Blood Maidens

by Barbara Hambly

Overview

The new 'James Asher' vampire novel from the best-selling author

It's 1911. War is coming, and according to one of the vampires of St. Petersburg, the Kaiser is trying to recruit vampires. James Asher, Oxford don and formerly on His Majesty's Secret Service, is forced to team up again with his vampire partner Don Simon Ysidro for a journey to the subarctic Russian capital. Are they on the trail of a rogue vampire with a plan to achieve the power to walk in daylight? Asher wonders. Or is Ysidro's real agenda to seek the woman he once loved?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781780100531
Publisher:	Severn House
Publication date:	05/01/2011
Series:	A James Asher Vampire Novel , #3
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	807 KB

About the Author

Barbara Hambly, though a native of Southern California, lived in New Orleans for a number of years prior to the destruction of that city by Hurricane Katrina, while married to science fiction writer George Alec Effinger. Hambly holds a degree in medieval history from the University of California and has written novels in numerous genres: historical mysteries, science fiction, sword-and-sorcery fantasy, literary fiction, and horror. In addition, she has written scripts for graphic novels and Saturday morning cartoons. She currently lives in Los Angeles, teaches at a local college, and hopes one day to have the time and energy to pursue a hobby again. Her interests include dance of various kinds, painting, sewing, computer graphics, video games, and the usual demands of friends and family.

Editorial Reviews

Fans of historical vampire fiction will not be disappointed by Hambley's long-awaited third James Asher tale (after 1995's Traveling with the Dead), which features a lush and gorgeous whirlwind tour through wintry 1911 Russia. Vampire Don Simon Ysidro comes in dreams to Asher, a former member of the British Secret Service, to recruit him and his brilliant scientist wife, Lydia, to help solve the mystery of the sudden disappearance of fellow vampire Lady Eaton, Asher's old flame. Their investigation sends them into the high society world of the Theosophists to halt experiments on vampire blood that could lead to the kaiser using vampires as an unstoppable weapon of war. The spying and intrigue wrap neatly around the beautifully unfolding mystery. Hambly's political, passionate vampires are deliciously inhuman while still suffering from human flaws and aspirations, producing plenty of emotional drama. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

Hambly's political, passionate vampires are deliciously inhuman while still suffering from human flaws and aspirations, producing plenty of emotional drama. “
Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

An intense relationship has developed between Don Simon Ysidro, a powerful vampire of London; James Asher, a former secret service agent for Queen Victoria; and Asher's young wife, Lydia, a physician with a penchant for medical research. In their third foray (after Those Who Hunt the Night and Traveling with the Dead), Ysidro demands that James accompany him to the Russian capital of St. Petersburg, where he has learned that agents for German Kaiser Wilhelm plot to bring members of the Undead into the German web. Ysidro insists that the existence of vampires must remain secret to the living world and convinces Asher once again to help the cause of the undead. Inevitably, Lydia's special talents are needed, and the three are once again caught in a nail-biting adventure. VERDICT This is an interesting story but not as compelling as its predecessors. In addition, some of the fascinating interaction of the main characters, so well described in the previous books, is lost here. However, fans of this popular fantasy author will demand it.—Patricia Altner, Columbia, MD

Library Journal