Customer Reviews

Immortal: Love Stories With Bite

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

 

 

Cynthia Leitich Smith's Haunted Love: This story wasn't exactly bad but it wasn't good either, it was "blah." It was ok for a short story, nothing special though.

Kristen Cast's Amber Smoke: Ugh, where to start? Just like the House of Night series she tries WAY too hard to sound teen friendly, like a cool hip teenager. It is ridiculously over the top, no teen actually talks like that. It is cheesy and irritating, Kristin really needs to tone it down. Being in touch with teens is one thing but sounding like that sad middle-aged mom trying to fit in with her teen daughter's friends is another. As for the story itself, awful. The author took every overdone, cliché story idea and threw it into one story. She also put way too much random info into the story and it got to the point where you were like "wtf?! why did that happen, how did that happen" every few sentences. It was the type of storyline that needed to be a novel so that everything could be explained, instead its a short story that doesn't make sense and doesn't flow smoothly at all. It wasn't much of a short story at all, just random nonsense thrown together with no meaning at all.

Rachel Caine's Dead Man Stalking:
Excellent! I haven't read the Morganville series but now I want to. The author's tone was great, the story was interesting, plus clear and solid and it made sense. It was what a short story should be, a whole story in just a few pages, not too much but not too little either.

Tanith Lee's Table Manners:
Very well written. A new interesting look on vampires. I enjoyed it.

Nancy Holder's Changed:
Another excellent, well written story. Showing a different kind of love and a different kind of vampire world. Instead of the dark brooding romantic vampires, you get the evil apocalyptic ones. A great read.

Richelle Mead's Blue Moon:
I really liked this one. I almost always love vampire stories where the vampires are known to the world.

Claudia Gray's Free:
I loved this one. It was a great story about a strong woman doing what she needs to do to make herself happy. It was also the only story that wasn't set in the present which was a nice change of pace from the other stories.

An earlier version of this book was published by Borders (or at least for Borders) exclusively sold within their stores. However for this new edition a new story was added by Rachel Vincent.

"Haunted Love" Cynthia Leitch Smith
There's more at stake (get it? at stake? vampires? work with me people) in this story then a love triangle. There's a decades old murder and hiding your true self and learning to move on from bad experiences. I admit I did not see the twist coming at all and I enjoyed the 'romance' of this story. Just gotta believe right?

"Amber Smoke" Kristin Cast
I enjoyed this story, and the premise behind it (let's go Furies!), but it felt rushed and as if it didn't have enough space to really explore everything. Alek's motivations were vague and defined only in that he wanted to protect Jenna. Jenna accepted her role fairly quickly. The pacing was off and I think if this was made into a full length novel it would smooth out the pacing faults easily.

"Dead Man Stalking" Rachel Caine
This ties in with her Morganville Vampires series. In The Eternal Kiss we saw the Morganville Universe through Eve's eyes and this time we see it through Shane's eyes. This isn't a story of romantic-love, but of family-love. Or whatever passes for family-love in Frank Collins' (Shane's father) eyes. This wasn't a story you could really read independent of the series either, as it relied upon knowing about Frank's last visit to Morganville and the fall out from that for development purposes. I enjoyed this look through Shane's eyes, saw a side of him we don't normally see. As with Eve's story, this could certainly be a set up for another arc in the series proper, but it makes you wonder--how many chances is this man going to get to burn the town?

"Table Manners" Tanith Lee
I wanted to like this story, because it looks at vampirism so differently, but the writing style was rather odd. It was almost like a gothic novel, with some of the sentences awkwardly phrased and elaborate descriptions of scene and mood. I liked that Lee looked at vampirism as an evolution of humankind, not a disease or curse and made it clear that really vampires didn't need blood or to avoid the sun or any of that, the media had just convinced them that's how things should be. Popular Culture--it will be the death of free thought and rational thinking.

"Blue Moon" Richelle Mead
I've not yet read the Vampire Academy series (it sits so forlornly on my shelves...beckoning I swear), but after reading this I have a new sort of impetus to. Blue Moon has nothing to do with the VA series (that I know of), but Mead's writing has a sort of urgency to it that I responded well to. I liked that her two characters, Lucy and Nathan, were both not quite sure what to do. Vampire-Human relations are, at best, categorized as Master-Servant class. It was enthralling simply put.

"Changed" Nancy Holder
Holder's story was brutal, emotionally and in how it depicted vampires. These aren't your brooding romantic vampires--these are amoral, cruel and inhuman creatures parading around in human guise. I felt so bad for Jilly, for everything she went through all because of a doomed (romantic) love. Her development throughout the story was fairly astounding, given the short nature of the story, but it flowed so easily. So logically as Jilly went from being desperate to find her friend Eli because she loved him so much, to finding him and understand that he loved her but not enough and ultimately to her realization that it didn't matter what form of love they shared, it was love and that's what mattered.

"Binge" Rachel Vincent
This is set in her Soul Screamers universe. A story about a siren and a leanan sidhe, of what power they have and what destruction they can cause. This was a painful story as Mallory, who always made sure Andi didn't go too far with her siren songs, learned that sometimes its hard to know when to stop even when you know better. You could feel how painful it all was for Mallory and how badly Andi wanted to save her from herself. In the end they both learn a powerful lesson, but at what cost.

"Free" Claudia Gray
This is set in her Evernight universe (featuring Patrice, Bianca's roommate from the novels). We learned the bare facts of how Patrice became a vampire in Evernight, and here we learn the whole truth. Over a century later we see what this one choice, how powerfully Patrice wanted to be truly free, becomes. Beauty is her weapon, her way to survive and charm. I enjoyed learning this little about her and what makes her tick.

These stories were at times surprising and at others times heart-breaking. I enjoyed this anthology a lot, and can only hope for more such anthologies in the future.

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Review:
"Haunted Love" by Cynthia Leitich Smith kicks off the anthology with Cody, a new male vampire who re-opens a haunted movie theater in his sleepy Texas town, but he never planned on an All-American human girl maneuvering her way into a job and possibly his heart. I was surprised at how strong Cody's voice was almost from page one, especially his accidental transformation into a vampire after ordering a strength potion off the internet. I wish he'd been given a full length novel to play around in, but even in his 30 or so pages, I cared about him. I cared less about the twist at the end. It was sudden and not at all in keeping with the rest of the story.Sexual Content: None

Review:
"Amber Smoke" by Kristin Cast is probably my least favorite story in this anthology, now granted I'm only halfway through Immortal, but still. This story is the reason I've mostly avoided reading YA. 18 year old Jenna (who comes across more as a vapid thirteen year old) is a shallow, self-absorbed high school senior when she meets hottie son of The Furies/vampire Alek who helps her transition into her new nonhuman existence. Dripping with pop culture references in an attempt to be `teen friendly,' this story is mess of unlikable characters who are nothing like any teenagers I've ever known. I've been looking forward to starting the House of Night series, but if they are anything like this...ugh. Sexual Content: None

Review:
"Dead Man Stalking" by Rachel Caine revisits characters from her Morganville Vampires series. Shane gets abducted by a zombie controlled by his estranged father seeking to enlist Shane's help in eradicating the vampire species. I've enjoyed Rachel's Weather Warden series, so I knew she was a good writer, but I only got Glass Houses yesterday, so this was my first visit to Morganville (although I'm now planning an extended stay), and there were characters with back stories I didn't know, but my ignorance didn't in any way diminish my enjoyment of this story. If anything it made me want more of this series.
Sexual Content: None

Review:
"Table Manners" by Tanith Lee is an odd story written in an odd way. It feels like a regency period story except for the occasional modern reference (cell phone, elevator etc.) A girl meets a Brad Pitt-esque vampire at a ball and tries to help him realize his vampiric weaknesses are all in his mind. The writing was very unique and sentence structure was often haphazardly ordered. I'm not sure what effect the author was going for, but the story was generic enough that it doesn't really matter.
Sexual Content: None

Review:
"Blue Moon" by Richelle Mead
This short story takes place in a world where vampires rule and humans live as second-class citizens. Lucy, the daughter of the most powerful vampire in Chicago, suddenly finds herself being hunted by her own kind and must rely on the help of a cute human guy who's spent his whole life hating the vampires who rule his city. -RichelleMead.com This is the best story (so far) in Immortal. The new spin on the vampire/human relationship was immediately intriguing and one that I hope Richelle plans to explore in a more books (pretty please). Vampire Lucy is just beginning to see life from the perspective of the humans living in servitude to her kind, while human Nathan has been fighting against a lifetime of hatred for the monsters who destroyed his family. When these two are thrown together, sparks fly in more ways than one. The story is set up in such a way that while the ending isn't a complete cliffhanger, it leaves a lot left unresolved. I'm hoping that is because, like me, Richelle realizes this world is too good to be used only once.
Sexual Content: None



Review: "Changed" by Nancy Holder (who I loved from her work on Buffy) pens a pulls no punches diatribe this time out. On just about every single page of this story (sometimes several times per page) the author reminds us that Eli, the unrequited love interest of the main character Jilly, is gay. Eli's stereotyped Jewish parents throw very un-politically correct insults at him, whereas Jilly's parents let him and his boyfriend Sean be together at her house. Jilly, a reformed `slut and drug addict' is the character we're supposed to identify with and root for, yet she has so little self worth that she doesn't care that her former boyfriend Eli, who left her for the jerk Sean, consistently takes her love for granted and even taunts her, I think, by kissing and showering with her and then dragging her into almost certain death to get to Sean. There is a vampire takeover going on in the background, but its far from the focus of the story. I don't know, maybe if the author had taken a less heavy handed approach with her message (a la Buffy) I wouldn't have felt like I was being lectured for 30 pages on homosexuality and the bigotry of Jewish people.
Sexual Content: two 16-year-olds take a shower together.

Review: "Binge" by Rachel Vincent is the bonus story included only in the updated version of this anthology. You've heard the expression `worth the price of admission'? Well Binge is it. Whether this is you're first introduction to the Soul Screamers series or not (and don't worry if it is), this story about a siren and a leanan sidhe will hook you. The girls struggle believably with envy, jealousy and above all loyalty. These rarely explored creatures from folklore are a refreshing addition to the paranormal cast and Rachel writes them with aching realism. "Binge" takes place in Kaylee's world, but features characters/creatures she will (probably) never meet in the series. Although one of them is mentioned, in My Soul to Lose, I think. Originally Nash had a cameo (he knows one of the characters in this story) but his small part got cut to make room for more actual story. This is a YA vampire romance anthology, but my "vampires" are very, very non-traditional. And non-literal. There's no blood sucking at all, and no fangs, and they aren't dead. Their vampirism is more... symbolic. But the girls in this story have some pretty scary abilities, and a fascinating (at least to me), twisted kind of relationship. -Rachel Vincent
Sexual Content: None

Review:
"Free" by Claudia Gray is a prequel of sorts to the Evernight series. This story focuses on Patrice (Bianca's roommate in the main series) and explains how she became a vampire in pre Civil War New Orleans. Claudia Gray lists on her website that Gone with the Wind has had an influence on her writing, and while I can't vouch for that in the main series, that influence is very apparent in this period story. The characters are very strong and vividly portrayed, however if you need the urban factor in your fantasy you might want to skip this prequel and jump right into Evernight.

Immortal, edited by P.C. Cast, is worth buying even if just for P.C. Cast's initial essay on that thing teenagers seem to have with vampires. Not just lust nor raging hormones, she identifies some fascinating points of contact between teen reader and vampire lore, and leaves this long-gone teen thinking yeah, that does make sense. And then there's the stories.

I enjoyed this introduction to a fine mix of authors: Kristin Cast writing on her own to combine vampire and other ancient myths into an intriguing whole; Tannith Lee viewing the stranger at the party through strangely well-trained eyes; Rachel Caine creating a curiously disturbing little world in Morganville; Cynthia Leitich Smith's truly haunting Haunted Love; Nancy Holder's scarily post-apocalyptic New York; Richelle Mead's odd story of vampires and men with its underlying commentary about the fate of the "different"; and finally Claudia Gray's strange trip to New Orleans.

The stories are fun, nicely collected, neatly disturbing and intriguing. And okay, I'm not a teen and never will be again, but I really enjoyed the book.

Ordinarily, I'm not much for anthologies. Generally speaking, the more contributors, the less bothered I am to read every story. Thus this collection of eight YA vampire romances is a welcome surprise. It hasn't made me chase up every author's backlist, but I read each short.

Cynthia Leitich Smith's "Haunted Love" is memorable and cringe-free. Kristin Cast's "Amber Smoke" is good, before readers' attention wanes. Rachel Caine's "Dead Man Stalking" gives insight into effed-up family relations. Tanith Lee's "Table Manners" has wonderful psychological depth, but the lead character talks to the reader. Richelle Mead's "Blue Moon" is a treat. Nancy Holder's "Changed" steps up when the characters hit the high school gym. Rachel Vincent's "Binge" is gold. And Claudia Gray's "Free" provides a view into race relations in pre-Civil War US.

Despite both vampires and romances not being my cup of tea, IMMORTAL is a strong collection with something for everyone. The quality varies from good to great, but every story is worth reading.

This was a good read. Some of the stories were boring but others left me wanting more. There definitely were more good than bad though.

I love anthologies! Especially when one of my favorite authors includes a short story related to the series I'm reading. So, how Immortal: Love Stories With Bite got past me, I do not know. I love Rachel Caine and am a huge fan of the Morganville Vampire series, so why this anthology that includes a short story about Shane didn't hit my radar, I don't know. Anyway, I'm glad I finally came across it because it has some excellent stories in it.


First up is "Haunted Love" by Cynthia Leitich Smith, which features a very new vampire, a ghost and a not-so-innocent girl who is connected to both. What I found interesting is the manner in which the new vampire is made--a modern twist. The story is very interesting and the character of Cody is someone I would read about again. Next is "Amber Smoke" by Kristin Cast. This story features a vampire of mythological origin intervening with Fate to save a very special girl. I enjoyed the mythological aspect of this story, it brought a different aspect into the story.



"Dead Man Stalking" by Rachel Caine is part of the Morganville Vampire series and features Shane, my favorite character from the series. Anyone unfamiliar with the series may not enjoy the story as much because you really need to understand the history to appreciate the story. However, if you are not familiar with the series, find a copy of Glass Houses (Morganville Vampires, Book 1) and get to reading! In this story, Shane is 'contacted' by someone from his past & he has to choose between his past & what he believes is right. It's a great story about Shane and shows a bit of maturity in his character.


"Table Manners" by Tanith Lee is a new kind of vampire story--at least, new to my reading experience. I was introduced to Lelystra Draculian, only a distant relation, and some notions that the widely behold beliefs about vampires' powers and weaknesses are largely a self-fulfilling prophecy. This story is followed by "Blue Moon" by Richelle Mead. I haven't read any of her books, although I understand her Vampire Academy Collection is very popular. This story isn't related to the series, it introduces an interesting character in Lucy Wade, a vampire born with the power to fulfill an ancient prophecy that will change the world--for real. I liked this character and would read more about her if Richelle Mead developed this story into a full blown novel.


"Changed" by Nancy Holder takes place in a different New York--one devastated by vampires. On Jilly's 16th birthday, vampires take over and destroy New York City. What's interesting about this story is really that the vampires could have been anything--terrorists, aliens, whatever you prefer for your outside source of devastation. The truth of the story takes place in Jilly's journey to maturity and adulthood, the vampires providing the catalyst for her growth. Following "Changed" is "Binged" by Rachel Vincent. I am a fan of Rachel Vincent's Soul Screamers series, as well as her Shifters series. Although neither refer to vampires, there is enough overlap in the supernatural world to consider that either series would be referenced in this story. But, this story was completely independent of either series and it was very, very good. I don't even want to mention the story for fear of providing spoilers, but let me say that it is a very good story that does not develop in the direction I expected it to. I loved it and would read more about Mallory anytime. The final story in the anthology is "Free-A Story of Evernight" by Claudia Gray. I have not read the Evernight series but the story is very interesting on its own. It tells the story of Patrice, a young quadroon in New Orleans. Patrice is an intelligent, independent young woman who is about to be introduced into 'society' for a wealthy white man to 'court' her to become his mistress. However, even as Patrice seems to get in over her head, she uses her intelligence to not only escape the immediate situation, but to embark on a completely new life. I may have to add Evernight (Evernight, Book 1) to my to-be-read shelf.


Overall, I enjoyed Immortal: Love Stories With Bite. I also enjoyed P C Cast's introduction, waxing poetic about the attraction of vampires. I was able to read offerings from authors I currently enjoy and found some new authors to look for in the future.

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I actually happen to love a lot of the authors whom have a story in this book. It really kind of felt like the stories were rushed too much. I do realize that these are short stories but some of them just didn't make sense, would I read the book again .... no. Would I buy the book again.... nope. I guess I can cross it off my list and hope for a better one next time.

Love vampires? Love vampire romance even more? Then this is definitely the anthology for you. Packed with a fistful of big name young adult authors like Rachel Caine and Richelle Mead, Immortal: Love Stores with Bite is a powerhouse of exciting and engaging short stories to fit every taste.

Haunted Love by Cynthia Leitich Smith kicks off this collection with a ghost story. Spirit, Texas is your typical small Texas town, complete with abandoned movie theater with a spooky past. When new girl Ginny Augustine approaches Cody Stryker looking for a job at the newly renovated spooky theater, he figures that a little help couldn't possibly hurt. When the ghost of a teenage girl, murdered in the Old Love theater, shows up, things get a bit more than complicated... Cody's hiding a secret, but so is everyone else. Haunted Love is a wonderful story combining two aspects of the paranormal world into a mystery with more twists and turns than you'd ever expect.

Following Haunted Love is an out-of-the-ordinary story by Kristen Cast entitled Amber Smoke. All Jenna wants for her senior year is to be cool for a change. What she doesn't plan on is Alekos and the Furies intervening in her future. Jenna begins the story as your typical teenager, and a bit shallow to boot. By the end of this short story, her entire outlook has changed and she's even grown up some. She shows great potential and I'd definitely love to read more about this pair.

Dead Man Stalking by Rachel Caine follows in the third slot of this wonderful anthology. Family relationships are never easy. Just ask Shane Collins, he knows better than the rest of us. So what do you do when your father is anti-vampire and you're dating one? Like I said, it's complicated. This was my first taste of the acclaimed Morganville Vampires series and I liked it a lot. Shane is a very strong character who rises to the occasion and makes the best decision possible, considering the tough situation he's put in. I'm definitely going to have to read more of this series.

Tanith Lee has long been a favorite author of mine, so I was pleased to see her short story, Table Manners, in the fourth slot of this anthology. This was probably one of my favorites in this collection. In this lovely short, Lel is the daughter of an unusual man, one who treats vampires. She knows Anghel for what he is the moment she first spots him and is determined to help at all costs. One of the most unique vampire stories I think I've ever read. The characters are different and the storyline is more than enjoyable.

Riding on the heels of Tanith Lee is Changed by Nancy Holder. Set in a post-apocalyptic New York, two best friends are forced to make the ultimate sacrifice to save the other. This story shows the true strength of friendship over love and hit me hard. It was very real-to-life in respects to the teens of today's world and the challenges and choices they face. Although probably the most frightening of the stories contained in this collection, it was also one of the most relatable.

Blue Moon by Richelle Mead was one of the most interesting stories in Immortal. Lucy is an ancient prophecy come to life. But not for long as her family is out to kill her before she can set the prophecy into motion and change the state of the world as they know it. After essentially kidnapping an innocent human, Lucy is forced to make some hard decisions and look her future in the face. I loved her character - she was fresh and new as far as vampires go. She wasn't over-confident nor was she even very sure of herself most of the time. She and Nathan, her captive human counterpart, learned as they went and discovered they were more alike than they could have dreamed. I do hope that Lucy does eventually get a novel of her own.

Tying things together and finishing up this great collection is Free by Claudia Gray. Free is the only historical story of the bunch, but it couldn't have been written in any other time period. Patrice is a free black teen, not something you saw much of in New Orleans in 1841. In order to stay free, she must find a rich white man to take her as a temporary wife, like it or not. On the night of her presenting, she finds another choice in the form of the vampire, Julien Larroux. Patrice is very independent and outspoken considering both her age and time period. It's always exciting to see a woman in history stand out against the ties holding them down. Free is another of my favorite stories for many reasons. It is a very unique and intriguing story, but it also has quite the surprising twist at the end that took me quite by surprise. I just love when a story does that. I am going to have to look up Ms. Gray's series and learn more about Patrice.

Immortal: Love Stories with Bite is a wonderful collection of widely varying stories suitable for both teens and adults alike. With many different genres and just as many different takes on the vampire legend, you're certain to not get bored with this anthology. Nor will you think that you've read this story or that one before as each are as unique and individual as their authors. A must-read for any lover of vampires, Immortal: Love Stories with Bite will not disappoint.

Originally posted at: [...]

In Immortal: Love Stories With Bite, editor P. C. Cast brings together eight short stories about the everlasting kiss, the bite of a vampire, from some of the most popular young adult paranormal authors today, including Kristin Cast, Richelle Mead, and Rachel Vincent, among others.

Similar to other anthologies, IMMORTAL was a great way to experience the style and writing of multiple different authors in only one book, and it was easy to pick up and read a single story at a time. With each story running only 30 - 35 pages, it was perfect for lunch breaks or right before bed. Among the stories, there was some strong contributions, most notably Rachel Vincent's "Binge" about a siren and leenan sidhe fairy and Claudia Gray's "Free" about vampires and race in pre-Civil War New Orleans. Both stories were linked to the authors' existing series, SOUL SCREAMERS and EVERNIGHT respectively, and I liked both enough to want to seek out the authors' other books. Other well-done stories included Richelle Mead's "Blue Moon" about a vampire on the run, which had a tone and style similar to her VAMPIRE ACADEMY series, and Rachel Caine's "Dead Man Stalking" that provided a glimpse into the dysfunctional families of Morganville from her ongoing series.

Unfortunately, I found only half of the stories in this collection to be enjoyable or memorable. The stories by Kristin Cast ("Amber Smoke") and Tanith Lee ("Table Manners") were particularly weak, and those by Cynthia Leitich Smith ("Haunted Love") and Nancy Holder ("Changed") were just unmemorable. Many of the stories concluded with unhappy or unfinished endings, and very few of the entries were love stories in the traditional sense, which may be misleading to some readers based on the subtitle of the book. The lengthy introduction by P. C. Cast was also rambling and patronizing.

Even with this lack of balance in story quality, IMMORTAL proved to be a quick and inexpensive way to sample the work of multiple authors, and it provided me with some new authors to check out. I'm looking forward to the sequel, Eternal: More Love Stories with Bite, which comes out later this year. If you're looking for something similar in the meantime, consider The Eternal Kiss: 13 Vampire Tales of Blood and Desire.

(NOTE: Be sure to buy this edition of the book. An earlier, limited edition of the novel was available exclusively from BORDERS, but it did not include the story by Vincent and it cost six dollars more.)