Asimov's Vampires

by Sheila Williams, Pat Cadigan, Mark W. Tiedemann, et al.

Book Overview

Provocative tales of immortal hunger and desire transport readers to a tantalizing world that awakens when the sun goes down. From the pages of Asimov's Science Fiction, readers take an eerie trip into the dark side of night with stories by Pat Cadigan, Sharon N. Farber, Gregory Frost, Tanith Lee, Susan Palwick, David Redd, Mark W. Tiedmann and Connie Willis.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0441003877
• ISBN13: 9780441003877
• Release Date: November 1996
• Publisher: Ace Books
• Length: 257 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

A delightful collection of tales both dark and delicious

The Isaac Asimov series of anthologies collected some of the best loved stories from the Asimov magazine. These stories all have vampires in common, but that is all they have in common. The tales here are both diverse and wonderful. My Brother's Keeper by by Pat Cadigan - is about a junkie gone missing and his sister's desperate attempts to get him back. But what she hasn't counted on is that junkies aren't the only undead in town. A Surfeit of Melancholic Humours by Sharon Farber- is about the Black Death of Europe and some of the strange paths that horror led down. The only complaint I have about this story is that it's written in old English, making it stuffy at times. Winter Flowers by Tanith Lee- is my favorite story in the book, because it tells the horrid tale of what eats the predators? Everything has something that eats them, and it turns out hat vampires may not be the top of the food chain. Some Things Are Better Left by Gregory Frost- It's all about being the kid everyone else picked on in this high school reunion story. The secret of youth, revenge against the jock, be careful what you wish for because you might get it... Ever After by Susan Palwick- This is hands down my favorite story in the novel, and the book is worth the price just for these pages. A brilliant take on fairy tales and happily ever after, perfection on a page. The Old Man of Munington by David Redd- This is a brilliant little story abut two plucky girls who are part time detectives and the old man down the road who lives in a mansion. Very fun. Drink by Mark Tiedmann- This one is enough to make anyone's skin crawl. It's set around the time of the crusades. I won't tell any more because I want to give away no spoilers. Jack by Connie Willis- Set during World War II, it shows everyone in England did their part for the war, no matter how great or how small that part was... This is an anthology sure to please both anthology fans and vampire readers alike and would make a wonderful addition to your library.

Eight stories of speculative vampire fiction

Not a collection of stories by Isaac Asimov himself, but eight stories by various authors, all previously published in the periodical ASIMOV'S SCIENCE FICTION. Like all good speculative fiction, these stories ask the question "what if?"What if a vampire went to London to join the 1940s war effort? "Jack" by Connie Willis portrays a vampire using his unusual abilities for the good of humankind. The horrors of bureaucracy make the horrors of war look almost inviting by comparison.What if vampires are a separate species that keeps tabs on the human race? Other writers have done it, but seldom with the grace of David Redd in "The Old Man of Munington." Two young girls and the Old Man himself follow a younger vampire's plans to eliminate a possible risk to the human race the vampires watch and guard.Perhaps the most chilling question and answer comes in "My Brother's Keeper" by Pat Cadigan: What if vampires support inner-city drug abuse because they have something to gain? These are vampires at their most terrifying -- not tuxedo-clad fiends in some isolated Carpathian castle, but men and women who look like the rest of us, nesting right in our midst and drawing their power from the things we fear most.Other stories include Tanith Lee's haunting "Winter Flowers," a story of vampire mercenaries who encounter a castle of creatures even stranger than they; "A Surfeit of Melancholic Humors" by Sharon N. Farber, a charming and somewhat medical tale of vampires in seventeenth-century plague time; and Susan Palwick's "Ever After," which picks out the darkness of fairy tale conventions and blends it into the darkness of the vampire mythos. All the stories are good; some are excellent. All balance vampire fiction conventions with enough of the unexpected to keep us guessing -- pleasantly so.