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Vampires Rule!
The American CIA and old Russian KGB are back at it, but this time their conflict is played out in a lethal game of espionage between a select core of Vampires inspired by the colorful archives of the Cold War. Neither dead nor alive, these creatures adopt unique espionage rules to guide their personal war in the shadows, with the fate of mankind hanging, sometimes precariously, in the balance. Follow their highs and lows as our heroes and villains relearn painful life lessons about themselves and their cause. At its heart, it is a simple story of good and evil presented in a tone that works well for invoking Cold War passions, imagery and lessons that continue to resonate in geopolitical rivalries today.
309 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 26, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 23, 2022
Two Stars = "It was OK". I came for the insider knowledge of CIA (and perhaps FSB/SVR) operations and tradecraft, and the vampires were along for the ride. But it was more vampires, less tradecraft-centric, so disappointment. I found the writing a little difficult to like... it reads like a first novel, equivalent to a toddler learning to walk. Since my most recent other books in the genre were Le Carre (the writing equivalent to the Usain Bolt of walking) and some long-standing best-seller thriller machines, it's standing among a tough crowd to be compared to. So "OK" -- not bad, will improve with time and practice. And the ending clearly telegraphs an intention to continue the saga, but not cliff-hanger-y... kudos for not using that device.
A lot of thought went into the "physics" of vampires, complete with an Appendix on it. In the end, in the grand tradition of Stoker, Rice, and thousands of others, there's only handwaving to explain an origin (but highly creative here!), and rigid rules about what a vampire can do, not do, tolerate, etc. The most interesting "rule", admittedly arbitrary and inexplicable in the book, is that there is a strong stable equilibrium point at 18 vampires in the world, and deviations +/- aren't "tolerable".
On the geopolitics side of the story, the choices of Yuri Andropov and Vladimir Putin as key players in the evolution of vampires is very amusing. And that's all I'll say about that.
A lot of thought went into the "physics" of vampires, complete with an Appendix on it. In the end, in the grand tradition of Stoker, Rice, and thousands of others, there's only handwaving to explain an origin (but highly creative here!), and rigid rules about what a vampire can do, not do, tolerate, etc. The most interesting "rule", admittedly arbitrary and inexplicable in the book, is that there is a strong stable equilibrium point at 18 vampires in the world, and deviations +/- aren't "tolerable".
On the geopolitics side of the story, the choices of Yuri Andropov and Vladimir Putin as key players in the evolution of vampires is very amusing. And that's all I'll say about that.
March 31, 2022
Thoroughly enjoyed this fast paced novel. Loved the CIA vs. KGB dynamic with a vampire twist!
August 23, 2022
I enjoyed this as a fun summer read. Fast paced, easy read and very entertaining. Unlike any other vampire novel I’ve read before.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews