Comments on: REVIEW: Blood Memories by Barb Hendee

By: Barb Hendee

Barb Hendee — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:23:38 +0000

Oh, Jia,

Thank you for this insightful and detailed review. Yes, I did write this novel ten years ago, and although I am still fond of the book, I just completed the sequel . . . and I like it much better (smiles).

Thanks again.
Best,
Barb

By: Dear Author: Romance Book Reviews, Author Interviews, and Commentary » Dear Author Recommended Reads for October

Thu, 09 Oct 2008 20:00:44 +0000

[...] is that we have few books to recommend this month. Jia liked, but did not love, Barb Hendee’s Blood Memories. I liked Deirdre Martin’s Power Play and the upcoming Samhain release by Maya Banks, Into the [...]

By: Brie

Brie — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 18:10:38 +0000

Susan, that story sounds like Kathryn Smith’s Be Mine Tonight.

By: Susan/DC

Susan/DC — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 18:02:47 +0000

I know I read a book recently where a character was dying (of cancer, I think) and the heroine asked the hero to turn him. The hero refused, saying that it would only doom the character to an eternity of pain, as then neither the cancer nor Death could vanquish the other. I’ve scanned my book journal, however, and it’s not there, which only emphasizes that the whole reason I have to keep such a journal is because my memory is like a sieve. If I didn’t write them down (and I clearly forget to write ALL of them down), I wouldn’t remember half of what I read.

By: Karen W.

Karen W. — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 15:26:34 +0000

I’m so looking forward to this book! I enjoyed the dhampir series by Ms. Hendee and her husband, but I love urban fantasy even more, and it sounds great.

By: Jia

Jia — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 11:23:06 +0000

Diana: Funny you mention that. I did a little research and apparently this book is a rewritten re-release of a novel Hendee published nearly 10 years ago, so it actually predates the Twilight phenomenon by many years. On the other hand, this was probably a good time for a re-release because it offers a nice change of pace.

Val: The 400-year-old vampire who acts like a 17-year-old is one my biggest pet peeves in vampire fiction. Even if a person is “frozen” in time so to speak, the passage of time still has its effects mentally, for better or worse. Like I said, I know it’s a fine line authors tread. You can’t make the vampire too inhuman for fear of making them unsympathetic (and as noted above in the comments, Eleisha can come off as unsympathetic) but as a reader, sometimes I wish authors would try to work with these ideas and themes more often.

By: Val Kovalin

Val Kovalin — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 03:55:48 +0000

Excellent review, Jia! You managed to articulate what it is that I find formulaic about urban fantasy and just couldn’t quite pin down myself. I think it was all fresh when Laurell K. Hamilton did it with Guilty Pleasures back in 1993: kick-ass heroine, no female friends, love triangle, et cetera. But since then the writers that follow (at least the risk-adverse ones) are trying too hard to stay in her footsteps and copy exactly what she did.

And I never really thought about the concept of vampires seeming too much like humans who just drink a little blood now and again. :) Very insightful! You’re right, they should be vastly different from humans.

By: Diana Peterfreund

Diana Peterfreund — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 02:55:10 +0000

Sounds interesting — also, a bit like a critical response to Twilight (especially given the suicidal Edward). After all, wouldn’t Eleisha’s power make good sense for Bella, who inspired so much “protective instincts” in others as a human?

By: Shanna

Shanna — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 21:34:12 +0000

I’m about halfway through this book and I’m having a hard time with it. I find Eleisha to be really unlikeable. I agree it’s kind of nice to have a character that isn’t the stereotypical UF heroine but I just don’t have any sympathy for her. I am determined to finish it however. Maybe I’ll change my mind by the end.

By: Jia

Jia — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 20:49:20 +0000

Huh, what happened to my spoiler code? Let me see if I can fix that, or at least indicate the spoilers!