Thursday, June 30, 2011

Bite Marks, by Drew Cross

BiteMarksShane is a cop, so you would think he is a model citizen, totally square.  But what none of his fellow officers realize is that Shane is deeply entrenched not only in the goth subculture, but in the world of blood fetishism.  So, when women start being attacked and bitten by a would be vampire, Shane has very personal reasons for wanting to solve the crime.

This book what not at all what I expected.  With a name like this, I expected a run of the mill supernaturally inspired vampire book.  What I got was an eye opening crime thriller where the monsters are frighteningly real.  The book is a honest look into some of the darker subcultures that abound, including the goth scene, blood fetishism, prostitution, and crime.  I was positively hypnotized.

In some ways, although this book is not what would classically considered horror, this was one of the scariest books I have read.  Scary because you know people like this exist in the world, that crimes like this happen all the time, and that this is probably just the tip of the iceberg.

I really enjoyed the character of Shane, and watching his internal struggle between darkness and light.  While not the villain of the story, there certainly are dark elements to him, as there are in all of us, and I love that the author is unapologetic in regards to this darkness.  That is what made Shane's character seem so real.

All in all, I loved the book, and think a lot of readers of the crime/thriller/suspense genres will enjoy it as well. As a huge fan of classic vamp stories, I recommend readers of that genre read it as well, to get another picture of what vampires can look like, without all the supernatural trappings.



I received a review copy courtesy of the publisher.

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