DRACULA LIVES! By Joshua Reynolds has been on my to-read list for some time. I am a fan of Mr. Reynolds work, have been for some time but I have been fond of the vampire mythos for much, much longer. I was not about to forgive any mucking about with my beast of legend.
The tale stars a man named Cream. He is an assassin and very good one. I must give points to Reynolds for writing not a show-boaty kind of action star of an assassin but rather a lean killer that does enough to come out on top,often using his brains before his other dangerous abilities. Not a layer of frosting here to make him seem cool. Cream is just cold, proficient and quite lethal. My expectations on the handling of a man in this sort of profession were exceeded.
Come to think of it the entire tale is lean. Nothing frivolous or distracting about the story, characters or prose style. There’s very little backstory getting fed to you, the reader, bogging you down and slowing things up. It’s hit the ground running and you better move fast or it’s your life!
That is very much what Cream is up against. He is running for his life for the entire book. There are a multitude of factions working against him, all of which underestimate him again and again to their regret, that is for certain. Whether it is against man or monster, Cream holds his own quite well. A very impressive man by all accounts.
There is plot, action, horror and intrigue in spades in this cross-genre, well-spun tale. It is a bargain at full price and a book not to be missed.
I must find a way to get Mr. Reynolds to hammer out the damned sequel immediately!
C. William Russette
Pa.
2012
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