Ghoul

Zoë Martinique #.1

by Phaedra Weldon

For the readers of the Zoë Martinique Investigation Series, this short introduces Jason Lawrence, Revenant. Attacked for the mythic youth his blood promised, he must now face the thief... his ex-lover, Rene. But that is all it is, a myth. Revenants cannot be made by drinking the blood, only a ghoul can. And ghouls, when not fed from the blood of their makers, go mad.

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Fantasy

Nook

First published May 12, 2010

About the author

Sometimes credited as Phaedra M. Weldon.

Born in Pensacola, Florida, Phaedra is the eldest of four children. She began writing in notebooks with her best friend in middle school.
After leaving college for a job in the Graphic Arts industry, Phaedra continued her love of writing in her spare time and was lucky enough at a writer's conference to meet Dean Wesley Smith, who later became her writing mentor, along with his wife, the bestselling mystery/fantasy/romance/science fiction writer, Kristine Kathryn Rusch.

Phaedra lives in Atlanta, Georgia. When not writing, she and her daughter spend their time playing games, letterboxing, or watching anime.

Series:
* Zoe Martinique

Reviews

[Katy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Info: Genre: Urban Fantasy Reading Level: Adult

Disclosure: I received the 5th book in the Zoe Martinique series, along with an omnibus of short stories, from the author in exchange for an honest review. This is a sort of prequel to the series that I picked up free on Amazon last fall and while it is no longer up anywhere but Goodreads, I’m happy to provide a review there, at least.

Synopsis: This short story takes place chronologically prior to Webb Gin House, but it best read between Phantasm and Revenant in the Zoe Martinique series. It gives the backstory about the reason behind Jason’s visit to Atlanta the previous year that is hinted at in Revenant.

My Thoughts: There isn’t much to this story – it’s very short – but it does give us more of an idea about who Jason is and what he’s about. I would love to see it expanded into a larger piece, and learn more about Jason, but this is a nice taste. If you enjoy the Zoe Martinique series, don’t miss this short if you can find it.

[Hal Bullock · Rating 5 out of 5]

A bit of background on the making of Nick.

[LastBreath · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reader beware that this is indeed a very short, cliffhanger read. I suggest either finding this story in an anthology, or purchasing it along with the follow up , and . And because I did just that I am happy to award it 4 stars.

[Cathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave this 2 stars when it maybe might have gotten 3 but for the feeling I got that I was dropped into the middle of this story. Ok, it's a short story but, still, it deserved another 100-150 words to provide some context.
What is a vampire? What is a ghoul? This fanciful story tries to tell us all the literature before has been wrong. For example, drinking a "vampire's" blood doesn't create another vampire, it creates a ghoul.
The ending was pretty good. A nice twist that seems a set-up for a novel.

[Jenna Scribbles · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, fun! This book is a tease. I wouldn't call it a complete short story. It doesn't appear that the author has a complete novel based on these characters. It felt a little unsatisfying to have so many elements left hanging.

Even though I gave it a three I really enjoyed the writing style and will plan to read more books by this author.

I originally bought this book just because of the cover. A fantastic, creepy cover.

[Yolanda Sfetsos · Rating 2 out of 5]

Short tale that I guess sets up the series. I liked the writing style and the twist. Sounds like a supernatural world I'd like to read more about...but this story was just okay.

[Tina Borowski Golonka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice little short story!