Dracula: Hearts of Stone [Kindle Edition]

A. J. Gallant (Author)

Book Description

This is book 1 of 3

A tale of magic, romance and fangs.

This MIGHT be a little like Dracula if written by J. K. Rowling. It’s a place where magic and vampires interweave for an exciting adventure.

We start with a shiny new pot of boiling water and add too many evil vampires, and not enough of the good biters. Toss in one suicidal Dracula; add a cup of mayhem and a dash of romance. Oh yes, and a pinch of mirth. Stir lovingly and you have a new novel by A. J. Gallant. If it sounds like the recipe for you then you must read Dracula: Hearts of Stone. Dracula commands it.

New York City is under attack.
Dracula is suicidal in a world where evil vampires are in the early stages of taking over. The Master has lived too long and can’t find a reason to face another day. Nasty vampires are feeding on vulnerable mortals and causing chaos. Years ago he trained valiant sheriffs and expects them to defend the humans but they are being overrun. Piers Anthony, the author, is now a vampire. He spends his days attempting to get the Master to snap out of it and to defend the humans, without losing his head.
A 12-year-old girl is a rare hybrid, half human and half vampire; she was conceived the normal way, with her mother a mortal and her father a vampire. Jenny is slowly discovering that she may be a blood wizard. She’s already an accomplished vampire killer and can cast spells, but an underground figure has noticed the girl. Some believe that she might be the one of legend that tips the scale toward good.
Sheriff Alexander and his vampire German shepherd stand and fight for justice.
Will the red sheriffs be overrun? Will Michael finally get the courage to ask out the sheriff?

Dracula: Hearts of Stone Book One of Three.

Here are some of the characters in this book.
Dracula is a bit of a good guy.
Piers Anthony is now a vampire.
Jenny is a 12-year-old hybrid with extraordinary talent.
Lauren is an exceptional sheriff with unsurpassed fighting skills.
A very special Siamese cat searches for Dracula.
Tessy is a vampire German shepherd that hates the evil ones.
Alexander is a handsome sheriff trying to save the world, one vampire at a time.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Dracula June 22, 2012

By Mary Sanders

Format:Kindle Edition

I was given this book to review and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I love Piers Anthony and his Xanth series, so to see him in this book was a thrill. It's nice to see Dracula in a "nice" light for a change and I can well imagine why he would be feeling so suicidal given that he has lived centuries. What could be new for him? Well, something is and I won't give it away. I can't wait to get the next in the series.

From the Author

 I started out to write a trilogy where Dracula is basically a good guy. It has been a lot of fun and I'm going to miss the characters until I get back to them. In the future I may decide to spin off some of the characters into their own novels. Jenny is certainly one consideration and so are the Chinese sheriffs Wei and Bao. 
     The Siamese cat Moon Diamond continues to make me smile and I hope it does the same for you.
    The 3rd book should be released sometime in November 2012, or even a bit sooner. Thanks for the support; it is greatly appreciated.
 
      An author without readers is like a bird without wings.

A. J. Gallant

Product Details

• File Size: 583 KB
• Print Length: 313 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Gallant (January 25, 2012)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B00724AICC
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #326,409 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Has to be a sequel! March 4, 2012

By Georgeanna

Format:Kindle Edition

This has to be the first of a series. There are lots and lots of bad guys and not nearly so many good guys. None of the bad guys are likeable and the good guys are really, really good. I liked this book, but, at times, became impatient with the sub-plots of all the stupid bad guys all wanting to 'rule the world'. It did get a little confusing with 'The 12', 'The 10', the 3 or 4, and the really fat one all plotting - and eating humans willy-nilly. I loved the tiny bit of romance tucked in here, too. There were even some funny parts. Jenny is a serious power for good to be reckoned with and I can't wait to read more about her, Allison, Piers Anthony(yes, the famous author), Michael, Lauren, Boa and Wei, Alexander and Tessy, Moon Diamond and poor Zacharia, and, of course, Dracula.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful new story of Dracula, and a vampire dystopia April 27, 2013

By k&r.w

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Wow- this is truly one of the best books I've read in a very, very long time.

I absolutely love the way Dracula is depicted in this story- he's comical, and deadly serious at the same time, which is just a perfect mix. The characters he has around him simply add to the humor and depth of his ancient personality.

Seeing life from Dracula's point of view is just great- having lived for thousands of years, he is quite a character, and it isn't hard to imagine that life would hold very few flickers of interest for him any more. Watching the spark of life come back to him throughout the book was wonderful, and it was interesting to find myself siding with him, and feeling sympathetic to his situation.

Watching stories unfold for several other character is really neat as well, and adds a layer of depth that I haven't seen in many books. It gives the story a sense of reality- not being entirely focused on one character, but seeing how they all effect each other, and come together in the end.

It is certainly graphic in some areas, but not in a way that made me want to stop reading. Non-traumatizing graphic, if you will. It really shows a more "natural" side to the struggle between both vampires and humans, and also among the different kinds of vampires, either good-hearted, or evil. It's a refreshing reality to a vampire story, and while dark, it is entertaining.

The writing style is difficult to get used to, at first. It's written like a screen-play, as if you're watching a movie unfold in somewhat disjointed scenes, from the points of view of several different characters. It's quite a unique way of reading a story. While the depth of the book and writing take some adjustment, it is completely worth it. The ease in which the author depicts his characters and scenes is amazing- his colorful vocabulary and descriptive imagery make it very easy to get lost in the world that's been created.

I thoroughly enjoyed the twists and turns, and the ending is superb- a complete surprise!! I am excitedly looking forward to the next book in the series.

I certainly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys vampire and/or dystopian stories. With action, comedy, suspense, and mystery, it's a very well rounded book, and has the ability to leave most of it's readers thoroughly entertained, and wanting more.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Dracula: Hearts of Stone January 14, 2013

By A. Coder

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

There is so many different points of view in this book that it would be extremely hard to write a synopsis without giving a lot away. But basically there are a bunch of evil vampires running around causing trouble. Everything pretty much branches off of that fact.

I was really amused by this book. I wasn't expecting much, I had a a bad run of books, but got more then I bargained for. The beginning dragged a little, but once it picked up it keep with a nice pace.

Dracula was by far my favorite, I wish the story focused more on him. Though I did love Moon Diamond was well. . .you could have cut everyone else out of the book and I would have kept reading just because of them.

It got a little confusing because there was so many different characters, at times I had to stop reading and think back to who was who. . .I know I got two of the major bad guys mixed up a lot, they where both fat, ugly guys that like pretty much doing the same things.

I liked how the book kept to a lot of the vampire legends, but changed some as well. I loved that the vampires weren't all lovey dovey with humans. I'm very tired of reading books like that.

There were a few errors in the book, but nothing so bad that it bothered me much. It just tends to stick out to me when dialogue starts with an " but doesn't end with one. . .I tend to get confused as to if the person stopped talking or not.

For the most part I really like this book, it was refreshing to me to finally find something worth reading to the end.

Would I recommend this book? Yeah, it was pretty good.