Tomes of Shadowstalking

Welcome to the land of shadows, where evil is the greatest power, where nightfall marks the birth of terror, where your very soul is at risk. Join me as I investigate worlds filled with black magic and dark souls and encounter the monsters rule these wicked places.

This review does not represent the opinions of the general public. It reflects my personal thoughts and opinions on the book.

That said, on to the review!

Communist Romania has fallen, and now the nations of the west are flocking in to offer medical, technological, and economic aid. Of greatest interest to the doctors and clergy are the many orphanages that speckle the country, housing hordes of malnourished, uncared for infants, toddlers, and adolescents. Dr. Kate Neuman has a special interest in one particular infant other than loving him deeply: the boy may have within him a cure for AIDS. Of course, he is a strange baby to begin with, cyclically going from whole and hale to sick and near-death. A fresh transfusion of blood stabilizes him, but it is the process by which it heals him and the dark legacy it hints at that has people after him and Kate...people that point-blank rifle blasts can't kill. And it all goes back to Romania...

This is a truly stupendous undertaking on Dan Simmons' part. It unites modern history with ancient, folklore and superstition with science and medicine, and mysticism and sorcery with logic and common sense. And Simmons pulls it off! He provides his readers with a reasonable, logical explanation for the vampire condition that makes much more sense than that vampires are beings suffering from "porphyria" and skin conditions that make sunlight deadly to them. Of course these aren't impossible at all, but Simmons' explanation is so much more intersting! Besides which, when thrown into the bleak modern setting and coupled with the picturesque--and sometimes grotesque--history of the region, the whole thing becomes so amazing that you can't help but be sucked into it all.

Despite the fact that it is a vampire novel, I'm afraid I found some of the horrifically bloody deaths meaningless and detracting from the whole. Sure, some of the deaths allowed other characters to find the strength to move forward, but sometimes it just plain didn't make any sense. Of course, some of the deaths were sufficiently gory and horrendous that I just had to go back and read those parts again, especially when the ones dying were those for whom death didn't necessarily mean an end.

Simmons throws a new twist on the vampire legend. Like those before him he ties it all in to Dracula and his family, but delivers it in his own unique way. The ancient and modern history offers sharp, acute insights into the reality of human suffering past and present that just can't be ignored. Hey, you learn while you enjoy; that's the best combination you could ever ask for! Warning: contains some graphic/sexual content.

Buy this book in paperback or possibly the hardcover or visit the Cosmic Tomes Bazaar for other titles.

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Comments? Suggestions? Just click here to send me e-mail. Also, if this review prompted you to read the book, then let me know. I appreciate knowing I made a difference in somebody's life.

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