Fledgling
Octavia E. ButlerRenowned sf author Butler’s first novel since Parable of the Talents (1998) delves deeply into the world of vampires. Shori, a 53-year-old vampire who appears to be a prepubescent girl, awakes alone in a forest, badly burned and scarred, with no memory of what has happened to her. She wanders to a road, from where she is picked up by young Wright Hamlin, whom she bites once she realizes she is a vampire. Wright shelters her, and the two begin a relationship, but Shori is drawn to the site of the fire that burned her. When she and Wright are attacked at the site, she learns of an older vampire, Iosif, who may have the answers she seeks. But when she meets Iosif, she learns that he is her father and that he, too, is in the dark as to who burned the enclave in which Shori and her mothers and sisters were living. When Iosif’s enclave meets a similar fate, Shori and Wright flee, determined to track down the people responsible for destroying Shori’s family. Butler has a reputation as a master for good reason, and her narrative flows quickly and seamlessly along as Shori seeks those who would destroy her. Gripping and memorable, Butler’s latest is a welcome return performance.
| status | Copy #1 (5315): in |
|---|---|
| genre | Horror |
| publisher | Grand Central Publishing |
| publish date | |
| popularity | checked out 5 time(s) |
The “pedophilia” isn’t really pedophilia-but it’s real enough to have triggered a number of readers- if you think you may be one of them, it might be a good idea to skip this book. Also, it’s not “spooky”…. in some ways it barely classifies as horror. The vampire protagonist/narrator isn’t particularly evil and becomes too familiar to the reader to feel mysterious. All that being said, this is an outstanding book in it’s own unique, provocative way. The writing is up to par with say, Anne Rice -too bad Octavia Butler passed before completing the sequel(s?). RIP