Customer Reviews

Slayer

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

 

 

Sexy and dangerous. Those words aren't only to describe the writing style of author Karen Koehler, but also to describe Slayer, a vampire novel that will leave you breathless by the end. Not only intelligent and thorough, Slayer opens you up to a world of the dhampiri's; creatures that have evolved from what we know as vampires. Trust me when I say this is completely different...even if you are absolutely convinced you couldn't stand to read another book on vampires...I promise you will find yourself entranced from the get go.

We are first introduced to Alex Knight, the quintessential vampire hunter and a master at his art of assassination. He slays vampires with skill, wisdom, and rogue panache. His supernatural powers enable him to be the best at what he does. For the fallen, the weak, and the brigade of vampires...he is their enemy and demands the very poisonous essence they hold inside. It is a sleek ride into the underworld and what happens when it collides with our world.

Slayer has a rare complexity in its intense plotline. There is nothing repetitive of other vampire novels; it is in a class all its own. Vampires are my favorite and I've been reading several books about them as of late. Each one touches on a mere myth of the vampire and fully evolves into a story brimming of unique and imaginative settings. From the first paragraph I was swept away into a whole new world and damn did I enjoy the escape!

Karen Koehler brings a stylish touch to Alex Knight. Not only do you delve into his dark world, but you also get caught up in the action that plays out almost before your eyes. I was also enraptured by the ancient ways the vampire hunter honors. There is a lot of history here, which makes it even more intriguing to read. It doesn't let your mind stop working, or your blood stop pumping. Your adrenaline will get a workout. The characters are an amazing depiction of each and every one of us; lone characters that roam together or apart, each with individual traits. In any world, even the underworld, there are those fueled by thoughts, obsessions, cravings, desires, and danger. To say this is thrilling would be a severe understatement.

Everything within the realm of Slayer is detailed. From the weapon of Alex's choice; a 400-year-old Double Serpent Katana sword, to his reasons for the attack on vampires, to the very dark alleys he protects, you gain a strong sense of understanding and clarity. I found myself holding my breath more times than I care to mention. When I get locked into a character's headspace, than I know I'm reading about a character I will care about and continue to think about, even after I've finished. It also shows me that the author knows what she is doing, and I can certainly say that about Karen Koehler.

It's good to see a new voice in the vampire genre who doesn't lean on old cliches and the like and Karen Koehler is one such new author. Her novel, "Slayer", sets up a very dark, gothic and industrial world for a maner of supernatural characters to play, thrive, and die tragically in. Her take on vampires is unique, and its always good to see the lesser known myth of the dhampir come into play.

Now, this isn't a happy novel. It's very dark and dismal, but that's part of its charm. The action scenes are top rate, and Koehler doesn't skirt around dark issues. Her style reminds me of Nancy A. Colins, but Koehler is more poetic and sees the beauty mixed into her world while Collins makes sure to paint everything in an ugly light.

This is a dark, beautiful, sad, gothic, and cutting edge vampire tale. I highly recomend it.

I feel like I'm just about the last person on the planet to read this book, so I'll dispense with a synopsis. (If you haven't read it, and you have any interest in vampire or goth novels, then you must, tout de suite!)

I don't think I've ever read a book that's been so damn honest to its characters. Koehler has no problem whatsoever in examining the foibles and eccentricities of her subjects in ways that might make the reader feel a tad bit uncomfortable. She delves into semi-incestuous vampire relationships, semi-homosexual vampire relationships, interracial relationships - vis-a-vis vampires & humans, and yet she remains incredibly loyal to the universe she's created; in other worlds you never get the sense that she's doing it for the shock factor. Koehler cares about these characters in a very real way. You get the sense as you're reading the book that she took great care and time to decide just exactly what each of their fates would be.

What's great about this book is that Koehler "sets up" the entire Slayer universe while at the same time telling an involved, tragic story about how Alek Night (the Slayer) comes to lose everything he thinks he knows about his existence.

Engaging, emotionally charged with TERRIFIC battle sequences, "Slayer" is CERTAIN to satisfy any lover of the genre!!

I only happend to come across this book because i was searching online for something online, i forget what but i'd probably guess it was somethin to do with vampires either way its not important, I came across just another generic vampire website which had a whole heap of reviews for this one particular book. I had a brief read through some of them, a few of the websites that had reviewed it I recognised and they had given it some amazing reviews. I was quite surprised to find that i didnt see a single bad review (the website was not selling the book, so dont say thats why there were no bad ones :P). I followed a link that led me to Amazon or somewhere and thought what the hell its not all that expencive ill give it a go.
Something like 2 weeks later it arrives in the mail and i set out to reading it, needless to say i was quite enthralled by the book and finished it within a week (i must point out that i'm an insanely, even painfully slow reader, so you can guess how long i was reading each day, and if you cant...it's alot lets just leave it at that). Before i was even half way through i had gone to order the next book in the series. I generally dont like to be a buttkisser but in this case its quite hard not to.

The story is based around Alek Knight, one of many vampire slayers under the control, so to speak, of the Roman Catholic Church. This collection of slayers are there to monitor and control the vampire population in New York City. All is peachy for Alek and his chums until he murders another Slayer (if you want to know why read it and find out) and is left on the run from the Church and its horde of slayers. All he has to left to help keep him alive is his sacred sword (the Double Sepent Katana) his Leather Greatcoat, and a strange vampire that bares a remarkable resemblance to his dead sister as they set off in search of the 13th Chronicle (confused i know i didnt make it clear, all the more reason to read it *rolls eyes*).

Needless to say this isnt just your average, god aweful, generic, vampire story, one thing I found particularly different is that Karen uses references to actual mythology for the "vampiric laws" if you will, not your old garlic an silver crap that im so tired of hearing.

As i've already stated this is a great book, well worth the 15 bucks you pay for it, there is so much more that i really need to include in this review but then i'd just be ruining in the book and there'd be less point in reading it. So go on, fork out your wallet and buy it, i promise you, you wont be disappointed. And if you are, feel free to send me hate mail telling me how wrong i was.