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It's Hard to Be a Vampire
This book is a short selection of 20 years of writing of the Croatian "Queen of the Horror" as she's called back home. It contains short stories of horror and SF/horror theme. IT'S HARD TO BE A VAMPIRE - A humorous story about a girl who wants to become a vampire, but cannot because she's too fat GALLERY OF HORRORS - An unsuccessful young painter will go a bit too far in sacrifice for his art when he starts sacrificing his models THE PAINTING STRIKES BACK - A sequel of the Gallery of Horrors, telling us the story about what happened with one of the remaining paintings, many years after painter died DO THE VAMPIRES DREAM OF SLAUGHTERED SHEEP? - A story about a vampire hunter who falls in love with the vampire NARCISSUS - A story about a girl who kills a man because she is in love with herself and does not accept the competition QUIETLY THEY RISE FROM THE FOG - A story about a man whose wife and daughter have disappeared and he decides to follow them into the fog/death BEHIND THE DOOR - SF story of an attack on a fort where you never know what lies behind a door, aggressor or victim THE INVISIBLE INK - A story told from the perspective of a sister of missing writer who still keeps all her handwritten pages THAT BLOODY USELESS BLOODLESS BODY! - Horror author will meet his big fan who turns out not to be human
86 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 30, 2018
22 people are currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
Viktoria Faust
58 books125 followersViktoria Faust is pen name for Croatian horror and SF writer.
Her first novel U anđeoskom liku zvijeri, (written long time ago - in 1994) was published in year 2000. Since then, over the years, she won the title of Croatian Queen of horror novels.
She won four Croatian SF and horror awards: Gaia for her achievements in 1998/1999., and SFera award in years 2001, 2003 and 2007.
BIOGRAPHY
She began to write as an experiment, when she was thirteen. She liked the experiment, so by now her name (as author or translator) is in more than fifty books.
She was born in Požega, moved to Zagreb in 1996 and since 2003 lives in Samobor.
Her first short story was published 1996 in literary magazine Plima (where she'll be present almost in every edition), and few stories she published in SF magazine Futura. Her first theoretical book on topic of vampires was published in year 1999, and a year later her first novel was published.
Novels and short story collections
Beauty of The Beast - English publication of novel - 2015
http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/view...
Tamnije od zgrušane krvi/Darker then Clotted Blood - Short story collection - 2013
Solarne mačke/Solar Cats - SF novel - 2009
Alex i čovjek sa osmerokutnom kutijom/Alex and the Man with the Octagonal Box - SF novel - 2009
U anđeoskom liku zvijeri/Beauty of the Beast - horror novel second edition - 2009
Anastazija - Slovenian translation of novel - 2009
Lovina - Mamac/Prey - Bait - SF sequel - 2007
Anastazija - horror novel - 2006
Smrtno uplašen/Mortally Afraid - horror novel - 2005
Neizgovorena priča/Unspoken Story - horror novel - sequel in series- 2005
Anđeo na mome grobu/An Angel on My Grave - short horror novel - 2003
Skice za umiranje/Sketches for the Dying - Short story collection - 2003
Galerija užasa/Gallery of Horror - Short story collection - 2003
Vampirski snovi/Vampire Dreams - Short story collection - 2003
U anđeoskom liku zvijeri/ Beauty of the Beast - horror novel 2000
Theoretical books
She published more than 30 books, under few pen names in publishing houses Zagrebačka naklada, Distri book, Nova knjiga Rast and others.
Her stories have been published in various anthologies and collections:
Horor priče za laku noć 2 /Horror bedtime stories 2 - 2010
Najbolje hrvatske priče 2006. /Best Croatian stories 2006 - 2007
Ad Astra : antologija hrvatske znanstveno fantastične novele/Ad Astra: anthology of Croatian science fiction story - 2006
Sve priče : antologija nepoznatih autora/All stories: an anthology of unknown authors - 2003
Monolith 004 : 2001
Monolith 002 : 1999
She is owner of publishing hours VF Libris
https://vflibris.hr/
Her first novel U anđeoskom liku zvijeri, (written long time ago - in 1994) was published in year 2000. Since then, over the years, she won the title of Croatian Queen of horror novels.
She won four Croatian SF and horror awards: Gaia for her achievements in 1998/1999., and SFera award in years 2001, 2003 and 2007.
BIOGRAPHY
She began to write as an experiment, when she was thirteen. She liked the experiment, so by now her name (as author or translator) is in more than fifty books.
She was born in Požega, moved to Zagreb in 1996 and since 2003 lives in Samobor.
Her first short story was published 1996 in literary magazine Plima (where she'll be present almost in every edition), and few stories she published in SF magazine Futura. Her first theoretical book on topic of vampires was published in year 1999, and a year later her first novel was published.
Novels and short story collections
Beauty of The Beast - English publication of novel - 2015
http://forums.onlinebookclub.org/view...
Tamnije od zgrušane krvi/Darker then Clotted Blood - Short story collection - 2013
Solarne mačke/Solar Cats - SF novel - 2009
Alex i čovjek sa osmerokutnom kutijom/Alex and the Man with the Octagonal Box - SF novel - 2009
U anđeoskom liku zvijeri/Beauty of the Beast - horror novel second edition - 2009
Anastazija - Slovenian translation of novel - 2009
Lovina - Mamac/Prey - Bait - SF sequel - 2007
Anastazija - horror novel - 2006
Smrtno uplašen/Mortally Afraid - horror novel - 2005
Neizgovorena priča/Unspoken Story - horror novel - sequel in series- 2005
Anđeo na mome grobu/An Angel on My Grave - short horror novel - 2003
Skice za umiranje/Sketches for the Dying - Short story collection - 2003
Galerija užasa/Gallery of Horror - Short story collection - 2003
Vampirski snovi/Vampire Dreams - Short story collection - 2003
U anđeoskom liku zvijeri/ Beauty of the Beast - horror novel 2000
Theoretical books
She published more than 30 books, under few pen names in publishing houses Zagrebačka naklada, Distri book, Nova knjiga Rast and others.
Her stories have been published in various anthologies and collections:
Horor priče za laku noć 2 /Horror bedtime stories 2 - 2010
Najbolje hrvatske priče 2006. /Best Croatian stories 2006 - 2007
Ad Astra : antologija hrvatske znanstveno fantastične novele/Ad Astra: anthology of Croatian science fiction story - 2006
Sve priče : antologija nepoznatih autora/All stories: an anthology of unknown authors - 2003
Monolith 004 : 2001
Monolith 002 : 1999
She is owner of publishing hours VF Libris
https://vflibris.hr/
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
September 13, 2024
A collection of short stories featuring moments of horror across a range of situations in urban settings, It’s Hard to Be a Vampire by Croatian ‘Queen of Horror’ Viktoria Faust is an unusual contender in the horror fiction genre. Gathering nine stories in all, each of the stories captures a sense of horror that is best described as the terror of the uncanny and the other; sometimes it is even the unsettling fear of something that is slightly as it should not be.
Of all the stories, perhaps it is only the first and titular one— ‘It’s Hard to Be a Vampire’—that is comedic in its approach as it narrates the tale of a girl who meets a vampire and then desires to be one, only to suffer unexpected consequences. ‘Gallery of Horrors’ tells the tale of a painter who becomes obsessed with lending life to his paintings, earning the title of the painter with the cursed brush whose subjects die after the painting’s completion. ‘The Painting Strikes Back’ is a sequel to the previous story, in which a painting—haunted or haunting—takes over the life of an innocent little boy. ‘Do Vampires Dream of Slaughtered Sheep?’, a story that pays homage to Philip K. Dick’s sci-fi story, is a stream-of-consciousness narration of a vampire hunter who is hunted by the essence of his prey, fulfilling an occupation that is slowly growing obsolete in a modern world devoid of faith. ‘Narcissus’ spins a twist in the original mythology by giving it a feminist, Jennifer’s Body-like flavor as a man approaches a beautiful woman on the street, who seems dangerously indifferent. ‘Quietly They Rise From the Fog’ tells the tale of a father’s grief and fear as his wife and daughter go missing in a series of disappearances over the unsettling bridge atop the river running through the center of the land, and he feels himself drawn to the same spot that took so many lives. ‘Behind the Door’ is a suspenseful story of waiting on the two sides of a closed door in a war-torn environment. ‘The Invisible Ink’ is a fleeting, thought-experiment in which Hana ruminates on the existence of invisible ink much to her friend’s astonishment; rather than fear, this story conveys the quiet horror of sadness itself. ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’, the final story in the collection, wraps up neatly once again with the theme of vampirism that was introduced in the first tale—however, this time, we are met with an author of the grotesque and horrific who meets one of his fans, and encounter that ends in a terrible fate.
Each of the stories possesses unique concepts that tickle the reader’s imagination, however they fall short in execution for the most part. Horror is best conveyed through language that is simple and direct, yet effective—it is what lends a sense of urgency that is key to maintaining the sense of fear and thrill in the reader. However, the stories in this collection are mostly written in complex prose with frequent long sentences and adverbs that break up the immersion. Besides this, there appear to be several typographical and grammatical errors that need professional editing.
Other than that, some of the stories come across as problematic in their execution of the horror. The best examples of this would be the stories ‘It’s Hard to Be a Vampire’ and ‘Gallery of Horrors’. In ‘It’s Hard to a Vampire’ the protagonist is described to be fat, and this is a major plot point. This is fine in and of itself but, without revealing spoilers, the story makes her excess weight not only the butt of jokes but also the tool through which to convey horror which can come across as fatphobic and body shaming.
‘Gallery of Horrors’ has an excellent premise—a painter with a cursed brush—which would have made for an excellent horror mystery if readers were introduced to this concept at first and then slowly the curtain was pulled back on the reality of this painter and his backstory. However, we are told the full tale from the painter’s point of view from the beginning, so there is no mystery left. Additionally, the painter, Jan, is shown to not only paint but also be interested in what common people call depraved, irreverent, and gory acts. His patrons turn away from his art in disgust. This is not a problem in the story, but Jan is also shown to be homosexual, and the story makes it appear as if his sexuality feeds into his unhinged mind and preferences. And, this is not specific to Jan; at one point, the reader meets Jan’s boyfriend who is also shown to be interested in similar, ‘crazy’ acts. The whole representation of homosexuality in this story is very homophobic and problematic.
Horror is the genre often frequented by those who have been othered or marginalized, however, the execution of the above stories only serves to further demonize these groups instead of offering satisfying representations. Two stories that do the opposite and succeed in a good representation of the other in horror are also in this collection, namely— ‘Narcissus’ and ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’
In ‘Narcissus’, we follow a man as he approaches a beautiful woman, on the street who is clearly not interested in him, in a pattern of behavior that is distinctly familiar to every woman traveling alone. It is satisfying to see this man suffer the deadly consequences of his actions, as he dares to assume this woman is a conquest by virtue of her beauty. And when he keeps calling her ‘crazy’, it is a stark reminder that society will always demonize these women who spurn male attention in any way. It is a well-written piece and one of my favorites in this book.
In ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’ on the other hand, we meet a cynical writer by the name of Andy, who writes horror and grotesque fiction, with a deep disdain for his fans and haters alike. When he meets a fan who happens to be a young girl admiring his early vampire novels, he immediately expresses an intense dislike for her and the girls like her who become fans of his by reading this novel. This encounter later leads to a tragic fate, leaving the reader with an unsettling horror. To Andy, it is the horror of girls like this fan that is made fantastical by the use of horror in this story. To the readers, it is more of a question of who is more horrific: a misogynist writer like Andy who hates his readers, or a teenage girl with a harmless interest in fiction? While Andy fears something else, the reader is made to fear real-life men like Andy.
Besides these two, several other stories in this collection shine through when the execution catches with the concept. ‘Quietly They Rise From the Fog’ is a brilliant display of the horrific emotions felt by a man whose loved ones were claimed by the deadly river running through the middle of the land. The setting of the story reminds one of the Greek underworld or Christian purgatory with a ghost-like city covered in fog and a river that claims souls. ‘Behind the Door’ is an excellent narrative honing in on a moment of intense fear in a war-torn setting, ending with a surprise twist that flips the tables of the existing assumptions made by the reader. Aside from ‘Narcissus’, these two are easily my favorites in the bunch.
While the stories in this collection suffer from their inconsistent execution and syntactical errors, they do display a rare talent for portraying uncanny horror and introducing thought-provoking concepts. If those concepts are improved on with better execution, thematically and structurally, the horror genre would find a valuable asset in Faust’s stories.
As they stand now, for the reasons discussed above, I give this collection of stories a 2.5 out of 5 stars. Most of the stories contain heavy profanity, gory descriptions, and sexual themes, and are not meant for the light of heart. I would recommend these stories for fans of the horror genre who are looking for something unusual, with a warning that these tales are not meant for everyone.
Of all the stories, perhaps it is only the first and titular one— ‘It’s Hard to Be a Vampire’—that is comedic in its approach as it narrates the tale of a girl who meets a vampire and then desires to be one, only to suffer unexpected consequences. ‘Gallery of Horrors’ tells the tale of a painter who becomes obsessed with lending life to his paintings, earning the title of the painter with the cursed brush whose subjects die after the painting’s completion. ‘The Painting Strikes Back’ is a sequel to the previous story, in which a painting—haunted or haunting—takes over the life of an innocent little boy. ‘Do Vampires Dream of Slaughtered Sheep?’, a story that pays homage to Philip K. Dick’s sci-fi story, is a stream-of-consciousness narration of a vampire hunter who is hunted by the essence of his prey, fulfilling an occupation that is slowly growing obsolete in a modern world devoid of faith. ‘Narcissus’ spins a twist in the original mythology by giving it a feminist, Jennifer’s Body-like flavor as a man approaches a beautiful woman on the street, who seems dangerously indifferent. ‘Quietly They Rise From the Fog’ tells the tale of a father’s grief and fear as his wife and daughter go missing in a series of disappearances over the unsettling bridge atop the river running through the center of the land, and he feels himself drawn to the same spot that took so many lives. ‘Behind the Door’ is a suspenseful story of waiting on the two sides of a closed door in a war-torn environment. ‘The Invisible Ink’ is a fleeting, thought-experiment in which Hana ruminates on the existence of invisible ink much to her friend’s astonishment; rather than fear, this story conveys the quiet horror of sadness itself. ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’, the final story in the collection, wraps up neatly once again with the theme of vampirism that was introduced in the first tale—however, this time, we are met with an author of the grotesque and horrific who meets one of his fans, and encounter that ends in a terrible fate.
Each of the stories possesses unique concepts that tickle the reader’s imagination, however they fall short in execution for the most part. Horror is best conveyed through language that is simple and direct, yet effective—it is what lends a sense of urgency that is key to maintaining the sense of fear and thrill in the reader. However, the stories in this collection are mostly written in complex prose with frequent long sentences and adverbs that break up the immersion. Besides this, there appear to be several typographical and grammatical errors that need professional editing.
Other than that, some of the stories come across as problematic in their execution of the horror. The best examples of this would be the stories ‘It’s Hard to Be a Vampire’ and ‘Gallery of Horrors’. In ‘It’s Hard to a Vampire’ the protagonist is described to be fat, and this is a major plot point. This is fine in and of itself but, without revealing spoilers, the story makes her excess weight not only the butt of jokes but also the tool through which to convey horror which can come across as fatphobic and body shaming.
‘Gallery of Horrors’ has an excellent premise—a painter with a cursed brush—which would have made for an excellent horror mystery if readers were introduced to this concept at first and then slowly the curtain was pulled back on the reality of this painter and his backstory. However, we are told the full tale from the painter’s point of view from the beginning, so there is no mystery left. Additionally, the painter, Jan, is shown to not only paint but also be interested in what common people call depraved, irreverent, and gory acts. His patrons turn away from his art in disgust. This is not a problem in the story, but Jan is also shown to be homosexual, and the story makes it appear as if his sexuality feeds into his unhinged mind and preferences. And, this is not specific to Jan; at one point, the reader meets Jan’s boyfriend who is also shown to be interested in similar, ‘crazy’ acts. The whole representation of homosexuality in this story is very homophobic and problematic.
Horror is the genre often frequented by those who have been othered or marginalized, however, the execution of the above stories only serves to further demonize these groups instead of offering satisfying representations. Two stories that do the opposite and succeed in a good representation of the other in horror are also in this collection, namely— ‘Narcissus’ and ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’
In ‘Narcissus’, we follow a man as he approaches a beautiful woman, on the street who is clearly not interested in him, in a pattern of behavior that is distinctly familiar to every woman traveling alone. It is satisfying to see this man suffer the deadly consequences of his actions, as he dares to assume this woman is a conquest by virtue of her beauty. And when he keeps calling her ‘crazy’, it is a stark reminder that society will always demonize these women who spurn male attention in any way. It is a well-written piece and one of my favorites in this book.
In ‘That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body!’ on the other hand, we meet a cynical writer by the name of Andy, who writes horror and grotesque fiction, with a deep disdain for his fans and haters alike. When he meets a fan who happens to be a young girl admiring his early vampire novels, he immediately expresses an intense dislike for her and the girls like her who become fans of his by reading this novel. This encounter later leads to a tragic fate, leaving the reader with an unsettling horror. To Andy, it is the horror of girls like this fan that is made fantastical by the use of horror in this story. To the readers, it is more of a question of who is more horrific: a misogynist writer like Andy who hates his readers, or a teenage girl with a harmless interest in fiction? While Andy fears something else, the reader is made to fear real-life men like Andy.
Besides these two, several other stories in this collection shine through when the execution catches with the concept. ‘Quietly They Rise From the Fog’ is a brilliant display of the horrific emotions felt by a man whose loved ones were claimed by the deadly river running through the middle of the land. The setting of the story reminds one of the Greek underworld or Christian purgatory with a ghost-like city covered in fog and a river that claims souls. ‘Behind the Door’ is an excellent narrative honing in on a moment of intense fear in a war-torn setting, ending with a surprise twist that flips the tables of the existing assumptions made by the reader. Aside from ‘Narcissus’, these two are easily my favorites in the bunch.
While the stories in this collection suffer from their inconsistent execution and syntactical errors, they do display a rare talent for portraying uncanny horror and introducing thought-provoking concepts. If those concepts are improved on with better execution, thematically and structurally, the horror genre would find a valuable asset in Faust’s stories.
As they stand now, for the reasons discussed above, I give this collection of stories a 2.5 out of 5 stars. Most of the stories contain heavy profanity, gory descriptions, and sexual themes, and are not meant for the light of heart. I would recommend these stories for fans of the horror genre who are looking for something unusual, with a warning that these tales are not meant for everyone.
November 26, 2018
It’s Hard to Be a Vampire
Written by: Viktoria Faust
Review by: Meredith Wilson
It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, written by Viktoria Faust, is a collection of eight short stories that feature the creepy and the macabre. I was immediately drawn to it because I haven’t read short horror stories since Goosebumps. I was a really huge fan of Goosebumps growing up but this book didn’t live up to my expectations. I will provide examples of my least favorite story and the ones I felt were the best.
The first story is titled, It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, and it was my least favorite story. It features a girl who binge eats to cope with depression. She meets a vampire and asks him to turn her. He declines, telling her that she needs to lose weight first before he would even consider it. I understand that losing weight is a good thing for your health and vitality and he even makes the point that it would be really hard for her to fly as a bat at the size she is. However, it was so awkward to read and I felt so bad for her!
The next two stories were my favorites. Gallery of Horrors and The Painting Strikes Back go together. The first thing I noticed was that the stories were considerably longer, about 20 minutes each. This gave me some hope and I crossed my fingers and started to read. Jan is a painter that likes to showcase nightmares. He hasn’t seen enough success with his paintings to make a decent living and it is depressing him. One day, he gets attacked by a robber, and in a moment of psychotic fury, he stabs the robber, drags him back home, and gets the insane idea to paint his portrait using his blood. Then in the The Painting Strikes Back, the descendants of Jan are haunted by the subject in his most prized painting.
In It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, I felt really uncomfortable about the fact that the vampire was bullying and fat-shaming the depressed woman that wanted purpose in her life, even if it meant to die and become a creature. I don’t recommend this first story to anyone. I felt it was really immature, too short to get any real background on the characters, and awkward. I admit, I almost wanted to not finish reading the entirety of the book because this was my first impression and it wasn’t good at all. However, I pressed on, and the next two stories were actually really good! Gallery of Horrors and The Painting Strikes Back took about 20 minutes to read each, so already that was a huge improvement. I felt like the longer stories were a lot better because the author had a chance to really let us see the scenery and the feelings of her characters well enough to capture our attention and to understand what we were reading.
The other five stories were mediocre at best, lacking any real climax or resolution to the story arcs. I was also disappointed in the fact that some characters didn’t even have names. Not only that, the stories were so short that I was left confused, like I was reading a journal entry from a werewolf or some other creepy onlooker. I didn’t get enough of the story to even enjoy it. Which is really sad because Viktoria had some amazing ideas and if the stories were longer they would have been so much better. I ended up giving this book a 2 out of 4 stars and not a 1 star because I did enjoy the stories about the paintings. The other short stories weren’t written well enough for me to give the book 3 stars. I couldn’t find any spelling or grammar errors so it was well-edited. If you are a lover of a really bad monster movie, then you will find some enjoyment in this book. Otherwise, this isn’t a book I would fluently recommend to others.
Written by: Viktoria Faust
Review by: Meredith Wilson
It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, written by Viktoria Faust, is a collection of eight short stories that feature the creepy and the macabre. I was immediately drawn to it because I haven’t read short horror stories since Goosebumps. I was a really huge fan of Goosebumps growing up but this book didn’t live up to my expectations. I will provide examples of my least favorite story and the ones I felt were the best.
The first story is titled, It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, and it was my least favorite story. It features a girl who binge eats to cope with depression. She meets a vampire and asks him to turn her. He declines, telling her that she needs to lose weight first before he would even consider it. I understand that losing weight is a good thing for your health and vitality and he even makes the point that it would be really hard for her to fly as a bat at the size she is. However, it was so awkward to read and I felt so bad for her!
The next two stories were my favorites. Gallery of Horrors and The Painting Strikes Back go together. The first thing I noticed was that the stories were considerably longer, about 20 minutes each. This gave me some hope and I crossed my fingers and started to read. Jan is a painter that likes to showcase nightmares. He hasn’t seen enough success with his paintings to make a decent living and it is depressing him. One day, he gets attacked by a robber, and in a moment of psychotic fury, he stabs the robber, drags him back home, and gets the insane idea to paint his portrait using his blood. Then in the The Painting Strikes Back, the descendants of Jan are haunted by the subject in his most prized painting.
In It’s Hard to Be a Vampire, I felt really uncomfortable about the fact that the vampire was bullying and fat-shaming the depressed woman that wanted purpose in her life, even if it meant to die and become a creature. I don’t recommend this first story to anyone. I felt it was really immature, too short to get any real background on the characters, and awkward. I admit, I almost wanted to not finish reading the entirety of the book because this was my first impression and it wasn’t good at all. However, I pressed on, and the next two stories were actually really good! Gallery of Horrors and The Painting Strikes Back took about 20 minutes to read each, so already that was a huge improvement. I felt like the longer stories were a lot better because the author had a chance to really let us see the scenery and the feelings of her characters well enough to capture our attention and to understand what we were reading.
The other five stories were mediocre at best, lacking any real climax or resolution to the story arcs. I was also disappointed in the fact that some characters didn’t even have names. Not only that, the stories were so short that I was left confused, like I was reading a journal entry from a werewolf or some other creepy onlooker. I didn’t get enough of the story to even enjoy it. Which is really sad because Viktoria had some amazing ideas and if the stories were longer they would have been so much better. I ended up giving this book a 2 out of 4 stars and not a 1 star because I did enjoy the stories about the paintings. The other short stories weren’t written well enough for me to give the book 3 stars. I couldn’t find any spelling or grammar errors so it was well-edited. If you are a lover of a really bad monster movie, then you will find some enjoyment in this book. Otherwise, this isn’t a book I would fluently recommend to others.
March 26, 2024
Viktoria Faust's short story collection "It's Hard to Be a Vampire" promised thrills and chills for horror fans, but largely failed to deliver a satisfying reading experience. As someone who has enjoyed the horror genre from a young age, I looked forward to losing myself in Faust's macabre tales. Unfortunately, this anthology left me distinctly underwhelmed.
The title story, "It's Hard to Be a Vampire," exemplified many of the book's weaknesses. Following a depressed young woman who seeks vampirism as an escape, only to be cruelly rejected by an actual vampire for her weight, this ham-fisted narrative seemed designed to offend rather than unsettle. Its distasteful handling of mental health and body image issues detracted from any intended subversive humor.
In contrast, the longer stories "Gallery of Horrors" and "The Painting Strikes Back" redeemed the collection somewhat with their more developed plotlines and rounded characters. "Gallery of Horrors" charts a struggling artist's disturbing downward spiral after a violent confrontation, while the multi-generational "The Painting Strikes Back" explores the lingering curse enacted by his misdeeds. These more fleshed-out tales engaged the reader in a way the slight vignettes could not.
Those slighter stories represented the collection at its worst - all premise and no payoff. With forgettable nameless characters and unsatisfying non-endings, tales like "The Doll Hungers" and "One Drop" failed to cohere into complete narratives worth recounting. Their shocking premises fizzled into vague, unimpactful resolutions that left this reader questioning their purpose.
On a technical level, the writing was cleanly edited if unrefined in style. But craft alone cannot compensate for weak storytelling concepts that read as more puerile than provocative. Faust may have intended to pastiche classic horror tropes and b-movie aesthetics, but the end result comes across as simply puerile and off-putting.
While the book is well-edited and devoid of explicit content, I can only offer it two stars for these reasons.
In light of these criticisms and the overall negative experience, I hesitate to recommend "It’s Hard to Be a Vampire." Its content may not be suitable for young adults or teenagers, and even adult readers may struggle to find merit in its bizarre and farfetched narratives.
"It's Hard to Be a Vampire" will likely only appeal to the most indiscriminate genre fans - those who enjoy cheesy, grotesque horror for its own sake with no deeper inquiry. For most readers, however, this collection's uneven quality and questionable content render it eminently skippable. Stories need to make sense and resonate to be scary, something these pale imitations cannot claim.
The title story, "It's Hard to Be a Vampire," exemplified many of the book's weaknesses. Following a depressed young woman who seeks vampirism as an escape, only to be cruelly rejected by an actual vampire for her weight, this ham-fisted narrative seemed designed to offend rather than unsettle. Its distasteful handling of mental health and body image issues detracted from any intended subversive humor.
In contrast, the longer stories "Gallery of Horrors" and "The Painting Strikes Back" redeemed the collection somewhat with their more developed plotlines and rounded characters. "Gallery of Horrors" charts a struggling artist's disturbing downward spiral after a violent confrontation, while the multi-generational "The Painting Strikes Back" explores the lingering curse enacted by his misdeeds. These more fleshed-out tales engaged the reader in a way the slight vignettes could not.
Those slighter stories represented the collection at its worst - all premise and no payoff. With forgettable nameless characters and unsatisfying non-endings, tales like "The Doll Hungers" and "One Drop" failed to cohere into complete narratives worth recounting. Their shocking premises fizzled into vague, unimpactful resolutions that left this reader questioning their purpose.
On a technical level, the writing was cleanly edited if unrefined in style. But craft alone cannot compensate for weak storytelling concepts that read as more puerile than provocative. Faust may have intended to pastiche classic horror tropes and b-movie aesthetics, but the end result comes across as simply puerile and off-putting.
While the book is well-edited and devoid of explicit content, I can only offer it two stars for these reasons.
In light of these criticisms and the overall negative experience, I hesitate to recommend "It’s Hard to Be a Vampire." Its content may not be suitable for young adults or teenagers, and even adult readers may struggle to find merit in its bizarre and farfetched narratives.
"It's Hard to Be a Vampire" will likely only appeal to the most indiscriminate genre fans - those who enjoy cheesy, grotesque horror for its own sake with no deeper inquiry. For most readers, however, this collection's uneven quality and questionable content render it eminently skippable. Stories need to make sense and resonate to be scary, something these pale imitations cannot claim.
December 16, 2024
It's Hard to Be a Vampire by Viktoria Faust is a series of light horror stories arranged in chapters. Some stories stand alone, while others are sequels to previous stories.
Chapter 1- It's Hard to Be a Vampire is a narrative about Sandra, a young woman who does not accept herself as she is. She wants to be someone different, such as a vampire. A vampire's life seems a vast improvement over the one she is currently living. The narrative seems to end abruptly and does not explore Sandra’s motivation for the path she chose to follow.
Chapter 2- Gallery Of Horrors is a narrative about Jan, a young aspiring artist. His paintings are painted to provoke a response, usually one that is negative. After an event that changes his life, Jan finds a means of painting that satisfies his dark urges and the audience.
Chapter 3- The Painting Strikes Back is a sequel to Gallery of Horrors. The narrative's main character is not a person, but a painting, a painting created by Jan, the main character from Gallery of Horrors. The painting has captured the soul of Emily, Jan's wife. Emily waits patiently inside the painting, wanting freedom from her prison. Emily hopes her influence over a young boy, Anthony, will finally let her escape her torment. This was the scariest of the chapters and was written in more detail than the others.
Chapter 4- Do Vampires Dream of Slaughtered Sheep, written in the first person, is a narrative about a vampire hunter. The main character, immune to a vampire’s powers, travels the earth looking for vampires. His endless need to pursue and destroy all vampires comes from a dark place in his soul that he cannot vanquish.
Chapter 5- Narcissus, is written in the third person and does not divulge the characters' name. The main character is a man looking for connections. A desire that leads to an unwise decision. The narrative does not expand on the main character’s traits or personality, leading one to not be concerned about him or the outcome of the story.
Chapter 6- Quietly They Rise from the Fog is a narrative about an unnamed man surrounded by a deadly fog. The story is brief in character development and explanations of why the fog exists.
Chapter 7- Behind the Door is a narrative of an unnamed woman behind a door afraid of what is outside it. It describes the woman's emotions and reactions to the fear inside her. This chapter expands on the main character in more detail than previous chapters.
Chapter 8- The Invisible Ink is a narrative of Hannah, a writer, written from the viewpoint of her sister. This is one of the shorter stories and as with some of the other chapters, the lack of character development leaves the reader wanting.
Chapter 9-That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body is a narrative about Andy, a young writer. Andy shares traits like Jan from Gallery of Horrors. Even though Andy is an imaginative author he finds the world can still hold dark secrets.
The storylines of some of the chapters were intriguing and unique, and the editing of It’s Hard to be a Vampire was excellent, without any notable spelling errors. However, the author chose some obscure wording within their writing, impeding the flow of the story. Also, the different chapters are snippets instead of fully developed short stories.
Chapter 1- It's Hard to Be a Vampire is a narrative about Sandra, a young woman who does not accept herself as she is. She wants to be someone different, such as a vampire. A vampire's life seems a vast improvement over the one she is currently living. The narrative seems to end abruptly and does not explore Sandra’s motivation for the path she chose to follow.
Chapter 2- Gallery Of Horrors is a narrative about Jan, a young aspiring artist. His paintings are painted to provoke a response, usually one that is negative. After an event that changes his life, Jan finds a means of painting that satisfies his dark urges and the audience.
Chapter 3- The Painting Strikes Back is a sequel to Gallery of Horrors. The narrative's main character is not a person, but a painting, a painting created by Jan, the main character from Gallery of Horrors. The painting has captured the soul of Emily, Jan's wife. Emily waits patiently inside the painting, wanting freedom from her prison. Emily hopes her influence over a young boy, Anthony, will finally let her escape her torment. This was the scariest of the chapters and was written in more detail than the others.
Chapter 4- Do Vampires Dream of Slaughtered Sheep, written in the first person, is a narrative about a vampire hunter. The main character, immune to a vampire’s powers, travels the earth looking for vampires. His endless need to pursue and destroy all vampires comes from a dark place in his soul that he cannot vanquish.
Chapter 5- Narcissus, is written in the third person and does not divulge the characters' name. The main character is a man looking for connections. A desire that leads to an unwise decision. The narrative does not expand on the main character’s traits or personality, leading one to not be concerned about him or the outcome of the story.
Chapter 6- Quietly They Rise from the Fog is a narrative about an unnamed man surrounded by a deadly fog. The story is brief in character development and explanations of why the fog exists.
Chapter 7- Behind the Door is a narrative of an unnamed woman behind a door afraid of what is outside it. It describes the woman's emotions and reactions to the fear inside her. This chapter expands on the main character in more detail than previous chapters.
Chapter 8- The Invisible Ink is a narrative of Hannah, a writer, written from the viewpoint of her sister. This is one of the shorter stories and as with some of the other chapters, the lack of character development leaves the reader wanting.
Chapter 9-That Bloody Useless Bloodless Body is a narrative about Andy, a young writer. Andy shares traits like Jan from Gallery of Horrors. Even though Andy is an imaginative author he finds the world can still hold dark secrets.
The storylines of some of the chapters were intriguing and unique, and the editing of It’s Hard to be a Vampire was excellent, without any notable spelling errors. However, the author chose some obscure wording within their writing, impeding the flow of the story. Also, the different chapters are snippets instead of fully developed short stories.
March 30, 2024
"It's Hard to Be a Vampire" by Viktoria Faust is a captivating novel, the story follows the protagonist, Alexander, a vampire grappling with the challenges of immortality, love, and identity in the modern world. The genre of the novel is about dark humor, paranormal romance, and supernatural fiction. Faust offers the reader an engaging and thought-provoking narrative.
I am glad to have read this book. I loved everything about this book, how they portrayed the characters that are well developed. Faust’s writing style is engaging narrative and immersive. I like one thing about this book, the author raises questions about the nature of humanity, the pursuit of happiness, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. I could not find anything I disliked about this book as the author put so much effort into creating this masterpiece.
I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. It is a book that I wouldn’t mind reading again, it was that good. Readers who enjoy vampire fiction, urban fantasy, or stories that explore the human condition through supernatural lenses will find "It's Hard to Be a Vampire" engaging. This book is suitable for young adult and adult audiences who enjoy vampire fiction, urban fantasy, or stories. I highly recommend this book you won’t have any regrets mark my words.
I am glad to have read this book. I loved everything about this book, how they portrayed the characters that are well developed. Faust’s writing style is engaging narrative and immersive. I like one thing about this book, the author raises questions about the nature of humanity, the pursuit of happiness, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. I could not find anything I disliked about this book as the author put so much effort into creating this masterpiece.
I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. It is a book that I wouldn’t mind reading again, it was that good. Readers who enjoy vampire fiction, urban fantasy, or stories that explore the human condition through supernatural lenses will find "It's Hard to Be a Vampire" engaging. This book is suitable for young adult and adult audiences who enjoy vampire fiction, urban fantasy, or stories. I highly recommend this book you won’t have any regrets mark my words.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 26, 2022
It had potential.
I rate this book one star out of five.
It was intriguing but due to lack depth it fell flat.
If there were a bit more depth and character development in the stories it could have been great. The titles were okay but the stories were a miss.
The first story could have been either more gory or more funny. There were potential in both directions even a combination of both would have made it more enjoyable.
There were no chemistry between the characters and the dialogue was just piontless. The ending was also uninteresting and again piontless.
I don't like how there were diffrent stories instead of chapters. The title ON the cover is the name of the FIRST story so for people who prefer not to read sinopsis would be upset because the title is very intriguing.
Many stories are for personal interpretaion,like the fisrt one to me but was disappointing. I did like the opening of the first book though.
The stories were also rushed and I don't classify them as short stories and more like essays.
So would recommend to people who are bored and like horror. It only took me 2 hours to finnish
I rate this book one star out of five.
It was intriguing but due to lack depth it fell flat.
If there were a bit more depth and character development in the stories it could have been great. The titles were okay but the stories were a miss.
The first story could have been either more gory or more funny. There were potential in both directions even a combination of both would have made it more enjoyable.
There were no chemistry between the characters and the dialogue was just piontless. The ending was also uninteresting and again piontless.
I don't like how there were diffrent stories instead of chapters. The title ON the cover is the name of the FIRST story so for people who prefer not to read sinopsis would be upset because the title is very intriguing.
Many stories are for personal interpretaion,like the fisrt one to me but was disappointing. I did like the opening of the first book though.
The stories were also rushed and I don't classify them as short stories and more like essays.
So would recommend to people who are bored and like horror. It only took me 2 hours to finnish
December 6, 2018
Was a quick read of short stories. They were horror, fantasy, maybe a little suspense. It was a quick read with a few errors I found in the book. It wasn't as gory as I read in the reviews and was a little disappointed for the reviews made the book sound 100 times better then what it was. While it was still a decent quick read, I'd have to only give it 3 out 5 stars for the errors I found and not meeting expectations from the reviews.
December 6, 2018
Quick read of short stories
Was a quick read of a collection of horror, suspense, and fantasy stories. Found a few errors through out the book is why I chose 4 stars and not 5. But besides that was well written. Each story taking it's own theme and background. I didn't find any of them to be too graphic and gorey, though others may felt the opposite. To each his/her own.
Was a quick read of a collection of horror, suspense, and fantasy stories. Found a few errors through out the book is why I chose 4 stars and not 5. But besides that was well written. Each story taking it's own theme and background. I didn't find any of them to be too graphic and gorey, though others may felt the opposite. To each his/her own.
December 18, 2021
Miss
If somehow you get past the fat phobia of the first story (and judging by the decrease in the number of highlights most people can’t), none of the stories are particularly good. Some of the ideas are.
If somehow you get past the fat phobia of the first story (and judging by the decrease in the number of highlights most people can’t), none of the stories are particularly good. Some of the ideas are.
February 16, 2024
Loved the book
In enjoyed the book. I found the book interesting and unique. They put a different spin on the vampire world. I Especially loved how the last story was write with a author view on the world of writing and fans . I recommend people to give it a try
In enjoyed the book. I found the book interesting and unique. They put a different spin on the vampire world. I Especially loved how the last story was write with a author view on the world of writing and fans . I recommend people to give it a try
March 4, 2024
I tried really hard to get into this book and multiple stories but I couldn't. The first story was a complete turn off for me but I tried continuing and couldn't make half way through the second story. Others may love this, but it wasn't for me.
January 20, 2019
This book was read and reviewed for the OnlineBookClub.org Review Team.
To read my review, please go here:
https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/vie...
To read my review, please go here:
https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/vie...
September 4, 2019
Grimly Fascinating!
I particularly enjoyed how completely out of the box the stories were. You never see the plot twists coming. Not for the faint of heart.
I particularly enjoyed how completely out of the box the stories were. You never see the plot twists coming. Not for the faint of heart.
April 5, 2024
This book had potential but personally fell off for me. You can see my full review in the following link:
https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/vie...
https://forums.onlinebookclub.org/vie...
March 12, 2023
Weird, strange, disturbing, and not in a good way
July 16, 2022
Esta era una lectura que prometía mucho, en apariencia, pero que al final se fue desinflando.
Se supone que la autora es conocida en su país como "la reina del horror y la ciencia ficción", y creo que lo suyo es la ciencia ficción pero no el horror.
De las nueve historias que conforman esta compilación, solamente una de ellas cumplió con lo horroroso, las demás quedaron en torpes intentos morbosos que más bien fueron suspenso y crónicas de lo sobre natural.
Se nota bastante que cada uno de los relatos es separado por varios años, ya que en uno de ellos pretenden que la gordofobia nos de risa.
Es una lastima que casi ningún relato diera la talla, pues la mayoría tenía premisas que pueden haber dado para más.
Se supone que la autora es conocida en su país como "la reina del horror y la ciencia ficción", y creo que lo suyo es la ciencia ficción pero no el horror.
De las nueve historias que conforman esta compilación, solamente una de ellas cumplió con lo horroroso, las demás quedaron en torpes intentos morbosos que más bien fueron suspenso y crónicas de lo sobre natural.
Se nota bastante que cada uno de los relatos es separado por varios años, ya que en uno de ellos pretenden que la gordofobia nos de risa.
Es una lastima que casi ningún relato diera la talla, pues la mayoría tenía premisas que pueden haber dado para más.
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