Thursday, August 16, 2012

Book Review: Lilith's Love by Dan Shaurette

Lilith's LoveLilith's Love by Dan Shaurette
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Author Dan Shaurette wrote the manuscript for this novel while earning a Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science at Arizona State University, which was enough to pique my interest -- I wrote my first vampire novel while working third shift as a computer operator.

That's not where the similarities end, though. Lilith's Love features old-school vampires: Lilith sleeps on an earth mattress with soil from her grave), my lead vampire keeps soil from his grave. My protagonist meets up with a coven of witches. Dan's protagonist's best friend is, you guessed it, a Wiccan.

With those disclosures, you know I started his novel with a bias toward liking it. I was not disappointed.

The love story between Lilith and Donovan is real and ethereal. The danger from her master and a blast from Donovan's friend Christian's past is palpable.

Recommended, especially for those fans of old-school vampires.

I listened to the podiobook version from http://www.podiobooks.com/title/lilit....

View all my reviews

Thursday, August 02, 2012

Interview with Writer Jeff Strand

I've restarted my podcast Vampires, Witches, and Geeks with an enticing series of interviews recorded live at a small gathering of horror writers in Bristol, Rhode Island. Officially named the Northeastern Writers' Conference, most people know it as Necon, and those who know it intimately sometimes call it Camp Necon.

My first interviewee is Necon Guest of Honor Jeff Strand. Jeff Strand is a really nice guy – and funny as hell. You’d notice the funny bit, even if you never had the pleasure of meeting him in person. Just look at the titles of his books: Graverobbers Wanted (No Experience Necessary), Single White Psychopath Seeks Same, Lost Homicidal Maniac (Answers to "Shirley"), and Casket for Sale (Only Used Once). What I wanted to interview him about, though, was the novel Draculas, a collaboration with authors F. Paul Wilson (who I also interview in this series), Jack Kilborn (J. A. Konrath), and Blake Crouch.

So, here's the first in the series, my Interview with Writer Jeff Strand. As always, I try to keep the podcasts short and sweet. Hope this brief introduction is enough to entice you to sample Jeff's works.