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!

Arkady Tsepesh died once to protect his infant son from his many times great-uncle Vlad's unholy influences. He died a second time protecting his grown son when fate threw the three together. Now Stefan Tsepesh--now known as Abraham van Helsing--is on his own against the greates of the vampires. But while there was safety for a time so long as Vlad remained in Transylvania, the vampire known as Dracula has his eyes set on England and its teeming hordes of living, blood-filled mortals. And England also has two other attractions for Vlad, though he may not yet realize it: the keys to immortality without being bound by his covenant, and Abraham's grown son. But there are other players in this twisted tale. There is Zsuzsanna Tsepesh, Abraham's undead aunt. There is Elisabeth of Bathory, an immortal like Dracula but with her own contract with evil. And there is the Lord of the Vampires himself, the being who exacted such terrible prices from Dracula and Elisabeth for their immortality. Against such an array of power, what can one man--even one so gifted as Abraham van Helsing--do to succeed in freeing his family from Dracula's curse once and for all?

Lord of the Vampire draws to a thrilling conclusion the trilogy begun in Covenant with the Vampire an continued in Children of the Vampire. The diaries of the family Dracul carry us into the events presented in Bram Stoker's Dracula, albeit with certain changes in the overall scheme of things and unexpected twists to accommodate characters not seen in Stoker's original text.

Although each book has its difficult points, I'd have to say that this one was the one that troubled me the most, especially as Dracula is one of my favorite books of all time. Reading the strange liberties the author took with this book was difficult on the whole, especially with questionable relationships and interests coming to light. On the other hand, I did manage to get a glimpse of the infamous "Blood Countess" Elisabeth Bathory. I don't know what liberties the author took with her, but it can't help but be interesting, right? But the part I liked best was the final revelation of the Lord of the Vampires' true identity. It's a real surprise!

If you're as big a fan of Dracula as I am, then perhaps Lord of the Vampire is something you shouldn't look into. On the other hand, I seriously doubt you'd be able to resist the call of this book as the conclusion to a trilogy, so what the heck? Get the book and just read!

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