Many Bloody Returns

I just finished reading this book and like all great books, I was sorry to see it end. This book is co-written by the now infamous Charlaine Harris, who is the author of the True Blood series, starring Sookie Stackhouse.

Like the True Blood series, I couldn't put this book down. With thirteen stories and many contributing authors, like; Jim Butcher (Harry Dresden), Kelley Armstrong (Cassandra du Charme from the women of the Otherworld universe), PN Elrod (Jack Fleming), Tanya Huff (Tony and Henry Fitzroy), and Rachel Caine (Eve Rosser from the Morganville Vampires books) - along with some other fairly recognizable authors such as Christopher Golden and Jeanne Stein. What a group of amazing writers.

Apparently Charlaine Harris and a few others came up with the slight concept of the book, which is Vampires and birthdays! It takes quite a writer to take this minimal idea and expand on it with such direction and intrigue.

The first story is by Charlaine herself, titled "Dracula Knight". The story involves Sookie Stackhouse and her blood sucking friends, as they prepare for Dracula's birthday ball. Not one to tell give away the plot, it's definitely a story with "Sookie" appeal.

The next story that I must mention is by author Jim Butcher. This one titled "It' My Birthday Too", involves one of Butchers' well known book characters, a wizard named Harry Dresden. On his vampire brothers' birthday he decides to meet him to deliver his gift. His brother happens to be at a role playing party, at the local mall. Harry arrives expecting to drop off his gift and run, only to find out that some scary, blood lusting vampires are there to ruin the party!

Another story, well worth mentioning, is titled "Twilight", by Kelley Armstrong. This tale revolves around Cassandra DuCharme an older vampire, who has to kill one person a year, to remain alive. As she battles her demons, and reflects on life, you wonder if she's be able to pull it off, or let her life go?

P.N. Elrod's series about vampire PI Jack Fleming heads up another noteworthy tale. This one is titled "Grave-Robbed". Jack Fleming (vampire PI) takes on a phony psychic in a funny, yet well written tale surrounding a young woman and her sister, and the death of a family member.

Another interesting short story is by Christopher Golden. This one titled “The Mournful Cry of Owls” reads like a folk tale. A young woman gets closer to her sixteenth birthday and finds herself drawn to the forest. Her mother explains the origin of her secret birth, and from there, her whole life changes.

And one yarn I really enjoyed takes place in a small town ruled by vampires. All families are protected by a vampire, but at the age of eighteen each person decides if they want to sign the loyalty pledge or venture out alone, without the protection of a head vamp. Eve Roser, an outcast Goth, celebrates her eighteenth birthday in the back of a van with friends, but ends the night in a horrible car accident. From there it only gets worse as she decides against the pledge, in the adventures of Rachel Caine’s Morganville Vampire series entitled “The First Day of the Rest of Your Life”.

Jeanne C. Stein marveled me in “The Witch and the Wicked”. A witch with an unlikely catering business to the supernatural, finds herself connected to an old vampire due to her use of his ashes after he goes up in flames.

In all of the fables I was left with wanting more. I think I've found myself a new list of authors to follow, with my love for vampire stories. If you like a good vamp story then this is definitely a book of tales you can't ignore.