One Foot in the Grave

by Wm. Mark Simmons

Book Overview

One Foot In The Grave This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671877216
• Release Date: April 1996
• Publisher: Baen
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 1.0" x 4.2"

Customer Reviews

Fans of intelligent fiction, buy this book!

Very little drives me crazier than authors who rely on literary convention, who are self-indulgent in any of the several ways possible for fiction (for example, if the main character is righteous, or if the author uses the book to promote his or her pet ideas, or if it's a historical makes the characters of the past have the sensibilities-- feminism, for example-- of the present). Wm. Mark Simmons does NONE of these things. One Foot belies its somewhat lurid cover art by asking the readers to believe only one thing-- these "supernatural" creatures do exist-- and goes on to tell a story that keeps my interest and never rings false to my internal B.S.-meter (and I read a lot, so it's finely tuned). The once-human "monsters" are still very human in their hearts and minds (which are sometimes monstrous, like those of some humans); their situations have scientific bases. Add to this "keeping-it-realism" a literate quality, thoughtfulness and a significant portion of humor, and you wind up with a work which is at the same time intelligent, funny, and very rereadable, which is my standard of measure for quality fiction. Or to put it another way, most of my paperbacks stay awhile and then get traded in. Not this one. I look forward to its sequel(ae).

One To Keep

This book is one of the great stories to keep in your collection. Especially if you enjoy vampires, werewolves, and fairies. They say never judge a book by its cover, but that's why I first picked it up when it was first published. The main character "Christoper Csejthe" is intelligent, not exactly handsome, but you find him attractive. He's just finding out what he is, or isn't. His wife and daughter were murdered, and he is slowly turning into a vampire. Or maybe not. You see, he never D I E D. His maker says that he is "Dracula", and he never meant for this situation to happen. While trying to learn what he will become, we learn of different kinds of vampires, their religions, and how to get rid of them. Chris learns that he is wanted, dead, or alive. He's running from everyone, and doesn't know who to trust. Along the way, he's gaining some awesome powers. This book has humor, action, and romance. I've been waiting six years for the next one. I take this one out at least once every year and read it again. That Good.

Fantasy nestled within a science fiction framework

Mark Simmons is staking out new ground by combining science fiction and fantasy in the same rousing tale. As he did in his first two books, In the Net of Dreams and When Dreams Collide, Simmons has seamlessly hidden a fantasy (do you really believe in Dracula or the Wolfman)within a science fiction envelope. In One Foot in the Grave, Simmons logically inflicts his protagonist, Christopher L. Csejthe (pronounced chey-tay) with a legitimate medical condition (can you say, vampirism?). When you read the explanation, you have to scratch your head and say, "Yeah, it could happen." Of course, that doesn't begin to describe the myriad of puns, sight gags, and references to popular culture that will make your eyes water and your thigh hurt from slapping it. Simmons is funny! Read this book, and enjoy.

Absolutely great urban horor-fantasy-Needs a sequal please

As his physical and mental conditions and emotional needs are deteriorating and other changes occur, Christopher Csejihe believes he suffers from a rare disease. Though he seeks a cure, Chris is more obsessed over learning who killed his wife and child even if that ugly incident seems tied to his current degenerating condition. However, Chris has other problems as two weird groups of individuals use him as the rope in a deadly tug of war. At the same time, the medical research community wants to turn him into a guinea pig. To survive, Chris must first understand and second accept that he has ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE and one foot in the world of the undead because his disease is actually the stages of a mortal transforming into a vampire. Two rival covens want him either to join them or die. ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE is a very entertaining vampire tale that works because the cast (natural and supernatural) appears genuine. Thus, the audience accepts vampirism and other paranormal creatures as a sort of sixth kingdom with several genres and species. The story line is fast-paced, filled with growing tension and suspense, and a fabulous surprise of an ending. Still, it is the ironic narrating of Chris quoting the romanticists like Yeats, Sappho, and E. John that turns this horror novel into a wonderfully humorous satire that spoofs itself yet provides a serious classic horror style undertone. W. Mark Simmons has written a winner that will please the full spectrum of horror fans, who will realize that this is not Kansas anymore, just an excellent tale.Harriet Klausner

Bought it on a whim

I like the cover art on this paperback as well as the description of it as "Dracula meets the Godfather". I figured it would be good for some cheesy vampire action; you know, one of those books you have to read because it's so laughingly bad. I'm pleased to say I was completely wrong! The novel begins with Chris Csejthe trying to find a cure for the mysterious disease that started to plague him shortly after the deaths of his wife and daughter. Chris, who narrates the story, then finds himself in the middle of a bizarre life-or-death situation while two powerful vampire "families" (in the mob sense) fight over him. Turns out Chris is in the middle of vampire transformation; neither human nor vampire, Chris begins an adventure of discovering who he is, testing his new powers, and solving the mystery of the tragedy that took the people he loved. Along the way he meets Dr. Mooncloud, Bassarab, Lupe, Suki, Elizabeth, and a whole slew of other-worldly creatures such as elves, goblins, dryads, nagas, knockers, sprites, and many others. All the while, he narrates the events around him with sarcastic humor, literary references and some healthy wariness. Any vampire novel that can weave an enchanting tale of an alternate history such as this while quoting Sappho, Yeats, Victor Hugo, Donne, Wordsworth, Oscar Wilde etc. deserves more recognition! Simmons has created a fascinating world filled with funny, intelligent characters. The dialogue is snappy, the plot is filled with twists and turns, the story is suspenseful, and the book itself is impossible to put down. I am so pleasantly surprised by this novel, and I sincerely hope that Simmons will revisit these characters and give us a sequel! I found this book in the fantasy/sci-fi section, but it easily crosses into horror, humor, drama as well. It has something for everyone: humor, action (you'll find lots of weapons and methods of killing without intense graphic gore), suspense, mystery, fantasy. Buy it, you won't be disappointed.