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kiaras's review
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
wannabekingpin's review against another edition
4.0
all reviews in one place:
night mode reading ;
skaitom nakties rezimu
About the Book: Jack’s being stalked by an amateur vampire hunter. Worse than their poor, misinformed attempts to dispatch of him is the ever increasing violence of said attempts, disregarding safety of others, innocent people. And still, somehow, that’s not the biggest of his problems, as soon Jack finds himself eye-to-eye with his past. Past that feels cheated, and is here to take the debt back…
My Opinion: There’s nothing mind blowing about these books, but they’re good in their simplicity. Plot is well put together, nothing to strain over. Mediocre characters get boosted with a more noir-like Poirot vibe to them. Basically, a book you can chill with in the afternoon, and be done by the supper.
night mode reading ;
skaitom nakties rezimu
About the Book: Jack’s being stalked by an amateur vampire hunter. Worse than their poor, misinformed attempts to dispatch of him is the ever increasing violence of said attempts, disregarding safety of others, innocent people. And still, somehow, that’s not the biggest of his problems, as soon Jack finds himself eye-to-eye with his past. Past that feels cheated, and is here to take the debt back…
My Opinion: There’s nothing mind blowing about these books, but they’re good in their simplicity. Plot is well put together, nothing to strain over. Mediocre characters get boosted with a more noir-like Poirot vibe to them. Basically, a book you can chill with in the afternoon, and be done by the supper.
misterjay's review against another edition
3.0
Once again Jack Flemming is deep in the middle of a mystery. This time, the still absent Maureen is at the heart of the mystery and Jack must fight off a pair of would be vampire hunters if he wants to solve the mystery of her disappearance five years ago. Lots of fun; good twist on the current spate of vampire books made better by the realization that this came out twenty years ago.
git_r_read's review against another edition
5.0
I really liked this one better than the first in series. Maybe I felt more comfortable with the premise and era or the characters are even more developed. Whatever is the reason, I enjoyed listening to this. The setting makes it noir in feel since it's in the 40s and the main characters are a private investigator and newspaper reporter and the girlfriend works in radio. There are gangsters and talk of Prohibition. There are several mysteries going on and each one is addressed. Vampire lore gets tweaked a bit, but that's fine with me. I don't follow hard and fast rules and enjoy seeing what others do for their creatures.
I am looking forward to listening to the rest of the series. I think I will continue listening. It has an old radio show feel to it.
I can definitely recommend this book, this series and author.
I am looking forward to listening to the rest of the series. I think I will continue listening. It has an old radio show feel to it.
I can definitely recommend this book, this series and author.
hashtag_alison's review against another edition
4.0
Lifeblood continues the same line of quality as its predecessor, [b:Bloodlist|290436|Bloodlist (Vampire Files, #1)|P.N. Elrod|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1361738015s/290436.jpg|1771872]. The writing isn't the best, but the action more than makes up for it. Every moment is adventure.
I could have done with a little more worldbuilding in this one. We learn more about Jack's personal backstory, but there's next to no new information about vampires in this world, which is different enough that exploring the details would be interesting.
As usual, my reviews as I continue the series are going to get shorter and shorter because there's only so much you can say about one story, but this one upholds my expectations of the first volume and I am excited to start the next one.
I could have done with a little more worldbuilding in this one. We learn more about Jack's personal backstory, but there's next to no new information about vampires in this world, which is different enough that exploring the details would be interesting.
As usual, my reviews as I continue the series are going to get shorter and shorter because there's only so much you can say about one story, but this one upholds my expectations of the first volume and I am excited to start the next one.
issamshahid's review against another edition
4.0
This book was my first real introduction to vampires back in high school. I remember falling in love with it immediately. Unfortunately, I hadn't realized that it was part of a series at the time, so I've bought the volumes to read them all from the start now.
lottpoet's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
billydoubledown's review against another edition
4.0
I found this second book to be just as good as Bloodlist. This series reminds me Samantha Moon and fans of that series should definitely read Bloodlist
brandt's review against another edition
2.0
I would give this one a 2.5 really, but did not feel like rounding up to 3 stars. The book captures the era well, but it's harder to enjoy when the supporting characters are more interesting than the main one. And despite being a vampire . . . the main character gets his ass kicked a lot.
raben_76325's review against another edition
3.0
Jack Fleming made it out of his first encounter with the mob alive. He has a new girlfriend and is currently partnering with his new friend Charles Escott to solve various mysteries for clients. In fact, life. . . er, death . . is going so well for him that he decides to give up the search for his old girlfriend, the vampire Maureen.
However, just as he gives up on his old life, aspects from that life are catching up to him. Fleming suddenly has two wanna-be vampire hunters on his trail, being pesky but dangerous to those around him. They consider him a demon and a target to be destroyed, but they don't ever give him any credit for not being evil.
As they become more threatening to those that he loves, he also does not know what to make of the sudden appearance of Maureen's sister. She is also looking for Maureen, but if she can get Jack to turn her into a vampire, that's really all that matters to her. Will she succeed? Or will Jack see her for who she is?
This is a fun little book. First, we have the bumbling vampire hunters. They are all in Jack's business, talking to his family, to his girlfriend and everyone in his life, attempting to find a way to kill Jack. They are full of mistaken information, and they have read so much vampire literature that they are full of crosses, silver bullets and totally mistaken cliches. It was so much fun to read.
At the same time, the vampire hunters are really the red herring in the story. The sweet "little old lady," Maureen's sister, is a dangerous lady, and she has some dangerous associates. We learn of Maureen's life with her sister, at least from Gaylen's point of view. We learn that Gaylen is dying and wants Jack to turn her into a vampire, and when Jack refuses, that's when the story really becomes dangerous for both Jack and his girlfriend, Bobbi.
It was interesting to learn of Maureen's background (and why she left Jack), and fun to see the way that the newbie vampire hunters interacted with Jack. This one is a fun story, but it's one that would be hard to appreciate if you haven't read the first volume. It's definitely not a stand-alone, and it is huge in Maureen's life, and I was surprised that the author didn't work harder to establish Jack and Charles as detectives before spinning so many details from the "big story" into the books. I would have liked this book to be more of a mystery for Jack and Charles to solve, and maybe had the fun vampire hunters as a distraction. However, this was a really fun and enjoyable book to read.
However, just as he gives up on his old life, aspects from that life are catching up to him. Fleming suddenly has two wanna-be vampire hunters on his trail, being pesky but dangerous to those around him. They consider him a demon and a target to be destroyed, but they don't ever give him any credit for not being evil.
As they become more threatening to those that he loves, he also does not know what to make of the sudden appearance of Maureen's sister. She is also looking for Maureen, but if she can get Jack to turn her into a vampire, that's really all that matters to her. Will she succeed? Or will Jack see her for who she is?
This is a fun little book. First, we have the bumbling vampire hunters. They are all in Jack's business, talking to his family, to his girlfriend and everyone in his life, attempting to find a way to kill Jack. They are full of mistaken information, and they have read so much vampire literature that they are full of crosses, silver bullets and totally mistaken cliches. It was so much fun to read.
At the same time, the vampire hunters are really the red herring in the story. The sweet "little old lady," Maureen's sister, is a dangerous lady, and she has some dangerous associates. We learn of Maureen's life with her sister, at least from Gaylen's point of view. We learn that Gaylen is dying and wants Jack to turn her into a vampire, and when Jack refuses, that's when the story really becomes dangerous for both Jack and his girlfriend, Bobbi.
It was interesting to learn of Maureen's background (and why she left Jack), and fun to see the way that the newbie vampire hunters interacted with Jack. This one is a fun story, but it's one that would be hard to appreciate if you haven't read the first volume. It's definitely not a stand-alone, and it is huge in Maureen's life, and I was surprised that the author didn't work harder to establish Jack and Charles as detectives before spinning so many details from the "big story" into the books. I would have liked this book to be more of a mystery for Jack and Charles to solve, and maybe had the fun vampire hunters as a distraction. However, this was a really fun and enjoyable book to read.