American Vampire [Mass Market Paperback]

Jennifer Armintrout (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Armintrout (the Blood Ties series) traps GPS-challenged Graf McDonald, a tough-talking, chain-smoking vampire, in the town of Penance, Ohio, in this thin stand-alone. He's the first visitor in five years, as the community is being held in stasis by a monster called "It." After Graf saves 23-year-old Jessa from "It," she reluctantly allows him to hide from the sun in her basement. Having survived five years with few resources other than what she can trade for or grow, Jessa doesn't want to turn to Graf for help, but they come to lean on each other as the other locals target them for sacrifice. Armintrout wisely holds off on revealing the secrets of "It," allowing Graf to grow emotionally as he and Jessa get closer, but aside from the unusual premise, there's not much to distinguish this from other dark paranormal romances. (Mar.)
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From Booklist

On his way to a vampire party in New York, Graf McDonald takes a wrong turn and ends up in Penance, Ohio, which one can enter but not leave. Trying to find gas, he finds Jessa, on the run from a horrible monster called It. When Graf finds that all roads lead back to town, he takes up residence with Jessa, whose abusive ex-boyfriend, Derek, sees her as his property despite the fact that he has kids and Becky, a drunken wife, at home. The unpleasant residents of the town have been cut off from the rest of the world for the last five years while It preys on them, and they are more than suspicious of Graf, the first person to find a way in since It showed up. When Becky and the kids disappear, Graf has new terrors to face as the residents of Penance target him. Urban fantasy author Armintrout, best-known for her Blood Ties series, offers a traditional horror story that will be welcomed by fans of the genre. --Diana Tixier Herald

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Mira (February 22, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0778328783
• ISBN-13: 978-0778328780
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #353,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars American Nightmare - Spoilers -, July 26, 2011

By 

R. McFeeters "Book Junkie" (Kansas City, MO) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Vampire (Mass Market Paperback)

Graf is a young Vampire, who is on his way to visit his sire in DC for a 4th of July celebration when he gets lost in Ohio. Hungry and desperate for shelter, because of the rising sun...he pulls into a old shut down gas station. Its then that things take a twist. I thought that this story was a nice change, and I hadn't read anything like it so far, so for the idea itself its worth reading.

Jessa and the small town of Penance have been stuck in limbo for 5 years, why, they don't know. All they know is they can't get out and no one can get in. There is another problem, there is a Demon running around town wreaking havoc whenever it wishes. It's a unsettling situation, because when people start to think they are doomed they do odd things, like blame the problem on a 17 year old "witch" and burn her at a stake sort of things.

When Jessa meets Graf at the gas station she is in shock...one, because she has not seen a stranger in 5 years and two the demon is after her that night. Graf saves her life and thus a odd pairing is created as Graf and Jessa try to figure out what's going on and how to get out of town. Graf needs to escape for obvious reasons, Jessa has worn out her welcome in the spooky town as she is labeled the town tramp for her involvement with Derek her now married x-boyfriend.

The spoiler is: Jessa was Home Coming Queen, her x-boyfriend Derek was Captain of the Football team. When they graduated Jessa went off to college, but she is forced to come home when her parents and younger brother die in a car wreck, that same week she and the rest of the town become trapped. Derek, who was never able to go to college and couldn't see a life past High school football and popularity. He makes a deal with the devil or in this case a demon in order to keep the town as it was, untouched, and keep things the same. So clearly making a deal with a demon causes problems and more over things aren't exactly as Derek would hope. Things go to hell in a hand basket and Graf and Jessa fall in the love during it all. It also turns out that when the demon is hurt you can leave or get into town, this is discovered later of course.

This is not a romance novel, more of mystery or horror. The town is insane and its unsettling as you watch the turn of events; throwing a vampire into the mix makes it fun and entertaining. There are a few good twist. 4 stars for the originality.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Starts off with a bang and intrigue..., May 8, 2011

By 

Book Addict "Paranormal Reader" (CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Vampire (Mass Market Paperback)

I loved this story at first, then I hit the first set of cliched characters and scenarios. And it went down from there. This book didn't seem to know if it wanted to be a mystery, a cultural commentary, or a romance. The main characters are hard to relate to because they aren't consistent in their personas or their behavior. Graf waffles between wanting to love or kill (not metaphorically) Jessa. He wavers between being a hero and being a selfish a-hole. Jessa can't decide who she wants to be: social pariah or exalted victim. The main characters constantly act in a contrary manner to what is set up for their characters, which makes them appear untrustworthy to the reader. The rest of the town, with its stock characters, are at least less wishy-washy about who they are. The villain is clearly drawn, and, because of that, the mystery of the monster "It" is clearly evident about halfway through. Not only that, but naming the monster "It," like that of the novel by Stephen King, makes it seem less scary and almost comical, especially when one realizes that everyone in the town COULD have left, since they do, periodically, when the monster has been injured. Why anyone remains when there's a clear OUT is too big a hole to keep this a plausible story. I really wanted to like the main characters, but after a while, they just became annoying.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars American Vampire by Jennifer Armintrout, April 2, 2011

By 

B. Sharp (Eyota, MN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: American Vampire (Mass Market Paperback)

My thoughts:
Great read! I love Jennifer Armintrout's books and this one did not disappoint! Certainly a worthy read!!!
The characters are fantastic!
Graf - - the bad guy/good guy that every story needs. He is just a bit selfish too, which gives him a hard edge.
Jessa - - tough girl with an I don't need you/you don't scare me attitude that makes you love her.
The townspeople - all sorts of crazy.
I was torn between wanting Graf to stay in Penance forever and wanting him and Jessa to escape together. Won't tell you what happens!
The monster trapping the town was terrifying and the idea behind how it came to be, more so.
The story was thrilling, the plot was twisty and intriguing. It was a whole new idea to the vampire story as a whole. I enjoyed the growth of Graf and Jessa as they learned more about each other and themselves. I would recommend it to others and will be looking for more from Jennifer Armintrout!