sent from the girlfriend to the author.
Vampire's Diary: The Embrace is short enough that it can be read comfortably in an hour or so. It very effectively conveys the horror of the Embrace, the inclusion of the letter and the card and the artistic design of the book give the impression that this is a real diary and not a novel. In this manner the horror is increased almost subliminally in the same way that watching the Blair Witch Project was more frightening because it somehow seemed more real.
The diary entries require the book be turned sideways at times, or - when the author has awoken in the middle of the night screaming and grabbed his pen - that the reader be forgiving of poor grammar or a writer who cannot write in straight lines. All of which is deliberate, not a result of poor editing, and only increases the illusion of reality.
The entries progress quickly leaving one unable to put the diary down until the gory and abrupt sudden conclusion. The diary ends, leaving several pages unwritten, and the reader shocked and worried for the fate of the author.
Vampire Diary: The Embrace is a very well designed book, graphically and creatively. The story that it tells is much more than the sum of the words - the delivery of those words adds a chilling weight to the short tale.
The story is written very believably and is targeted at a mature audience given the theme of the book. Violence, profanity and sexual content are all present.
This isn't really a fumble of the book, but Vampire Diary: The Embrace has been long out of print and will require anyone searching for it to scour Amazon or Ebay or some other used-book source for the best deals.
A short and very frightening tale of an innocent young man being embraced into an unknown world of vampires, this story is told in a unique and terrifyingly real way. Illustrated with darkly disturbing doodles and sketches, this is a book that you might have to search for, but will be very glad that you did.
Buy this book if you enjoy the work of: (a) Stephen King, (b) Clive Barker; or (c) White Wolf.
Final Grade: A
WARNING: This review does contain spoilers.
Vampire Diary: The Embrace is a short book written by Robert Weinberg and Mark Rein-Hagen and published in 1994 by White Wolf Publishing.
It was the first book written within the World of Darkness setting. The book itself is written as the diary of a young man who finds himself in the World of Darkness and chronicles his 'embrace' into the undead life of the Ventrue clan of vampires. It requires no prior-knowledge of the World of Darkness setting and reads as a standalone piece of vampire fiction.
The book features a lockable clasp (complete with key) on the cover, no cover art, and hand written entries and sketches within. The hard cover diary is enclosed in a card slip-case illustrated with a black rose and a disturbing marionette entangled in its strings.
The fictional author of the diary is an L.A. bartender working at a nightclub patronized by vampires. He is an innocent mortal employee who knows nothing of the true nature of his customers other than they are strangely cool and a little intimidating. The diary, which covers only four months worth of entries, begins by detailing his new relationship with an intriguing girlfriend, his trials and tribulations with his supervisor at the nightclub and some very disturbing recurring dreams that he suffers with.
The entries themselves are written on unlined white paper, as if written in a real diary. The fonts used are as if the entries were hand-written, and the language used is personal and informal rather than grammatically accurate. The written entries are illustrated throughout with images of the author's dreams, thoughts and doodles.
Within the front inside cover is an envelope containing a letter (written on the LA nightclub's stationary) written to the brother of the diary's author. It is clear from this beginning that some awful fate has befallen the writer of the diary and that he is sending his diary to his brother to explain his own disappearance. In the rear inside cover is a card sent from the girlfriend to the author.
Vampire's Diary: The Embrace is short enough that it can be read comfortably in an hour or so. It very effectively conveys the horror of the Embrace, the inclusion of the letter and the card and the artistic design of the book give the impression that this is a real diary and not a novel. In this manner the horror is increased almost subliminally in the same way that watching the Blair Witch Project was more frightening because it somehow seemed more real.
The diary entries require the book be turned sideways at times, or - when the author has awoken in the middle of the night screaming and grabbed his pen - that the reader be forgiving of poor grammar or a writer who cannot write in straight lines. All of which is deliberate, not a result of poor editing, and only increases the illusion of reality.
The entries progress quickly leaving one unable to put the diary down until the gory and abrupt sudden conclusion. The diary ends, leaving several pages unwritten, and the reader shocked and worried for the fate of the author.
Vampire Diary: The Embrace is a very well designed book, graphically and creatively. The story that it tells is much more than the sum of the words - the delivery of those words adds a chilling weight to the short tale.
The story is written very believably and is targeted at a mature audience given the theme of the book. Violence, profanity and sexual content are all present.
This isn't really a fumble of the book, but Vampire Diary: The Embrace has been long out of print and will require anyone searching for it to scour Amazon or Ebay or some other used-book source for the best deals.
A short and very frightening tale of an innocent young man being embraced into an unknown world of vampires, this story is told in a unique and terrifyingly real way. Illustrated with darkly disturbing doodles and sketches, this is a book that you might have to search for, but will be very glad that you did.
Buy this book if you enjoy the work of: (a) Stephen King, (b) Clive Barker; or (c) White Wolf.
Final Grade: A
November 7, 2014
Took a little bit to get into it, but once the vampire stuff started, it was worth the build up. The doodles are nice, and the handwriting, though it did seem like more than one hand actually did the writing. There were a few misspellings in the text, but it fit the idea of a personal journal, so they pleased me.
Overall, a cool concept and executed better than I thought when I started reading. I wish there was a sequel, but then, would that be in a journal, too?
It made me smile when the protagonist was concerned his girlfriend wasn't into Nine Inch Nails. Hurray '90s.
Overall, a cool concept and executed better than I thought when I started reading. I wish there was a sequel, but then, would that be in a journal, too?
It made me smile when the protagonist was concerned his girlfriend wasn't into Nine Inch Nails. Hurray '90s.
October 24, 2008
Always a fan of epistolary style, particularly here with the use of handwritten entries and drawings. Adds a great personable touch that really helps to convey the protagonist's emotions and rapid decline.
November 12, 2009
Made in the style of a realy diary, with handwritten texts and drawings. Very nice.
July 26, 2011
Not terribly original but I liked the diary gimmick.
July 30, 2007
A terrible, terrible White Wolf book.
Read
September 4, 2017(found read date in diary)
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews