Blood Oath - Here's Nathaniel Cade; the President's Vampire

First of all, anyone and everyone who knows me know that when it comes to Vampires, I just gravitate towards them like a moth to a flame. It started with Anne Rice and went on further than that.

Now seeing a book like this with the by-line and touted as the Vampire thriller that Dan Brown would have written, if in case he ever did, was enough to make me take notice. Although at first, I dismissed it quickly thinking of whatever angles would they think of next when it comes to our fanged brethren, as it it seemed like a desperate idea to forcefully graft an iconic creature such as this in our present world. Others have done so and have done wonders with it. While others, although lambasted for their efforts, were still met with the same form of success and scorn. While other throwaway Vampire novels, feel like they have not been well thought out.

But a well thought out novel is what this book really is a product of.

Enter Nathaniel Cade. He is a Vampire that has no time to deal with your crap and gets the job done when needed. Of course he should, for he is bound by duty to do whatever the US President asks of him. Unlike the brooding Vampires of late, he is decisive, quick, and very much the epitome of an efficient secret agent, except daylight can still incapacitate him to a degree.

Enter Zack Barrows, a young whiny man that gets the promotion of a lifetime. But in this case, working for the White House under covert and unconventional terms.

Put these two together and enmesh it with a new villain whom I won't be surprised if he surfaces again in future Cade titles, as well as a thought out streamlined plot, then you have for yourself a wonderful good read that is both light, fast-paced and hard to let go.

The only reason that it is one star short of 5, is because I felt the author could have given us more of Cade as well as the surprise allegiances and twists that Dan Brown himself has seemingly made a trademark of his own writing with. But nonetheless, it is still a good read and a breakthrough effort of a debut novel.

With that said, I sooo need to find my 2nd book, underneath the tons of books in my very own Book Box. :)


ps. The Author responds to my tweets on Twitter...consider me star strucked. Wouldn't you be? :)

Caught up in The Shadow of the Wind

The first time I heard of this book was in 2004  when Powerbooks was touting it as the next book to watch out for. I knew immediately that I wanted to read it but having so much books on my reading plate (then and still now), felt that it could wait. So I ended up buying the hardcover as a gift instead for a fellow Anne Rice Philippines member and he in turn gave me the audiobook set for The Lives of the Mayfair Witches. I felt that was a good trade. J

Years later, like Daniel Sempere, in the book, I would chance upon the trade paperback version of the book at a Book Sale branch and relish the treasure of a find I had. But like all readers who would want more time with ALL of their books, it became another casualty to other books that took precedence up until I found an unabridged version on audiobook Cd format for a steal at another Book Sale branch. This time I knew I had to get into this and not be left behind.

Throughout my drive to and from work, the haunting story of ten year old Daniel and his search for truth regarding the mystery surrounding the author of the book in question, who is equally is as elusive as his other copies of his books in the novel proved to be the enchanting tale that it is, and one that transported me out of the traffic laden streets of Manila and into a simpler and yet darker and dangerous streets of Post Spanish Civil War Barcelona of the 1930’s.

The book opens with Daniel Sempere, son of second hand book store owner, being brought to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a old haven of a library for books that have almost been forgotten but kept and preserved for all lovers of antique and obscure books. There he meets the caretaker of the establishment, Isaac Monfort and is told that whoever comes to the library the first time must choose a book, adopt it as his and makes sure that the book will be preserved and guaranteed an owner and a home. Somehow, the Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax is the book that Daniel chooses and immediately he is transported into the tale brilliantly spun by Carax which leaves him wanting more of his works and equally more information about the author.

He thus finds himself in a search for the threads of Carax’s life, while his own life and growing adolescence mirrors Carax’s own. On top of that, he also must deal with his obsession with Clara Barcelo, the blind daughter of Gustavo Barcelo, a friend of his father and in addition a new found friend in the form of a homeless man, whom he took in to help with the book shop. This man who goes by the name of Fermin Romero de Torres we find is a military man who is in pursuit by the main antagonist in the novel, the evil, vengeful and corrupt Inspector Javier Fumero.

And as if Daniel’s plate wasn’t enough, there is also a mysterious lurking figure, who is horribly burnt and hides in the shadows and poses a threat to his own life and in want of the Carax book that he possesses.

Newfound love, Tarnished love, Envy, Greed, Bitterness, Frustration and other elements of a varied human condition is one that a lover of the written word will find in reading this book. My interest in it was equally buoyed by the brilliant narrative and character voicing of the audiobook narrator, Jonathan Davis, who efforlessly shifts from one voice to another as the task of voicing different characters solely rests on him.

As one further gets into the story, more stories of other people that are just pieces of the puzzle of a tragic life lived by Julian Carax may overwhelm some readers in want of a more traditional and linear way of storytelling, but in the end, all the lives lived by every individual in the book, hastens Daniel’s maturity as he graples with life, with love, with loss and with the promise that if one is in search of the truth, the search will ultimately extract a price of its own for it, but if one is ready for the ride and for the result, then it is a journey worth taking.

Read on and discover how other people’s lives and relationships may at times mirror facets of our own and in learning about others, we learn more about ourselves and the wisdom behind the choices that we make in our lives, everyday.

Catching up with SEIGE

Finally catching up with the Marvel event that shook the Marvel Universe, I must say that this is another must collect event from Brian Michael Bendis.

Following events from Secret Invasion, Dark Reign, Civil War and the recent return of Thor courtesy of J.Michael Strazynski's run, this hardcover collection comes in the heels of mixed opinions regarding the presence of Asgard in Midgard. In the vernacular, it means that THOR has revived his kingdom of Asgard and had it floating atop the plains of Oklahoma and this in turn doesn't sit well with Norman Osborne, aka GreenGoblin and now head of H.A.M.M.E.R., an organization that replaced Nick Fury's S.H.I.E.L.D. following the events of Secret Invasion and Civil War.

Just when you think that it couldn't get any worse (for the characters) and any better (for us readers), Bendis just gives us another event to die for and worth collecting.

Osborne has made a deal with Thor's duplicitous brother, Loki, to "remove" Asgard from Earth and has agreed that Osborne's forces will do the deed as it will be also to Loki's benefit to return Asgard to its rightful place, minus THOR, who currently was in exile following his actions in his own title, and thus leaving Balder his brother to rule Asgard in his stead and fully receptive to Loki's suggestions.

And this is where you get your bucks worth of the Bang you have come to enjoy since Bendis has written event after event for Marvel. Expect Superheroes like Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and other Avengers fighting to counter the attack on Asgard made by Osborne in his own iron suit.

Who wins? Well, both sides suffer losses for sure but not for naught.

Read on to know what SIEGE is all about as we anticipate the next MARVEL event to be collected, which is currently running called, FEAR ITSELF, and features the machinations of the Red Skull and appearance of the God of Fear!