V Wars, by Jonathan Maberry
After the over-saturation of Vampire genre books in
bookstores around the world as I reader of the fantasy/horror genre had lost
hope that the vampire genre would ever rediscover its gritty fear-invoking
night creatures from the grasps of sparkly Christians and HBO. However, as soon
as I picked up this book I knew it was different. For one it is not just the
work of one author, rather a collection of intertwined short stories, which are
divided into sections and spread about the book to provide a more immersive
timeline and experience. Respected Sci-Fi/Fantasy authors such as Scott Nicholson
and Yvonne Navarro grace this books pages and each story illustrates the global
and individual impact of this Vampire War. The premise of the collection is
that after eons locked away in polar ice a new (to humans anyway) virus sweeps
across the globe activating ‘junk’ DNA in a small population which turns them
into the stuff of legends (and nightmares). This book contains no Dracula with
sweeping cape and aversion to garlic instead, to reflect the overwhelming
genetic diversity in our species the virus manifests itself in different ways,
from a semi-traditional vampire to werewolves to hopping shape changers.
What really separates this book from the average and
unappealing vampire novels lining book shelves is that it’s not just a story of
humans vs. monsters it’s a story of struggle; in both a physical sense of
transformation and accommodation of our most frightening nightmares into the
everyday, but also a emotional struggle as some who are infected become
rampaging monsters whilst others become saviours or just try and live their
lives as before. This book doesn’t bother with the classic good or evil
chestnut, but rather what makes a person good or evil. Overall the stories are
wide ranging and gripping, with action, great dialogue and believable
characters, each story has a unique perspective on the V Wars and they range
from the epicentre of the infection, patient zero to how countries deal with
this new ‘threat’ in their own borders. This book is a must read for anyone who
needs to be reminded of what made the original Dracula so great and anyone who
wants to begin, or revitalise their love affair with the fantasy/horror genre.
By Rhiannon Emery
