Early Book Review: Tall, Dark, and Vampire by Sara Humphreys

Tall, Dark, and Vampire is the first book in the Dead in the City series by Sara Humphreys and is scheduled for release on August 6 2013. Olivia Hollingsworth is a vampire, one that has remained faithful to her long dead true love, who died on the night she was turned. Unexplained dreams have kept him close to her heart, and when Doug Paxton walks into her club in order to investigate a murder, his resemblance to her past love is irrefutable. Doug recognized Olivia as the red-haired siren that has been haunting his dreams, and has trouble focusing on the task at hand, at least until more bodies start piling up. Now, the two must work together to discover the truth behind the violent murders and perhaps find real happiness in the process, if they survive.

Tall, Dark, and Vampire was a first for me, I do not remember reading anything by Humphreys in the past, and I liked her take on vampires. Like other groups of people, there are good ones, and ones with a possessive or psychotic personality. The structure of the vampire government and sentries were unique and well built. The personalities and connections between the major players, and the underlying politics that are inherent in the vampire society here are extremely well layered in a way that drew me in. Olivia and Doug are caught up in a plot that threatens their lives, and are struggling to understand the bond between them. The 'mythology' about love bonds and the lengths that some will go to in order to hold power over others are important factors here, and I found them very well done.

I recommend Tall, Dark, and Vampire to readers that enjoy the work of Humphreys, and those that are looking for urban fantasy or paranormal romance with a little more substance than what you might expect. I am looking forward to seeing where this series goes from here.