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No one has lived in Casa Ascuns Mansion in Balleywalegh, London, since the vampire Karel Novotny was driven from it decades ago. Now it’s 1929, and no one is more surprised than Maeve Margaret Donovan Flannery when she sees a light in a window of the dark, deserted place. She’s sure that the vampire has returned with bitter revenge in store for the small village.
Seamus Flannery isn’t considered a local, even though he’s lived in Balleywalegh for the twenty-five years since he married Maeve. He shows himself as even more of an outsider when he’s not willing to march up to Casa Ascuns bearing torches and sharp, pointy sticks. He’d rather not stake an innocent man—even if it is a coincidence that he shares the same name with the vampire that the villagers once ran out of town. Seamus doesn’t even believe in vampires, but when his daughter arrives on leave from boarding school and shows an interest in the new occupant of the mansion, Seamus decides to do a little more research—just to be safe.
What I like most about Tony-Paul de Vissage’s vampire novels is that the romance is only secondary to the plot; they’re more along the lines of an Anne Rice offering. With most of the romance taking a back seat, more attention can be focused on the sinister aspects of a really good vampire tale—and I enjoyed that a whole lot more in Vampires Are Forever.
Seamus Flannery is a blustery man with a whole lot of common sense, which will immediately endear him to readers. While everyone else is spiking mashed potatoes with garlic, dipping crosses in holy water, and sharpening stakes, Seamus seeks to gather unmistakable and irrefutable evidence. He does, however, become comical as he tries to keep his daughter away from Karel Novotny until he’s sure.
Once again, with Vampires Are Forever, this author takes readers out of this world to escape to places and time-periods that you’ll never otherwise visit. What small, quiet village is complete without something dark lurking in the shadows—whether real or imagined? As always, the setting is brought out in stark contrast and populated with peculiar characters.
With a dark, forbidding mansion, enthralling prose, and lively villagers, Vampires Are Forever is escapism at its best. Don’t expect a predictable ending because you won’t get one here; it all comes together with unrivaled wit and imagination. When it comes to vampire fiction, Tony-Paul de Vissage is the go-to author.
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