Katherine Villyard reviewed Immortal Gifts by Katherine Villyard (Immortal Vampires, #1)
I wrote this
I have a link to content warnings here, if that’s your thing: www.katherinevillyard.com/202...
So, this book. It’s kind of what would happen if you took Interview with the Vampire and crossed it with When the Angels Left the Old Country, perhaps with a dash of The Time Traveler's Wife. Other people mentioned A Discovery of Witches, for the female witch/wiccan character with two moms who is married to a vampire.
Instead of poor depressed Louis, I have an undercover Jewish violinist with a wry sense of humor. His patron, a Bavarian noble second son originally destined for the church, embodies “Immortality is awesome!” Who wants to live forever? The patron, that’s who! The violinist’s mortal wife, that’s who doesn’t!
Death and grief aren’t unusual topics for a vampire book, but if you’ve lost someone it feels like you’re a member of a super sucky club, doing …
I have a link to content warnings here, if that’s your thing: www.katherinevillyard.com/202...
So, this book. It’s kind of what would happen if you took Interview with the Vampire and crossed it with When the Angels Left the Old Country, perhaps with a dash of The Time Traveler's Wife. Other people mentioned A Discovery of Witches, for the female witch/wiccan character with two moms who is married to a vampire.
Instead of poor depressed Louis, I have an undercover Jewish violinist with a wry sense of humor. His patron, a Bavarian noble second son originally destined for the church, embodies “Immortality is awesome!” Who wants to live forever? The patron, that’s who! The violinist’s mortal wife, that’s who doesn’t!
Death and grief aren’t unusual topics for a vampire book, but if you’ve lost someone it feels like you’re a member of a super sucky club, doing your secret handshakes with your fellow sufferers. It’s a thing I felt keenly while writing. Both of my parents are dead, and my pandemic experience was being alone and isolated with cats… two of whom died suddenly during the pandemic. One of my critique partners died during the writing of this book, too. The opposite of death is immortality, but that won’t save you from the heartache of others’ mortality. The mortal wife being a veterinarian… ties in, thematically.
Don’t be afraid of the vampires. Vampires are our friends! What’s really scary is hate, isolation, and the pain of grief.
Spice level: unsalted mashed potatoes/closed door/fade to black.