Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #47384 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 512 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780762434985
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Customer Reviews

Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance - BIG Book, Big Name Authors, Short stories - not all are romances
Yes, the Mammoth Book of Vampire Romances is truly MAMMOTH containing 25 short stories. You'll recognize the names of the most of the 23 well known authors as the writers of your favorite paranormal romance and popular urban fantasy series. Despite the title, only about half of the stories in the book are `romances' though most have some sex, but they do all have vampires and most all have a key element of the story associated with the vampire's bite: bringing a transformation, granting immortality, unlocking or stealing memories, sealing a bond or, with the refusal of the acceptance of its offer, breaking a heart. Together the stories pretty much cover most of the niches of the PNR and UF genres, one little tidbit at a time.

Since these are truly short stories some of the endings are a bit abrupt. A few of the entries tied into the authors' existing series, Gleason's and Arthur's read like deleted scenes from early books, and Devlin's, Holder's, Raye's, Chance's and Saintcrow's (the first of her two) explore other characters/pieces of their worlds. It's my first time with authors Kiernan, Devlin, Hart and Walker, but I suspect Walker's was a connected story too. My favorites were the ones from Chance, Black, Devlin, Emrys, and Morgan, they did the best with their characters and stories in the very short space. My least favorite were both of Kiernan's entries and Pettersson's - the vague poetic style of these stories left me unconnected to their characters.

*** "Fade to Black" - Sherri Erwin - A professor's tryst with a gorgeous student brings a whole new meaning to `unsafe sex' when he infects her with the `vampire' virus. (3 stars - This one was pointless and not a romance, it was all set up and then a too abrupt ending.)

*** "Ode to Evdard Munch" - Caitlin Kiernan - A man shares his blood with a mysterious vamp for a piece of her dreams. (3 stars - no romance and the connection between the leads was odd)

*** "Fangs for Hire" - Jenna Black - When a vampire hit woman finds her oh so sexy prey is not what he seems, she just might have to consider rewritting her `contract'. (4 stars - both the leads were interesting and I like the way they found to feed their hungers)

*** "The Righteous" - Jenna Maclaine - A sorceress and a King put events in play to establish a group of vampires to police their own, which is the catalyst to bring a vampire and a woman who stakes them together in Paris. (4 stars - I liked the huntress and the vamp - added 12/6 this is a prequel to MacLaine's Cin Craven series)

*** "Knowledge of Evil" - Ravent Hart - An ancient vampire with a passion for learning meets a gorgeous professor who shares his thirst for knowledge. (3.5 stars )

*** "Viper's Bite" - Delilah Devlin - A solitary vampire and a lonely woman connect but he must steal her memories to keep her safe. (5 stars -the story was bittersweet but hopeful )

*** "Dreams" - Kerri Arthur - Arthur's Riley Jensen and her sometimes lover vampire Quinn share dreams and danger. (4 stars - seemed like deleted scene from an early book but has the feel of the series)

*** "Love Bites" - Kimberly Raye - From her Dead End Dating world, a hereditary vampire slayer flunks her final test when instead of finishing off the vampire she's staked she takes him her home to heal. (3.5 stars -humorous but a bit on the cutesy side)

*** "What's at Stake" - Alexis Morgan - A legal enforcer must either prove the innocence of the vampire she's secretly loved or she must put him to death. (4 stars - more on the fantasy side, I liked this one a lot)

*** "Coming Home" - Lilith Saintcrow - Dante Valentine's foster daughter Liana is hired by the Nichtvahren who broke her teenage heart to kill his maker. (3.5 stars - Even though the heroine is Liana, her internal dialog feels very much like Dante - who make a brief appearance. Though with Saintcrow's writing style, it took two reads to understand everything that was going on.)

*** "To Ease the Rage" - CT Adams & Cathy Clamp - A police officer will join with her undead partner to find the strength to protect her city from vamps that threaten the peace. (4 stars - good chemistry between the leads)

*** "Dancing with the Star" - Susan Sizemore - A vampire's dreams of a dancing movie star may signal the end of her loneliness. (3.5 stars - a long dream sequence, not a fan of those, and the italics bugged me after a few pages)

*** "Play Dead" - Dina James - A vampire finds his soulmate and challenges the leaders of his clan for the right to choose his own bride. (3 stars - okay, but the most interesting character was not one of the leads. But well enough done that I would check this out if it were the start of a series.)

*** "In Which a Masquerade Ball Unmasks an Undead" - Colleen Gleason - Gleason's vampire hunting debutante Victoria tries to persue her attraction to Rockley while fighting off vamps at a masquerade ball with a little help and snide remarks from Max. (3.5 stars - One of the few historicals, this felt like a deleted scene from the first book, but missing the more serious events from the books which play against lighter scenes like this one)

*** "A Temporary Vampire" - Barbara Emrys - A vampire discovers a captivating `vampire' actress in New Orleans. (4.5 stars - Liked the vamp & it had a nice feel to it, but it should have been longer since it offers the promise of romance but ends before it can be fulfilled)

*** "Overbite" - Savannah Russe - A vampire patient gives a dentist a chance to expand his practice to the undead and to pursue his secret fantasies. (4 stars - Almost humorous)

*** "Hunter's Choice" - Shiloh Walker - Seems like a spinoff from her series the leading man is a vampire and a 'hunter'. A grieving/vengeful woman turned vamp-slayer must reexamine her beliefs about vamps to keep the star of her passionate dreams when they meet again. (4.5 stars - I liked the hero and because these two had an established connection from a previous tryst the romance worked even as a short. )

*** "The Sacrifice" - Rebecca York - A princess becomes a willing sacrifice to a `monster' to save her father's kingdom under seige and gains not only her kingdom's freedom but her own salvation. (4 stars - beauty and the beast theme, with a brave heroine and the noble sacrificing hero)

*** "Remember the Blood" - Vicki Petterson - Two vampires are reborn without memories each year but strive to bring forward clues to `remember' each other and their love. (2.5 stars - didn't like any of the characters and the style was too vague to be engaging)

*** "The Midday Mangler Meets his Match" - Rachel Vincent - An ordinary everyday vampire teen and her younger sister discover a use for their vestigal fangs when they have a run in with a killer. (3 stars - on the humorous side but a bit overboard on the `normal vamp' slice of life bits)

*** "The Music of the Night" - Amanda Ashley - A phantom of the opera obssesed woman gets a chance to star in her favorite fantasy when she meets her own phantom. (4 stars - I like the tragic phantom theme in this pleasant story)

*** "The Day of the Dead" - Karen Chance - From the Cassandra Palmer series, vampire Thomas seeks to rid the world of his evil former master and to aide a magical mercenary with a forbidden power to save her missing brother from the evil vamps yearly human hunt. (4 stars - Thomas is a favorite of mine and it was fun to see a bit more of him)

*** "Vampire Unchained" - Nancy Holder - A return to Holder's House of the Blood/Shadows/Flame/Phoenix world. Vampire Liam's secret negotiations with the House of Phoenix cause him to be accused of treason against his clan, his punishment is imprisonment with his human lover as the only source of blood, but their love holds the key that may free them. (4 stars - a nice little carve out from her series, Holder does a good job of developing Liam and his history)

*** "A Stand-up Dame" - Lilith Saintcrow - A soft touch for a dame in danger, this PI returns from the dead to solve his case. (3 stars - Sort of a Bogart with fangs, this one was okay but didn't feel very original, sort of like a P.N Elrod knock off.)

*** "Untitled 12" - Cailtlin R. Kiernan - A sick woman searches until a vampire finds her. (1 star - I detested this one. More on the horror side, the vampire and the turning were truly icky, though I debated giving an extra star to the author for inspiring such strong negative feelings with so few words.)

"Love is a weapon in the face of evil."
A savory collection of vampire tales of love and lust, THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF VAMPIRE ROMANCE, is a terrific sampler for fans of both the paranormal romance and urban fantasy genres. With offerings from some of the new big names in the vampire sub I highly recommend this for other readers who are seeking a taste of new authors. Others, not looking for new authors, might enjoy the few that tie into current series. To keep things brief let me offer information on each short story...

[FADE TO BLACK] by Sherri Erwin, When a vampire obsessed professor finds out one of her students is one of the undead their tryst forces choices on her she never saw coming. --While I liked the whole professor-has-vampire-as-student concept the story felt like it came out of another book and just didn't do it for me. 2/5 stars

[ODE TO EDVARD MUNCH] by Caitlin R. Kiernan, Our narrorator is a musician passing through Central Park each night where he befriends a mysterious young female vampire, one whom he dreams of in so many ways. --I loved the narration but this story was very short and poetic, not really romantic. 3/5 stars

[FANGS FOR HIRE] by Jenna Black, Gemma is a vampire hitwoman who is good at her job and when a client hires her to kill his step-father over an inheritance she gets a lot more than she bargained for. --I didn't think I'd like this one but the step-father character pulled the story together and would have made an excellent hero for a longer book. 4/5 stars

[THE RIGHTEOUS] by Jenna Mclaine, In this historical, when a vampire who is charged with weeding out the bad seeds of his race meets a human slayer who stirs his blood will they remain foes, or could he prove to her not all his kind are evil? --This tale was too cliched and sloppy for my tastes but fans who love historical vampire stories might like it. 1/5 stars

[KNOWLEDGE OF EVIL] by Raven Hart, Vampire Nick Manos has sought out a chance to study at the University of Georgia just to meet Professor Victoria Lennox, an expert on vampires... and they are both seeking forbidden knowledge. --A fluffy little tale with very little conflict, was a fun romp but not a real stand-out from the collection. 4/5 stars

[VIPER'S BITE] by Delilah Devlin, Viper is a vampire with an interest in Mariah, but just how deeply does tha interest go? --I feel like anything I can say about this story would be spoilery but it was very romantic and I loved it. 5/5 stars

[DREAMS] by Keri Arthur, Set around characters from Arthur's Riley Jenson series. --I feel bad cause I've never read any of the series so I was completely confused by the story and hence did not like it, my guess is fans of the series will love the extra 'screentime' with these characters. 2/5 stars

[LOVE BITES] by Kimberly Raye, Another offering that ties into the author's series, Danielle Blue is a newly minted SOB (Sniper of Otherworldy Beings) and she's due to make her first kill, but is sleeping with the enemy really breaking the rules? --I've got one of her books on my shelf so I was able to note the reference (though I haven't read it yet) to it... light and fluffy take on the slayer/vampire dilemna. 3/5 stars

[WHAT'S AT STAKE] by Alexis Morgan, I got the impression this may be related to a series Morgan is working on but can't be sure... When Josalyn Sloan is called in to make sure the legal rights of her former friend/almost lover are being met embers of their old flames come leaping back to life. --The set-up for a mythos got me interested but I didn't really care for the hero & heroine, they felt too familiar, like a cookie-cutter formatted H/H. 3/5 stars
[COMING HOME] by Lilith Saintcrow, Tying into Saintcrow's Dante Valentine series, Liana Spocarelli returns to Saint City for a job. --Another series tie-in I know nothing about but written with Saintcrow's distinct voice which is sure to please her fans and interest new ones. 4/5 stars

[TO EASE THE RAGE] by C. T. Adams and Cathy Clamp, There's been a break-in at Officer Sylvia Beck's home and the last thing she expects is the man she catches fleeing the scene... since he died two years ago! --Predictable but fresh, I liked the story here a lot and plan to look into these co-authors in the future. 5/5 stars

[DANCING WITH THE STAR] by Susan Sizemore, After a vampire receives a mysterious telepathic cry for help at a car wreck she later dreams of dancing with a handsome man who turns out to be a famous face. --Another very original premise that was really enjoyable and well written, one of my favorites from this collection. 5/5 stars

[PLAY DEAD] by Dina James, Shouldn't a vampire be able to choose his own bride, not have it chosen for him by his house? --I felt like this one dropped me into the middle of a series and didn't give me enough information to really understand what was going on. 2/5 stars

[IN WHICH A MASQUERADE BALL UNMASKS AN UNDEAD] by Colleen Gleason, Readers of the Gardella Vampire Chronicles will recognize Victoria Gardella Grantworth as the lead in this short story... Victoria's attempts at a private interlude with Rockley are interupted by undead stalking about the masquerade. --I've been waiting for the final book to come out before I read the series but I've been anxious so this little peek was tantalizing but not spoilerific. 3/5 stars

[A TEMPORARY VAMPIRE] by Barbara Emrys, Set in New Orleans this is a tale of a vampire looking for a new home who meets a fascinating mime. --New Orleans is so cliched in vampire stories I expected this one to be bad and I actually really enjoyed it, it was very original and a perfectly closed short story. 5/5 stars

[OVERBITE] by Savannah Russe, When a Manhattan dentist gets sucked (no pun intended) into the vampire underworld his life is forever changed. --I think this one ended up being my favorite of the entire collection because it was smutty, silly and very original, I have had Russe's books on my wishlist forever and I think it's time to buy! 5/5 stars

[HUNTER'S CHOICE] by Shiloh Walker, Sara's brother and best friend were murdered by vampires and she wanted revenge, can a vampire show her not all of the undead are evil? --This one was okay, but how many times have we heard this story before? 3/5 stars

[REMEMBER THE BLOOD] by Vicki Pettersson, Two vampires go to great lengths to remain forever tied to one another. --Fans of Pettersson's writing will enjoy seeing this offering which has no ties to her Zodiac series but the vampire mythos presented here might not appeal to many. 4/5 stars

[THE SACRIFICE] by Rebecca York, Princess Morgan of Balacord knows of only one way to save her kingdom from the invaders who have their land under seige - she must seek out the blood drinking monster known as Garon. --Fans of fantasy and traditonal romances will probably enjoy this one greatly, I found it to be pretty good though I prefer urban vampire tales. 4/5 stars

[THE MIDDAY MANGLER MEETS HIS MATCH] by Rachel Vincent, A serial killer is murdering vampire children and when Kez's little sister is abducted by the murderer she won't let him get away without a fight. --I lied earlier... this was my favorite of the entire collection - it was so different from everything else in it with it's teen heroine and her boyfriend, the idea of a vampire dominated world and all that would entail. Fellow fans of Vincent's werecats series will recognize her voice and enjoy seeing her writing something new. 5/5 stars

[THE MUSIC OF THE NIGHT] by Amanda Ashley, A new take on the Phantom of the Opera story. --I'm surprised no one has done this one before (at least not that I've seen), I didn't really care for it but I think fans of TPOTO and more traditional romances will love it. 3/5 stars

[THE DAY OF THE DEAD] by Karen Chance, Readers of Chance's Cassie Palmer series will remember Tomas and soak up this South American adventure tale. --I like the series but never really cared for Tomas and while I liked the twist this story had I didn't really care for it as a whole. 3/5 stars

[VAMPIRE UNCHAINED] by Nancy Holder, Trapped in the tunnels under Central Park, vampire Liam Cadagon must protect his Gifted human lover from his fellow vampires. --Another one of those stories where I felt dropped into the middle of a series and not quite given enough details but the ending was pretty good. 3/5 stars

[A STAND-UP DAME] by Lilith Saintcrow, A noir-ish vampire tale. --Another favorite of mine, I normally don't care for Saintcrow's writing but this was so far from her norm it was delicious. 5/5 stars

[UNTITLED 12] by Caitlin R. Keirnan, A strange and very short narrative of being turned. --This one was too strange and grotesque for me and the female/female "romance" was kind of icky when normally a same sex romance doesn't bother me much. 1/5 stars

Overall there were some really enjoyable quick reads, some that felt too long and cliched and a few that tied into current series. What makes it worth buying is the variety. I chose it because I wanted to read some new stuff from authors I am a reader of already and some I wanted to try that I haven't yet. Several were authors I've never heard of but may look into now that I've tasted their style. If you don't like short stories this is definitely not for you as most are a lot shorter than your typical anthology offering where an author might have 60-90 pages to tell a story versus about 20-25 here.

Some good some bad.
This is an anthology and some of the authors are
very good. There are some that don't live up to
the hype though.