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195th out of 534 books
—
1,397 voters
The Blood Confession
by
Alisa M. Libby (Goodreads Author)
In this brilliant fiction debut, Libby resurrects the real-life Erzebet Bathory, a 17th-century countess who believed that bathing in human blood would preserve her looks forever.
Hardcover, 360 pages
Published
August 17th 2006
by Dutton Juvenile
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I did appreciate the gothic tone of this novel. Had I known nothing about Elizabeth of Bathory, I might have appreciated it more.
I was completely astonished, after reading the acknowledgements at the end of the book, to find that the author had done enough research on the subject that she thanked an interlibrary loan librarian. I myself have done a little bit of research (as it's the topic of a book I'm working on), and just from the websites I've looked at, I know that there are a number of fa...more
I was completely astonished, after reading the acknowledgements at the end of the book, to find that the author had done enough research on the subject that she thanked an interlibrary loan librarian. I myself have done a little bit of research (as it's the topic of a book I'm working on), and just from the websites I've looked at, I know that there are a number of fa...more
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I frankly have no idea why Alisa Libby thought that Ezrebet Bathory, the Hungarian Countess notorious for bathing in the blood of her servant girls, was a good subject for a young adult novel. To me, the idea seems slightly counterintuitive. But whether or not it succeeds as a book for that age group, it did succeed for me as a book in general. The sense of historical accuracy is a bit thin at times (it seems to fit more into the horror/gothic or even fantasy genres than it does into historical...more
This is one will really keep you on your toes. Based on the legend of Erzsebet Bathory, it really calls the idea of morality into question--that's what happens when the protagonist is actually the villain. Though I knew how evil and wrong her thinking was, I found myself sympathizing with her obsession with beauty and human desperation. In truth, I pitied the murderess.
This book was a sensation, literally playing with the senses--a perfect mixture of horrific intrigue, darkness and light, vice...more
This book was a sensation, literally playing with the senses--a perfect mixture of horrific intrigue, darkness and light, vice...more
I'm slightly irked that so many reviews find this book unsuitable for young adults. While it would certainly be a bit much for mid-grade readers, I don't see how it is any worse than some other YA books (perhaps most notably Suzanne Collins's horrific and violent (but deliciously enjoyable) trilogy).
Yes, there is quite a bit of gore and violence. But there are certainly themes that make this novel applicable to young adults. Erzebet struggles to come to terms with her lot in life. She has been...more
Yes, there is quite a bit of gore and violence. But there are certainly themes that make this novel applicable to young adults. Erzebet struggles to come to terms with her lot in life. She has been...more
Taking place in 16th century Hungary, The Blood Confession tells the story of a young noblewoman, Erzebet Bizecka. She has everything that a young woman could want. Although the one thing she cannot change is the fact that she is was born under a falling star, an omen that will haunt her until the day she dies. Not to mention that she has mother who is certifiable and father who would rather chase the chambermaids than pay attention to his wife or daughter.
Feeling alone she makes friends with a...more
Feeling alone she makes friends with a...more
Akhirnya menyelesaikan buku ini. XD
Buku yang sudah memikatku sejak pertama kali melihat cover dan dilanjutkan dengan membaca sinopsisnya. Well, alasannya mudah saja, aku tahu siapa itu Elizabeth Bathory, dan buku yang menampilkan Elizabeth sebagai tokoh yang menginspirasi mau tidak mau membuatku ingin membaca. :P
Lanjut, aku bahas ceritanya lha ya, pengalaman yang bikin aku memiliki buku ini tentu tak seberapa penting. LoL
Alur yang dipakai dalam buku ini 'maju-mundur', tapi tenang saja, perbedaan...more
Buku yang sudah memikatku sejak pertama kali melihat cover dan dilanjutkan dengan membaca sinopsisnya. Well, alasannya mudah saja, aku tahu siapa itu Elizabeth Bathory, dan buku yang menampilkan Elizabeth sebagai tokoh yang menginspirasi mau tidak mau membuatku ingin membaca. :P
Lanjut, aku bahas ceritanya lha ya, pengalaman yang bikin aku memiliki buku ini tentu tak seberapa penting. LoL
Alur yang dipakai dalam buku ini 'maju-mundur', tapi tenang saja, perbedaan...more
Ga sesadis yang gw bayangin, karena Elizabeth Bathory yang asli gue rasa lebih sadis dari karakter di cerita ini. Dan sebenarnya pas beli buku ini gue sendiri excited bgt karena gue sudah sering denger kisah-kisah tentang Elizabeth Bathory, suka aja dengan kisah wanita sadis yang satu ini.
Erzebet Bizecka putri tunggal dari Count Bizecka di Hungaria, seorang anak perempuan yang dianugerahi kecantikan. Erzebet sebenarnya anak yang sangat kesepian. Ayahnya sangat terobsesi dengan kecantikannya, ibu...more
Erzebet Bizecka putri tunggal dari Count Bizecka di Hungaria, seorang anak perempuan yang dianugerahi kecantikan. Erzebet sebenarnya anak yang sangat kesepian. Ayahnya sangat terobsesi dengan kecantikannya, ibu...more
I can quite easily agree that this book probably shouldn't target young adults, but I read it at age 16 and I quite enjoyed it. As for the novel being inaccurate, Libby does state that it is merely based off of Erzebet's life.
Onto the story! I love the dark and gothic feel of this, completely complimentary to such a story. I like the play on her possible mental illness and the idea that the man she sees is (basically) the devil. (It also amused me that his name was so close to "Sinister"). It i...more
Onto the story! I love the dark and gothic feel of this, completely complimentary to such a story. I like the play on her possible mental illness and the idea that the man she sees is (basically) the devil. (It also amused me that his name was so close to "Sinister"). It i...more
This time of year you hear all about historical creepiness, like Vlad the Impaler being one of the sources for Dracula. Also at the heart of the vampire origins is the Hungarian Countess, Erzebet. Obsessed with staying young and beautiful she believed her answer laid in blood. So after accidentally getting the blood of one of her servants on her, she thought the spot on which the blood dropped looked younger and more beautiful. Naturally this led to her killing servants and bathing in their bloo...more
This book was incredible. I am a huge fan of gothic horror. I don't understand all of these comments talking about how young adults shouldn't read it. I got this from my high school's library, I am in 11th grade, and I even let most of my friends read it. I love how Sinestra was the Devil in human form. I love how it shows her madness progressing. I couldn't put this book down. My favorite part of this book was when she first met Marianna's daughter. You could tell who it was even before you fou...more
sedikit kecewa karena bukunya nggak semenyeramkan novel dan sinopsisnya. jujur, saya mengharapkan cerita yang lebih lebih lebih menyeramkan daripada ini(sisi psikopat mulai muncul). bagusnya, pas ada salah satu tokoh, siapapun tokohnya, lagi ngomong, aku bisa mbayangin diriku sendiri kalo aku yang ngomong.
ada lagi jeleknya, buat novel yang se-lumayan ini, pengejaan kata yang salah kayaknya terlalu banyak. nggak banget. lagian setiap kata kerja yang akhirannya 'tak' (kayak letak, gertak, sentak)...more
ada lagi jeleknya, buat novel yang se-lumayan ini, pengejaan kata yang salah kayaknya terlalu banyak. nggak banget. lagian setiap kata kerja yang akhirannya 'tak' (kayak letak, gertak, sentak)...more
I LOVED this book, even though it was kind of girly... or really girly. The characters are selfish and vain, but that's just another pefect touch. Alisa M. Libby combines horror, romance, and history in all the perfect ways to create one powerful book. Gothic, unsettling and intriguing, The Blood Confession is definately worth the read.
It's based on real-life countess Erzebet Bathory. Some people said she bathed in the blood of beautiful virgins to mantain her youth and beauty. Others suggest th...more
It's based on real-life countess Erzebet Bathory. Some people said she bathed in the blood of beautiful virgins to mantain her youth and beauty. Others suggest th...more
I liked this book. It wasn't the kind of book that I couldn't wait to pick up and read but when I did, I was glad to be reading it. It is a historical fiction about Elizabeth Bathory, whom some people think that Bram Stoker developed his Dracula character from. I can say it is a def. possibility. The story starts out with Elizabeth held captive for crimes. It flips back and forth from current day to how she became captive. I am not sure how much is fiction and how much at it is facts, but it is...more
This book was incredible. I'm usually pretty good at anticipating things that are going to happen, but I consistently found myself thrown for a loop and surprised reading Blood Confession. It was fantastic, I saw nothing coming. After reading this book (it's been more than a few years), I continued to refer to it and things I learned for years. You'd be surprised at how often royalty comes up in conversation when you know something about them. This one will stick with me for life as a favorite r...more
I had been staring at this book for awhile before I finally buckled down and bought the hardcover addition (the only one they had available). I was immediately glad I did, because I was pleasantly surprised at how well written and thought out it was. I always love books where the perspective is from someone who is clearly insane but views themselves as sane, it gives such an interesting, skewed perspective that I find addictive to read. Based on the real, living countess, this story is an interp...more
So the book is about a girl who is obsessed with her beauty. She will do amything in her power to stay young and beautiful for forever. She even goes so far in that she starts killing young girls in hope to stay young. In her mind, blood was the most pure thimg, so she would drink the blood of a girl in hope her beauty would go in to her.
I thought this book was really well done. She goes through all this stuff with her parents and she really has no one to turn to. When i finished it, i felt so...more
I thought this book was really well done. She goes through all this stuff with her parents and she really has no one to turn to. When i finished it, i felt so...more
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I thought this book dragged a bit, to be honest. I had heard the story of this woman before, in a study of serial killers, so I was familiar with her psychosis. I think I expected too much from the book, to be honest. Seriously, then, the read...it was okay. It focuses on this narcissistic noble woman who decides it would be cool to bathe in the blood of her rivals for the purpose of preserving her beauty. Okay, whatever. What bothers me, though, is that her rationale is never really developed....more
Alisa Libby’s gothic prose is delicious and it captivated me from the beginning. I found myself creeping around in the dark and foreboding castle along with Erzebet. I could see the golden light flickering from the candles, feel the cold draft in the murky corridors, and could almost run my fingers through the plush red velvet of Erzebet’s gown.
This story is only a loosely based on the legend of Elizabeth Bathory, not a fictionalized account. In fact, the character even has a different name, Co...more
This story is only a loosely based on the legend of Elizabeth Bathory, not a fictionalized account. In fact, the character even has a different name, Co...more
4.5 stars
After reading THE BLOOD CONFESSION, I find it a bit surprising that this is specifically targeted to young adults. Not that they wouldn't appreciate or like it, although I don't know how much the appeal would be to that age range unless they're especially morbid (as I was and still am), but because of the subtle nuances and intricate study of character, morality, and belief system, which is well suited for adult readers as well. The book is mainly a character study and the author does a...more
After reading THE BLOOD CONFESSION, I find it a bit surprising that this is specifically targeted to young adults. Not that they wouldn't appreciate or like it, although I don't know how much the appeal would be to that age range unless they're especially morbid (as I was and still am), but because of the subtle nuances and intricate study of character, morality, and belief system, which is well suited for adult readers as well. The book is mainly a character study and the author does a...more
This is one of those books that are hard to explain. Even though I thoroughly enjoyed it, I’m having a hard time explaining what it is I so thoroughly enjoyed.
Something I found surprising was the way I felt about Erzebet. My expectation was that Libby would try to make us sympathetic to her character, but she really didn’t. Right away Erzebet was annoying and shallow. Worse off, she was sadistic in the sense that the only way she felt powerful was to hurt other people. Even though she has reason...more
Something I found surprising was the way I felt about Erzebet. My expectation was that Libby would try to make us sympathetic to her character, but she really didn’t. Right away Erzebet was annoying and shallow. Worse off, she was sadistic in the sense that the only way she felt powerful was to hurt other people. Even though she has reason...more
Okay this was a huge disapointment. I thought it would be interesting to read about this woman who became a serial killer by bathing in her victims blood, during the time of Queen Elizabeth I. But this fictional account bordered on evil. I kept getting this evil feeling as I read about the man who would come to her and tell her what to do. I did not finish this book, it did not help me to gain any wisdom. Kind of sad because I liked her other book.
This is the fictionalized story of Erzsbet Bathory the Hungarian Countess who tortured and kiled serving girls so she could bathe in their blood to keep herself young. When she was finally caught she was walled up alive in a room in her castle.
Although this is less gory than many of the more historical versions that I have read I wouldn't consider this appropriately published as YA fiction. It is a tale of madness and murder, more appropriate for adult lovers of gothic horror.
Although this is less gory than many of the more historical versions that I have read I wouldn't consider this appropriately published as YA fiction. It is a tale of madness and murder, more appropriate for adult lovers of gothic horror.
So I would have enjoyed this book a LOT more if I had realized it wasn't actually supposed to be Elizabeth Bathory. Instead, this character Erzebet Bizecka was BASED off of her. I kept getting so frustrated that Erzebet went past 16 and kept saying she would never get married, when she DID get married at 16, AND had a child.
But I finally realized she was based off the character, and enjoyed the story a lot more.
But I finally realized she was based off the character, and enjoyed the story a lot more.
This story was based on the life of Elizabeth Bathory, the female Dracula, who killed many young girls in order to bathe in their blood. Written in the first person, it tells the story of Erzebet from the age of puberty to adulthood, and the strange prophecy made at her birth which obsesses her and shapes all her thoughts and actions. The details of 16th-century Hungarian castle life and the psychology of Erzebet's particular madness were fascinating. I couldn't put it down! What made the story...more
I'm giving this book an extra star for the sheer hilarity of the book design. The raised Olde English font of the title, crimped hair, the fake craquelure on the dainty little hands wielding a bloody dagger. The "bloodstained" page edges are the best touch. As for the novel itself it's about as dumb as you would expect from a story based on Elizabeth Bathory.
Usually historical fiction books are my favorites and one based on Erzebet Bathory seemed right up my alley. Unfortunately I didn't really like this book much and I rushed through it just to be done with it. I just couldn't get into the story and it was taking me such a long time to read it since I needed to constantly put it down due to disinterest. I think there was a lot of potential with the history and legend of Bathory and I'm disappointed because it could have been a lot better.
A very, very dark novel.
I read this when I was about ten or eleven, and I was so creeped out I couldn't sleep for two nights. It retells the story of a Hungarian countess who was notorious for using young virgin's blood to keep herself young and beautiful. The book hints to dementia that the countess could have had since her mother's death, which may have led her to her heinous acts. The book is written in the form of a journal/regular novel, and that just makes it all the scarier. All in all, a...more
I read this when I was about ten or eleven, and I was so creeped out I couldn't sleep for two nights. It retells the story of a Hungarian countess who was notorious for using young virgin's blood to keep herself young and beautiful. The book hints to dementia that the countess could have had since her mother's death, which may have led her to her heinous acts. The book is written in the form of a journal/regular novel, and that just makes it all the scarier. All in all, a...more
It started of pretty good, the whole blood obessed thing was interesting and made for morbid fascintaion. but as the story went on, the bleedings became repeative, and through the journal entries the plot was revealed pretty early on. It made a good opening into the life of Countess Bathory, but as a book it was that good.
Really like this novel. Meskipun akhir ceritanya si Erzebeth ini harus dihukum mati, tapi tetep aja ini cerita yang bagus. Entahlah, apa karena ini berlatar belakang sjarah masa lalu, makanya aku jadi senang ama ni novel.
Intinya, aku belajar banyak tentang kesetiaan dan kepatuhan para bawahan / pelayan terhadap atasannya. Terus, aku gak bisa bayangin diriku ngelakuin hal yang dibuat Erzebeth, ngolesin darah orang lain ke wajahnya. Bisa-bisa aku muntah deh...
Once again, ini cerita yang bagus. Aku...more
Intinya, aku belajar banyak tentang kesetiaan dan kepatuhan para bawahan / pelayan terhadap atasannya. Terus, aku gak bisa bayangin diriku ngelakuin hal yang dibuat Erzebeth, ngolesin darah orang lain ke wajahnya. Bisa-bisa aku muntah deh...
Once again, ini cerita yang bagus. Aku...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YUCK! | 5 | 20 | Jun 27, 2011 10:01am |
Hi there, it's me, Alisa. I write this bio blurb just one week before the release of my second book, The King's Rose. The feeling of waiting for a book's publication has been likened to standing in line for a very large rollercoaster, which I think is an apt description. Anxiety aside, I'm really thrilled to share this book with everyone: it's historical fiction about Catherine Howard, the fifth w...more
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“Envy is a dangerous sin. To envy someone you love is to kill a part of yourself”
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“Not one person in this world believes that they are truly good enough as they are: good enough to be admired, to be respected, to be loved. Only I am willing to admit this.”
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