Das Vampir

Reading the most recent Anita Blake novel has made me ponder vampire series. Nothing is more prevalent in horror literature ­ with a few notable exceptions (King's Salem's Lot, Brite's Lost Souls, and Brust's Agyar being the most notable ones), almost every vampire novel has spawned sequels. And, perhaps in keeping with traditional vampire mythology, the sequels, like the vampiric progeny, tend to get progressively weaker, until we're left with the literary equivalent of George Hamilton in Love at First Bite.

But there are a few vampire series that, even if they peak at the first book, provide enough entertainment throughout the series to be worthwhile. These series only have two things in common ­ they have vampires as major characters, and they all contain five books or fewer. The second wasn't a rule I had when choosing the series, but it turns out that, as with almost any other series, familiarity breeds contempt, and even much more talented authors than Laurell K. Hamilton and Anne Rice (and all the authors I list are much more talented than those two) would have had trouble keeping series fresh beyond that number.

Vamps for a New Millennium: The State of the Field in June 2004

As of May 2004, Spike and Angel have left our television screens. Fortunately, we can still encounter numerous vampire heroes and heroines in print and pixels. The late-twentieth-century trend of three-dimensional, often attractive and ethical vampires in fiction continues (although the backlash toward evil, bloodthirsty monsters fit only to be destroyed also lingers, especially in the movies). Interestingly, even when a vampire is portrayed as evil, he or she usually has a more complex, nuanced personality than comparable characters before 1970. The figure of the sympathetic vampire has altered the imaginative landscape so that readers and viewers apparently no longer want to accept a purely monstrous villain with no inner life.

Women in the Vampire World

There are essentially three roles of women in the vampire world. Women may be victims or vampires themselves. The third level of attachment to the vampire world (VW) is an outside attachment, and that belongs to the women who are mere observers, such as anyone who reads a vampire book and is drawn to it. Though harder to analyze, a woman's attraction to vampire movies or literature speaks something for the appeal of the vampire in this culture, which this essay series is all about.

The Problem with Immortality

When the image of the vampire is presented to us, we are filled– even if secretly or subconsciously– with longing. The three most desirable traits of the vampire are his power, sexuality and immortality. In this essay we will be looking at the immortality of the vampire. While, on the surface, immortality looks like a great thing, the vampire illustrates all the problems with being immortal– from outliving your own body to outliving everyone you know. The pain of the vampire's immortality reminds us to enjoy our mortality, where we would otherwise take it for granted.