Tomes of Shadowstalking
Tomes of ShadowstalkingWelcome 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!
It is a world very much like our own, yet it is immensely different. It shares the same history. Its people bear the same names. Everything is the same, yet everything is different, for in our world we choose to disbelieve in the children of the night. In The Bloody Red Baron they are a reality. They are citizens of the world. And while the greatest among them stands poised to dominate the world, another becomes one of the greatest--and deadliest--fighter pilots of all time.
After the undoing of his plans in Great Britain, Count Dracula fled to Eastern Europe where, after involving himself in Russian intrigues, he became Graf von Dracula and took a position--a very powerful position--in the Kaiser Wilhelm II's court. It wasn't long before Germany decided to expand and conquer. World War I arrived, and with the German tide comes the monstrous Manfred von Richtofen...the Red Baron. In one world von Richtofen became the world's most fearsome and famous pilot for his numerous kills in aerial dogfights. In another world he did much the same, but he did it all without a plane, for in this other world he is a vampire skilled in changing shape, a gift he puts to good use as he slays ace after Allied ace in mid-air.
The war limits options, but something must be done about the Baron. The responsibility falls to an older, wiser, sadder Charles Beauregard, he who--with the help of a French vampire elder--destroyed Dracula's claim to the throne of England and drove the Carpathian back to the east. This time he doesn't have Genevieve at his side. However, intelligence officer Edwin Winthrop and vampire journalist Kate Reed are there to assist. Will their assistance be enough? Can they together--though they are apart--unearth and defeat the dark secrets of Château du Malinbois? Will someone ever defeat the Bloody Red Baron? What role does the resurrected Edgar Allan Poe play in all of this?
I enjoy reading about vampires, and this book--for all that it creates an entirely different alternate reality--is filled with action and detail that makes this alternate reality...real. A reader interested in World War I or flying aces might have some difficulty adjusting to the idea that the Red Baron flew without a plane, but it's a momentary thing that's easily overcome. Just keep reading and the facts will reconcile themselves. Warning: get ready for several unexpected twists to everything you thought you knew about vampires and World War I!
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