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A review by rakoerose
Vampires Never Get Old: Tales with Fresh Bite by Natalie C. Parker, Zoraida Córdova
3.0
This was a fun little anthology to read through and revisit the great element of vampires in fiction. I had varying opinions across the board for these stories, and thus it is a solid three! Would recommend if you enjoy vamps, would say to skip if you know anthologies are not your thing.
My favorite stories, in no particular order, are:
“A Guidebook for the Newly Sired Desi Vampire” by Samira Ahmed for its cheeky comedy and offering of more world building around a potential history of vampire existence. This one tackles an intermingling of colonization and vampire creation that was super interesting!
“Bestiary” by Laura Ruby because I loved the slow going pace and Jude as a character. It felt more like a slice of life involving both the supernatural elements of a vampire and also dystopian elements of a future where water is so scarce. Would happily have read even more of this story but love its brevity nonetheless.
“Mirrors, Windows & Selfies” by Mark Oshiro was super captivating in an epistolary blog-style format. It reminded me a lot of perusing r/nosleep and waiting for story updates! I’m a sucker for that type of writing format and Cisco made for a really compelling protagonist struggling against his parents and their strict rules as a born vampire.
Not to mention so many of these stories contain amazing diversity in terms of race, sexual orientation, and gender. I guarantee there’s something that can be relatable even amid the mystery of a vampire’s intrigue!
My favorite stories, in no particular order, are:
“A Guidebook for the Newly Sired Desi Vampire” by Samira Ahmed for its cheeky comedy and offering of more world building around a potential history of vampire existence. This one tackles an intermingling of colonization and vampire creation that was super interesting!
“Bestiary” by Laura Ruby because I loved the slow going pace and Jude as a character. It felt more like a slice of life involving both the supernatural elements of a vampire and also dystopian elements of a future where water is so scarce. Would happily have read even more of this story but love its brevity nonetheless.
“Mirrors, Windows & Selfies” by Mark Oshiro was super captivating in an epistolary blog-style format. It reminded me a lot of perusing r/nosleep and waiting for story updates! I’m a sucker for that type of writing format and Cisco made for a really compelling protagonist struggling against his parents and their strict rules as a born vampire.
Not to mention so many of these stories contain amazing diversity in terms of race, sexual orientation, and gender. I guarantee there’s something that can be relatable even amid the mystery of a vampire’s intrigue!