I must admit I avoid detective stories. Despite the logic and the uncertainty till the very end I find them usually too predictable and not as thrilling as I would want.
But since I needed a break from those free e-reads I'm trying to go through I thought why not kill two birds with one stone. This book had been sitting on my shelf for years so it definitely needed attention. And since it was a gift from my brother who couldn't resist buying two books for one price while he was waiting at the airport, I really needed to get this over with in case he asked about it. Not that he remembers what he gave me last year let alone many years ago but for my conscience' sake...
The first half of this book was quite boring. I felt like a tourist listening to advice of a tourist guide. I know that attention to detail plays key role in many detective stories but listing the numbers of vaporretos which could get me from point A to point B is just TMI. I get it, you've been to Venice and you want to show your knowledge of the place but who hasn't been to Venice?! We all know about that place and get it even without knowing which street crosses which and so on.
Anyway, after this rather dull start the story picks up the pace and something starts happening. A lot of evil things actually. And you cannot wait to get to the end and find out if this is all just about a modern cult which worships allegedly real vampires OR if there really is a vampire in the story. I will not tell you, of course. You have to read it yourself.
The author's research on the vampire topic was thorough and that kept the vampire mystery in the book really interesting. I appreciate the historical research so that it all looks very believable. It is well-written so that you may resist the urge to ask questions about certain aspects of the story which seem too far-fetched.
GENRE: detective story
FANGS OUT: the history part is splendid, and just look at the cover
FANGS RETRACTING: the beginning is too flooded with unimportant details
TOTAL SCORE:
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