Customer Reviews

Bloody Good

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If Mary Stewart and Charlotte McLeod had collaborated on a paranormal novel about rural English village life in early WWII, I think the result might have been something like this. Author Georgia Evans has written a tale that accurately incorporates the uncertainty and hardship of the Blitz into a larger story line that includes romance (a really good one!), magic, intrigue, and all the absorbing social detail you could expect of a really well-written "cozy." In fact, Evans' portrayal of the daily lives and attitudes of her characters has an authentic feel I would compare to Rhys Bowen and Mary Stewart novels of similar setting. The tone is light--impressively so, given the seriousness of some subject matter--but never silly, and Evans has written her paranormal elements (vampires, witches, pixies, etc.) into the tale with a deftness that makes their existence seem no more unbelievable than that of the Nazis. I think the similarity of the cover art to that of Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse novels is probably not an accident.

The characters of "Bloody Good" are likable and well-crafted, and the prologue establishes a premise that should comfortably stretch over several more novels while still providing readers of "Bloody Good" with the ingredients for a proper ending. This book could function perfectly well as a stand-alone novel but, even still, I ran out and bought "Bloody Awful" as soon as I finished.

I noticed another reviewer complained of the book being politically inconsistent and I have to disagree. Because this book is really the first installment of a series, many plot elements have not yet been explained, but everything so far revealed has been consistent with the idea of vampires who sympathize with the Nazi agenda while also pursuing their own goals. Also, the inclusion of facts about the Holocaust (for which the same reviewer seemed to be arguing) would have been puzzling and perhaps anachronistic in a novel about the English countryside in 1940, when the average English citizen had little or no knowledge of the genocide taking place of mainland Europe.

If "Bloody Good" has a weakness, it's probably that the climax is a bit anti-climactic; the disposal of the bad guy is pretty abrupt. I greatly enjoyed exploring the world and characters Georgia Evan's has created here, however, and eagerly look forward to the "Bloody Right."

This is the first book in Georgia Evans' World War 2 paranormal series. I found this book really easy to get into from the first page and I was taken to a place that is quintessentially English, with lots of tea drinking and gossiping. This is quite true of English culture, we do like to drink lots of tea, and we do like to sit around and have a good gossip while drinking it: it's just what we do!

There's great atmosphere to this book and you really get an essence of English country life during the war. The characters are well rounded, interesting and likable. There is Alice, the very attractive village doctor; Helena, her grandmother and Devonshire Pixie; the village bobby, Sgt Howell Pendragon, the resident shapeshifting dragon; Gloria, the district nurse and werefox; Samuel, the local grocer and elf; and Peter, Alice's love interest, who is just plain human and can't believe these people exist. And, of course not forgetting, the German, vampire nazis...

Although this story is set around the time of WW2, it's emphasis is more on the characters in the village and the vampires. The war is merely a backdrop and doesn't get too bogged down with lots of historical data. This isn't a frightening, scary or gory read, it's light, fun and easy reading. A bit like Agatha Christie but with vampires, and without the mystery, and Miss Marple... but you get the idea - the feeling of an old fashioned story with old fashioned values.

The dialogue flows easily and is quite humorous at times with no swearing. So, that's why when I got to the loves scenes, I was shocked! After many chapters of innocent Alice, dear old grandma Helena and lots of old fashioned tea drinking - WHAM! Sex! Using words that made me blush! Now, I'm no prude but this was so out of context that it made me cringe rather than feel all hot and bothered. Sometimes I think certain explicit words are used that really don't have to be. If certain words that were used were toned down a touch, it would have been much more successful, but instead I winced and squirmed in discomfort. Saying that, I did enjoy reading about the relationship between Alice and Peter, most of the time it was sweet and innocent and much needed in a time of war.

Verdict:

However, overall this book is very entertaining, light-hearted and fun and I would definitely recommend it, (as long as you can cope with the explicit sex scenes!).

(I gave this book 7/10 on my blog)

I choose this book because the concept of Nazi vampires was just too hard to resist. And certainly, Evans delivers on the atmosphere of WWII England: the rationing, the blackouts, the evacuees from London; and the protagonists (Dr. Alice Doyle and Peter Watson) are empathetic. What I missed, however, is the Nazi vampires making more of an impact; although the book starts off with the invasion of four bloodsuckers, only one gets any depth (and I didn't think it enough), and their evil plot to overthrow England doesn't really seem to be of importance in the overall sequence of events. The human (and 'Other' human-like) characters fare well, and would be at home in any Masterpiece Theatre miniseries; think of it as 'All Creatures Great and Small' with vampires, pixies and dragons. What disconcerted me in all this, and what I personally thought out of place, were the rather explicit love scenes; it was as if another author stepped in with some graphic text. I will read at least one more of the series to see if it gels with me. I think this novel worth reading, but I don't think it lived up to the concept.

I'm always glad to see a vampire novel that moves away from stereotypical plots and settings. So, when I learned that Georgia Evans's _Bloody Good_ was set in England during World War II and that its vampires were Nazi secret agents, I was immediately intrigued.

_Bloody Good_ is at its best when depicting the struggles of ordinary country folk during the war. Through the many neighborly chats that fill these pages, the reader gets an idea of what it might have been like to deal with air raids, rationing, and the experience of either being an evacuee or having an evacuee billeted in one's home. For several of Brytewood's residents, who are secretly supernatural beings, hiding their true nature is a further challenge. Evans does a great job of showing a cozy setting in ominous times.

I also loved the scenes with Bela, a fairy who has been taken captive by Nazis and forced to use her powers to serve the Third Reich. Her struggle to reestablish communication with her family, and her clever ways of deceiving the Nazis without technically lying, are captivating. I can't wait to see more of her.

Where _Bloody Good_ stumbles is in the pacing of two of the plot threads: the vampire-saboteur plot and the romance plot. The vampires don't really do much, and the resolution of this plotline is anticlimactic. Meanwhile, heroine Alice Doyle and hero Peter Watson fall in love at lightning speed. I didn't find it as believable as I'd have liked, especially since in the early chapters their attraction is more "told" than "shown." Then, suddenly, they're having wild sex and talking marriage. (I believe they've known each other for a few weeks at this point.) The romance plot is prominent enough that it feels like the main plot, making the vampire stuff more of a subplot, and so it was disappointing that it developed in a way that I found unrealistic.

In addition, _Bloody Good_ needed more copyediting. There are numerous typos, and a distracting frequency of sentences beginning with "Seemed," which more stringent copyediting might have been able to tame.

This book takes place in England during World War II. The main character is Alice Doyle, doctor of the area of Brytewood, England. Strange things begin to happen in the area, such as missing patients and murdered neighbors. Those murdered are missing blood. Brytewood's legends include many magical beings that Alice denies are real, even though her heritage indicates she's a Pixie. She is also not looking for love, but may find it in Peter, her assistant.
I like the idea of this story because it is interesting to mix the War with vampires, pixies, dragons and more. But I don't think enough was told about the magical creatures. I want to hear more back ground, but maybe that is why this is a first book in a series of three.

Rosemary Laurey writing as Georgia Evans. Another fantastic book from this author. Book 2 Bloody Awful comes out July 7th and book 3 of this series comes August 4th. I love that this series is all coming out a month apart. Usually you have to wait a year for the next book. If you haven't read Rosemary Laurey's vampire series books 1 & 2 in one volume, Kiss Me Forever, Love Me Forever, book 3 Be Mine Forever, Book 4 Keep Me Forever, book 5 Midnight Lover. What I love about this series is that the Vampires are based on real historical people. A fantastic series the I reread often. Jen :)

I had high hopes for Bloody Good--vampires plus WWII?--and Georgia Evans did not let me down. Set in 1940 and centered around an English village in the southern England, Evans sets a delightful scene of upright English men and women doing their bit for the war. The book opens with a bang, with the vampiric German spies parachuting into England and creating a bevy of events that climax with the village's inhabitants defeating their vampire spy.

Though Evans maintains a jaunty English tone, all is not fun and games. The dangers of the war are very apparent and lend a bit of levity to the wit. The main characters, Alice and Peter, are nicely written, and the secondary characters prove appealing as well. There are bits of rough writing where too much is told rather than shown, but it's so few and far between it's bit a trifle. One of the strong points of the book is the introduction of the various indigenous magical creatures. This isn't a generic paranormal mystery--the supernatural is rooted in British folklore. There is a decent bit of romance between Alice and Peter, but it doesn't overwhelm the mystery elements of the book. I can't wait for the next book in the series!

This book kept me interested enough to read the entire book but, somehow, it didn't have anything that really made it stand out or make it a keeper for me. Am not interested to read the rest of the series.

Over the years, I have changed my preference of books from historical to contemporary, to paranormal. This led me to Rosemary Laurey's vampire series: Kiss me Forever/Love Me Forever, Be Mine Forever, Keep me Forever, Midnight Lover. I was hesitant to read her Georgia Evans series because of the setting being in England during WW II (remember, I'm not a history fan), but because of my love of Rosemary's books, I picked up Bloody Good and she hooked me. There are bad guys (bad vamps), good guys (of the paranormal brand--pixies, dragons, were animals & good vamps), history lessons on how bad the people suffered during the war and your heart breaks for them, and woven through this is a love story that Alice hadn't expected. Join me in a new, delightful series (I've already inhaled the second book--Bloody Awful).

Georgia Evans' portrayal of Germany's invasion of surrounding European nations by the Nazi party as the backdrop for her novel set in the English countryside, Bloody Good, has a wide cast of characters, including vampires, witches, pixies, and dragons.

Alice Doyle is the village doctor and a pixie who has denied her heritage and her powers to rely upon science and medicine. Peter Watson is a conscientious objector to the war who underwent several years of veterinary training before the war began. Alice's grandmother embraces her pixie heritage and is keenly aware of the "others" living in the town.

In an effort to gain an advantage in the war effort, the Nazi's enlist vampires to blow up secret munitions plants across the English countryside. Evans does a great job of establishing a surreal world in which Nazi's and vampires work together for the same cause, at least until the vampires deem themselves able to take over. Dr. Doyle, her grandmother, and friends work together to uncover the secret Nazi mission and stop the vampires from succeeding in destroying the munitions plant.

Readers will enjoy the vampire tales, the pixie legends, and other surreal elements of this story, but the real treat is watching Dr. Doyle come into her own powers and accepting her heritage. However, some readers may be put off by the graphic sex scenes in this novel, though there are not too many of them. Some of the depictions in the book were a bit odd, particularly when Peter Watson compares Dr. Doyle to furry rodents. Overall, Bloody Good is a light read for the beach or camping in the woods.

This is the first in a series of novels by Georgia Evans, and readers who enjoy this one, should check out the next installment, Bloody Awful. I know I'm looking forward to the next one.