Customer Reviews

A Coven of Vampires

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a fanatastic collection of vampire fiction from the esteemed Mr. Lumley and another beautiful production from Subterranean Press. It is a must buy for fans of great vampire fiction.

My only suggestion is to pay a few dollars more and order it direct from Subterranean Press in order to get the bonus chapbook with MORE Lumley vampire fiction. It's one of the highest quality chapbooks I've ever seen.

I don't get to read short stories often as I really love long books but this has a few tales that really stood out in my mind, I read this over two months ago and had proper time to digest and after all that time my favorites are still the ones that stand out the most. Two of the stories should be made into full length books, well in my imaginary heaven I guess, one is about a mysterious science loving guy who lives on a fancy little Greek island who knows more about deep fish than anyone, an eccentric millionaire with a secret though, the pouring heat from above adds a realistic layer to the story, the guy sweats non-stop and tells the reporter who was lucky enough to get to his island the story of his life, and perhaps more than he wanted to hear. The guy is a mystery, he dates and marries the most beautiful women and models who seem to die or disappear randomly while guzzling a green algae drink brought by his maid who looks extremely shriveled up, the tale is intense and so good that I was sad to see it end. The other was about a powerful man who could kill anything with his mind and gain it's life energy and it's time, but he realized the more he took the more he needed, the story was so intense that I had to read it twice, so original that I had to share it with a friend at work the day after I read it, I enjoyed climbing into bed every night that week and reading two or three vampire stories before I got to drift off and make my own head movies :P....

Brian Lumley is a gifted author who is passionate about his work and it shows, the stories are like jewels in a dark cave, you start each one not knowing what is going on and find a way to this dazzling tale that will make you remember it for weeks and months to come. They are strong and interesting, and each one is very different from the last one and there is over a dozen of them here for the taking, a nice book to read before bed or to keep in your bag for a tasty dose of adrenaline, and I like how each is set in a different decade, it goes from ancient to modern without missing a beat and this isn't about some boring traditional vampires either, you won't know what is nibbling on your neck when you read this until it's too late and you're totally absorbed and indifferent to the world outside of it. This is a great collection of vampire tales that are all different so this will sure please a wide array of readers and perhaps introduce a few to Lumley who has dipped his fingers into the macabre so well in the past few decades, enjoy!

- Kasia S.

I purchase every one of Lumleys books and have for years - this was very disappointing. The stories are left hanging and not up to his quality of work. But I am sure I will continue to purchase his books, I think he is usually a excellent writer. AWL

This book I had for months even before starting to read it.
I really like Lumley and his work.

Thus, after a while, you'll end up with a whole of re-runs. This book contains many stories that I already have in other books, even some in triple...!
But I'm glad that there is at least a story from a higly collectible Arkham House "the caller of the black".
I have read the paperback edition while having under seal the Fedogan & Bremer and Subterranean Press editions.

Its a good read, stories like, Necros, the Back Row and Uzzi...
These are not stories about the vampire old fashion style, but more about "things that are feeding" on others...

If you like Lumley style, you'll want to grab yourself a copy, it's a sweet treat...