Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires, Book 1) by Rachel Caine Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires, Book 1)
Book Review: Five-star entertainment!
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm 51 years old and I LOVED this book! Sure, the main characters act a little immature now and then, but THEY'RE KIDS.
This is my first book by this author and I could only put it down with difficulty (as opposed to the second book in the series, which I absolutely could not put down at all). The background of the town and vamps has been intricately built, with fascinating characters on all sides. Claire, the lead, is especially interesting and multi-dimensional (and I hope someone points her towards birth control real soon because she's gonna need it).
There is a real fear factor in the scary parts, real humor in the funny parts, and the guys are hilarious when they're being guys. The pace is get-up-and-go (2nd book even more so). All in all, tremendously entertaining.
The only sore spot was the sudden cliffhanger at the end, which (disregard the "look ahead" excerpt at the end of the book) is speedily dealt with in ch. 1 of Part 2. It almost made me NOT buy volume 2 after I'd determined that I wanted more of this author, but I bought it and am darned glad I did. Beware: volume 2 also has its own cliffhanger as well as numerous plot threads that need to be resolved fairly quickly. But that's what series are all about, right?
Buy this book! I don't like many vampire books, but this one is a winner.
Book Review: 4.5 stars. Do not read without book two ready. Cliff hanger ending.
Summary: 5 Stars
Claire Danvers thinks studying and learning are fun. It is no wonder she ends up going to college early. She is only sixteen, so her parents do not want her to live in a dorm too far away for them to drive to. Therefore, Claire ends up at Texas Prairie University (TPU). Claire plans to remain at TPU until she is eighteen and then transfer to a much bigger and better college. Since Claire is sixteen, she expects that the other students would treat her a bit harsh. After all, Claire is much younger than anyone else and prefers to study instead of party. However, she never expects to find out that she is the ONLY normal or sane student in town. It does not take long for Claire to honestly believe that she is the only sane person in TOWN!
Monica Morrell is the most popular girl. She is also the biggest bully. When Claire, accidently, makes Monica look stupid, she becomes Monica's personal punching bag. Worse, after being given a black eye and shoved down some steep stairs, Claire knows that Monica wants nothing less than to see her dead. Claire's only real choice is to find some sort of cheap housing off campus...TODAY!
Claire ends up at Glass House. It a blend of Tara from "Gone with the Wind" and the home of "The Munsters". Within twenty-four more hours, Claire learns why the town is odd. Vampires run the town! Humans who are under Protection from a vampire always wear their bracelets identifying them as such. These humans swear their entire lives to their Protector. They live, serve, and die at their Protector's whim. And anyone without a bracelet, such as Clair, is meat!
Claire now has three house mates. Eve works at the local coffee shop named Common Grounds. It is the only neutral territory around. Shane can only cook one thing, chili. He hates Monica even more than Claire does. (Monica returns his hateful feelings.) But the strangest is David. The house belongs to David. But David is never seen during the day, only at night. He is not a vampire though. He is one big mystery. The trio may seem almost as strange as the Morganville, but when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out at night for fresh blood, these three have Claire's back.
***** The only thing that I do not like about this novel is that it ends in the middle of a murder involving one of Claire's three house mates. Talk about a frustrating cliff hanger! So do NOT begin this novel until you purchase book two (The Dead Girls' Dance). If this book had ended three pages earlier, I would have given it the full five stars. Otherwise, this book is stellar! *****
Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.
Book Review: Weather Warden Fan Finds Favor
Summary: 5 Stars
I first found Rachel Caine through an introduction by Jim Butcher Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1). Loved Rachel's Weather Warden books Ill Wind (Weather Warden, Book 1) so I decided to give this a try as I was Jonezing for more books to read. Low and behold I came upon this series and thought "I'll try it." Boy am I glad I did. Not just your regular vampire book. You can really kin to this girl who is not the most popular girl in school, just a nobody like the rest of us were. (I was afraid I was not going to relate being an older person and not real in touch with my old school days ya know? No problamo here)I can relate to all the characters and even feel good when some of them get whatz coming to um and even that happens in an unexpected way. OK I am jazzed about picking up this new series and Man I realy love Rachel Caine, nice to see she is versatile and can separate her stories. This does not feel like a Warden book, it stands on it own and I bet you can't put it down! Thanks MS Caine for the ride, I am ready for the next one please.Book Review: a little slow...
Summary: 3 Stars
The book was okay, a bit slow to start, but finally picked up closer to the end. I may read the next one, however it is not on the top of my list...Book Review: Definitely for a younger audience, but still a compelling read
Summary: 4 Stars
Claire Danvers is a genius. Instead of sending her to Caltech or any of the other faraway schools that have professed an interest in her, her folks send her to Texas Prairie University or TPEwwwww in Morganville, TX.
Our smart young heroine quickly learns that the town isn't quite what it seems. A gang of bullies in the dorm can harm her with impunity, it's not safe to go out at night...
Turns out, the town is run by vampires and unless you have Protection, you're food. It's up to our smart heroine to find a way to protect herself and her friends.
This is definitely a novel I'd recommend to a young adult reader who's interested in dark fantasy. The book's well-written with good characters and plot. I'm surprised a novel written for young adults has college age protagonists, but no way am I knocking anything that will get a younger audience reading is wonderful.
I even enjoyed the book as an adult reader, but I've been a fan of Rachel Caine since the beginning of the "Weather Warden" novels.