I liked it. the story was diffeerent, no vampire love...well there is but it is gorhic horror!! I liked the characters, except for the bad guys...they are really BAD If you tend to just know vamps are evil....you might be suprised to find one who tries to be good YET it is horror
Fantastic story! This first book in the Ravenloft series serves as a great introduction to the world of Ravenloft and its unique horrors. I really enjoyed this book and felt true empathy for the protagonist - Jander Sunstar.
Jander is forced (at various times) to partake in or observe very evil acts, but his true soul never turns and (I believe) he is rewarded for his steadfastness at the end. I also thought some of the supporting characters were very well done (particularly Leisl & Sasha) and charcters introduced to us briefly from the dim past of Jander's memories have importance to the story as well.
Perhaps the most impressive facet to this story is how the author effortlessly weaves the idea that time is basically meaningless to the vampires. Instead of weeks and months being important, we are introduced to the concept of decades as chunks of time that may mean something to a vampire. Her deft use of time allows the author to advance the story with descendants of characters encountered in the first few chapters as central to the story...rather than those first charcters themselves. Well done.
The ending was glorious, sad, triumphant, and thoughtful - all at the same time. I give this story a hearty 5 stars out of 5, and would encourage anyone thinking about this book to go ahead and read it!
