Title: Blood and Needles | Author: Billy Lyons | Publisher: Intrigue Publishing LLC | Expected Pub. Date: June 15th 2017 | Pages: 234 | ISBN13: 9781940758534 | Genre: Horror | Rating: 2 out of 5 | Triggers: Drug use, matricide | Source: Received from the author for review consideration
Blood and Needles Review
The last person 25-year-old junkie, Steven, expected to meet was Anna Marie, an alluring stranger who turns out to be a fellow junkie . . . and a vampire. Anna Marie senses an inner steel deep inside Steven, and offers him a membership in the seductive world of The Morphia Clan, a group of vampires as devoted to using narcotics as much as they are to drinking blood. Steven soon falls in love with Anna Marie, whose vampire throne is threatened from outside forces and from within. There are hidden dangers everywhere and treachery and betrayal lie just around every corner. Soon Steven finds himself not only in a fight to save his own life but also the life of the vampire he loves.
Blood and Needles Review
Sex, drugs and vampires pretty much sums this book up. There’s a lot of shooting up, which was pretty much expected. Some vampire training, a council meeting and a bit of action at the end. Even though I expected the typical junkie attitudes I can’t honestly say I liked the characters. Besides being cardboard cut-outs the few personality traits they did have were annoying. Anna Marie is your basic beautiful woman with the requisite tragic past. Steven is an ass. And of course he’s perfect at being a vampire after just a day. Amazing. His relationship with Anna Marie is of the insta-love variety. No need for any pesky relationship or personality building, since it’s boom insta-love you can skip straight to the boning. The Morphia Clan seems to be fairly large but only two characters are described in any kind of detail and even they’re sketched in with the barest of personality traits.
There’s not much of a plot in Blood and Needles to speak of. Steve turns into a vampire, add a dash of ‘tragic’ family circumstances, a smidgen of training (and, consequently, everyone telling him how wonderful he is) some sex and a dollop of action at the end and there’s your plot.
Much of the book is narrated in Steven’s thoughts but what dialogue there is for the most part fits modern times. Which actually was a nice change since a lot of vampire books assume since vampires were created in specific time frames they speak that way for eternity. It’s much more plausible that their speech would evolve with the times.
The only reason Blood and Needles is even getting two stars is that it wasn’t terribly written. There were no grammar or spelling issues and maybe with a little more work it could be a decent novel.
GracieKat was the first co-host of Sci-Fi & Scary, Lilyn’s partner-in-crime, and sub-head of the Coolthulhu Crew. She reviews horror books, movies, and games for the site. She also does a weekly Focus on the Frightful feature, and is the site list-maker. She is also in control of the Sci-Fi & Scary podcast which will relaunch soon.
Gracie is also a member of the Ladies of Horror Fiction crew.
