Gail's Gory Details: May 2014

Monday, May 26, 2014

Book Review - The Matriarch by Kevin Ranson

Glenville Normal School - 1919
Sarah Louisa "Sis" Linn, class of 1877, is brutally murdered in her home on the school's campus. No motive or murderer is found.

Glenville State College - 2013
Nearly 100 years has passed since Sis Linn's unsolved murder. The school's name has changed, and the story of her death and tales of her apparition have become fodder for frightening incoming freshmen. But a century is merely a moment for a spirit - and less than a blink of an eye for even more sinister entities that endure beyond the grave. Student Janiss Connelly will soon learn that not only are some ghost stories true, but that there are greater things to fear in life - and in death - than ghosts.

This is one damn spooky book.

To say anything about this book would be revealing too many plot points, but let me make a few things clear.

First, I'm not a big fan of vampire stories because for me that old saw had long lost its teeth. Too many authors simply write the same thing over and over. Or so I thought until I read this book. Mr. Ransom has spun his own unique version of these toothy beings, and he's created creatures who are both believable and who fit perfectly into this modern world.

Second, you are taken further into the story from the vampire's perspective. You see their side of immortal living, from the pain suffered when they are hurt, to the comforting unconsciousness of lying skin-to-dirt in a grave.

Third, there are good vampires, and there are bad vampires, and sometimes they fight each other because of what they are, and because of what they believe in. Some are ruthless, portrayed as soulless like their movie counterparts, but others are struggling to cope day to day with their existence.

I bought this book on recommendation, and I'm delighted with what I discovered. Get your own copy. And when you do, throw away any previous beliefs you had about these undead beings, and enjoy!