The Curse of the Vampire

Yesterday I finished reading The Curse of the Vampire, by Karl Alexander. It started slow and boring and I had to make myself continue to read. But then it got going.

Now I'm not really going to say this was a bad book, really. It was just confusing. Maybe because it has nothing to do with vampires! Yes, this might be a bit of a spoiler because it's not confirmed till the end, but why should you have to go through some 300 pages just to find out that this book is actually about reincarnation? So if you came for the vampire you're going to be sorely disappointed. The back of the book leads one to believe it's about vampires by saying that this girl who's a movie star is filming in Transylvania and gets attacked in the Vladimir castle. There is one character who may or may not be a vampire, it's never confirmed, and when we see things through this person's viewpoint they have no idea that they may be one. The only thing we do know is this person can turn into a bat. There is nothing else, no blood sucking, nothing.

There's a lot of other confusing things about this book too. For example she has a great life, husband, kids, awesome mansion in the woods, movie star life, and she goes all emo about the darkness within, and everyone is way too concerned and horrified by this. The book also makes references to real life people's studies on the mind and stuff and I dunno, this isn't an area I really know a lot about. I have absolutely no interest in reincarnation or if a soul of someone can pass down through generations. So maybe my lack of knowledge left me with a giant question mark above my head through most the book.

So, basically, if you're into reincarnation, sure, maybe you'd be entertained. Me? I'm still kinda lost here. Why exactly was this book so inappropriately titled and described? Was the author scared no one would read it and thought he had to trick people into it? Either way, it's going in the "get rid of" pile.

Now for spoilers.

So she turns into a monster. When it happens she can't remember what she does. The only explanation offered her at the end is because she's connected to this guy who is a descendant of Vladimir who happens to be Vladimir reincarnate and he doesn't know it. And she's connected to him because he bit her when in bat form. He doesn't remember this because a doctor gave him a prescription that brings out his own inner monster. And she turns into a monster whenever he does. When he turns into a monster he kills people who are descended from the people who condemned Vladimir's lover to death way back when. And she is the lover reincarnate. When she changes into a monster she stays the same on the outside but when she sees herself in the mirror she sees a monster. When she tells her husband about what she sees in the mirror he is horrified and draws a picture. When he shows it to her later she freaks out and tries to kill herself. Wha?

I don't understand why this reincarnate of the woman from centuries ago is so overly dramatic. Going on and on about her inner darkness and what a monster, a horrible person she is. And, why? Because she was accused of being a witch and burned for it? This makes her inner soul so dark and demented and turns her into the most horrible of monsters that apparently freaks out everyone who even so much as gets a vague half-explanation of it?

I'm also raising my eyebrows at the whole "So what if you had an affair, everyone does it, who cares" attitude in this book.