What do you think?
Rate this book
Vampire Files #11.4 - Grave-Robbed
Many Bloody Returns
Includes an original Sookie Stackhouse story
"Clever...entertaining... excellent"( Library Journal ) original vampire stories by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong, and more.
From cakes to stakes, a celebration of everyone's favorite bloodsucking subculture by a baker's dozen of favorite authors. Each of these thirteen original stories offers a fresh and unique take on what birthdays mean to the undead. From Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse attending a birthday party for Dracula to Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden battling bloodsucking party crashers, these suspenseful, surprising, sometimes dark, sometimes humorous stories will ensure paranormal fans will never think of vampires or birthdays quite the same again.
"Clever...entertaining... excellent"( Library Journal ) original vampire stories by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Kelley Armstrong, and more.
From cakes to stakes, a celebration of everyone's favorite bloodsucking subculture by a baker's dozen of favorite authors. Each of these thirteen original stories offers a fresh and unique take on what birthdays mean to the undead. From Charlaine Harris's Sookie Stackhouse attending a birthday party for Dracula to Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden battling bloodsucking party crashers, these suspenseful, surprising, sometimes dark, sometimes humorous stories will ensure paranormal fans will never think of vampires or birthdays quite the same again.
368 pages, Hardcover
First published September 4, 2007
116 people are currently reading
8899 people want to read
About the author
Charlaine Harris
192 books36.9k followersCharlaine Harris has been a published writer for over forty years. Her first two books were standalones, followed by a long sabbatical when she was having children. Then she began the Aurora Teagarden book, mysteries featuring a short librarian (eventually adapted for Hallmark movies). The darker Lily Bard books came next, about a house cleaner with a dark past and considerable fighting skills.
Tired of abiding by the mystery rules, Harris wrote a novel about a telepathic barmaid that took at least two years to sell. When the book was published, it turned into a best seller, and DEAD UNTIL DARK and the subsequent Sookie books were adapted in Alan Ball's "True Blood" series. At the same time, Harris began the Harper Connelly books. Harper can find the bones of the dead and see their last minute.
When those two series wound to a close, the next three books were about a mysterious town in Texas, called Midnight.
A change in publisher and editor led to Harris's novels about a female gunslinger in an alternate America, Lizbeth Rose. The Gunnie Rose books concluded with the sixth novel.
She's thinking about what to write next.
Tired of abiding by the mystery rules, Harris wrote a novel about a telepathic barmaid that took at least two years to sell. When the book was published, it turned into a best seller, and DEAD UNTIL DARK and the subsequent Sookie books were adapted in Alan Ball's "True Blood" series. At the same time, Harris began the Harper Connelly books. Harper can find the bones of the dead and see their last minute.
When those two series wound to a close, the next three books were about a mysterious town in Texas, called Midnight.
A change in publisher and editor led to Harris's novels about a female gunslinger in an alternate America, Lizbeth Rose. The Gunnie Rose books concluded with the sixth novel.
She's thinking about what to write next.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 623 reviews
September 22, 2024
3.5 stars
This was a fun short story collection suitable for birthday reading. I enjoyed all the stories, but the highlights for me were the ones by P.N. Elrod, Tanya Huff, and Rachel Caine. For some reason, vampire tales delight me and these have the perfect mix of humanity and the supernatural. All of the authors found interesting things for their characters to be doing, none of it run-of-the-mill. I love Elrod's Jack Fleming, who is willing to take on a séance charlatan to prevent him from taking advantage of a grieving woman. I was reminded that I need to get back to Huff's Blood series to enjoy more of Vicki Nelson’s adventures. Plus I am encouraged to start Caine's Morganville Vampires series, which she seems to have given some interesting boundaries in addition to the regular vampiric limitations.
Special applause for the final story, by Kelner, whose vampire character, Stella, gets to play Nancy Drew and find out who is buried in her grave. For a first vampire story, I found it very entertaining. Plus I loved the title: How Stella Got Her Grave Back.
A nice birthday treat.
This was a fun short story collection suitable for birthday reading. I enjoyed all the stories, but the highlights for me were the ones by P.N. Elrod, Tanya Huff, and Rachel Caine. For some reason, vampire tales delight me and these have the perfect mix of humanity and the supernatural. All of the authors found interesting things for their characters to be doing, none of it run-of-the-mill. I love Elrod's Jack Fleming, who is willing to take on a séance charlatan to prevent him from taking advantage of a grieving woman. I was reminded that I need to get back to Huff's Blood series to enjoy more of Vicki Nelson’s adventures. Plus I am encouraged to start Caine's Morganville Vampires series, which she seems to have given some interesting boundaries in addition to the regular vampiric limitations.
Special applause for the final story, by Kelner, whose vampire character, Stella, gets to play Nancy Drew and find out who is buried in her grave. For a first vampire story, I found it very entertaining. Plus I loved the title: How Stella Got Her Grave Back.
A nice birthday treat.
June 13, 2019
Harry Dresden, the mage who protects Chicago from the denizens of the dark, grew up with terrible family experiences. His birthday celebrations ranged from bad to nil. At one point he learned that he had a half-brother. At about the same time he learned that this brother was a vampire….albeit one of the “white” not “black” type. This story is from the vampire collection Many Bloody Returns edited by Charlaine Harris. The story fits into the Dresden Files a little before Small Favor.
Harry forgets his brother’s birthday is today until he is reminded at the last moment. He has a present all wrapped but has to find his brother and give it to him. This is a vampire revenge story with Harry and his brother (and some other creatures) foiling the attempts to kill, maim, and destroy Chicagoland’s premiere shopping mall. It is clever enough and the descriptions of the venue, weather, characters and “magic” are quite nice. Harry’s acolyte is an important element in the story and the “brother stuff” fills in some gaps…An easy to digest 3.5*
Harry forgets his brother’s birthday is today until he is reminded at the last moment. He has a present all wrapped but has to find his brother and give it to him. This is a vampire revenge story with Harry and his brother (and some other creatures) foiling the attempts to kill, maim, and destroy Chicagoland’s premiere shopping mall. It is clever enough and the descriptions of the venue, weather, characters and “magic” are quite nice. Harry’s acolyte is an important element in the story and the “brother stuff” fills in some gaps…An easy to digest 3.5*
May 12, 2023
This is a nice anthology of vampire stories with the unlikely unifying theme of birthday celebrations. Many of the stories belong to supernatural urban fantasy series, and I suspect fans of those series will like the individual offerings here. I remember enjoying the stories by Kelley Armstrong, co-editor Kelner, and an odd Christopher Golden tale, and I especially liked the Sookie Stackhouse story from co-editor Harris, the Vicki Nelson story by Tanya Huff, and the Dresden story by Jim Butcher. It's a nice sampler volume; light the candles.
February 16, 2016
Dracula Night is a short story in the Sookie Stackhouse series by popular American author, Charlaine Harris. Eric invites Sookie to celebrate Dracula Night at his nightclub, Fangtasia. Dress-code cocktail wear, so she buys a new dress, pink with sequins. She’s quite amazed at Eric’s almost groupie-like hope that Prince Dracula himself might grace their humble club, and consequently, his judgement is a little off. But Sookie has her finger on the pulse, and takes the necessary action, although this draws the ire of the club’s patrons. A mini-dose of vampire fun.
October 21, 2020
Many Bloody Returns: Tales of Birthdays with Bite edited by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P. Kelner is a fun anthology of vampire stories that in some way or another involve birthdays. I'd had already read a couple of them before from other collections. For example, "Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris was in The Complete Sookie Stackhouse Short Stories that I actually just finished. My favorite of all thirteen stories included hands down was "It's My Birthday, Too" by Jim Butcher. That was not a surprise though because it's a Dresden Files story and it features Harry, Molly, and Thomas and was just plain fun. I also really enjoyed the stories from P.N. Elrod, Rachel Caine, and Tanya Huff. I really need to start the Vampire Files series, The Morganville Vampires, and catch up on the Vicki Nelson series.
May 24, 2018
Many Bloody Returns: Tales of Birthdays with Bite was an okay kind of book. I guess I'm into vampires..but not that into them? I don't know if that makes sense but I'm writing this review after several glasses of win (trust me the day called for it) so bear with me?
Now this book had a bunch of short stories wrapped into this book. However, not all of them stuck out to me. I remember the Sookie Stackhouse one mostly because I've seen a couple of episodes of various seasons.. and also read some books from that series. Even though I remembered this book doesn't mean that it was my favorite. It really wasn't. I was actually underwhelmed and disappointed. Then again, nothing really stuck in my brain after finishing this entire book.
Apart from not really remembering much about this book, Jim Butcher's book about Harry Dresden was really good. Probably my favorite out of them all. I don't believe I've read any books by this author (mostly 'cause I read so many books in a year but I'm not looking on GR to verify either #lazyAF) but I will definitely be looking into more books by him.
Overall, these stories were just meh to me. I definitely kept flip flopping about my rating for this because one good book can't make me love all of the ones I didn't care for.
Now this book had a bunch of short stories wrapped into this book. However, not all of them stuck out to me. I remember the Sookie Stackhouse one mostly because I've seen a couple of episodes of various seasons.. and also read some books from that series. Even though I remembered this book doesn't mean that it was my favorite. It really wasn't. I was actually underwhelmed and disappointed. Then again, nothing really stuck in my brain after finishing this entire book.
Apart from not really remembering much about this book, Jim Butcher's book about Harry Dresden was really good. Probably my favorite out of them all. I don't believe I've read any books by this author (mostly 'cause I read so many books in a year but I'm not looking on GR to verify either #lazyAF) but I will definitely be looking into more books by him.
Overall, these stories were just meh to me. I definitely kept flip flopping about my rating for this because one good book can't make me love all of the ones I didn't care for.
August 29, 2020
Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets ★★★★★
This story had me on tenderhooks, I was fully invested. A middle age woman at the end of her marriage meets a vampire. It was fantasy, but it was also painfully honest.
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine ★★★★½
That was a highly entertaining YA story of a town ruled by malicious vampires. I need to check out the Morganville Vampire series.
The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden ★★★★☆
A teenager gets a shock when her mother confesses on her sixteenth birthday that she is not her natural daughter. Now that she is sixteen she can she shed her humanity, she is shtriga.
Grace-Robbed by P. N. Elrod ★★★★☆
Jack Fleming, vampire private investigator, helps a young girl save her widowed sister from a charlatan.
Blood Warped by Tanya Huff ★★★½☆
A short story from the Tony Foster series, an urban fiction about a wizard and a vampire in Vancouver. Here they saved a child from human monsters. Another series I need to check out.
Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris ★★★☆☆
A version of Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin, only it’s Eric Northman hoping to meet Dracula on Halloween.
Twilight by Kelley Armstrong ★★★☆☆
An old vampire from Women of the Otherworld fights for another year of life.
It’s My Birthday, Too by Jim Butcher ★★★☆☆
Harry Dresden finds his brother celebrating his birthday with LARPers. Together they stave off a black court vampire attack.
The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein ★★★☆☆
A witch uses the ashy remains of vampire to make an age defying lotion. It works but she’s stuck with the vampire too. It needed a better ending.
How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L. P. Kelner ★★★☆☆
A vampire returns home on her birthday, with her progeny, and solves a murder.
The Wish by Carolyn Haines ★★½☆☆
A sad story about a woman who looses her children to death, but death refuses to take her until ‘her time.’ She finally decides to get her revenge on death by becoming a vampire.
Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway ★★☆☆☆
A vampire and his goddess riden girlfriend encounter an elemental demon on the way to his birthday celebration. There was not enough world building, the reader is dropped in precipitously.
I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider ★½☆☆☆
Impressively boring.
Average rating 3.2 stars.
January 27, 2016
I love these Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance anthology mashups focusing on themes. I have now read the one with weddings (My Big Supernatural Wedding), now here we are with birthdays.
Charlaine Harris opened the anthology with a Sookie book (be still my heart.) Oh my, Dracula Night was SO much fun. It was a delight to read an old-school style Sookie story with Eric there in all his original glory, before Harris decided to flatten with a hammer into a one-dimensional toon. Plenty of Sookie detailing her clothes and hair, Pam's wit, a freaking party at FANGTASIA, hilarious moments, and a fun ending. Loved it, even with the typo on page 1.
The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden sometimes seemed awkwardly written, but the story itself is inventive. I guessed something with the owls - title alone! - but didn't expect in. Not a great story, but it's a passable one; it seems oddly placed in this anthology, not quite fitting, just like the character in the story.
I was a teenage vampire was cute and quirky, but not too significant and was meant more as a tongue-in-cheek kind of offering.
Twilight by Kelley Armstrong fit the birthday theme perfectly with an urban fantasy/paranormal twist. It was serious, introspective, but I had trouble holding my interest as I didn't know anything about the characters and there wasn't much action/tension.
It's My Birthday, too - was from the Harry Dresden series. I don't know if it's because it has characters I don't recognize since I'm not far in the series, or what, but I just couldn't get into this story.
Grave-robbed was in the top three for the best. Loved the storyline of breaking up a fake seance. The main character was an intriguing male vampire lead. PN Elrod writes well; curious about reading more of her work.
Speaking of the best, The First Day of the Rest of your life is the winner. I seriously have to start reading Rachel Caine novels - not only did her story win this one, it also won another anthology I read this year. Writing quite simply rocks, the main character is feisty without being obnoxous, individualized but realistic. The story of the town Morganville sounds absolutely fascinating - MUST.Read.Series.First.
The Witch and the Wicked - Look out, a witch is catering a vampire's birthday party. Awesome story because of the humor and quirkiness, all working to make a fun tale. Not particularly eventful but adorably funny - in a wicked way, of course. Really enjoyed this one, a solid 4/5. I hadn't heard of this author before; checking out more of their stuff is now a priority.
Blood Wrapped wasn't necessarily awesome because of it's story - a small, but serious mystery happening at the same time they are planning for a funny birthday, but because of the characters. I've read the five book Blood series from Huff, and her three book spinoff with Tony. It was cool to see he and Lee stayed together, although that character was not in the book. Henry is the main, which = delight.
The Wish by Carolyn Haines was more formally written than the other short stories. I could be wrong, but it seems to be a stand-a-lone short. There is a nifty twist at the end that made it worthwhile, the writing style felt stilted at first but then became beautiful, and I dig the nod toward a Grim Reaper theme.
Obviously the short story, Fire Ice and Linguini for Two must be part of some series. The characters are humorous and likeable, as is the writing style. I like the different element creature added into the mix. Birthdays may make you feel like you're cursed, but at least they can provide interesting stories as in Sebastian's case.
Vampire Hours was...awesome. Not in it's plot, but in the full force effect of "Hell Hath No Fury like a woman scorned." There's wicked revenge and redemption at the end - *evil fist pump?* - so this was a worthy, albeit different, one.
How Stella got her grave back contained not only an interesting mystery and decent characters, but the end was a great, sweet wrapup to this anthology.
Overall an excellent anthology, even better than 'My Supernatural Wedding'. Now I need to get to 'Death's excellent vacation' sometime.
Charlaine Harris opened the anthology with a Sookie book (be still my heart.) Oh my, Dracula Night was SO much fun. It was a delight to read an old-school style Sookie story with Eric there in all his original glory, before Harris decided to flatten with a hammer into a one-dimensional toon. Plenty of Sookie detailing her clothes and hair, Pam's wit, a freaking party at FANGTASIA, hilarious moments, and a fun ending. Loved it, even with the typo on page 1.
The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden sometimes seemed awkwardly written, but the story itself is inventive. I guessed something with the owls - title alone! - but didn't expect in. Not a great story, but it's a passable one; it seems oddly placed in this anthology, not quite fitting, just like the character in the story.
I was a teenage vampire was cute and quirky, but not too significant and was meant more as a tongue-in-cheek kind of offering.
Twilight by Kelley Armstrong fit the birthday theme perfectly with an urban fantasy/paranormal twist. It was serious, introspective, but I had trouble holding my interest as I didn't know anything about the characters and there wasn't much action/tension.
It's My Birthday, too - was from the Harry Dresden series. I don't know if it's because it has characters I don't recognize since I'm not far in the series, or what, but I just couldn't get into this story.
Grave-robbed was in the top three for the best. Loved the storyline of breaking up a fake seance. The main character was an intriguing male vampire lead. PN Elrod writes well; curious about reading more of her work.
Speaking of the best, The First Day of the Rest of your life is the winner. I seriously have to start reading Rachel Caine novels - not only did her story win this one, it also won another anthology I read this year. Writing quite simply rocks, the main character is feisty without being obnoxous, individualized but realistic. The story of the town Morganville sounds absolutely fascinating - MUST.Read.Series.First.
The Witch and the Wicked - Look out, a witch is catering a vampire's birthday party. Awesome story because of the humor and quirkiness, all working to make a fun tale. Not particularly eventful but adorably funny - in a wicked way, of course. Really enjoyed this one, a solid 4/5. I hadn't heard of this author before; checking out more of their stuff is now a priority.
Blood Wrapped wasn't necessarily awesome because of it's story - a small, but serious mystery happening at the same time they are planning for a funny birthday, but because of the characters. I've read the five book Blood series from Huff, and her three book spinoff with Tony. It was cool to see he and Lee stayed together, although that character was not in the book. Henry is the main, which = delight.
The Wish by Carolyn Haines was more formally written than the other short stories. I could be wrong, but it seems to be a stand-a-lone short. There is a nifty twist at the end that made it worthwhile, the writing style felt stilted at first but then became beautiful, and I dig the nod toward a Grim Reaper theme.
Obviously the short story, Fire Ice and Linguini for Two must be part of some series. The characters are humorous and likeable, as is the writing style. I like the different element creature added into the mix. Birthdays may make you feel like you're cursed, but at least they can provide interesting stories as in Sebastian's case.
Vampire Hours was...awesome. Not in it's plot, but in the full force effect of "Hell Hath No Fury like a woman scorned." There's wicked revenge and redemption at the end - *evil fist pump?* - so this was a worthy, albeit different, one.
How Stella got her grave back contained not only an interesting mystery and decent characters, but the end was a great, sweet wrapup to this anthology.
Overall an excellent anthology, even better than 'My Supernatural Wedding'. Now I need to get to 'Death's excellent vacation' sometime.
May 1, 2019
1) Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris.
What the heck is an 'Entergy bill'? I think she meant energy bill but still to see that in the very first story, first page was an major eye-blink moment. Playful and a bit ridiculous but a fun read. I have yet to read the Sookie Stackhouse novels but have seen the show so I kept seeing their faces but I struggled most with Eric how had a puppy dog quality in this story. Charlie Brown indeed!
2) The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden
Well written but a bit of a grossed out factor hits me in this one. I felt a bit bad for the mother in the end and the boyfriend... How did this whole transference her mother did occur? It wasn't well explained. I just counldn't visualize a lot of this. Just the woods itself. Nothing more. Donika seemed alright at first but I didn't get the instant 180 she does. This needed to all be fleshed out more then I think it could have been quite good.
3) I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider
Too corny for my taste. Carl(Charleton) seems like an airhead on one page, a decent guy the next, and then self-centered 2 pages later. I get that he is a teen but this is a short story that takes places over a very short time span. He seemed half erratic! Also way too predictable and the end had me rolling my eyes. I had hoped the middle of the story showed potential but I really did find the end to be bad.
4) Twilight by Kelley Armstrong
This one has me really wanting to read the series! Cassandra was an interesting character I want to learn more about. And what will happen to her after the end of this especially has me curious. I want to learn more about her and Aaron's lifestyles. How often do they otherwise need blood besides this once a year rule?
5) It's My Birthday, Too by Jim Butcher
I felt a bit lost on this one. I think I need to read the Dresden series (at least the first volume) to properly appreciate this one. It was well written but that was some things happening and that were mentioned that went over my head. They seemed to just belong to this world. But it has be more curious than ever to go read the series.
6) Grave-Robbed by PN Elrod
Strange vampires in this one with ghost effects. Guess it beats sparkling like diamonds but still very weird skill vamps apparently have in this. Does this go to a series? I felt like I should have already known this character. Lots of personal details of his past. Either there is a book or it was unnessessary. I've have to investigate this. I liked the younger sister for trying to help Flora out.
7) The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine
I love This series so it is great to get more of the stories. I liked that Eve barely knew Michael here! Her parents are awful but I liked getting to see a younger Miranda. I wonder why Miranda made the choice she did though... As always Eve is quite rebellious. I found it very strange how detached everyone was from what happens. "Welcome to Morganville, friends and family will die often" I suppose.
8) The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C Stein
Not a fan of the MC. Bit naive and self-centered. And then to go around all "I am a Good Witch. I am a vegetarian." You are also materialistic and selfish while internally complaining and stingy vampires. HAH! The irony! She deserved what she got. Not sure the vamp did though... But I must be honest, I wanted to know what happens next. This deserved more at the same time.
9) Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff
Blah. I like Tanya Huff but this I didn't care for at all. Too much bantering and bickering and not enough story. And lacked world building. I felt utterly detached.
10) The Wish by Carolyn Haines
I rather enjoyed this. Took awhile to get to the vampire part though. The early trajedy set if back further. Very short and a bit sad. I loved how death is described. I wonder if she actually got her wish...
11) Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway
I really liked these characters. Especially Sebastian. A vampire who feels cursed in a whole new way that I've never thought of before. And a new way of turning. Quite interesting. This story made me shiver. Quite toe cold read and is a perfect winter read for late night by the fireplace I think. Too bad that wasn't my reading case. I'll be looking for more by this author for sure!
12) Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets
A surprise favorite. A woman in her fifties is starting to feel her age. It doesn't help when your husband is a plastic surgeon who is sleeping around with other women. I felt a bit bad for her. But then again, she still choose her life, friends and lack of career so my empathy is minimal. Yet how she views detachment and how she wants more in life is interesting.
13) How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni LP Kelner
Yep, it is as corny as the title says. Ugh. The vampires in this annoyed me. Felt very immature and I felt they were teenagers. How long have they been walking the earth? Yet they can't afford to use the brain? I really didn't like this one at all.
What the heck is an 'Entergy bill'? I think she meant energy bill but still to see that in the very first story, first page was an major eye-blink moment. Playful and a bit ridiculous but a fun read. I have yet to read the Sookie Stackhouse novels but have seen the show so I kept seeing their faces but I struggled most with Eric how had a puppy dog quality in this story. Charlie Brown indeed!
2) The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden
Well written but a bit of a grossed out factor hits me in this one. I felt a bit bad for the mother in the end and the boyfriend... How did this whole transference her mother did occur? It wasn't well explained. I just counldn't visualize a lot of this. Just the woods itself. Nothing more. Donika seemed alright at first but I didn't get the instant 180 she does. This needed to all be fleshed out more then I think it could have been quite good.
3) I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider
Too corny for my taste. Carl(Charleton) seems like an airhead on one page, a decent guy the next, and then self-centered 2 pages later. I get that he is a teen but this is a short story that takes places over a very short time span. He seemed half erratic! Also way too predictable and the end had me rolling my eyes. I had hoped the middle of the story showed potential but I really did find the end to be bad.
4) Twilight by Kelley Armstrong
This one has me really wanting to read the series! Cassandra was an interesting character I want to learn more about. And what will happen to her after the end of this especially has me curious. I want to learn more about her and Aaron's lifestyles. How often do they otherwise need blood besides this once a year rule?
5) It's My Birthday, Too by Jim Butcher
I felt a bit lost on this one. I think I need to read the Dresden series (at least the first volume) to properly appreciate this one. It was well written but that was some things happening and that were mentioned that went over my head. They seemed to just belong to this world. But it has be more curious than ever to go read the series.
6) Grave-Robbed by PN Elrod
Strange vampires in this one with ghost effects. Guess it beats sparkling like diamonds but still very weird skill vamps apparently have in this. Does this go to a series? I felt like I should have already known this character. Lots of personal details of his past. Either there is a book or it was unnessessary. I've have to investigate this. I liked the younger sister for trying to help Flora out.
7) The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine
I love This series so it is great to get more of the stories. I liked that Eve barely knew Michael here! Her parents are awful but I liked getting to see a younger Miranda. I wonder why Miranda made the choice she did though... As always Eve is quite rebellious. I found it very strange how detached everyone was from what happens. "Welcome to Morganville, friends and family will die often" I suppose.
8) The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C Stein
Not a fan of the MC. Bit naive and self-centered. And then to go around all "I am a Good Witch. I am a vegetarian." You are also materialistic and selfish while internally complaining and stingy vampires. HAH! The irony! She deserved what she got. Not sure the vamp did though... But I must be honest, I wanted to know what happens next. This deserved more at the same time.
9) Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff
Blah. I like Tanya Huff but this I didn't care for at all. Too much bantering and bickering and not enough story. And lacked world building. I felt utterly detached.
10) The Wish by Carolyn Haines
I rather enjoyed this. Took awhile to get to the vampire part though. The early trajedy set if back further. Very short and a bit sad. I loved how death is described. I wonder if she actually got her wish...
11) Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway
I really liked these characters. Especially Sebastian. A vampire who feels cursed in a whole new way that I've never thought of before. And a new way of turning. Quite interesting. This story made me shiver. Quite toe cold read and is a perfect winter read for late night by the fireplace I think. Too bad that wasn't my reading case. I'll be looking for more by this author for sure!
12) Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets
A surprise favorite. A woman in her fifties is starting to feel her age. It doesn't help when your husband is a plastic surgeon who is sleeping around with other women. I felt a bit bad for her. But then again, she still choose her life, friends and lack of career so my empathy is minimal. Yet how she views detachment and how she wants more in life is interesting.
13) How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni LP Kelner
Yep, it is as corny as the title says. Ugh. The vampires in this annoyed me. Felt very immature and I felt they were teenagers. How long have they been walking the earth? Yet they can't afford to use the brain? I really didn't like this one at all.
May 17, 2008
Overall, I'm giving Many Bloody Returns three stars, but that's for the general quality of the three stories I read, the value of the theme, and the collection of popular authors. Since all of these stories seem to be set in continuing series, I only read the ones for series I read, since these are unlikely to be good introductions.
Reviews of the stories themselves:
Charlain Harris contributes a rather mediocre Sookie Stackhouse story set on Dracula's Birthday. The story is passable, but it revolves around characters (Sookie and Eric) acting out of character and ends with a contrived and predictable "quirk" (like a poor imitation of Tales from the Darkside, itself a poor imitation of The Twilight Zone). The story is fun enough, but if you're not a Sookie fan already please don't judge the series by it.
The story itself involves Eric slavering to throw a birthday party so sincere that the great pumpkin, or at least Dracula himself, will attend. The action is the predictable is-he-or-isn't-he game of whether Drac is present. You get two guesses and the first two don't count.
Jim Butcher's Dresden Files story is much better, at least because it brings the action and the humor. It should work passably if you haven't read the series, but it's far from a perfect introduction.
Harry Dresden, our wizard hero is trying to deliver a birthday present to his half-brother Thomas, a vampire, and they fall into the usual sort of shenanigans that dog both of them. Along the way, we learn what Thomas is doing for work these days (shortly before his work in the last two books) and uncover a hilarious secret about Thomas' recreation. The secret leads to a large number of innocents for the pair (well, the three, since Molly, Harry's apprentice, is also present) to save.
The action is fun, with chases, hunts, magic, fight scenes, Harry's trademark "I only have to plan ahead 1 or 2 minutes" trickery, and a wonderful bit with an old client of his. The only serious fault is Harry repeatedly using a trick (involving manipulating gravity) that is both far overpowered for his usual magical technique and which never appears again in the two books set after the story; it feels like a plot device from the moment it's introduced. On the plus side, we get some nice brotherly interaction that reminds us how much the two mean to one another. It could actually choke you up a bit. Not that it did that to me, of course. Honest.
I started Rachel Caine's "The First Day of the Rest of Your Life" thinking it was a Weather Warden story. Instead, it turned out to be a good, short piece set in her Morganville Vampires universe. I had never heard of this series (it's shelved as YA) and the story is a very nice introduction to one of the secondary characters (and a recurring and amusing minor character as well). Not a lot happens in the story, but the effects are profound for the protagonist.
The story flashes back to Eve's 18th birthday, when she had to decide whether to sign with a vampire or risk being independent. It's a hard choice and the kids taking her out for some fun are torn between their bravado that they'll go it alone and the reality that they won't. Eve is different, of course, and the events of the night lead directly to her decision and her arrival at the Glass House.
It was a great introduction that got me to read the first three books in the series (and eagerly await the fourth).
The book has six more stories, but I can't say anything about them until/unless I try out their series (if they have one) and give them a look.
Reviews of the stories themselves:
Charlain Harris contributes a rather mediocre Sookie Stackhouse story set on Dracula's Birthday. The story is passable, but it revolves around characters (Sookie and Eric) acting out of character and ends with a contrived and predictable "quirk" (like a poor imitation of Tales from the Darkside, itself a poor imitation of The Twilight Zone). The story is fun enough, but if you're not a Sookie fan already please don't judge the series by it.
The story itself involves Eric slavering to throw a birthday party so sincere that the great pumpkin, or at least Dracula himself, will attend. The action is the predictable is-he-or-isn't-he game of whether Drac is present. You get two guesses and the first two don't count.
Jim Butcher's Dresden Files story is much better, at least because it brings the action and the humor. It should work passably if you haven't read the series, but it's far from a perfect introduction.
Harry Dresden, our wizard hero is trying to deliver a birthday present to his half-brother Thomas, a vampire, and they fall into the usual sort of shenanigans that dog both of them. Along the way, we learn what Thomas is doing for work these days (shortly before his work in the last two books) and uncover a hilarious secret about Thomas' recreation. The secret leads to a large number of innocents for the pair (well, the three, since Molly, Harry's apprentice, is also present) to save.
The action is fun, with chases, hunts, magic, fight scenes, Harry's trademark "I only have to plan ahead 1 or 2 minutes" trickery, and a wonderful bit with an old client of his. The only serious fault is Harry repeatedly using a trick (involving manipulating gravity) that is both far overpowered for his usual magical technique and which never appears again in the two books set after the story; it feels like a plot device from the moment it's introduced. On the plus side, we get some nice brotherly interaction that reminds us how much the two mean to one another. It could actually choke you up a bit. Not that it did that to me, of course. Honest.
I started Rachel Caine's "The First Day of the Rest of Your Life" thinking it was a Weather Warden story. Instead, it turned out to be a good, short piece set in her Morganville Vampires universe. I had never heard of this series (it's shelved as YA) and the story is a very nice introduction to one of the secondary characters (and a recurring and amusing minor character as well). Not a lot happens in the story, but the effects are profound for the protagonist.
The story flashes back to Eve's 18th birthday, when she had to decide whether to sign with a vampire or risk being independent. It's a hard choice and the kids taking her out for some fun are torn between their bravado that they'll go it alone and the reality that they won't. Eve is different, of course, and the events of the night lead directly to her decision and her arrival at the Glass House.
It was a great introduction that got me to read the first three books in the series (and eagerly await the fourth).
The book has six more stories, but I can't say anything about them until/unless I try out their series (if they have one) and give them a look.
January 17, 2019
Basic Premise: Vampires + birthdays.
I'm not nearly as "into" vampires as I once was- Anne Rice and Laurell K. Hamilton pretty well cured me of THAT phase... Blech. However, I was hunting for more Dresden Files material, since I've read all the books and am between series, and this book popped up on my search. There are a lot of interesting stories in here. Unfortunately, many of them kind of blur together at this point, which is the problem when one reads a lot of short stories in a short amount of time. I'll review what stuck out to me.
I've never read a Sookie Stakhouse novel before, but I think I did at one time read another story about her in a collection called "Bite." It didn't impress me enough to really remember anything. This Sookie story was cute, though, and had a definite sense of humor. It was enough to make me decide to give the series a shot at some point.
"It's My Birthday, Too"-- This was the story I grabbed the book for, so it's really the only one I'm going to review in detail. This was a very satisfying Dresden story. Better than the one in Mean Streets, in my opinion. This story starts with Harry trying to give a birthday present to Thomas, and the vampire LARP he drops in on. Let me tell you-- Harry at a vampire LARP is just frikkin' hilarious. The story had action, pop culture, and snarky Dresden humor, moreover, it didn't try to overreach itself. A person who'd never read any other Dresden book would get enough information from the story to get the story without feeling like they were missing something. I laughed out loud at least once while reading it, a 5-star story.
As for the other stories- they were mostly forgettable to me. Although there was one about a town ruled by vampires and a goth girl who rebelled against the status quo, refusing to sign with a "protector" vampire. That one was truly intriguing, and I plan to double-check the author's name so I can see if she made that story into a series. I think it would be good, though at the moment I don't remember her name. Will post it here when I do.
I'm not nearly as "into" vampires as I once was- Anne Rice and Laurell K. Hamilton pretty well cured me of THAT phase... Blech. However, I was hunting for more Dresden Files material, since I've read all the books and am between series, and this book popped up on my search. There are a lot of interesting stories in here. Unfortunately, many of them kind of blur together at this point, which is the problem when one reads a lot of short stories in a short amount of time. I'll review what stuck out to me.
I've never read a Sookie Stakhouse novel before, but I think I did at one time read another story about her in a collection called "Bite." It didn't impress me enough to really remember anything. This Sookie story was cute, though, and had a definite sense of humor. It was enough to make me decide to give the series a shot at some point.
"It's My Birthday, Too"-- This was the story I grabbed the book for, so it's really the only one I'm going to review in detail. This was a very satisfying Dresden story. Better than the one in Mean Streets, in my opinion. This story starts with Harry trying to give a birthday present to Thomas, and the vampire LARP he drops in on. Let me tell you-- Harry at a vampire LARP is just frikkin' hilarious. The story had action, pop culture, and snarky Dresden humor, moreover, it didn't try to overreach itself. A person who'd never read any other Dresden book would get enough information from the story to get the story without feeling like they were missing something. I laughed out loud at least once while reading it, a 5-star story.
As for the other stories- they were mostly forgettable to me. Although there was one about a town ruled by vampires and a goth girl who rebelled against the status quo, refusing to sign with a "protector" vampire. That one was truly intriguing, and I plan to double-check the author's name so I can see if she made that story into a series. I think it would be good, though at the moment I don't remember her name. Will post it here when I do.
June 25, 2021
I only listened to It's my birthday too, by Jim Butcher and Dracula Night y Charlaine Harris.
October 23, 2014
I wasn't as thrilled with this as I thought I'd be, but it wasn't bad. It mostly interested me for the new talent. Several short stories were by authors who normally don't write in the genre & I found them to be the best. I won't go into all the stories, but hit some of the high points.
Since the TOC isn't listed in the blurb, here it is:
CONTENTS
Introduction: A Few Words by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P.
Kelner
Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris
The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden
I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider
Twilight by Kelley Armstrong
It's My Birthday Too by Jim Butcher
Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrod
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine
The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein
Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff
The Wish by Carolyn Haines
Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway
Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets
How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L.P. Kelner
Negatives:
The main disappointment was "Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris. Sookie wasn't herself. Squeezing the story down seems to have changed Sookie's personality. I might not have noticed as much if I wasn't in the middle of re-reading the series, but I think so. Another short, 4.5 "One Word Answer" was much better. One star - I really didn't like it, wouldn't have minded skipping it & think less of Harris for bothering me with it.
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine was about on par with the one book I read of hers, the first of the Morganville Vampire series. That is to say, I thought it wasn't worth reading more. Yuck. Huge logic holes & poor character motivation.
Positives:
Jim Butcher's story featured Harry Dresden & was certainly up to par. It holds a couple of major spoilers if you haven't read up to that point. It's listed as 9.5 in the series. I've only read up to book 5 or 6 & didn't mind that . If you haven't read that far in the series DO NOT READ THIS STORY. The other spoiler, is a major one & will ruin some of the mystery in book 5 (I think). Solid 3 stars plus.
Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrod was great. It's been a while since I read those books & really enjoyed the trip back to that world.
I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider was quirky & quite fun, but also had a good message about immortality. It's simple, but I still think about it occasionally.
The rest of the stories were pretty good, so overall I'll give the book 3 stars.
Since the TOC isn't listed in the blurb, here it is:
CONTENTS
Introduction: A Few Words by Charlaine Harris and Toni L.P.
Kelner
Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris
The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden
I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider
Twilight by Kelley Armstrong
It's My Birthday Too by Jim Butcher
Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrod
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine
The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein
Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff
The Wish by Carolyn Haines
Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway
Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets
How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L.P. Kelner
Negatives:
The main disappointment was "Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris. Sookie wasn't herself. Squeezing the story down seems to have changed Sookie's personality. I might not have noticed as much if I wasn't in the middle of re-reading the series, but I think so. Another short, 4.5 "One Word Answer" was much better. One star - I really didn't like it, wouldn't have minded skipping it & think less of Harris for bothering me with it.
The First Day of the Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine was about on par with the one book I read of hers, the first of the Morganville Vampire series. That is to say, I thought it wasn't worth reading more. Yuck. Huge logic holes & poor character motivation.
Positives:
Jim Butcher's story featured Harry Dresden & was certainly up to par. It holds a couple of major spoilers if you haven't read up to that point. It's listed as 9.5 in the series. I've only read up to book 5 or 6 & didn't mind that . If you haven't read that far in the series DO NOT READ THIS STORY. The other spoiler, is a major one & will ruin some of the mystery in book 5 (I think). Solid 3 stars plus.
Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrod was great. It's been a while since I read those books & really enjoyed the trip back to that world.
I Was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider was quirky & quite fun, but also had a good message about immortality. It's simple, but I still think about it occasionally.
The rest of the stories were pretty good, so overall I'll give the book 3 stars.
September 26, 2009
13 stories in this anthology have a theme in common - vampire birthdays. I didn't really read the entire book, simply because after a few failures I realized that I rarely like anthologies and only enjoy the stories written by the authors I know. Therefore out of 13 short stories published in this book I read only 2.
"Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris - a Sookie story about Eric's party in honor of Dracula's birthday. In one word, disappointing. While I enjoyed some insight in vampire traditions, etc., overall it was a rather superficial and silly story with very little character development or plot. Eric acted completely out of character and Sookie was her usual self - all hair, nails and dresses. Not a real treat for Sookie fans.
"Twilight" by Kelley Armstrong - an Otherworld story about a minor character first introduced in "Stolen" - vampire Cassandra. Cassandra is approaching another anniversary of her rebirth and to continue her existence, she must kill. Only Cassandra doesn't want to kill and possibly doesn't want to live. A great story. Although only about 30 pages long, it provides rich background, great mythology, nice plot, and even some romance. I really wish Armstrong would write an entire novel from Cassandra's POV. I am curious to see her interpretation of vampire lore.
2 stars for the first story and 5 for the second - this is approximately 3 stars on average.
"Dracula Night" by Charlaine Harris - a Sookie story about Eric's party in honor of Dracula's birthday. In one word, disappointing. While I enjoyed some insight in vampire traditions, etc., overall it was a rather superficial and silly story with very little character development or plot. Eric acted completely out of character and Sookie was her usual self - all hair, nails and dresses. Not a real treat for Sookie fans.
"Twilight" by Kelley Armstrong - an Otherworld story about a minor character first introduced in "Stolen" - vampire Cassandra. Cassandra is approaching another anniversary of her rebirth and to continue her existence, she must kill. Only Cassandra doesn't want to kill and possibly doesn't want to live. A great story. Although only about 30 pages long, it provides rich background, great mythology, nice plot, and even some romance. I really wish Armstrong would write an entire novel from Cassandra's POV. I am curious to see her interpretation of vampire lore.
2 stars for the first story and 5 for the second - this is approximately 3 stars on average.
April 13, 2024
- "La noche de Drácula" es un relato de la saga Sangre fresca, que sinceramente... no viene a cuento de nada, no te informa de nada, no te adelanta nada, no te da el menor dato que enriquezca el universo ni siquiera una pizca y como relato es aburridísimo y un punto inverosímil. Una joya, vamos. GL Bis (Sangre fresca)
April 3, 2009
Enjoyable anthology, with several solid contributions-some of which have encouraged me to check out new writers.
Harris: Dracula's birthday party, hosted by Fangtasia. I love anything Eric-related. Pam continues to be the funniest character of the series.
Golden: Eastern European folklore brings a twist to a 16 year old's life. I like Golden, but I think the story would've been better had we seen more of the character post-"big reveal".
Crider: Teenage vampire tells his tale. Trite. Ends very abruptly.
Armstrong: To live another year, a vampire must take a life-but what if she's getting weary? Well-written and interesting.
Butcher: A Harry Dresden story. I hadn't read anything of the Dresden Files before this. Harry seems a likable character. This one involves a vampire ruckus in a mall, with appearances by Thomas and Molly.
Elrod: A Jack Fleming short with a good build up. Humorous and well-written, with a satisfying ending. Compelling enough that now I want to give the series a try!
Caine: A sort of prequel to Morganville, showing how Eve ended up at the Glass House. Tight, fast-paced story that makes me now like Eve a whole lot more.
Stein: A caterer witch and a betrayed vampire find themselves much more intimate than they'd ever dreamed. Interesting, but breaks off abruptly without any resolution.
Huff: Story from the same world as her Smoke books, which I haven't read. In trying hard to make this story accessible to those who haven't read the series, Huff tends toward over-description and an info dump that prevents the story from flowing.
Haines: Mississippi Delta Series. A woman is at odds with Death. Told in the present tense. Perhaps it would make sense/be more interesting if I'd read her books? But based on this, I've no desire to!
Hallaway: Based in the same universe as Tall, Dark & Dead. Garnet is determined to prove to her vampire boyfriend Sebastian that his birthday's not cursed-so of course, everything goes wrong. Not bad.
Viets: First vamp story by a mystery writer. A betrayed wife gets a fantastic revenge against her husband.
Kelner: A vamp revists her grave to find a Jane Doe buried there. What follows is a quick and neat little mystery, as Stella and her boyfriend Mark try to identify the girl and solve her murder.
Harris: Dracula's birthday party, hosted by Fangtasia. I love anything Eric-related. Pam continues to be the funniest character of the series.
Golden: Eastern European folklore brings a twist to a 16 year old's life. I like Golden, but I think the story would've been better had we seen more of the character post-"big reveal".
Crider: Teenage vampire tells his tale. Trite. Ends very abruptly.
Armstrong: To live another year, a vampire must take a life-but what if she's getting weary? Well-written and interesting.
Butcher: A Harry Dresden story. I hadn't read anything of the Dresden Files before this. Harry seems a likable character. This one involves a vampire ruckus in a mall, with appearances by Thomas and Molly.
Elrod: A Jack Fleming short with a good build up. Humorous and well-written, with a satisfying ending. Compelling enough that now I want to give the series a try!
Caine: A sort of prequel to Morganville, showing how Eve ended up at the Glass House. Tight, fast-paced story that makes me now like Eve a whole lot more.
Stein: A caterer witch and a betrayed vampire find themselves much more intimate than they'd ever dreamed. Interesting, but breaks off abruptly without any resolution.
Huff: Story from the same world as her Smoke books, which I haven't read. In trying hard to make this story accessible to those who haven't read the series, Huff tends toward over-description and an info dump that prevents the story from flowing.
Haines: Mississippi Delta Series. A woman is at odds with Death. Told in the present tense. Perhaps it would make sense/be more interesting if I'd read her books? But based on this, I've no desire to!
Hallaway: Based in the same universe as Tall, Dark & Dead. Garnet is determined to prove to her vampire boyfriend Sebastian that his birthday's not cursed-so of course, everything goes wrong. Not bad.
Viets: First vamp story by a mystery writer. A betrayed wife gets a fantastic revenge against her husband.
Kelner: A vamp revists her grave to find a Jane Doe buried there. What follows is a quick and neat little mystery, as Stella and her boyfriend Mark try to identify the girl and solve her murder.
September 15, 2009
What a letdown :( Craving more from Charlaine Harris I picked this one up because of the Sookie/Pam/Eric story. Unfortunately, even that wasn't as good as I expected. Without giving away specifics or spoilers, let me just say that at the climax of the story, Sookie acts very out of character. In fact, the vampires act out of character, too. Although I enjoyed the brief trip to Harris' Bon Temps and Shreveport, I was left feeling ripped off. I mean ~ I sort of enjoyed Harris' story because I already enjoy her characters. But if I were approaching it as a Harris "virgin" ~ sadly, I don't think I would be inspired to read more of the Sookie universe.
I didn't care for the other stories, either. Reading the introductions, I gathered that a lot of the authors are established genre writers, and that many of the stories revolved around characters that would already be known by fans of the author. No problem, except the stories don't hold up on their own. They were just too hard for me to get into and never developed that nice pace that good short stories have. I was overwhelmed with each authors take on vampires, magic, etc. ~ I mean when so many of the stories features a different paranormal world with different paranormal rules, etc ~ and of course limited space to introduce all of this... there just isn't space left over for a good story to evlolve.
I wouldn't be suprised to learn that Harris & Armstrong asked a collection of authors to write a story involving vampires and birthdays ~ rather than seek out really good pre-existing work that happened to fit that criterea. Whatever the reason, the stories suck. No pun intended ;)
I didn't care for the other stories, either. Reading the introductions, I gathered that a lot of the authors are established genre writers, and that many of the stories revolved around characters that would already be known by fans of the author. No problem, except the stories don't hold up on their own. They were just too hard for me to get into and never developed that nice pace that good short stories have. I was overwhelmed with each authors take on vampires, magic, etc. ~ I mean when so many of the stories features a different paranormal world with different paranormal rules, etc ~ and of course limited space to introduce all of this... there just isn't space left over for a good story to evlolve.
I wouldn't be suprised to learn that Harris & Armstrong asked a collection of authors to write a story involving vampires and birthdays ~ rather than seek out really good pre-existing work that happened to fit that criterea. Whatever the reason, the stories suck. No pun intended ;)
October 17, 2009
I should not buy urban fantasy anthologies anymore because most of them - like this one - are an overpriced jumble of seemingly cast-off chapters from paranormal or urban fantasy series. Some well-known author or editor has some time to spare in between series' installments and is asked to use his or her name for a speedy publication of left-over ideas and writing exercises. Reading this collection especially feels like watching the bonus material of some blockbuster on DVD or like reading a few pages via "Amazon look inside". You'll find snippets from Sookie's adventures, an evening at the mall with Harry Dresden, a birthday in vampiric Morganville and some other rather unspectacular stories. What astonishes me most concerning this anthology is that Charlaine Harris has the gall to gush enthusiastically about these little gems in her introduction.
September 28, 2017
There were all together thirteen stories in this collection and what made me squeal was a dedication before the stories in the book. This gave me some extra enthusiasm for reading the stories. I went and wrote a few thoughts on each story.
1. Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris ****
I very much enjoyed this story. It reminded me how much I loved reading Sookie Stackhouse book series. The funny and quirky dialogue was delightful. And offcourse Eric <3.
2. The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden ***
This story had a YA feel to it. The timeline placing, the cultural tidbits and the actual supernatural creature in question were different than expected. It was more baffling than anything else.The mystic and pensive feel to it just did not work for me. And the owls I just cant perceive as anything but cute nocturnal animals.
3. I was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider ****
This author was completely unfamiliar to me before. At first this felt like a story for much younger audience and since the true age of the narrator character is somewhere around middle school it kinda fit. I was nicely surprised by the vampire of the story. It was a truly intriguing portrayal and I loved its subtle creepiness.
4. Twilight by Kelley Armstrong ***
This was so far the heaviest story. It was interesting and thought provoking but also kinda depressing for a short story. I expected more from a well renown author.
5. It’s My Birthday, Too by Jim Butcher *****
I never read The Dresden Files and have only watched a few episodes of the TV show that did not last long. I loved this story. It had meat to the plot and characters were quite lovable. Everything about this story made me want to learn more about the characters and had me wondering about them. I had reservations about starting yet another UF book series but this one sure is intriguing.
6. Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrond ****
I have not read anything from this author before but I have few other books and collections edited by her. This was an unexpected surprise. While the vampire of the story made me wonder quite a bit the setting and the general feel to this story was overwhelmingly positive.
7. The First Day of The Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine ****
I loved this teasing introduction to Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampires series. I enjoyed the dramatic background and intriguing hints on characters in the story. I will definitely give these a chance when I get some other books series to a close.
8. The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein ***
This story seemed quite silly. The main character is kinda depressing and the plot was kinda far fetched. I did not know should I laugh or pay more attention. The vampires in this story bugged me. It was just not my kind of story it seems. This author was completely new to me and I have no desire to read more from her.
9. Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff ****
I have not read this author but I am familiar to her characters Henry Fitzroy and Vicki Nellson from the TV adaptation. I kinda like the TV show. This story is very much different from what I remember. This short story was interesting to read but I was annoyed with „What would Vicki think?“ that the characters kept asking themselves. Other than that I really enjoyed the story.
10. The Wish by Carolyn Haines ***
This author was new to me. The story was probably the shortest one in the whole collection. It was kinda morbid and nostalgic. The descriptions were depressing and ominous. I had to start reading it twice and force myself to concentrate since this short story already had a slow start and it took a few pages for anything other than setting descriptions to actually start. I’m still not sure what the author was talking about. The only thing I like in this story except the ever present madness is the actual vampire of the story.
11. Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway ***
This story was rich in interesting new creatures and mythology. Author was new to me and some ideas were intriguing. There was something kinda off with the characters though and it made me not like them all that much. The characters were not compelling enough for me to be believable.
12. Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets ***
A new author and a bit different story. There was something intriguing in the main character. Vampire of the story seemed sappy and kinda off. I’m not sure how I feel about this story though. The vampire bit seemed almost fairytale in quality. There were some interesting points in this story but the vampire part seemed forced.
13. How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L.P. Kelner ****
What I did not like from the start was a title of this story. It made me think it was going to be another „girl power“ story like the one that came before it. I’m so glad I was wrong. The characters were lovable and the story was interesting. Vampires of the story were somewhat different than expected but they fit in nicely with the story. Strangely I did not mind many of the „curtain down“ love scenes that normally annoy me. I enjoyed this story.
Conclusion
I’ve had this short story collection for almost a decade now and I’m glad I’ve finally read it. I am happy with the stories I’ve read. Most of the stories were good and better with only a few that just did not sit well with me. When it comes to vampires I can be quite picky. In the end it was a few little things that made me not love the story. I’m happy with the different vampire types the different stories brought out. I liked the action packed and funny stories more.
1. Dracula Night by Charlaine Harris ****
I very much enjoyed this story. It reminded me how much I loved reading Sookie Stackhouse book series. The funny and quirky dialogue was delightful. And offcourse Eric <3.
2. The Mournful Cry of Owls by Christopher Golden ***
This story had a YA feel to it. The timeline placing, the cultural tidbits and the actual supernatural creature in question were different than expected. It was more baffling than anything else.The mystic and pensive feel to it just did not work for me. And the owls I just cant perceive as anything but cute nocturnal animals.
3. I was a Teenage Vampire by Bill Crider ****
This author was completely unfamiliar to me before. At first this felt like a story for much younger audience and since the true age of the narrator character is somewhere around middle school it kinda fit. I was nicely surprised by the vampire of the story. It was a truly intriguing portrayal and I loved its subtle creepiness.
4. Twilight by Kelley Armstrong ***
This was so far the heaviest story. It was interesting and thought provoking but also kinda depressing for a short story. I expected more from a well renown author.
5. It’s My Birthday, Too by Jim Butcher *****
I never read The Dresden Files and have only watched a few episodes of the TV show that did not last long. I loved this story. It had meat to the plot and characters were quite lovable. Everything about this story made me want to learn more about the characters and had me wondering about them. I had reservations about starting yet another UF book series but this one sure is intriguing.
6. Grave-Robbed by P.N. Elrond ****
I have not read anything from this author before but I have few other books and collections edited by her. This was an unexpected surprise. While the vampire of the story made me wonder quite a bit the setting and the general feel to this story was overwhelmingly positive.
7. The First Day of The Rest of Your Life by Rachel Caine ****
I loved this teasing introduction to Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampires series. I enjoyed the dramatic background and intriguing hints on characters in the story. I will definitely give these a chance when I get some other books series to a close.
8. The Witch and the Wicked by Jeanne C. Stein ***
This story seemed quite silly. The main character is kinda depressing and the plot was kinda far fetched. I did not know should I laugh or pay more attention. The vampires in this story bugged me. It was just not my kind of story it seems. This author was completely new to me and I have no desire to read more from her.
9. Blood Wrapped by Tanya Huff ****
I have not read this author but I am familiar to her characters Henry Fitzroy and Vicki Nellson from the TV adaptation. I kinda like the TV show. This story is very much different from what I remember. This short story was interesting to read but I was annoyed with „What would Vicki think?“ that the characters kept asking themselves. Other than that I really enjoyed the story.
10. The Wish by Carolyn Haines ***
This author was new to me. The story was probably the shortest one in the whole collection. It was kinda morbid and nostalgic. The descriptions were depressing and ominous. I had to start reading it twice and force myself to concentrate since this short story already had a slow start and it took a few pages for anything other than setting descriptions to actually start. I’m still not sure what the author was talking about. The only thing I like in this story except the ever present madness is the actual vampire of the story.
11. Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two by Tate Hallaway ***
This story was rich in interesting new creatures and mythology. Author was new to me and some ideas were intriguing. There was something kinda off with the characters though and it made me not like them all that much. The characters were not compelling enough for me to be believable.
12. Vampire Hours by Elaine Viets ***
A new author and a bit different story. There was something intriguing in the main character. Vampire of the story seemed sappy and kinda off. I’m not sure how I feel about this story though. The vampire bit seemed almost fairytale in quality. There were some interesting points in this story but the vampire part seemed forced.
13. How Stella Got Her Grave Back by Toni L.P. Kelner ****
What I did not like from the start was a title of this story. It made me think it was going to be another „girl power“ story like the one that came before it. I’m so glad I was wrong. The characters were lovable and the story was interesting. Vampires of the story were somewhat different than expected but they fit in nicely with the story. Strangely I did not mind many of the „curtain down“ love scenes that normally annoy me. I enjoyed this story.
Conclusion
I’ve had this short story collection for almost a decade now and I’m glad I’ve finally read it. I am happy with the stories I’ve read. Most of the stories were good and better with only a few that just did not sit well with me. When it comes to vampires I can be quite picky. In the end it was a few little things that made me not love the story. I’m happy with the different vampire types the different stories brought out. I liked the action packed and funny stories more.
June 29, 2017
I bought this for the Sookie Stackhouse novella. Ended up reading and liking most of them.
May 22, 2020
"It's My Birthday, Too." (The Dresden Files #9.1) by Jim Butcher ✓
★★★★/5.
★★★★/5.
August 17, 2017
A bunch of well written short birthday-related vamp. stories from some great writers.
February 19, 2008
This was a great mix of authors, each of whom had their own take on the vampire mythos. Of course, my favorites were the stories featuring familiar chararacters, like Charlaine Harris' Sookie story, "Dracula Night," and Jim Butcher's "It's My Birthday, Too." I also found a few new authors, as well. I definitely plan to check out Tanya Huff's Smoke series, since I really enjoyed the the interaction of the characters in her offering in the anthology, as well as Tate Halloway and Jeanne C. Stein, and I truly hope Tori L. P. Kelner writes a vampire book featuring Mark and Stella- I loved their story! I also was intrigued by Christopher Golden's take on the genre in "A Mournful Cry of Owls," and was pleased to see old favorite P. N. Elrod. The only stories I didn't care for as much were Bill Crider's "I Was a Teenage Vampire" (I love Catcher In The Rye, but the Holden-isms were too much) and Rachel Caine's Morganville story, although I suspect if I read about Eve in the context for the series, I might enjoy her more. Overall, a fun read that I think most vampire fans will enjoy!
July 25, 2016
2 Stars:
Fun short stories staring some of our favorite characters. Very entertaining.
I didn’t like the book. However, the characters were borderline from unlikable to a few exceptions the plot was a bit poor. The writing was poor at worst and bad at best. I developed some interest in the book but not enough to sustain me. If part of a series, at least one thing peeked my interest to continue. Even though the plot was uninteresting, not original or unique in any way and contained an overload of pretense, the romance was a little better but the romance was still flawed. The male/female lead was possibly abusive, verbal/physical or both, boring, or had no to very little chemistry with love interest, etc. Everything was too easily predictable. Overall, ok maybe some redeeming value!
Fun short stories staring some of our favorite characters. Very entertaining.
I didn’t like the book. However, the characters were borderline from unlikable to a few exceptions the plot was a bit poor. The writing was poor at worst and bad at best. I developed some interest in the book but not enough to sustain me. If part of a series, at least one thing peeked my interest to continue. Even though the plot was uninteresting, not original or unique in any way and contained an overload of pretense, the romance was a little better but the romance was still flawed. The male/female lead was possibly abusive, verbal/physical or both, boring, or had no to very little chemistry with love interest, etc. Everything was too easily predictable. Overall, ok maybe some redeeming value!
Read
January 9, 2009I enjoyed the stories in this book, but I primarily read it for Charlaine Harris' contribution because I'm in love with Sookie Stackhouse, which I think draws a lot of readers to this selection, so I'll focus my review on that. It was a great story and exactly what I needed to hold me over while I acquired the next novel in the series. It left a lot to be desired, which isn't necessarily a strike against it because what was desired was a new novel.
November 4, 2014
A vampire needs to kill at least once every year in order to live. But this one year, Cassandra duCharme (really?) cannot bring herself to do it.
This story would've been greatly improved by at least some hint of the reasons behind the main character's troubles - as it stands it's just an inconclusive, random-feeling episode.
This story would've been greatly improved by at least some hint of the reasons behind the main character's troubles - as it stands it's just an inconclusive, random-feeling episode.
May 14, 2012
1.5 stars really. A couple of the stories were reasonable but the majority were lacklustre and just teen vampire romance type stories. I can't recommend it to you all except to say that if you were stuck in a cabin in a snow drift and it was the only book around, well .....
March 5, 2012
This anthology required authors to write a short story themed around vampires and their birthday (whether it be the day they were born as a human or re-born as a vampire). I've had this one sitting around for years, only bought it because it had a Cassandra story from Kelley Armstrong. And now, several years later, I unearth it and go 'Oh! A sookie stackhouse story is in here too!' and then just kept reading. It's amazing, I never thought I'd gotten so bad at shunning authors just because it even remotely looked like paranormal romance until now. I should know better.
It was a great read for the most part:
1) Dracula Night (Charlaine Harris) - Sookie Stackhouse short story that was cute and centered around Sookie, Pam and Eric. Not great but fun and made me smile.
2) The Mournful Cry of Owls (Christopher Golden) - Amazing, this short story was haunting and beautiful, and not American-ized/romanticized vampiric that almost everything has been since Anne Rice. It was old country, and it felt more Russian-like. I would love to see more by this author, hopefully this is not a lucky one-shot.
3)I Was a Teenage Vampire (Bill Crider) - comedy in short story form. It almost felt like a Stephen King 'Stand by Me' or the movie Super 8 but without the actual horror and weird that comes with these names. It was just funny, though nothing spectacular to make me seek out more from the author.
4) Twilight (Kelley Armstrong) - I didn't re-read this one, but I've never forgotten it after all these years. Cassandra has been a favorite character of mine from the Women of Underworld series that she has never felt compelled to expand in detail in her writing. This short story is the most we've ever gotten from her on the old vampire, her now ex-lover, and anything about her past. I always felt cheated by the author, and this wonderful short story only made me love/hate the author more for it. Esp now that she has said she is taking a break from this world.
5) It's My Birthday, Too (Jim Butcher) - I've never read the Harry Dresden series, and after this short story involving Harry's White Court Vampire brother on his birthday I am desperate to give it a go. I loved his take on vampires and how 'dead' they really are. And I loved the cobbs and his sidekick in training. Definitely going to be trying this one out.
6) Grave-Robbed (P.N. Elrod) - a short story in her Vampire Files series, from what I gathered a more modern supernatural version of Dixon Hill. It was fun, written well, not always my cup of tea. 16 year old hires Jack Fleming to discredit a guy posing as a medium preying on her older sister and their trust funds. In small doses, like this short story, they can be fun. But in a series of novels I can see myself getting bored easily, it didn't read as well as the old Rex Stout novels do.
7) The First Day of the Rest of Your Life (Roxanne Longstreet Conrad aka Rachel Caine) - This one was interesting, a town owned in a mob-like mentality by vampires, and on your 18th birthday you must sign a life-long contract to the family vampire for protection and money or be fed upon. The only way out is bureaucracy paperwork and luck. We spend Eve's 18th birthday with her through the horrors and her slap in the face to the family vampire at the end of the horrific evening, the exile from her parents and her lucky break in finding the one person in town who would help her life as a rogue. I don't know if this is part of one of her series or not, it didn't seem like it, but this could easily be the start of a good one.
8) The Witch and the Wicked (Jeanne C. Stein) - Not much to write home about. Witch turned caterer is an unknown assistant to a newly made vampire killing her vampire husband to live rich with her new boyfriend. Witch decides to make youth defying cosmetics with his ashes and winds up with him in her head. I found it rather preposterous that his mental faculties would transfer over in ash just because she made cold cream with it instead of dumping it in the trashcan. This is the kind of crap I hate.
9) Blood Wrapped (Tanya Huff) - This is from her Smoke books (I assume that's part of the Blood Ties stuff?) and really is more a 'save the child from the crazy people' story. It was decent, nothing that screams 'try this series out' only I'd been thinking about it for a while and now I know I enjoy Huff's writing style and the characters were intriguing. Average read, easy to get through.
10) The Wish (Caoryln Hines) - Now *this* story has so much potential! Wife and mother of 2 sees death when she and the kids are in a car accident and watches her take her children away while telling her it's not her time. Later she tries to commit suicide from the grief and again death approaches (she's like this little girl waif) and says 'nope not yet' and you just want to bitch-slap death at this point. So she searches out a vampire on the night she knows death is coming for her and basically says 'fuck death, I want you to win, turn me.' I LOVED that, she's got moxie! I could continue reading about a character who basically flipped the bird at death since she was such a bitch to begin with LOL.
11) Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two (Lyda Morehouse) - This one I debate on how much I liked. On one hand it was such a disgusting paranormal romance, not even the vampire/boyfriend was true vampire with the gross side effects. He was 'magically made' so that he is still warm blooded, can go out in the sun, doesn't drink blood, etc. But he stays young and handsome forever, has super strength, can see in the dark and is a mechanic. I was rolling my eyes. However, the adventure of the Norwegian she-demon was kick-ass and horror-movie like and I flew through those pages, to only hate the ending of 'with the demon dead we had our birthday date and after-dinner sex.' Bleh, give me more of the crazy Norwegian witch that reminded me of Lillith from the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms series.
12) Vampire Hours (Elaine Viets) - Another half-liked/half-hated story. This was your typical feminist 'screw straight men who think they can use women until they are old and then discard them for the young secretary' story. Although yes, I was cheering when the main character chooses vampire life and it allows her to get back at the crappy useless husband and all her so-called fake friends that always follow in stereotypical stories involving the rich and elite. On second thought, yeah, I kinda hated the story.
13) How Stella Got Her Grave Back (Toni L.P. Kelner) - Another not so great one, vampire and her new vampire lover go back to visit the older vampire's human grave on her birthday in her home town. Only to 'Nancy Drew' it to find a serial killer that no one in this little town (I mean not even a stop light people) noticed was there for years killing runaway girls trying to find their way back home to their small hometowns in the area after running away. I mean... really? A good effort, at least the writing was educated, but the detective story was weak... even by Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys standards, and she basically coasted her way through everything using the vampire 'glamor' to get her out of writing herself into a corner. Again, weak. Good thing this was her first vampire story, and hopefully her only one.
5 of the 13 stories stood out to me, and I have 3 new authors I need to seek out more from. Not a bad haul, better than a lot of vampire anthologies I've trudged through.
It was a great read for the most part:
1) Dracula Night (Charlaine Harris) - Sookie Stackhouse short story that was cute and centered around Sookie, Pam and Eric. Not great but fun and made me smile.
2) The Mournful Cry of Owls (Christopher Golden) - Amazing, this short story was haunting and beautiful, and not American-ized/romanticized vampiric that almost everything has been since Anne Rice. It was old country, and it felt more Russian-like. I would love to see more by this author, hopefully this is not a lucky one-shot.
3)I Was a Teenage Vampire (Bill Crider) - comedy in short story form. It almost felt like a Stephen King 'Stand by Me' or the movie Super 8 but without the actual horror and weird that comes with these names. It was just funny, though nothing spectacular to make me seek out more from the author.
4) Twilight (Kelley Armstrong) - I didn't re-read this one, but I've never forgotten it after all these years. Cassandra has been a favorite character of mine from the Women of Underworld series that she has never felt compelled to expand in detail in her writing. This short story is the most we've ever gotten from her on the old vampire, her now ex-lover, and anything about her past. I always felt cheated by the author, and this wonderful short story only made me love/hate the author more for it. Esp now that she has said she is taking a break from this world.
5) It's My Birthday, Too (Jim Butcher) - I've never read the Harry Dresden series, and after this short story involving Harry's White Court Vampire brother on his birthday I am desperate to give it a go. I loved his take on vampires and how 'dead' they really are. And I loved the cobbs and his sidekick in training. Definitely going to be trying this one out.
6) Grave-Robbed (P.N. Elrod) - a short story in her Vampire Files series, from what I gathered a more modern supernatural version of Dixon Hill. It was fun, written well, not always my cup of tea. 16 year old hires Jack Fleming to discredit a guy posing as a medium preying on her older sister and their trust funds. In small doses, like this short story, they can be fun. But in a series of novels I can see myself getting bored easily, it didn't read as well as the old Rex Stout novels do.
7) The First Day of the Rest of Your Life (Roxanne Longstreet Conrad aka Rachel Caine) - This one was interesting, a town owned in a mob-like mentality by vampires, and on your 18th birthday you must sign a life-long contract to the family vampire for protection and money or be fed upon. The only way out is bureaucracy paperwork and luck. We spend Eve's 18th birthday with her through the horrors and her slap in the face to the family vampire at the end of the horrific evening, the exile from her parents and her lucky break in finding the one person in town who would help her life as a rogue. I don't know if this is part of one of her series or not, it didn't seem like it, but this could easily be the start of a good one.
8) The Witch and the Wicked (Jeanne C. Stein) - Not much to write home about. Witch turned caterer is an unknown assistant to a newly made vampire killing her vampire husband to live rich with her new boyfriend. Witch decides to make youth defying cosmetics with his ashes and winds up with him in her head. I found it rather preposterous that his mental faculties would transfer over in ash just because she made cold cream with it instead of dumping it in the trashcan. This is the kind of crap I hate.
9) Blood Wrapped (Tanya Huff) - This is from her Smoke books (I assume that's part of the Blood Ties stuff?) and really is more a 'save the child from the crazy people' story. It was decent, nothing that screams 'try this series out' only I'd been thinking about it for a while and now I know I enjoy Huff's writing style and the characters were intriguing. Average read, easy to get through.
10) The Wish (Caoryln Hines) - Now *this* story has so much potential! Wife and mother of 2 sees death when she and the kids are in a car accident and watches her take her children away while telling her it's not her time. Later she tries to commit suicide from the grief and again death approaches (she's like this little girl waif) and says 'nope not yet' and you just want to bitch-slap death at this point. So she searches out a vampire on the night she knows death is coming for her and basically says 'fuck death, I want you to win, turn me.' I LOVED that, she's got moxie! I could continue reading about a character who basically flipped the bird at death since she was such a bitch to begin with LOL.
11) Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two (Lyda Morehouse) - This one I debate on how much I liked. On one hand it was such a disgusting paranormal romance, not even the vampire/boyfriend was true vampire with the gross side effects. He was 'magically made' so that he is still warm blooded, can go out in the sun, doesn't drink blood, etc. But he stays young and handsome forever, has super strength, can see in the dark and is a mechanic. I was rolling my eyes. However, the adventure of the Norwegian she-demon was kick-ass and horror-movie like and I flew through those pages, to only hate the ending of 'with the demon dead we had our birthday date and after-dinner sex.' Bleh, give me more of the crazy Norwegian witch that reminded me of Lillith from the Hundred Thousand Kingdoms series.
12) Vampire Hours (Elaine Viets) - Another half-liked/half-hated story. This was your typical feminist 'screw straight men who think they can use women until they are old and then discard them for the young secretary' story. Although yes, I was cheering when the main character chooses vampire life and it allows her to get back at the crappy useless husband and all her so-called fake friends that always follow in stereotypical stories involving the rich and elite. On second thought, yeah, I kinda hated the story.
13) How Stella Got Her Grave Back (Toni L.P. Kelner) - Another not so great one, vampire and her new vampire lover go back to visit the older vampire's human grave on her birthday in her home town. Only to 'Nancy Drew' it to find a serial killer that no one in this little town (I mean not even a stop light people) noticed was there for years killing runaway girls trying to find their way back home to their small hometowns in the area after running away. I mean... really? A good effort, at least the writing was educated, but the detective story was weak... even by Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys standards, and she basically coasted her way through everything using the vampire 'glamor' to get her out of writing herself into a corner. Again, weak. Good thing this was her first vampire story, and hopefully her only one.
5 of the 13 stories stood out to me, and I have 3 new authors I need to seek out more from. Not a bad haul, better than a lot of vampire anthologies I've trudged through.
January 25, 2019
Twilight – This was interesting Cass “forgets” to do her yearly kill, and then is late and has a hard time drinking. Wonder what that means she would revert to human? Interesting. Loved that Aaron was by her side.
February 19, 2022
I liked a lot of these stories, but some were a little weird. I really liked how even though the authors had the same prompt, the stories are so different. A great way to try out new authors and see if you like their writing style.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 623 reviews