Critters of the Night: The Vampire Barbecue
Erica Farber, J.R. Sansevere, Mercer Mayer
Children
ISBN: 0679973761
Publisher: Random House, Incorporated
Pub. Date: June 1997

Reviews and Commentary
Axel Howl is off to a midnight vampire's picnic on the beach, where roasting and toasting, strumming and drumming, and jumping and thumping make for easy-to-read fun in this first appearance in Beginner Books by Mercer Mayer's Critters of the Night.

Synopsis
From the Critter-creating king, Mercer Mayer, comes more about Moose Mummy, Dracul Duck, Frankengator, and, of course, Axel and Thistle Howl. Abounding in bold, four-color illustrations, these easy-to-read tales of the hilarious goings-on in the sleepy hamlet of Critter Falls will leave kids yowling for more! Four color.

Synopsis: Not available.

Synopsis:
A sequel to Farrens debut vampire novel, The Time of Feasting (1996), about suave, thousand-year-old Victor Renquist (Master of the Nosferatu in Manhattan) and his problems with the police when his followers get out of hand. Victors vampires get by on plastic packs of donor hemoglobin, an only partially satisfying source of livelihood. Such sustenance, in fact, is against the vampires nature, which turns on bloodlust and the urge to kill. Periods come about when the vampires fall into a frenzy and go on killing sprees that are hard to disguisea condition known as Feasting. This kind of wilding, with bloodless bodies right everywhere, threatens to destroy Victors colony. So he leaves behind the chic attention he gets in New Yorks celebrity press and moves his colonys survivors to L.A., where the undead are fed by blood packs stolen by a larcenous Salvadoran orderly at Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital. The vampires deepest urges are filled by ex-sanguinating the influx of unknown and undocumented aliens from the Southvictims with brief or nonexistent histories. Power-hungry Julia, intent on pair-bonding with Victor back in Manhattan, has followed him to L.A. even though he still mourns Cynara, murdered by the hammer strokes of a whiskey priest. Victor also finds himself facing a problem with Elaine Dance, an inconsolably depressed dominatrix whose bouts of raging hysteria cannot be tamed by therapyas neither can her longing to join the undead. She was taken halfway to immortality by Cynara but then right among the Darklost by Cynaras death. Now, a rival cult named the Apogee, ruled by the Council of Nine, wants to bring forth Cthulhu, the squidlike, betentacled Lovecraftian monster of the underworld; if loosed onto this plane of existence, Cthulhu can destroy, enslave, or otherwise change the colony. Despite rich plotting and colorfully embossed characterizations, much remains unresolved at novels end; clearly a third volume is forthcoming. -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Synopsis:
A colony of vampires lives unrevealed in New York City. But with The Time of Feasting at hand they must make the warm kill and drink the living blood. The colony is vulnerable now both from the younger vampires, tired of living in hiding and from a drunken ex-priest and a tenacious city cop who have begun to suspect what they really are.

Synopsis:
Not since The Exorcist has there been such a powerful novel of demonic possession as Son of the Endless Night; perhaps never has there been a novel that so weds supernatural horror with human weakness as to make the two inextricably one. An apparently senseless slaying at a Vermont ski resort is revealed as the overture to a symphony of evil, in which a young man's mind and soul are held ransom by Zarach' Bal-Tagh, a millenia-old spirit. Zarach's object: a trial between the forces of darkness and light, to be held in a Vermont courtroom as part of a young man's murder trial. The forces of eveil are well armed with weapons of sensuality, delusion and horrible death. The forces of good seem relatively ill-suited for their contest: the brother of the accused, a failed priest turned professional wrestler; a black priest, a former pro-basketball player, specializing in ancient languages and exorcism; an itinerant fundamentalist preacher and his girlfriend; and a retired barrister who lives on a secluded sunny island with a community that devotes itself to the worship of light and the expulsion of darkness. These leading figures and dozens of others meet the challenge in a climactic confrontation that will leave no reader unmoved.

Synopsis:
Julian Savage was golden. Powerful. But tormented. For the brooding hunter walked alone, always alone, far from his Carpathian kind, alien to even his twin. Like his name, his existence was savage. Until he met the woman he was sworn to protect... When Julian heard Desari sing, rainbows swamped his starving senses. Emotions bombarded his hardened heart. And a dark hunger to possess her flooded his loins, blinding him to the danger stalking him. And even as Desari enflamed him, she dared to defy him - with mysterious, unparalleled feminine powers. Was Desari more than his perfect mate? Julian had met his match in this woman, but would she drive him to madness... or save his soul?

Synopsis:
The stranger silently summoned her from across the continents, across the seas. He whispered of eternal torment, of endless hunger... of dark, dangerous desires. And somehow American surgeon Shea O'Halloran could feel his anguish, sense his haunting aloneness, and she ached to heal him, to heal herself. Drawn to the far Carpathian mountains, Shea found a ravaged, raging man, a being like no other. And her soul trembled. For in his burning eyes, his icy heart, she recognized the beloved stranger who'd already become part of her. This imperious Carpathian male had compelled Shea to his side. But was she to be his healer... or his prey? His victim... or his mate? Was he luring her into madness... or would his dark desire make her whole?

Synopsis:
Alexandria Houton would sacrifice anything - even her life - to protect her orphaned little brother. But when both encountered unspeakable evil in the swirling San Francisco mists, Alex could only cry to heaven for their deliverance... And out of the darkness swooped Aidan Savage, a golden being more powerful, more mysterious, than any other creature of the night. The ageless Carpathian male snatched them from a hideous fate. But was Aiden a miracle... or a monster? Alex's salvation... or her sin? If she surrendered to Aidan's savage, unearthly seduction - gave him the color, the light, the family he craved - would Alex truly save her brother? Or sacrifice more than her life?

Synopsis:
The eighth entry in Feehan's popular vampire series (Dark Legend; Dark Fire) follows the same formula as her previous books a Carpathian (an immortal vampire hunter) meets his "lifemate," binds himself to her through an ancient ritual involving blood-letting and hot sex, and together they battle the undead. This time around, Feehan spices up her stale story line with her smart and spunky heroine, police officer Jaxon Montgomery. Former Navy SEAL Tyler Drake, Jaxon's maniacal stepfather, has made it his mission to kill anyone she befriends, which has made her equally determined not to form any close ties. Nevertheless, she can't help feeling intimately connected to Carpathian Lucian Daratrazanoff, who takes her into his care when she is shot while searching a warehouse. Convinced that Jaxon is his life mate, Lucian binds himself to her and brings her "over to the Carpathian race." Together, Jaxx and Lucian destroy vampires, battle Drake and read each other's minds. ~ Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Synopsis:
Young Savannah Dubrinsky was a mistress of illusion, a world famous magician capable of mesmerizing millions. But there was one - Gregori, the Dark One - who held her in terrifying thrall. Whose cold silver eyes and heated sensuality sent shivers of danger, of desire, down her slender spine. With a dark magic all his own, Gregori - the implacable hunter, the legendary healer, the most powerful of Carpathian males - whispered in Savannah's mind that he was her destiny. That she had been born to save his immortal soul. And now, here in New Orleans, the hour had finally come to claim her. To make her completely his. In a ritual as old as time... and as inescapable as eternity.

Synopsis:
She came to him at dawn, his bleakest hour. As the beast raged inside him, threatening to consume him, he vented his centuries-old despair in an anguished cry that filled the waning night. And she answered, a ray of light, piercing his darkness. A beautiful angel. Her compassion, courage, and innocence awakened in him an exquisite longing and tenderness. He knew he must possess her, for only she could tame his savage side and lift the dark shadow from his soul. Apart they were desolate, bereft. Intertwined physically and spiritually, they could heal one another and experience an eternity of nights filled with love.

Synopsis:
Gabriel wakes deep within the ground, and the first sensation he feels is an overwhelming hunger for blood. But as he hunts the dark streets of Paris for prey, a voice calls to him, soothing, calming, giving him the strength to control his craving. Francesca Del Ponce is a healer, a woman who radiates goodness as powerfully as the sun does light. Though Garbriel knows she will be like hot silk in his arms, though he knows the taste of her will be addictive, he fears for her life and his soul if he takes her. Then with one mind-shattering vow she gives herself-- "I offer freely, without reservation, I offer my life for yours as is my right"--and with a firestorm of long-forgotten feelings, he glimpses salvation.

Synopsis:
Every day when he sun goes down Val Romero comes to life. Driven by a hunger that must be satisfied, he feeds upon the living, traveling from state to state in his '69 Cadillac, leaving behind a trail of bloodless corpses. Some call him a ruthless serial killer, but those who know the truth call him by his true name: vampire. It is the ultimate aphrodisiac. It is a sinful delight. It is the pulsing force that rules Val Romero's life and has drawn three tormented souls together in a desperate game of life and death. Driven by their dark desires, they are determined to track Val down and have their revenge - for only a vampire's death will satisfy their own raging bloodlust!

Synopsis:
When madness seizes the world's vampires, relentless hunger gnaws at them. But no matter how many victims they drain, withered vampires litter the shadows. Not since the Black Death has Owain ap leuan seen anything like the fatal disease sweeping across the world - but this time vampires are the victims. The anarchs suspect a plot by their elders. The elders blame the Sabbat who lurk in the darkest shadows. The Sabbat fear the return of the antediluvians - and no one is ready for them. There is opportunity in chaos, but Owain has long been the servant of many masters. As the Masquerade crumbles around him, whom will Owain serve? The Camarilla? The Sabbat? The antediluvians? Or himself?

Synopsis
The Blood Curse means hunger, madness, and Final Death. Owain, Venture elder and Sabbat spy struggles to hold the curse''s madness at bay. Drawn into the machinations of the eldest of powers, he must choose between his masters if he hopes to survive.

Synopsis:
"Dark Prophecy", based on the popular role-playing game Vampire: The Masquerade, is the final volume of the "Trilogy of the Blood Curse".

Synopsis:
He calls himself Count Ferencz Nadasdy, and his foreign manner and brooding ways are an impenetrable mystery to the townspeople of Fort McIntyre. Yet beautiful Angelique Gaudet is drawn to the stranger. His gifts of rare jewels entice her. His dark, searching eyes seem to probe, impale, invade her soul. And his urgent arms promise unearthly pleasure. But Angelique is in mortal danger. Police lieutenant Gil Spencer knows it. He has seen the carnage Nadasdy and his lothesome minions have right behind - the mutilation, the madness, the unspeakable horror. Now he must make Angelique believe. He must make her see the nightmare lurking beneath the dream. He must risk everything to save the woman he loves, before the ancient ones awaken the terrible secret buried deep within her heart...

Synopsis:
After vampire Jules Duchon, hero of Fat White Vampire Blues, lost the love of his afterlife, Maureen, he transformed himself into 187 white rats, hoping to escape his pain. Now his old cohort, Doodlebug, who desperately needs Jules' help, has tracked down and reassembled all but one rat, and the missing one contains a crucial piece of equipment. The leader of the High Krewe of Vlad Tepes, New Orleans' most exclusive vampire group, has ordered Doodlebug to track down the person responsible for maiming several younger High Krewe vampires. Motivated in part by Doodlebug's promise to try to resurrect Maureen, Jules does agree to help. The case intensifies when Jules discovers a link to the black vampire group he previously butted heads with. But the black vampires are upset by the deaths of several pastors, and it appears that someone may be targeting both groups of vampires. Fox follows up Jules' first adventure with more laugh-out-loud vampire exploits and fun. ~ Kristine Huntley Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Synopsis:
Vampire, nosferatu, creature of the night–whatever you call him–Jules Duchon has lived (so to speak) in New Orleans far longer than there have been drunk coeds on Bourbon Street. Weighing in at a whopping four hundred and fifty pounds, swelled up on the sweet, rich blood of people who consume the fattiest diet in the world, Jules is thankful he can’t see his reflection in a mirror. When he turns into a bat, he can’t get his big ol’ butt off the ground. What’s worse, after more than a century of being undead, he’s watched his neighborhood truly go to hell–and now, a new vampire is looking to drive him out altogether. See, Jules had always been an equal opportunity kind of vampire. And while he would admit that the blood of a black woman is sweeter than the blood of a white man, Jules never drank more than his fair share of either. Enter Malice X . Young, cocky, and black, Malice warns Jules that his days of feasting on sisters and brothers are over. He tells Jules he’d better confine himself to white victims–or else face the consequences. And then, just to prove he isn’t kidding, Malice burns Jules’s house to the ground. With the help of Maureen, the morbidly obese, stripper-vampire who made him, and Doodlebug, an undead cross-dresser who (literally) flies in from the coast– Jules must find a way to contend with the hurdles that life throws at him . . . without getting a stake through the heart. It’s enough to give a man the blues.

Synopsis:
Angela Trenton was as innocent as she was beautiful... and as vunerable as she was unwary. When she first felt the chilling touch of a bloodless hand gripping her in the darkness, muffling her screams, she feared she was about to die. But as her attacker pressed cold lips to her neck and she felt his teeth piercing her flesh, she knew what was happening was much, much worse... Then came the ecstasy, and her own first taste of blood, and she was wedded forever to the night. With each sunset, she grew stronger, more confident... and more determined to find and destroy the one who had condemned her to this everlasting half-life. And as she hunted, she hungered, tormented by the desperate desire to kill and feed, enslaved for all eternity by her BLOOD THIRST.