The Dracula Chronicles: Bound By Blood Paperback – 4 Aug. 2014

Having finally earned the chance to sit down and read the new edition of Shane KP O’Neill’s Dracula Chronicles: Bound by Blood, I was thrilled to discover that since my last encounter with O’Neill’s Dracula, the quality of writing had in no way diminished, as if so often the case with books in a series. Having had to leave quite a pause between reading The Path of Decay and Bound by Blood, especially as the remaining prequel novels have yet to be released, I was concerned that I might struggle with this latest edition. And yet the book welcomed me back into its arms with its familiar, and refreshing pace, and I was snapped straight back into the zone without any of the awkward hangover. Masterful, violent and simultaneously romantic, Bound by Blood is not a book for the faint-hearted.Dracula makes no excuse for his behaviour. An evil force that conquers and torments his way through the ages, his only redeemable quality is his capability still to love, and to love very deeply. The novel, which is as much about the political and historical changes of an era, as it is about a vampire, paints a very vivid tale of a creature torn between the anguish of his violent nature, his revenge and the part of him which is still human. There is no Twilight-Vegetarianism here. Dracula is Lucifer’s representative on earth, and he walks among humans like a wolf in sheep’s clothing.As usual, O’Neill spares us none of the anguish in his writing, going into excruciating detail. In particular, the book contains several vivid accounts of rape, and whilst never easy to read, these sexual assaults are not romanticised in any way, as is a frustrating and disgusting trend in many epic books of this nature. O’Neill never tries to excuse the behaviour and writes each as a violent crime, dipping into some very dark places as he introduces one of Dracula’s sons; a notorious serial killer who features prominently in the second half of the book.The romance in the book speaks for itself. We are once again reconnected with Andrei, Dracula’s half-brother and twin-spirit, now old and nearing the end of his life. His relationship with his wife is a parallel of Dracula’s own relationships, and despite polar-differences, the brothers show an equal ability to love very deeply. Dracula’s pursuit for love and companionship plays a key-role in the story, and marks a very significant aspect of his character, as he goes to new lengths to protect the ones he loves.The historical detail is, as always, immaculate, with evident hours of research condensed into a manageable and easily readable way. The textures and particulars of different countries and times, are weaved effortlessly into the fabric of the story, and I took great pleasure in particular at the inclusion of several historical figures, all of whom are subtly influenced by Dracula, shaping the course of history.A real page-turner, O’Neill’s writing has a very epic quality to it, and reads like a classic novel with none of the censorship. The sex is steamy, the murder is shocking, the love and loss are devastating and elating all at once. I cannot recommend this book, or this series enough, and I wait impatiently now for the next installment!

The Dracula Chronicles: Bound By Blood - Vol 1 Shane KP O'NeillI can't honestly say that I did not like this rather curious novel, I did... but it is far from a conventional vampire/horror yarn. Yes, a lot of the required vampire elements are there but mixed in with a whole new concept of the origins of the vampire, as special agents on earth for Satan.To me the storyline seems to be a case of "Dracula meets the 'God'-father", as the famed Vlad the Impaler of historical note is recruited by a Jack Nicholson-ish Satan to ferment discord within the Catholic Church in the 16th Century. To this ends the great Voivode puts together of 'hit squad' of vampires from his dysfunctional sex obsessed family, wife, sons, in-laws who embark on a whistle stop tour of all the major social cataclysmic events of the era, influencing such notables as the Borgias,Catherine of Aragon, Machiavelli and Martin Luther, who would have remained non-entities without our hero's input. The tale is bound within a framework of manufactured Christian mythology in which God, Satan, Jesus and the various choirs of angels are physical entities interacting with each other in a great soap opera in the sky as the dieties pursue the race to gather the higher number of human souls. Plenty of gore and erotic sex and even inter-vampire romance, plus a lot of soul searching by the main anti-heroes.Great fun but I am not sure that I would want to embark upon a multi volume excursion. The Kindle edition needs a bit of editing, several historical bloopers, and quite a few homophonic errors.I enjoyed it as a refreshing change from the serious horror novels which form part of my normal reading diet. My curiosity has been stirred up and i may try the sequel to see how the 'V'-Team, murder, debauch and blackmail their way through the Catholic/Protestant Wars that they have stirred up.

The Dracula Chronicles: Bound By Blood - Volume 1 by Shane O'Neill is a magnificent achievement. Shane has expertly combined the classic vampire myth with medieval history in such a way as to entertain with gallons, no lakes of blood.Immediately, from page 1, the reader is dragged through a battle scene that I can only describe as brutal in the extreme, but tempered by fleshed out character descriptions. During this battle with the Turks, Vlad III Dracula, Voivode of Wallachia is mortally wounded by devious assassins. Close to death, he seeks the comfort of a chapel where Lucifer comes to him and offers the deal of the lifetime. Dracula takes the offer and from there on suffers the loneliness of a vampire demon, only to come to life when feeding from the living. But there is a price to pay - Dracula must do one thing for Lucifer, just one small thing - destroy the Catholic Church and pave the way for his return as the dominant force on earth and in heaven.Dracula travels far and wide to Italy, London and Germany where he alters history to Lucifer's benefit. Shane deftly uses real life famous historical people to involve Dracula's devious plan and it works wondrously.So if you fancy an intelligent read of historical fantasy then I highly recommend this FIVE STAR novel to all Dracula fans.