Pretty When She Dies by Rhiannon Frater
Let me start by saying, I haven't been a huge fan of vampires since...well, since the sparkly vamps became popular with teenage girls. But, Rhiannon Frater's vampires blows those glittery vamps away! This is the way a vampire book should read - full of hardcore, scary-as-hell, bloodthirsty vamps. Not to mention the undead that rise with necromancer powers. It reminded me of Bram Stoker and is filled with fascinating old-school vampire lore.
After waking up buried in a grave in the forest, Amaliya is on her own. First, she has to figure out how to control her thirst for blood, and that's no easy task. I am fascinated with the way her dysfunctional family on one side balances with the uber cool grandmother and cousin on the other. Though Amaliya's upbringing has been rough, she's a tough cookie, and is desperately trying to make a place for herself in the world.
None of the characters are cookie-cutter; they all have their own well developed personalities, and Rhiannon Frater brings them all to life. The dialogue is realistic and the pace was spot-on.
Though there are explicit scenes of gore, sex, and horror, they were appropriate for this type of book. With vampires battling undead, there is bound to be blood and dismembered body parts, and, of course, bloodlust comes with the territory. The only negative I have about this book were the typos and incorrect usage of words, like "insure" instead of "ensure."
Fans of good old-school vampire fiction will enjoy this book. I'm already looking forward to finishing Pretty When She Kills, the second book in the trilogy.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
[I originally read this book in May 2014. I am in the process of transferring my blog contents.]
