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rorikae's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
'A Long Time Dead' by Samara Breger is a slow, lush vampire story about two women falling in love and attempting to build a life together.
Poppy wakes up one night with her world changed. She has been ferreted away from her home in London and transformed into a vampire. Roisin, the vampire who saved Poppy, tends to her as she continues the agonizing process of learning how to control her urges for blood. As the two women spend more time together, Poppy begins to fall for Roisin. But Roisin's sire is out in the world, ready to toy with her again and putting the possibility of a peaceful life in jeopardy. They will have to leave their quiet life behind to find a chance at a longer life together.
Breger has created two incredibly fallible vampire characters that it is hard not to completely fall for. The story starts out quite slow, picking up pace toward the end, but the quiet moments felt just as profound as those with more action. I came to care deeply for Poppy and Roisin, especially as both explore their pasts and faults. At its heart, this is a story about learning to be cared for, making deep friendships, and fighting for a life where one can be happy. Breger's writing is dense and lush in a way that felt perfectly suited to a decadent vampire novel. I am excited to see what they write next because it's clear how much care and time they put into this story.
Poppy wakes up one night with her world changed. She has been ferreted away from her home in London and transformed into a vampire. Roisin, the vampire who saved Poppy, tends to her as she continues the agonizing process of learning how to control her urges for blood. As the two women spend more time together, Poppy begins to fall for Roisin. But Roisin's sire is out in the world, ready to toy with her again and putting the possibility of a peaceful life in jeopardy. They will have to leave their quiet life behind to find a chance at a longer life together.
Breger has created two incredibly fallible vampire characters that it is hard not to completely fall for. The story starts out quite slow, picking up pace toward the end, but the quiet moments felt just as profound as those with more action. I came to care deeply for Poppy and Roisin, especially as both explore their pasts and faults. At its heart, this is a story about learning to be cared for, making deep friendships, and fighting for a life where one can be happy. Breger's writing is dense and lush in a way that felt perfectly suited to a decadent vampire novel. I am excited to see what they write next because it's clear how much care and time they put into this story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Grief, Violence, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Animal death, Blood, Murder, Torture, Toxic relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
queenkath32's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Gaslighting, Animal death, Death, and Blood
amalyndb's review against another edition
4.25
Queer chosen family, as vampires.
Felt like a slow burn for main romantic relationship to come to fruition. Erotica, but much more plot and reflection on emotions and thoughts than sex. Slow seduction of the mind and senses.
I love that Poppy experiments with making food/beverages vampires can partake in consuming. This felt new to me and I adore the concept
Felt like a slow burn for main romantic relationship to come to fruition. Erotica, but much more plot and reflection on emotions and thoughts than sex. Slow seduction of the mind and senses.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Kidnapping
Toxic relationship is not the main pair.lovesit1892's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Did I just find my new favorite book!? I think so! I consider myself a connoisseur of sapphic vampire books and this is easily the best one I've ever read.
This book is emotional and heartfelt while simultaneously being lighthearted and humorous. The two main characters, Poppy and Roisin, go through many growing pains together, but the dialogue between them is so endearing that you almost forget the trials and tribulations they face.
I also enjoyed the relationships and friendships outside of the main relationship, there was such a refreshing sense of positivity and found family among the cast of characters. Each character has their own unique personality, but the way they interact with one another and accept each other, flaws and all, is realistic of an actual family unit. The genuine representation of sexualities, gender queerness, and fluidity was another highlight of this book.
I found Poppy to be so adorable and lovable; her sarcastic, candid personality really balances out Roisin, who, while very sweet and caring, can be frustratingly stubborn and self-critical at times. The way they grow together is a true portrayal of two people (or vampires!) learning and choosing to love one another despite the difficulties.
The intimate scenes between the characters were actually intimate and sexy, so I struggle to call them simply "spicy" or "smutty," but they are definitely swoon-worthy. They're very well written and feel like accurate portrayals of queer sex and love. I think Breger did a fantastic job of weaving in more modern narratives involving polyamory, consent, BDSM, praise kinks, etc., while still writing in a historically accurate voice.
Overall, I loved this book and I can't recommend it enough to those who enjoy vampires, and especially sapphic vampires.
This book is emotional and heartfelt while simultaneously being lighthearted and humorous. The two main characters, Poppy and Roisin, go through many growing pains together, but the dialogue between them is so endearing that you almost forget the trials and tribulations they face.
I also enjoyed the relationships and friendships outside of the main relationship, there was such a refreshing sense of positivity and found family among the cast of characters. Each character has their own unique personality, but the way they interact with one another and accept each other, flaws and all, is realistic of an actual family unit. The genuine representation of sexualities, gender queerness, and fluidity was another highlight of this book.
The intimate scenes between the characters were actually intimate and sexy, so I struggle to call them simply "spicy" or "smutty," but they are definitely swoon-worthy. They're very well written and feel like accurate portrayals of queer sex and love. I think Breger did a fantastic job of weaving in more modern narratives involving polyamory, consent, BDSM, praise kinks, etc., while still writing in a historically accurate voice.
Overall, I loved this book and I can't recommend it enough to those who enjoy vampires, and especially sapphic vampires.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Gaslighting, Gore, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual content and Toxic relationship
Minor: Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, and Panic attacks/disorders
stephtoriz's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
It was a bit hard for me to get through , the vampire story was definitely there , I liked the action parts and the parts when the lovers reunite but I thought the rest of the parts were a bit boring. Overall I did enjoy it though especially since I haven’t read a vampire book in over 10 years !
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit, Animal death, Blood, Death, Grief, Sexual content, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
nefariousbee's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I'm not entirely sure what to make out of this book. but it was delightful. in a very particular sense.
it's not a serious book by any means. but it's fun. it's sexy. it's got characters you can love. what didn't entirely make it for me was the romance between the two main characters - in my opinion, there should have been more set up before it all went this love of their lives way. but I still kinda loved it so
it's not a serious book by any means. but it's fun. it's sexy. it's got characters you can love. what didn't entirely make it for me was the romance between the two main characters - in my opinion, there should have been more set up before it all went this love of their lives way. but I still kinda loved it so
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Animal death, and Body shaming
Moderate: Classism, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Gore, Transphobia, Torture, Homophobia, Vomit, Death, and Fatphobia
hexedmaiden's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.0
SAPPHIC VAMPIRES!? SAY LESS!
Okay so I loved this no surprise because I love vampires and even more when it's gay (let's be real straight vampires don't exist and no I will not be taking criticism at this time.)
I just had a lot of fun with this book and I loved all the characters, and the diversity in those characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, and Blood
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Violence, and Gore
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Fatphobia, and Sexual assault
probablytoolate's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Death, and Sexual content
Moderate: Blood, Death, Gore, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Animal death, and Blood
our_bookish_reads's review against another edition
slow-paced
2.0
The description was beautiful, and I was so excited to start it. It's gothic-esque, there is plenty of smut bordering kinky, LGBTQ+ characters, and vampires. All of these are pure bliss! But after a short time, I found it difficult to stay interested and wasn't enjoying the story. Another problem I had was that while this supposedly takes place in 1837, the writing is very modern and too flowery for me. I also didn't really like Roisin from the beginning. She quickly got to be annoying with some of the things she said and did.
Thank you Netgalley & Bywater Books for the opportunity. All opinions are my own.
Thank you Netgalley & Bywater Books for the opportunity. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body shaming, and Sexual content
marleywrites's review against another edition
DNF at 57%. I just wasn’t invested in the story and couldn’t bring myself to keep reading. I felt like I was reading it as an obligation rather than for enjoyment.
This book was funny, and bloody gruesome. I loved Poppy. I just wasn’t invested in her relationship with Roisin.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.
This book was funny, and bloody gruesome. I loved Poppy. I just wasn’t invested in her relationship with Roisin.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Sexual content, and Animal death