The Vampire Cameo - a Lancer Books Gothic

I finally come to a gothic novel that deals more directly with the supernatural than any of the gothics I have read to date - in this case, vampires.  While many gothic stories hint at supernatural elements, they are normally explained away by the end of the book as some villainous machinations of a devious man (or woman) out to destroy lives, gain a family fortune, or for some other nefarious reason.  Not in this case.  As the title clearly indicates, this story is about vampires - the blood-sucking, eternal creatures of the night that roam the countryside looking for victims.  Or is it?  Author Dorothea Nile (who, in actuality, is Michael Avallone, a rather prolific and talented writer who published books in a number of genres under quite a few pseudonyms - besides this one, he also wrote gothics using the names Edwina Noone and Priscilla Dalton) is quite cunning in the way she (he) tells this story, leaving the reader, and the story's protagonist, wondering right up to the very end!

 

The Vampire Cameo is set right at the turn of the 20th Century, in the year 1899.  Young Rosalie Lindquist, an American schoolteacher vacationing in Europe, is on the last leg of her journey when fate intervenes.  The coach in which she is riding overturns in the Transylvania countryside during a horrific storm, leaving her stranded without any luggage, money, or means to reach the Austrian border.  A mysterious man happens to be there, offering her sanctuary within the darkened halls of his crumbling home - Darkus Castle!  (That name alone is enough to conjure up demons and all sorts of other horrors!)  Count Alexander Darkus and his wife, Lady Carmela Darkus, are gracious hosts - but from the very moment Rosalie sets foot in the decaying castle, she can feel something is off.  As the storm strengthens and the darkness descends, Rosalie - and the reader! - must determine if someone in that castle is a vampire, and if so, who is it?

 

The people in the nearby town of Larksmore wholeheartedly believe that Count Darkus is a vampire.  He certainly fits the part, what with his dark, brooding manner, his dark hair and fair skin, and his old ways.  But Rosalie has seen him in the day time, so surely that would discredit any thought of him being a creature of the night, right?  However, Rosalie has also noticed that Castle Darkus is completely devoid of mirrors in any of the rooms, including her own guest room.  Could it be he wants to hide the fact that he casts no reflection?  And what about that huge bat that tries ferociously to break through the window into Rosalie's room the first night she is there?  Was it pure chance, or was it Count Darkus knowing exactly which room she would be in?

 

Rosalie cannot quite believe the handsome Count is a vampire.  After all, vampires are simply creatures of myth.  No God-fearing young woman would believe such fantastical things exist.  Yet, she cannot deny the facts in front of her.  She does not see Lady Darkus in the day - she's suffering from a headache, the Count informs her.  The Lady also reacts in terror at the sight of Rosalie's crucifix pendant.  Only a vampire would react in such a way, correct?  Yet, Count Darkus explains that his wife lost her parents in a horrific accident, and the silver crucifix her mother was wearing at the time of her death has inspired fear of crosses ever since.  A simple, logical explanation, no doubt.  But Rosalie has her doubts.  Although the next morning shines brights, and Rosalie is ready to put it all behind her and return home - until the carriage she is in meets up with an angry mob of townspeople who are out for blood.  Three young girls have disappeared, and they believe Count Darkus stole them away.  Unable to pass, Rosalie is forced back to the castle, back to the dark recesses of the morbid place, back to where all her fears are once again brought to the forefront.

 

The story takes place over the course of just three or four days, yet, Nile (Avallone) manages to build up considerable suspense and fear within 180-plus pages.  Poor Rosalie fights to rely on her faith in God and her own common sense to tell her that there are no such things as vampires.  But the things she sees and the people right in front of her are making her question everything she has ever believed.  What if one of them were a vampire?  What if one of them really did take those three village girls?  And what if one of them intended to make her their next victim?  Another horrific storm rocks the great castle, and the irate villagers show up at the castle's door, ready to take matters into their own hands, with wooden stakes and mallets, to find their missing daughters. Rosalie is forced to make a choice, knowing she could very well be killed right along with Count Darkus and his wife, and ultimately, a very dark secret is revealed about the inhabitants of Castle Darkus that opens everyone's eyes!

 

Oh, and yes, there is also the very large Mondro, the Count's right hand man (and the only staff in the entire castle).  He is a unique individual, being described as both deaf and dumb, a turn of words that the Count describes as "a shameful expression" (p. 85).  What is interesting is that Count Darkus apparently knows sign language, as he uses it ("a curious hand and finger sequence of motion") to communicate with Mondro (p. 85).  This is now the second book in recent weeks that I have read where one of the main characters is familiar with sign language (the other being The Secret at Lone Tree Cottage, a Dana Girls mystery where one of the sisters uses sign language to try and communicate with their teacher who is being held captive).  It is funny how I have gone years without reading any books that mention deafness or sign language, but now in the span of a couple of weeks, I have read two with it!

 

And speaking of Mondro being deaf and dumb, I have to wonder if Nile forgot that fact for a moment later in the story.  Much later, when Mondro starts to attack Rosalie, a shout from Count Darkus stops Mondro in his tracks, causing him to release Rosalie and turn to fight his master.(pp. 129-30).  Why would the Count's shout affect Mondro, if the man is deaf and cannot hear?  Even though Mondro is said in the story to have lip-reading skill, being able to lip read would not help him hear the Count shouting.  It might have been more realistic to have the Count come up behind Mondro, pull him off, and throw him to the other side of the hall - that would certainly have created a more dramatic entrance for the Count.  In any event, such a snafu does not detract from the overall enjoyment of the story.

 

I am not sure who provided the cover art for this book, but I will say that it comes across more like for for a comic book rather than art for the cover of a book.  Rosalie holding the candle, Count Darkus seeming to appear within the swirling fog approaching the young woman, and the foreboding castle one can barely see against that black night sky.  It certainly sets the creepy tone of the story inside, and definitely gives the reader a sense that the vampire is about ready to attack.  Having been published in 1968, two years after the Dark Shadows television show first premiered and just one year after the vampire, Barnabas Collins, made his first appearance, the book and its cover art may well have been inspired by the popularity of the "sympathetic vampire" that was now so popular.

 

I did learn a new word while reading this book.  A number of times, Nile (Avallone) refers to Count Darkus' carriage as a "phaeton."  I have honestly never seen that word before in my life, so I looked it up.  Apparently, a phaeton can refer to several things:  in Green mythology, he is the mortal son of the sun god Helios; in more recent times, it is an open-top car (such as a Volkswagen luxury sedan); but a century or more ago, it referred to a four-wheeled carriage without doors, popular in the 18th and 19th centuries. So, instead of simply calling it a carriage, Nile (Avallone) uses the term "phaeton" through the entire book.  Just goes to show, you can learn something new every day!

 

Finally, for those wondering about the title - yes, there is a cameo pin that plays a very important part of the story and ultimately leads to the final revelation of what is really going on and who is the vampire of the story.  And if you think you know, let me just say - think again!

 

RATING:   10 harpsichords softly playing out of 10 for a suspenseful, terror-filled story of vampires, hate-filled villagers, and a young heroine who stands firm in her faith and courage!

Twilight Grimm - a Silverline Comics mini-series

Anyone who knows me and/or has been following this blog for any length of time know how much I enjoy comic books published by independent companies.  The quality of the comics pushed by the bigger companies (DC and Marvel) has dropped drastically over the last several decades, and I don't enjoy their titles as much as I did when I first started reading comics.  But small, independent companies who sell their books at small tables at small comic conventions many times offer much better stories than DC or Marvel could ever come up with today.  I've noticed the Silverline books at a number of local conventions, but I never picked any up - until the recent Daytona Beach Comic Convention in September.  Talking with Roland Mann, who had a display of various titles from the publisher, I saw the cover to the first issue of this series, and well - when they say "don't judge a book by its cover," let's say I've never really followed that rule!

 

Twilight Grimm captured my attention first because of its main character featured on the cover.   The man with the shoulder-length brown hair, holding up a lighted object in his right hand, wearing a long, gray overcoat.  At first glance, I would have sworn this was the Eighth Doctor, as portrayed by Paul McGann (c'mon - tell me you've seen Doctor Who, yes?!).  Roland Mann was quick to correct me, as this man was the title character of the book - a destroyer of vampires and protector of the innocent, in a world where the powerful - both in money and influence - prey upon the weak.  Not exactly a new concept.  I mean, let's face reality - there have been plenty of books, movies, television shows, and comics that deal with vampire hunters over the course of the last century or more.  But that Doctor Who-esque cover definitely had me intrigued, and since it was only a four-issue mini-series, I decided to give it a try.

First, let's think about that name.  Twilight Grimm.  I have to wonder if the name is a combination of two popular vampire/monster-related properties.  Twilight, obviously, was the teen-vampire books turned films that were popular a few years back.  Thankfully, though, the vampires in this comic do not "sparkle."  Grimm, on the other hand, was an excellent television show about a descendant of the Brothers Grimm who hunted down the monsters that lived in the real world, hiding behind veils so normal people could not see them for what they were.  Put the two names together, and you have a vampire/monster hunter! Hmmmmm...

Second, let's look at the overall story.  Hallowed Heights is a city living in peace and comfort.  But beware - if you break the law, you face stiff penalties - including being outcast from the protective walls of the city, forced to face the run down outskirts of Hallowed Heights, which are filled with despair and death, having been completely taken over by the vampires.  The humans who do live outside the walls of Hallowed Heights live in constant fear.  And the vampires who live there are always looking for new prey - new food - fresh blood!  A young woman - a thief - is thrust out into the blood zone as the sentence for her crime.  She quickly discovers that her time there may be short, as she is chased by hungry vampires - only to be rescued at the last moment by the man in the overcoat ... a man carrying a shining cross, a gun, and some very special knives.  The vampires fear him.  The humans seek his protection.  And for young Suzi Q (yes, that is her name), he is her savior.  For the night, anyway.  At the same time, another young woman is enjoying what she believes to be a wild night at a club in the blood zone.  When her car is attacked as she is preparing to leave, only Grimm can save her.  And last, but not least, is the young vampire woman who steps out of the shadows to warn Grimm.  Scarlet - a vampire who loves Grimm - has come to warn him that war is coming, as her vampire brethren are preparing to launch an all-out war against the humans in Hallowed Heights!

That's quite a bit of story for just the first issue, which, for me, was a nice surprise.  So many of today's mainstream comics are easily read in under five minutes because they are filled with huge splash pages or two- to three-panel pages with the focus on the art and less on the story.  Twilight Grimm, however, gives readers a feast of story and art that will take the reader a bit more than just five minutes to enjoy.  In the second issue, we learn about Grimm's "origin" story, as well as why the priest in the blood zone stays there to help him. The third issue sets up the events for the final battle, and in the fourth issue, we get a superbly written and drawn climactic fight between the vampires and the humans ... the rich and the poor ... the haves and the have-nots ... the righteous and the evil.  Not all vampires are bad and not all humans are good, and this story brings across that point beautifully.  And while that final conflict seems to bring to conclusion the initial battle, it is definitely not the end of the war.  The four issues tell a complete story, but there is definitely room left for more stories to come!

I have to give the writer, R.A. Jones, credit for coming up with a unique take on an old concept.  I know it's not easy to do, but Jones provides readers with an intriguing story with characters who are anything but stereotypes.  And I am SO grateful Jones followed the old-school writers and provided a background story that didn't require a six-issue arc to tell - instead, he provides readers with everything they need to know about Grimm in just a few pages.  As for the other characters, readers get to learn more about them as the story progresses, in a natural way, and I'm sure there is still plenty more to learn about all of the supporting cast (a writer has to save something for future stories, right?).  The art, by Rob Davis, works well with the story, and Davis has a pretty good grasp on facial expressions - issue one alone provides plenty of perfect examples: Suzi's hopelessness on page 1, panel 3 ... her fear on page 4, panel 6 ... Ms. Dupree's high on page 17, panel 2, just to name a few.  And the crowded club scene on page 16!  That page truly sparkles with life!  If there is a follow-up mini-series to this one, they better keep Davis as the artist!

Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable read.  With quality books like this, Silverline is sure to rise quickly in the comic book world!

RATING:  9 balloons filled with holy water out of 10 for opening up a whole new world of vampire vs. human warfare with a new kind of slayer!

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl - the Third Extraordinary Adventure of the Athena Club

And another one bites the dust, as the saying goes (sigh).  I absolutely HATE beginning one of these posts that way, but unfortunately, it's a fact.  When I picked up the first Extraordinary Adventure of the Athena Club novel, I had high hopes.  An intriguing new series about the daughters of Dr. Jeckyll, Mr. Hide, Frankenstein, Dr. Rappaccini, Dr. Moreau, Van Helsing, and more - solving mysteries that could very well affect not only their 19th century England, but the entire world!  And the writing - wow!  I was utterly loving the style of Theodora Goss, and her interjecting of the characters' voices as they "talk" with Catherine as she "writes" each novel.  It was fun, it was adventurous, and it was filled with mystery, action, danger, suspense, romance, and just about everything else you would want in a great read.  And the second book not only held up against the first, but surpassed it.  So, when it finally came time to read this third book, you can imagine my utter disappointment when I read the tag at the top of the front cover:

"Ends on a high note." 

Seriously?  I quickly turned it over and saw the description, which started with "Mary Jeckyll and the Athena Club race to save Alice - and foil a plot to unseat the Queen - in the electrifying conclusion to the trilogy..."  Well, that pretty much clinched the fact that this was yet another three-book series, and the characters I have grown to love and enjoy will no longer grace any more pages of story after this.  I was so disappointed, I almost put the book down and did not want to read it, as once it was read, there would be no going back.  But I had to know.  The last book ended with poor Alice (the Athena Club's kitchen maid, who the women had just discovered could be someone else entirely!) being kidnapped by a woman claiming to be her mother, and so it only stands to reason this book would pick up on that.  

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl opens with the origin of Ayesha - those who read the previous book may remember that she is currently the head of the Alchemical Society.  Of course, six pages into that origin, and the members of the Athena Club interrupt poor Catherine as she is trying to write the story and question why she would bore readers with the story of Ayesha, when the book was supposed to be about them, not the Egyptian princess!  And that right there is one of the things I so love about this series - the characters themselves constantly break into the story to add commentary or question Catherine's "telling" of the story, or just to promote the previous books (of course, that is mostly Catherine doing that, since, after all, she is the "author" of these stories!).  So, Catherine gives in and reverts to the Athena Club, where Mary, Diana, and Justine are returning home from Budapest.  Meanwhile, Catherine and Beatrice has remained behind, staying with Count Dracula, to fulfill their obligation to the traveling side-show.  Soon enough, though, the young women are reunited and begin their search for the missing Alice - AND Sherlock Holmes, who has also missing - AS WELL AS poor Dr. Watson, who hasn't been seen or heard from in over a week!  The Athena Club certainly has its hands full - guess it's a good thing their membership keeps expanding.

Meanwhile, Alice discovers that her mother has kidnapped her for a very specific purpose - it seems she is in league with Moriarty, who is forming a new society intent on taking over first England, and then the world.  But when Margaret Trelawny shows up, things start to change.  Alice, who they continually refer to as "Lydia" (which appears to be her given name), is suddenly given freedom throughout the house where they have been holding her captive, and she is made privy to the plans of what is to take place (even though she doesn't understand all of it - something about performing a ceremony that requires a sacrifice in order to bring back an Egyptian goddess).  Alice is smart though, having learned a thing or two while a servant in the Athena Club's house (especially from Mary Jeckyll, who Alice thinks is very smart, and she's always asking herself, "What would Mary do in this situation?"), and so she stays silent, pretends to go along with the plans, and soon discovers that the sacrifice for the ceremony is actually Sherlock Holmes!

Although the story is 430 pages in length, there is never a lull in the action.  From the train ride home to the search through London to the combing of opium dens in the worst part of town to being captured by Moriarty to the horrifying ceremony in the museum (during which a number of people die!) to a dangerous adventure in Cornwall to the very act of saving the Queen of England and facing down the wrath of an all-powerful goddess come back to life - it's literally non-stop for the Athena Club!  But their brains, their wit, their quick-thinking, and their never-give-up attitude leads Mary, Diana, Justine, Catherine, Beatrice, and Lucinda on a life-threatening, exciting adventure that definitely wraps this series up with a big bang!  And along for the ride are Sherlock and Watson, as well as those little scamps, the Baker Street Irregulars, Mycroft Holmes, and a few other familiar faces.  

Theodora Goss certainly has proven herself a wonderful writer with these three books, and it's truly a shame that we won't be getting any more adventures of the Athena Club.  Amazing stories, creatively wonderful characters, and so much potential for a million more tales of mysteries of the unknown - but alas, they shall forever remain a mystery, since this, as they say, is THE END.

RATING:  10 bags of lemon and pear drops, humbugs, licorice, and other assorted candies out of 10 for sharing with the world these monstrous tales of not-so-monstrous, unconventional women who prove that even the most unlikely of heroes can save the world!

European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman - the Second Extraordinary Adventure of the Athena Club

What better way to start off the new year that reuniting with the daughters of Frankenstein, Dr. Jeckyll, Mr. Hyde, Dr. Moreau, and Dr. Rappaccini?  Especially when their second adventure as members of The Athena Club takes over 700 pages to tell the full story!  EGADS!  When I first sat down to start reading this book, I did not realize it was pretty much going to take me the entire month of January to read it - but with work responsibilities, my birthday, David's birthday, and a horrible bout with the stomach flu, what might have normally only taken a week to read ended up taking literally an entire month.  But that's not a bad thing - spending time with Mary, Diana, Justine, Catherine, and Beatrice is always guaranteed to be fun, and these exceptional ladies did not disappoint!

European Travel for the Monstrous Gentlewoman is Theodora Goss's second foray into this fictional world where the female creations of these mad scientists have come together to battle the forces of their fathers' evil society of scientists and, along the way, form a familial bond stronger than any bloodline could ever be.  While the first book was a set up for the series, bringing the young women together, introducing each of them to the readers and giving us background as to who and why they are - with that established, Goss has the freedom in the second book to expand the world, giving the story and more soap opera feel - which is meant to be a compliment!  Because now not only do we have a new escapade for the Athena Club to jump into (rescuing the daughter of Van Helsing, who has been locked away in a psychiatric ward for reasons unknown), but we get more involvement from the supporting cast (in one instance, it is in the most surprising and unexpected way) and subplots are introduced that will clearly lead into future stories.

Due to the length of the book, it is broken up into two parts - Book One provides the tale of how the girls get from London to Vienna as they begin their search for Lucinda Van Helsing after Mary gets a telegram from Ms. Van Helsing informing her that Mary's former governess and teacher, one Miss Wilhelmena Murray, had recommended she reach out to Mary for help.  Book Two offers up the conclusion to this particular story, as the girls head from Vienna to Budapest, where they must not only face off against Van Helsing and his blood-thirsty army, but they must convince the Alchemical Society to put a stop to all of the experiments that have created women such as they.

And that is not the only division in this book.  Goss also breaks the team apart for separate missions in this story.  As Mary and Justine head off for Vienna (along with Diana, who, unbeknownst to them, has stowed away for the trip) to meet up with Irene Adler Norton, who, at the bequest of Sherlock Holmes, will help the women locate Ms. Van Helsing, Catherine and Beatrice go undercover of sorts to learn just what Dr. Seward is up to at the asylum with the intent of joining Mary and the others later.  The book alternates narratives, following Mary, Justine and Diana for a bit, then going back and relating the events that have transpired simultaneously with Catherine, Beatrice, and the young maid, Alice (who goes from a small supporting character to a much more integral part of the tale!).  Ultimately, what Catherine and Beatrice discover reveals a much deadlier plot than any of them had envisioned, and under the guise of joining the circus in which Catherine once performed, they head for Vienna to meet up with their fellow Athena Club members to stop Van Helsing, Seward, and their devious plans for the world!

There's plenty of adventure, danger, trickery, blackmailing, betrayal, surprises, secrets, and suspense to keep the reader turning page after page after page for all 700+ pages of this story!  There's never a dull moment, as the Athena Club (and the reader!) learn more about Lucinda Van Helsing and who, and what!, she is, and Mary, Justine, and the others discover that there were more secrets in their own past that, when revealed, cause some drastic changes to who and what they thought they already knew about themselves.  Marry and Diana come face-to-face with their father!  Justine comes face-to-face with the monster who was determined to make her his bride!  Beatrice comes face-to-face with love once again, a love that she knows can never be! And Catherine comes face-to-face with the man she thought she would never see again - the man who claimed to love her, but left her to the mercy of a mad scientist on an island of deadly creations!  And in this second book, the Athena Club is introduced to two new potential members - a young woman whose life depends on drinking the blood of living beings and a young girl who can, quite literally, make herself disappear!  A vampire and the invisible woman - yet two more "creatures" of the horror stories of literature have joined the ensemble to keep things interesting (as if they weren't interesting enough!?).

 

From the streets of Vienna to the dark, foreboding castle of Mr. Hyde ... from the cottage of a 300-year old vampire and her faithful lover to the hidden weapons room of Irene Adler Norton's fine home ... from a monastery training a vampire army to the Academy of Sciences where a final deadly battle is waiting to happen.  The Athena Club truly travels the European countryside in this grand adventure, and Goss provides readers with a beautiful description of the countryside, the grandeur of the cities, and the Gothic darkness of the cold, stone castle that makes the reader feel as if he or she were there right along with Mary and the gang.

Oh, and did I mention the subplot involving Sherlock Holmes' disappearance?  And Irene Adler Norton's own secret mission?  And the domineering woman who has taken a sudden - and deadly! - interest in young, sweet Alice?  Well, stay tuned, as there will certainly be more about those things in books yet to come!

I am so glad that I decided to dive into this series, as it is proving to be a spectacularly fun read, and I absolutely enjoy the interruptions by the characters throughout the story as Mary, Diana, Justine, Beatrice, Alice, Mrs. Pool, and even Catherine herself (who is allegedly writing the tale) interpose their thoughts and opinions about the events and the way Catherine is telling them.  It adds a certain reality to a thoroughly unrealistic story and further expands on the characters in a three-dimensional way that normal story-telling techniques could not accomplish.   And I laughed at the constant reference to the first book in this series and its availability for purchase by readers of this book (albeit at the cost that would have been appropriate at the time this story is allegedly taking place).  It was reminiscent of the old Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books that always referenced the previous mystery at the beginning of each book.

Definitely this is a series that I would HIGHLY recommend, no matter what genre of story you may normally enjoy.  Theodora Goss knows how to write an engaging, suspenseful tale that will keep your attention from beginning to end!

RATING:  10 rolls with butter and jam out of 10 for holding nothing back and not being afraid to tell a superbly written tale in a most unique way (and not worrying about how many pages it took to tell it!)