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Good Vampire themed books

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Old 30-09-2008, 7:50 PM   #1
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Good Vampire themed books

Anyone know any? Never read any horror books before and wanted to start with one on vampires. Did start reading one a few weeks ago but I couldn't stand the fact it was written entirely in 1st person and was aimed at "young adults" (which is basically kids)

I've been told "Children of the Night" is supposed to be pretty good, but a review on amazon mentions 1st person story telling.
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Old 30-09-2008, 7:56 PM   #2
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Bit obvious but... Bram Stokers Dracula?
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:03 PM   #3
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

I used to read a lot Brian Lumley books (the Necromancer & Vampire World series). http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_...mley&x=15&y=19
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:03 PM   #4
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Hi,

Salem's Lot by Stephen King is a good start, still a good read after 30 plus years.
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:04 PM   #5
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Salems Lot by Stephen King, still gives me the chills
Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice, first in long series of vampire books that range from ancient egypt to modern times.

HTH
Mike
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:05 PM   #6
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Salems lot : Stephen king good book if you haven't read it

They thirst : Robert r Mc cammon ( not sure if the spelling is correct ) very good also if slightly similar to salems lot

That "kids" book wouldn't be the Darren Shan series of books would it ? as my 12 year old son can't put them down and getting him to read is a chore

Sorry i see i was beaten to the salems lot recommendation
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:17 PM   #7
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Quote:
Originally Posted by wormvortex View Post
Anyone know any? Never read any horror books before and wanted to start with one on vampires. Did start reading one a few weeks ago but I couldn't stand the fact it was written entirely in 1st person and was aimed at "young adults" (which is basically kids)
I've been told "Children of the Night" is supposed to be pretty good, but a review on amazon mentions 1st person story telling.
By any chance was it Darren shan cirque du freak
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:19 PM   #8
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Quote:
Originally Posted by wellladida View Post
By any chance was it Darren shan cirque du freak
lol, yeah it was. Can't stand the way it's written. Can't get into a story that's told in 1st person. Just can't seem to get lost in the book.

Gonna check out necroscope and salem's lot though, both seem to have great reviews.
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:33 PM   #9
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

To be honest if you havnen't read much horror you cant go wrong with early King (early mind ) IMHO that was when he was at his best

And i know it does not have Vampires but have a go at the Stand King at his very best and i cannot recommend it highly enough
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:58 PM   #10
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Barbara Hambly , Immortal Blood; for a slightly different slant on the vampire genre.

Dave
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:58 PM   #11
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Another vote for Salems Lot from me. Don't even get me started how the tv movie freaked me out when I was a kid.

"Loooooooooook at meeeeeeeeee teacher!"
and
"Face the master!"




I'd also recommend the Anne Rice series, though I thought the Vampire Lestat was the weakest one. Queen of the Damned was outstanding however, please don't be put off by that god awful movie.
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Old 30-09-2008, 8:59 PM   #12
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Arrow Re: Good Vampire themed books

a few of us over at the TV forum are watching True Blood, a new US HBO TV series from the creator of Six Feet Under
- it is adapted from Charlaine Harris' Sookie Stackhouse (Southern Vampire Mysteries) series

www.charlaineharris.com
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sookie_Stackhouse
www.find-book.co.uk/authors/Charlaine+Harris/page1.htm


not a bad show
- so the books might be worth a look

[youtube]aRIXL4_ulNo[/youtube]
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Old 30-09-2008, 9:00 PM   #13
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

yeah I've unfortunately seen Queen of the Damned and also seen interview with a vampire. So don't think I'll read either, reading a book after seeing a film never works IMO as you can't build up a mental picture of the world so well
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Old 30-09-2008, 9:15 PM   #14
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

any of the vampire chronicles by Anne Rice, all of them are outstanding books and are exellent reads, especially the body thief and memnoch
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Old 30-09-2008, 9:17 PM   #15
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

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Originally Posted by wormvortex View Post
yeah I've unfortunately seen Queen of the Damned and also seen interview with a vampire. So don't think I'll read either, reading a book after seeing a film never works IMO as you can't build up a mental picture of the world so well
the books are sooooo much better than the films mate, paints a whole different picture. Dont even think of queen of the damned as a film, think of it more as a big mistake and a waste of time .... at the film but for the book.
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Old 30-09-2008, 9:19 PM   #16
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

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Originally Posted by wormvortex View Post
lol, yeah it was. Can't stand the way it's written. Can't get into a story that's told in 1st person. Just can't seem to get lost in the book.
Its very much a teen book and becomes very un-vampire related by book 4.
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Old 01-10-2008, 12:05 AM   #17
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Worm, the first movie is actually pretty close to the book (as far as movies are), though obviously not as good. Anne Rice went nuts when she found out Tom Cruise was playing Lestat but apparently did a total flip when she saw his performance.
I know what you mean though, reading the book I couldn't help think of him and Brad Pitt, Kirste Dunst, etc.
The QotD movie is SOOOOOOOO far removed from the book as has been said. I loved it's take on the origins of vampires and the ending........ wow! I remember thinking at the time it would make a great movie but a few years later was HUGELY dispapointed. Did I mention how much better the book was?
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Old 01-10-2008, 2:14 AM   #18
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Another vote for the Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles The Witching Hour is also very good, but veering off towards supernatural as opposed to horror
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Old 01-10-2008, 3:30 AM   #19
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

defo anne rice vampire chronicles - read them all - will turn u into a vampire fan 4 life - although i was young when i read them i think about them albeit dont remember most of it but it was so imersive and the best most convincing take on vampires i have ever come accross.

havent seen the film qotd ?
shame it seems to be way off the book ,

it frustrates me that the whole series were nt made on film but done properly
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Old 01-10-2008, 8:06 AM   #20
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Another vote for Salem's Lot - very atmospeheric book could even get you into King - great author, again the earlier stuff is better.....

Sort of Vampires, but not entirely really, I am Legend - and not some adaptation of the Will Smith film......stunning book, with an incredible ending.....and you can read it in about 3 hours!
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Old 01-10-2008, 8:09 AM   #21
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Another vote for the Necroscope series, I've just given the other half the first one to read to see what she makes of it
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Old 01-10-2008, 9:00 AM   #22
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Have to throw my (rather hefty) weight behind the Vampire Chronicles too. Forget the films. I read Interview with the Vampire after seeing the film, and in my opinion, the book opened up so much more to me than the film did. I also saw Queen of the Damned (although after reading the book) and was less than impressed with the fact that the film tried to cram two (very large!) books - The Vampire Lestat and Queen Of The Damned - into a two-hour movie.

Seriously, read the books, you won't be disappointed. Especially if, like me, you find yourself wanting to know about all the other, peripheral characters - they've pretty much all got books devoted to them! Plus, Memnoch, The Devil has such a fantastic interpretation of God, the Angels, and how Memnoch ( Lucifer, if you like), fell from grace that even I, as a non-believer, couldn't help but get caught up in it all.

Ok, I could go on all day, but for the sake of y'alls sanity, I won't.

A friend of mine reads vampire novels all the time - I could ask her for her opinion. I know she liked the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series by Laurel K Hamilton, but I think she said they ended up just devolving into nothing more than an excuse for smut... Depends on if you like that sort of thing....
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Old 01-10-2008, 9:07 AM   #23
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

If you want to read Bram Stoker's Dracula, may I suggest that you buy Paul Chapman's Birth of a Legend: Count Dracula, Bram Stoker and Whitby Incorporating the 1897 Text of Bram Stoker's Dracula:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Birth-Legend...2851962&sr=1-1

It contains both Stoker's original novel and Paul's own musings.

Steve W
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Old 01-10-2008, 9:17 AM   #24
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Cool Re: Good Vampire themed books

Once read a book where the hero of the story was a vampire in a long running series of stories (probably pulp fiction)about the vampire the title was something like The Sherlock Holmes Files.

Does anyone know the authors name and I don’t mean the author of Sherlock Holmes?
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Old 01-10-2008, 9:30 AM   #25
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Cool Re: Good Vampire themed books

Quote:
Originally Posted by Garrett View Post
Once read a book where the hero of the story was a vampire in a long running series of stories (probably pulp fiction)about the vampire the title was something like The Sherlock Holmes Files.

Does anyone know the authors name and I don’t mean the author of Sherlock Holmes?
Found it http://www.amazon.com/Holmes-Dracula.../dp/0812523849
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Old 01-10-2008, 10:36 AM   #26
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Another vote for Anne Rice, I've read all the books in the Vampire chronicle and they are brilliant (forget the movies, nothing like the books).
Even Interview with the Vampire which I thought was a decent movie is crap compared to the book.

Also she's done a three books chronicle on witches which was very good.
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Old 01-10-2008, 12:07 PM   #27
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Bram Stoker's Dracula is 1st person though right? Admittedly it was a long time ago when I read it but I thought it was all diary entries?
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Old 01-10-2008, 12:31 PM   #28
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jenn View Post
Also she's done a three books chronicle on witches which was very good.
I don't get much time to read anymore, so I'm very, very slowly working my way through that series at the moment. I'm about halfway through The Witching Hour (and I've been reading it on-and-off for over a year!!!!). Seems to be moving very slowly, but I'm sure, like other Anne Rice stuff, it will all get much better. I wanted to read the Mayfair Witch series before I got started on Blackwood Farm, which I understand has some sort of link to the Mayfairs...
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Old 01-10-2008, 12:36 PM   #29
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Re: Good Vampire themed books



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blade_(comics)
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Old 01-10-2008, 12:57 PM   #30
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Re: Good Vampire themed books

Do you like Sci-Fi/Fantasy too?
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