Edited by Pam Keesey
Publisher: Cleis Press Inc.
Publication date: 2006 year
ISBN: 978-1-57344-233-6
Publication date: 2006 year
ISBN: 978-1-57344-233-6
A Collection Of Lesbian Vampire Tales
I received this book from EdenFantasys
Check out their selection of erotic books for sale
My Review:
This book was not what I was expecting at all.
Being sold at EdenFantasys I thought this book would be a collection of sexy erotic lesbian vampire stories.
It was and wasn't.
Yes there were vampires. Yes it contained stories of lesbian vampires, but mostly veiled lesbianism hidden behind vampires- it was all very literary and Gothic. I mean- it contained the classic "Carmilla"- which I have read several times. It is very dark, and yes definitely has lesbian undertones but it was written in the 1800's so it couldn't be blatant- the vampirism was used to hide and veil the overt sexual nature of the story.
If I had to really describe this book I wouldn't label it as erotica at all- scholarly, feminist...those are labels I would attach.
Did I enjoy the book? Yes.
Was it an easy lighthearted, entertaining read? Not really.
If you are looking for hot, explicit erotic, tales of modern lesbian vampires having naughty girl on girl sex with a little blood sucking thrown in- this book is not for you.
If you are looking for tales of powerful women, tales of lesbian vampires that span decades, even centuries of vampire folklore then yes you will enjoy this book.
It is very empowering showcasing female vampires not as overtly evil as many modern movies and books do- think about in many romance novels where the hero is a vampire and the heroine human any female vampires are evil- this can be seen in Laurell K Hamilton's book and in many others who write vampire romance. The female vampire is often the bad guy and the human has to fight her or kill her to get to her man- which happens to be a male vampire.
This book takes a positive approach to strong female vampires, strong female role models in general.
But as wonderful as most literary books are that deliver a fantastic message- and this one is if you are looking at it from a literary standpoint- someone looking for a sexy or scary read- should look elsewhere.
I believe it is completely misleading labeling it as an erotica book.
Posts
1 comment:
Hmm... The fact that this book doesn't seem to just be porn-in-prose actually makes me want to read it more than I might have at first glance. I appreciate the honest review, and I'll have to keep an eye out for this one!
Post a Comment