Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Someone is Killing the Werewolves of Canada, August 23, 2001
"Blood Trail" is the second in Tanya Huff's vampire series. Written in 1992 it anticipates and foreshadows Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake series. Huff's heroine is similar to Anita in that she is tough and self willed, but she is a bit more subdued, lacks any special powers and is handicapped by the retinosa pigmentosa which is slowly making her go blind. Nor are the settings similar, Toronto instead of St. Louis, and vampires are rare and not necessarily monstrous. While Huff's stories have an element of romance in them, they do not even approach the steamy vampire sexiness that Hamilton puts together with ease.That being said, this tale starts out in Toronto, but rapidly shifts to the countryside around London, Ontario. At vampire Henry Fitzroy's request Vicki is helping to discover a sniper who is trying to kill a family of werewolves. Nightblind, Vicki will do the day work and Henry will watch the night. Two have already died before Vicki arrives, and Henry is wounded on his very first patrol. Vicki is initially wary of the wer, but soon discovers that they are hardly the creatures of horror stories. Instead the Heerkens family are pleasant, caring folk who live very much in the present and who have an overwhelming charm. To the observer they are ordinary farmers with a lot of dogs and a penchant for nudity. Vicki makes a strong connection with some of the younger members of the pack and rapidly becomes determined to track down the real monster, the guy with the gun. On top of Henry's injury, an attempt is made on Vicki's life when her brake lines are cut. To make matters worse, Mike Celluci, Vicki's ex-partner, and sometimes lover, appears from Toronto. Mike is convinced that Henry is an organized crime boss and has come to rescue her. Needless to say, rescuing is not what she needs. Mike inadvertently finds out that the people for whom Vicki is working are werewolves and nearly has a coping failure. And he never quite gets his confrontation with Henry. And in the meantime, the killer is still stalking the werewolves. The wer themselves refuse to limit there own freedom, making Henry and Vicki's task even more complicated as they seek for a hunter who is also an extraordinary marksman. All of this adds up to a great tale. With an entire family of werewolves to present, Huff keeps extraneous characters to a minimum. The most interesting are the country doctor who cares for the Heerkens and a curious woman who teaches Vicki more than she ever wanted to know about Olympic Marksmanship competition. The Heerkens family itself is fascinating from Nadine and Stuart, the alpha pair to the young twins Rose and Peter. Huff has managed to create a new kind of werewolf that seems as true as if it followed the legends exactly. Huff's brew is a mix of humor and suspense that makes "Blood Trail" a unique and satisfying book.
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31 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Vampire and werewolves with a sense of humor, January 12, 2001
This is the second book in a series about Vicki Nelson, PI, and Henry Fitzroy, romance writer, bastard son of Henry VIII, and vampire. Those who already know that they like vampire novels, anything at all that features a vampire, can skip this review, and likewise, those who hate the whole idea of vampires can skip it. But for those trying to decide whether or not to read more of this genre, or whether the one vampire novel you've already read was a fluke, it may help to have some ways to categorize these novels. Thus: BunRab's Standard Vampire Classification Guide. First, most authors of vampire novels approach from one of the main genres of genre fiction; thus their background may be primarily in romance, or in science fiction/fantasy, or in murder mysteries, or in horror. Second, many vampire novels come in series; knowing whether this is one of a series, and where in the series it falls, may be helpful. Then we have some particular characteristics: - Is the vampire character (or characters) a "good guy" or a "bad guy"? Or are there some of each? - Are there continuing characters besides the vampire, through the series? - Are there other types of supernatural beings besides vampires? - Can the vampire stand daylight under some circumstances, or not stand daylight at all? - Does the vampire have a few other supernatural characteristics, many other supernatural characteristics, or none other than just being a vampire? (E.g., super strength, change into an animal, turn invisible) - Does the vampire have a regular job and place in society, or is being a vampire his or her entire raison d'etre? - Does the vampire literally drink blood, or is there some other (perhaps metaphorical) method of feeding? - Is sex a major plot element, a minor plot element, or nonexistent? - Is the entire vampire feeding act a metaphor for sex, part of a standard sex act, or unrelated to sex? - Is the story set in one historical period, more than one historical period, or entirely in the present day? - Does the story have elements of humor, or is it strictly serious? - Is the writing style good, or is the writing just there to manage to hold together the plot and characters?Tanya Huff's series about the vampire Henry Fitzroy starts from the mystery and thriller genres (Huff also writes Fantasy), and is a continuing series. Fitzroy is a good guy, just leading a quiet life. The continuing characters include several types of humans: police officers, detectives, street people, family members. There are other supernatural characters, usually only one type per book (e.g., werewolves). Henry definitely can't stand daylight at all; it literally burns him. He has extraordinary strength and speed, and a sort of hypnotic influence but no "magic" powers. In fact, other than the existence of a few types of supernatural beings, there is little supernatural going in in the series - it's everyday modern Toronto, not a fantasy world. He's got a day job - er, make that a night job: he's a writer. He drinks blood, usually from consenting adults, sometimes associated with sex, but not necessarily. There is sex in the books, but it's a minor plot element, not graphically detailed. These stories are there for the mystery/thriller elements; romance is only a sideline. Huff allows the characters to have a sense of humor: witty dialogue, a way with words. Some of the characters are set up for humor and farce as well, although not in a crude or gross way. The writing is well above average for "genre fiction" and the books are quite enjoyable to read. Blood Trail continues with Vicki getting to know Henry better, as they take a trip out to a rural town to help out some friends of Henry's. The friends are a nice family of sheep farmers who just happen to be werewolves as well. Somebody is trying to kill off the werewolves. One member of the family isn't a farmer- he's a police constable. The dialogue between Colin and his partner officer Barry, who is of Asian descent, is funny - since both were the only minorities, they banded together at Police Academny and have stuck together since. Their comradeship includes the exchange of buddy insults: "Sheep-f - -er." "Yellow Peril." Guy stuff. In the meantime, Mike Celucci, the Toronto cop, is worried about Vicki being off somewhere with Henry, and decides to investigate Henry's background. The conclusions he jumps to from the lack of background he finds lead, of course, to a wonderful fight with Vicki. Along the way, we also meet a religious nut/gardener and his sleazy con-man nephew; a little old lady in tennis shoes who is a championship rifle shooter, and a few other odd characters. The details of werewolf family life are nicely done.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This Entire Series is Excellent! Highly Recommended, March 9, 2004
This is Tanya Huff's second novel in the "Blood Series." If you have not read Ms. Huff's entire series, be sure to obtain all five books. They are excellent and you will not be disappointed! (Blood Price; Blood Trial; Blood Lines; Blood Pact; Blood Debt).
In her first novel, Blood Price, you met ex-cop Vickie Nelson turned private investigator, who had to leave the police force due to a dibilitating eye condition which leaves her literally blind at night. Quite by accident while working on a case, Vickie met romance writer/400 year old vampire Henry. Henry helped Vickie with her first case by being her eyes at night. Vickie and Henry are not only friends but there is an attraction beginning to blossom between them. Also in the mix is Vickie's ex working partner, Mike Celluli, who she still sees as a friend and romantic interest. This second book continues here. Vickie receives a telephone call from her friend Henry. He has a new case for her if she decides to accept. Vickie goes to Henry's apartment to meet her new clients, who turn out to be none other than werewolves. It seems that someone has discovered the werewolves' secret (that they are indeed half human, half animal), and has been shooting and killing various family members. The various killings have all taken place at night while the weres are at their home (they own a farm in the London countryside). As you can guess, the weres cannot go to the police in fear of their secret being discovered. Vickie and Henry will have to go to the weres' farm and work together to help the weres discover the killer before any further family members are killed. That's the basic premise of the story. I have noticed that many vampire fans of early Laurell Hamilton's Anita Blake series have always recommended Tanya Huff's series as another excellent vampire series. I have to agree. I collect all types of vampire novels, and next to the early Anita Blake's work, this series is just as good. You will not be disappointed. I highly recommend.
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