Customer Reviews

Necroscope II: Vamphyri!

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Necroscope II is almost as good as it's predecessor. In fact, in many ways it's scarier. Lumley's Lovecraftian influence is made very clear here with his descriptions of the parasitic "vampires" and the different ways the creatures are capable of manifesting themselves. I also liked the wide variety of settings within the book, it was like there were four seperate stories going on. The continuing story of Harry Keogh and his search for a new body; the story of Thibor Ferenzcy and how he became a vampire in the middle-ages; the story of Yulian Bodescu; and Alec Kyle and his cloak and dagger dealings with the Russian ESPers. All these stories are wonderfully intertwined so that you'll never be bored. The only thing that keeps this from being great like the first book is that the characterization isn't nearly as good. Bodescu is a frightening villain, but not as sympathetic as Boris Dragosani from the original Necroscope and the many members of the British E-Branch seem to have little development and are pretty much just people for Bodescu to kill. Still, you'll have a good time reading this and will want to continue on with the series.

Lumley takes the Necroscope saga (which ends at 13 volumes, a triskadecology, with Necroscope: Avengers - just released at the time of this review). In this second volume some of the real trouble to come begins to take shape. Britain's ESPionage unit, E-Branch, begins to come into its own as a secret service. (One worthy of standing with James Bond's M and Q, or the X-Files Division, or any of the other mythical or fictional government agencies that actually seem to get something done.)

Meanwhile our protagonist, Harry Keogh, has this slight problem of being dead himself. Then there is the Old Thing In The Ground, a true Wamphyri who begins to show that Lumley's vampires are not Euro-chic slicks in opera capes, but something quite horrid indeed.

The beauty of Brian Lumley is that he writes in such a way as the reader can easily choose to read the Necroscope series as techno-thrillers, horror novels, romances, mysteries or even psychological explorations. Or some blend of the above. Lumley can get rather gross at times, but does not linger over gory detail. Rather he moves the plot or character development ahead. If there is one flaw in his writing technique, it is the need (forced by the way we publish and distribute books) to repeat himself at times and offer frequent recaps and summaries to the action. This is difficult and annoying to do, for an author. In a way it is a necessary exercise, but if I might offer anyone (especially me) some advice; it would be to balance exposition with additional dialogue. Lumley writes dialogue quite well, but overall it seems there could be more of it, the characters actually discussing the facts of the situation to round them out further.

The unique factor in the Necroscope series is that if a character does not survive one action, s/he is not counted out of the war. With the living, the dead and the Un-dead all playing active roles, Lumley makes it possible to include an array of characters (such as Auguste Ferdinand Moebius himself) without further stretching the willing suspension of disbelief. Lumley has created worlds of balanced dynamics and rules that is internally consistent, the critical factor in any genre of fiction. If you're interest, by all means start at the beginning and work your way through the series.

This is the first but not the last of Lumley's books, that I hope to enjoy for years to come. Brian drew me into the vampire world with such force and savagery that I had to come back for more. Brian is very graphic in every detail. Yulian Bodescu was a fetus corrupted before he was even born. You just have to love cunning of Thibor Ferenczy. Thanks Brian, you have a fan for life.

An excellent book. Runs seemlessly from it's prequel "Necroscope." Once again, Lumley has written a book that is near-impossible to put down. I found myself even dragging it to work with me to read when I had even a few spare moments. For anyone who likes sci-fi/horror, this is a must-read. I recommend reading Necroscope before reading this one, though, as they are meant to be read in order.

I can only compare Vanphyri to the other books that I have read in the series. The original Necroscope is a revelation. Necroscope 3: The Source, is a compelling new direction. Necroscope II, however, is neither. In fact, so little happens in this story that you could literally skip from "book one" to "book three" and not miss a beat. Besides, all the non-events of this story are summed up in one small paragraph in the first few pages of book three. Don't say I didn't warn you.

Its my least favorite book of the series, I did like the back story of "the thing in the ground" who will become quite a major character in the future.

The story, which seems to drag on slightly slower than the previous volume, offer strange and facinating new insight into the authors theory of the wamphyri and vampirism. It does however get slightly redundant and predictable toward the end as it starts to run parralell to its predecesor. Even thus, it is still a gripping book.

Is it HORROR or is it sci/fi? It makes no difference because it's all good. A splendid follow-up to the original that will leave you gasping for more, and there is more. Brain Lumley's fresh take on vampires just keeps going, with every installment adding new twists and turns. Parallel worlds, vampiric leaches, necroscopes, necromancers, an amazing alternate universe that just gets richer with each new book. My thanks to Dianne Kennedy for turning me on to one of the best series I've ever had the pleasure to read

Brian Lumley's ability to create such a brutally powerful world within our own is phenomenal. Never once did I feel like I was reading a book geared towards `young adults'. This the second installment in Brian Lumley's vampire series and it leaves you craving more.

This being the second book in the Necroscope series, it would be a good starting indicator that the series starts off pretty well... enough to get the second book.

I read the entire series... and I'm not much of a reader. But this series is the exception to all rules. It's a completely new take on the vampire legend/mythos.

Strangely erotic at times... horrific at other times... these books are like nothing I've ever read before. And some day I plan on re-reading the series a second time.