Bite Marks: A Vampire Testament [Paperback]

Terence Taylor (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2009

A teenage runaway is killed by a sadistic vampire with the pathology of a serial killer, who has stalked her family for over a decade.  Brought back to life to feed on her child, she’s killed again -- but not before reviving her first victim, her firstborn.  The undead infant escapes, triggering a citywide search for a vampire baby whose existence threatens to expose the entire vampire society.

 And they will stop at nothing to make sure that doesn’t happen.

In the downtown art world/club scene of New York City, Steven and Lori, an artist and a writer, are in the middle of a bad break up.  Instead of being able to simply move on, they are stuck with each other, bound by a contract to do a book on vampires.  When they stumble across the real thing, will their feelings for each other intensify as they're reunited to battle monsters they scarcely believe exist?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Television writer Taylor pens a gritty, screenworthy supernatural noir set in 1980s New York. Out-of-control vampire Adam forces his lover, teen hooker Nina, to drink her five-month-old son's blood. In desperation, she revives the child as a vampire. Infant Christopher escapes Adam's clutches and winds up in the custody of some terrifyingly crazy drug addicts, threatening the precarious arrangement that has kept vampires secret for centuries. Determined to find Christopher and protect Adam, powerful vampire politician Perenelle, Adam's progenitor, teams up with her former lover, Rahman, an ancient vampire with his own agenda, while Nina's brother hunts for his nephew. Disparate, well-articulated motivations drive the various players in their race to save vampires and humans from one another. Truly enjoyable and imaginative, this thrilling, convoluted yarn is sure to delight any vampire fan. (Oct.)
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Review

"I've never read anything like it." --Whoopi Goldberg

 

"Truly enjoyable and imaginative, this thrilling, convoluted yarn is sure to delight any vampire fan." --Publisher's Weekly (Starred Review)

 

"Terence Taylor delivers masterful world-building, edge-of-your-seat prose, and characters to die for--his is an exciting fresh voice in vampire literature." -- LA Banks, New York Times Bestseller and author of The Vampire Huntress Legends Series

 

"Vampire readers, rejoice:  Award-winning television writer Terence Taylor thrusts us into fresh territory with his debut novel, Bite Marks.   With creepy images and characters real enough to believe in, Taylor takes us on a detective's journey through the vampire underground so convincing that you'll be glad to see the sun rise.  Bite Marks is a  must-read for fans of vampires and well-crafted paranormal fiction--just in the nick of time." --Tananarive Due, American Book Award-winning author of Blood Colony

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Product Details

• Paperback: 394 pages
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin; First Edition edition (September 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312385250
• ISBN-13: 978-0312385255
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,460,469 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

TERENCE TAYLOR is an award-winning children's television writer, whose work has appeared on PBS, Nickelodeon, and Disney, among many others. After a career of comforting young kids, he's now equally dedicated to scaring their parents. His short horror stories have been published in all three "Dark Dreams" horror/suspense anthologies. "BITE MARKS: A Vampire Testament" is his first novel. "BLOOD PRESSURE", second in the opening trilogy of the Vampire Testaments, came out in April 2010.

He has taken a brief break from the conclusion of the opening trilogy -- "PAST LIFE" -- to work on an atypical semi-autobiographical satiric roman a cléf of South Slope life called "Quitting Christmas", the first in a series, about the effects of the tenth anniversary of a death on a group of old friends.

He lives quietly in Brooklyn and laughs a lot between acts of literary carnage.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great book for 'occasional' vampire fans, November 9, 2009

By 

Legalsea (Fort Worth, TX) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bite Marks: A Vampire Testament (Kindle Edition)

I am not a vampire fan. I do not seek out vampire books or films. However, back when I was in college, I came across the newly released paperback copy of `Salems Lot' by Stephen King (1976 or so). I stayed up all night reading it and thought it was great, and, like so many others, became a King fan.

Fast forward several decades, and a new Kindle owner to boot. Based on reviews I bought the first book in the Twilight series. My thoughts: boring. A pretty good idea, but not executed well. I remember thinking "Ah, if only King had written this!" I did not buy the second book (or the third, or see the movie) in this series.

Fast forward another year to Bite Marks. Again, purchased on a lazy evening on my Kindle. I got the `sample', liked it, and bought the book. I am glad I did.

This apparently is the first novel by Terrance Taylor. I think he is going to be an excellent writer. True, Bite Marks is not quite as good as `Salems Lot, but close enough. I did not read it in one night, but that may well be due to simple age, and not desire (believe me, as you age, you value sleep). Other reviewers have mentioned `holes' in the plot. Perhaps. However, I think it clear from the way the book ends that a second book will be forthcoming.

The vampires in Bite Marks are believable. They stay true to much of the old `vampire' beliefs and folklore (can't go out in daylight; stakes through heart, etc), although with the twist of being set in the 1980s in New York City. True, the book starts out focusing on several characters that are simply `dropped' one-fifth of a way into the book. However, without giving anything away, I feel that they will appear in a second book (I actually bet there will be a third book, since so many authors write trilogies now).

I will not write more about the book. I purchased based on a review that gave little away, and I wish to continue that. My main point: this book is `almost' as good as what King would have written. It is well worth the money. Try, on Kindle, the `sample', at the very least.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Terence Delivers, September 15, 2009

By 

Alyce Myatt (Baltimore, MD, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bite Marks: A Vampire Testament (Paperback)

Wow. What a page turner. Unlike Terence's short stories that were paced at a more languid, jazz flow, Bite Marks is in 4/4 time. The story sweeps you through an edgy New York that in no way resembles the corporate Disneyland of today. His well-drawn characters continue to surprise with multi-dimensions, hidden histories, and complex motivations. And the malicious satisfaction of the villains! Terence clearly has a background in visual media because he paints such a vivid picture of the times, places and circumstances his vampires transverse. Except, his professional experience is in kid's TV and Bite Marks is no place for children! Terence asks, "Do you believe in Vampires?" After reading Bite Marks, I do know that I believe Terence is the hottest, new horror writer on the scene!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Epic and Accessible Vampire Novel, December 4, 2009

By 

Jorge Piniella (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bite Marks: A Vampire Testament (Paperback)

As a member of the Generation X crowd I have not read novels for a long time. However, this novel has recently reignited my love of the written word. From start to finish I was enthralled by "Bite Marks". As a person constantly on the go I found the short chapters to be a blessing, while not feeling short changed by the characterizations.

For anyone wondering, there are characters that are introduced that make short appearances, but they will be introduced back into the story throughout the second and third book.

Recommended!