The Greyfriar: Vampire Empire, Book 1 | |||||||||
Clay Griffith and Susan Griffith | |||||||||
Pyr, 308 pages | |||||||||
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A review by Nathan Brazil
"Perhaps the world isn't what we think it must be. Perhaps someday our species do not have to be at war."'
The premise is that in 1870 a terrible plague of vampires swept over the northern regions of the world, annihilating
millions of humans outright, and condemning many more to death from disease and famine. The survivors fled south
to the tropics, where vampires could not stand the constant heat. Aided by their steam-based technology and a
determination to rise again, humans rebuilt their shattered societies. Princess Adele is the heir to the Empire
of Equatoria, a remnant of the old British Empire. Adele is 19, and promised in marriage, for political reasons,
to a man she has never met. The lucky fellow is Senator Clark, a self-aggrandizing vampire hating hero of
The American Republic. America in this world being a place which is a republic in name only, but actually
ruled by an oligarchy of wealth families. The colder regions of the world, including Great Britain, are now
occupied by Vampires; homo nosferatii, a parasitical species, divided into loosely aligned clans. To them,
humans are either food or slaves, and often both. However, in the years since the Great Killing of 1870, the
Vampire Empire has stagnated, while humankind has regrouped to a point where the most powerful nations
believe it is time for a campaign to rid the world of blood-suckers. The union of Princess Adele and
Senator Clark is intended to unite the greatest powers, as a prelude to war. Except that nothing is ever
quite that simple.
As the story begins, Adele and her younger bother, Simon, are on a state visit to Europe,
when their small fleet of airships is attacked by thousands of flying vampires. The fleet is wrecked, leaving
Adele and Simon alive, but on the run in enemy territory. When all seems lost, a legendary vampire hunter
appears; the Greyfriar. From this point the story boils down to various permutations of cat and mouse,
interspersed with conversational interludes and bit-sized chunks of exposition. Adding welcome tension is
the literally bloodthirsty Cesare, younger son of the decrepit vampire King, and his ferocious female war
leader, Flay, trying to catch and hold Princess Adele. Also in the mix is Gareth, Cesare's older brother
and therefore heir to their father's throne. Gareth, we learn, is a most unusual vampire in many ways, who
prefers to reside in Scotland, which he has claimed as his own. Cesare, Flay and Gareth form a bloody
triangle, which is easily the most interesting thing in the book, and the interplay between them provides
substance and depth. The other supporting characters of note are Senator Clark, a cardboard cutout figure
typifying the terminally bombastic, kick-ass American archetype, and Adele's Japanese teacher Mamoru, who
has instructed her in various martial disciplines, and runs a spy network in vampire occupied territory
on the quiet. Unbeknown to the Princess, Mamoru has also been moulding her as his cat's-paw in a grand plan,
concocted in secret with a small international group of powerful mystics. As this is the first book of the
trilogy, very little is resolved, but the story does end at a natural point and is parked nicely.
I found much to like in Vampire Empire Book One: The Greyfriar. The world was
well drawn, adorned with convincing steampunk technology, and a mostly realistic cast. Refreshingly, many
of the traditional myths concerning vampires are tossed away, in favour of faux scientific
explanations. Yet a frisson of the supernatural lingers, attached to Princess Adele herself, who toward
the end of the book is alluded to be something more than human. Stylistically, Vampire Empire collides
fictional worlds in a way that gives it a keen edge. Something that the authors risk blunting with a
plot that is steady and workman-like, but rarely surprises. I found it disappointing that so much of what
happens was exactly what I expected, and at times felt stalled while we waited for the bad guys to catch
up. The other problem I had was that, while graphic violence is often portrayed, (including Adele in rather
unconvincing Buffy mode), there is a total absence of sexuality and profanity, which came across as odd
considering the nature of the world and those in it. There is a budding romance, although it is badly
telegraphed. Had the authors chosen to involve less likely characters, rather than go for the
obvious, Vampire Empire would have gone up a couple of notches in my estimation. But
perhaps things will twist around in books two and three. As it stands, this first outing was a fun read
that held its allure sufficiently for me to want the next installment. It's not as different as it could
have been, and not as good as many gushing reviews would have you believe, but it is still a superior
example of contemporary vampire fiction.
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