A bizarre epidemic is sweeping New York City. Doctors can only watch as, one by one, victims fall prey to a very unusual blood disorder. They become unable to eat solid food, are extremely sensitive to daylight - and they have an irresistible need to drink human blood. As panic, bloodlust and death grip the city, a few begin to consider the unimaginable: Could the old folktales and legends be true? Could the epidemic be the work of...vampires? Their search for the truth will lead them to shadowy realms where very few dare to go. They will seek help from both the living and the dead. And they will realise that their worst fear was only the beginning.The fifth outing for the Algonquian Wonder worker Misquamacus, the fourth of which, in novel form.
There are no disappointments in this novel for the reader. The action starts from sentence one, grabbing and carrying them along with the smooth flowing narrative and chills that Masterton excels at. This really is horror at it's best. If you want blood, well the title suggests it, and the prose delivers so much more. This is a return to very familiar country. This is a return to vintage Masterton, and his unique style that has captured the imagination of millions, and haunted the nightmares of same. This novel goes back to the very roots of Masterton's horror origins with a novel so very reminiscent of The Manitou in both style and tempo that it defies belief.
Masterton grips you with his comprehension of your fears. He grips you with the almost insider knowledge of what will shock you. He grips you with his almost prescient appreciation of that which is going to compel you to turn each and every page.
New York is really NOT a lucky city. The events from his last 'Manitou' novel almost levelled the USA, and the Big Apple in particular. A timely piece of fiction, one that calls for the still needed closure for the events of 9/11 not afforded to it by countless remonstrations in the world press or the sanitary cosmetic work on clearing the ill-fated site. This novel provides a new slant to what happened and might have been. It's credible enough to make you wonder if it was.
For a horror novel, this work is full of humour. As an iconic character in horror fiction, Harry Erskine is both a welcome breath of fresh air, and a reworked tool providing fresh amusement on an old theme. Harry is funny. It reeks from every pore of his being. Together with his sarcasm and irreverence he yet again jumps into your hearts and minds as a character the reader cannot help themselves caring about.
Masterton provides his characters with such real life and situations that you can almost believe they're happening in the world around you. Backed up by the extensive research that provides the background for the story, and it's plot lines, the reader cannot help but be enveloped by the novels numerous feints and dodges.
The book storms into the events that describe the end of the world for New York. You just don't recognise it's happening until the pace picks you up and lands you straight in the middle of the deaths and horror described by Masterton, and ultimately your belief finds itself wading chest deep in mayhem and destruction.
A powerful novel. A chilling novel, and one that brings a clear and present appreciation of the real horror apparent in the world we live in; with a twist!
The whole Vampire mythos has found itself a new and compelling addition in this novel. This really is an eye opener as an intriguing and up to date approach to the whole concept of vampirism. For sheer imagination, Masterton delivers a world class update to what has become an overused and at times tired genre vehicle. Yet again he confounds with his appreciation of the properties of Mirrors, and his previous literary usage of them, into something so beguiling as to beggar belief.
No previous experience of the major characters in this series is needed. Masterton imparts their historical precedents as the events of this novel unfold. No bigger picture needed.
As a novel that purports to be the last Manitou novel, this reviewer, who also doubles as a fan of the wonder-worker Misquamacus, was a little disappointed to see the diminishment of this character. Not a fault of Graham by any stretch, more a stretch of Misquamacus himself, who must bow to the inevitable laws of American Indian mythology. Gone are the fiery confrontations of the past, with spells flying from the fingers of this ancient Indian, more now a manipulation of the evils shared in the world of man, and a collaboration of horrific consequences by two of the most powerful fiction genre's. As a fan, I hope it's NOT the last time we'll read of Misquamacus, Harry Erskine and Singing Rock in fiction.
As the master of the page turner, Masterton has no peers. He is the master without doubt, of horror fiction. At times so sublime as to make you cringe, but always to make you shiver.
