Customer Reviews

Song in the Dark (Vampire Files, No. 11)

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4 star:		(1)
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After being tortured for over an hour and being skinned alive, vampire Jack Fleming, owner of the nightclub Lady Crymsyn, in Chicago of 1938 is recovered physically but is an emotional wreck. He can't hypnotize anyone without getting a vicious headache. He has uncontrollable muscle spasms and an unholy thirst for blood to drink. He is afraid if he is with his girlfriend Bobbie, he will be unable to control his bloodlust so he keeps his distance from her at a time he needs her most.

His friend, mob boss Gordy is sick and while he recovers, Jack takes his place. A New York Crime lord is in Chicago to hear why Jack killed the man who tortured him before bumping off Jack. The vampire risks the headache and hypnotizes him into becoming his friend. When the lead singer at and his ex wife are both murdered, Jack resolves to find the killer. When a mob war breaks out Jack has to watch his back from his enemies because in his present condition he could be killed and in a horrible twist, his greatest enemy uses Bobbie to bring him to his knees.

P.N. Elrod has written another exciting vampire crime thriller featuring an immortal but not invulnerable protagonist who suffers from panic attacks because of lingering psychological trauma. This vulnerability makes Jack even more of an endearing character in the tradition of Heathcliffe. The infighting in Chicago is very realistic in an Al Capone sort of way. Only Jack limits the violence as much as possible. This long running series just keeps getting better and better.

Harriet Klausner

**Spoiler Alert for Cold Streets**

A Song in the Dark is the 11th installment from P.N. Elrod in the Vampire Files. This novel picks up right where the last novel, Cold Streets, ends. Jack Fleming, our hero vampire, is trying to overcome the physical and psychological damage he endured after being skinned alive (or skinned dead in Jack's case) by a sadistic, diabolical mobster from New York. At the same time he's trying to fill in as mob boss for his pal Gordy, who is recovering from gunshot wounds incurred in the previous episode. At the same time, there's an internal mob conspiracy to unseat Gordy and the target at the moment is Jack. And he's not quite sure what to make of the New York mob boss, Whitey Kroun, who is trying to figure out what to do about Jack's killing of Hog Bristow - the nasty piece of work that did a little knife work on Jack. All this swirls around a murder mystery tied into all these subplots.

While A Song in the Dark is a solid addition to the Vampire Files, it is a bit of let down. While it ties up part of the loose ends from Cold Streets, it does little to advance the story of Jack Fleming, Charles Escott, and Bobbi Smythe. Instead of moving the characters forward they are stuck in a rut. We've seen Jack before grapple with his vampirism and frankly it is getting a little old. And Escott and Bobbi, except for a few interludes of drama, are basically role players here. This particular installment, for the most part, comes across as being a bit formulaic and drags out a little slowly.

There are some upsides to this novel though. There is some great foreshadowing and surprises along the way that are deftly handled. And the one character who does progress in the novel, in subtle ways, is Myrna, the resident ghost of Jack's nightclub, Lady Crymsyn. There are also enough surprises along the way to jolt the reader back into the story just as the action is lagging.

For fans of this series, this will be an enjoyable read, but probably a bit of let down from Cold Streets. And it is highly advisable to read Cold Streets prior to this novel, as a lot of what takes place is explained in the previous novel.

Finally, there is one big gaping hole left unfilled from Cold Streets. Where is Gilbert Dugan? In Cold Streets, Jack and Escott thwart another sadistic character who kidnapped a mentally disabled child. He subsequently finds out Jack is a vampire and blackmails him. After a confrontation with Jack he disappears. Jack currently has Gordy's gang looking for him. He is mentioned briefly early in A Song in the Dark - that he has not been found but that Jack has other things to worry about at the moment. No doubt, the resolution of this dilemma sets up another installment of The Vampire Files. Despite some of the drawbacks to A Song in the Dark, this reader looks forward to it.

In the previous Jack Fleming book, Cold Streets, Jack was mercilessly and hideously tortured by the sadistic Hog Bristow. Due to his vampiric nature, he survived something that would have killed an ordinary man a dozen times over.
In P.N. Elrod's latest book, Song In The Dark, which takes place only a week after Cold Streets ended, Jack is trying desperately to come to terms with not only the pain he endured, but also the form his revenge took. His psyche is still that of an ordinary mortal, and though the physical scars are fading fast, he is having a near impossible time recovering from the psychological and emotional wounds he suffered. And to make matters worse, he's begun to have debilitating seizures, can no longer hypnotize anyone without having the most god-awful headaches imaginable, and has a nearly uncontrollable craving for blood.
However, life (or in Jack's case, Undeath) goes on, and there are plenty of other complications to keep Jack and company busy. Jack is still standing in for Gordy while he recovers from a gunshot wound. He's also got his nightclub, Lady Crymsyn, to run. Whitey Kroun, the mob boss who sent Hog Bristow to Chicago is in town himself, and wants to know who's responsible for Hog's death. With him is his deputy Mitchell, a man from Bobbi's past. Add to that two murders, lots of lowlife suspects, and dozens of twists and turns!
Throughout the entire book, Elrod lets us see how Jack's new disabilities affect his relationships with his partner Escott, as well as with Bobbi. And even though there are lots of hints of what's to come, the confrontation near the end between Jack and Escott is absolutely mesmerizing!
As always, reading a Jack Fleming book is a little like catching up with old friends (or in certain cases, old enemies!), and I'm certainly glad that Elrod's left Jack in somewhat better straits than he was in at the end of the last book!

I have yet to be disappointed with any of these Vampire Files books from P.N. Elrod.

They have continue to surprise me with the depth of research on the genre (Chicago gangs), the understanding and presentation of the various psychological issues -- especially in this latest book.

I don't give spoilers out its not fair in my opinion to those that haven't read the book yet. I was surprised more then once including at the end of the book.

A joy to read and I am looking forward to reading the next one.

Song in the dark is a very good story , but darker than I'm used to from P.N.Elrod in this series . It seems that Jack Fleming's fears of going down the spiral of violence is becoming reality . I hope this story gets a new direction in the next book of this series , for I like Jack Fleming as if he's a member of my own family . I'm rooting for him to overcome his problems , to get a grip . He is at the moment a bit stuck with his special abilities letting him down in a bad way . I hope it was only for the sake of the story line , but his inability to hypnotise people is a big hindrance . He feels as if his head will burst with every attempt he makes ; Of course he's been trough a lot : he's been tortured by a sadist and his other enemy , the would-be Hitler is still following him . Gets him in the end too and it's difficult to get unstuck for poor Jack . One would get depressed over far less . I won't spoil the story by telling too much but this time Jack is on his own . No help from his friends , who have problems of their own to solve . It is also a very good introduction of the new vampire , Kroun . I suppose and hope that he will get his own series , he's interesting . The moral dilemma for Charles is a beauty . I don't know what I would have done in his place . Maybe Kroun will take Jack's place in Escott's agency if and when Bobbi decides to go to California . Gordy Weems , who was a minor character in the other books is becoming more important . That is nice ,for I like the character a lot, specially his sense of humor . I'm hoping for more books in this series , maybe with a slightly lighter note . As usual , the plot is complicated , twisted and interesting to the last line . I read the book out in one sitting , staying up far too late .

As bad as Jack is or can be he finds someone even worse. With too close of a look at death, Final Death, he revises some of who or what he is. Being the lone vampire connected to the mob has hazards attached; especially if he isn't the only one. Times may have been easier in the thirties but death was just as cruel and final as it ever was. Dying once is bad enough and the second time is even worse.

PN Elrod does it again! Funny and scary all at once. Couldn't put it down. Can't wait for the next in this series!

This is the newest release in the series. Recommend reading series from book 1, Chill in the Blood, as the series continues the story progressively with each book. Well written the books grab you from the first and keep you reading to find out what Jack, a vampire, encounters next either with his private detective work or the mob. I look forward to what Ms. Elrod has in store for Jack in his next book.

In the latest installment in the vampire files, P.N. Elrod continues the enthralling story of Jack Fleming and his constant battle with coming to terms with his undead nature. Song in the Dark picks up shortly after Cold Streets. If you haven't been reading through the series you will want to go in order, each books builds on the previous book. In this story Jack is coming to terms with his near 2nd death experience and the impact it has had on dealing with a trauma so brutal and serious, that a normal person would not have lived through. The book starts off on a high point and keeps building from there; it will hold you on your seat till the very last page. This book shows a new aspect to being an Undead vampire, the extreme trauma and how someone deals with going on night after night, after facing a foe and situation that would destroy a normal person and even destroy an indestructible vampire.

It took me a while to get around to reading this book because I'm too broke to buy the hardcover editions, and too busy to read much fiction anymore. P.N. Elrod's Jack Fleming series is one that I always make time for eventually, however. The Fleming books have gotten better with each entry, and *Song in the Dark* is the best yet. Jack's PTSD following his experiences in *Cold Streets,* and its effect on those close to him, often made for difficult reading--I wanted to *help* him, and he had very few places he could turn to for help, given his situation. This led me into several mini-crossover-fiction fantasies in which the characters in my books somehow manage to run into Jack and have a fruitful discussion with him. I'm making this embarrassing public confession to demonstrate how realistic and affecting the characters in the Fleming series have become by this point. I like the fact that Elrod is less cautious about letting her books be chapters in a series. The early Fleming novels tended to have a lot of explanation and backfill, which could be mildly annoying. Now the books just charge ahead, and Elrod isn't afraid to let loose ends dangle for future resolution. I'm a sucker for "the never ending story" and I don't think books in a series should, or have to, stand alone.

My only count against *Song in the Dark,* and it's a minor one, is that I saw one of the major plot twists coming as soon as the critical element of the twist was introduced, and I honestly couldn't understand why the other characters remained oblivious to it. This did not hamper my enjoyment of the story in any way, however, it just raised a small plausibility question.

P.N. Elrod announced on her LiveJournal that she has finished the next book in the series, and I'll be very eager to read it.