The night I stole a copy of Anne Rice’s Queen of the Damned from my father’s bookshelves, I became obsessed with all things vampire. The idea that a creature existed who could not only cheat death, but bottle youth, control minds, and beguile the senses, spoke to my little Slytherin heart on so many levels.
Thus began my love for all things paranormal, which only grew with time.
The treaty between the Fallen and the Brotherhood has been broken, and war between the immortals seems imminent…
We’re pleased to share an excerpt from Renée Ahdieh’s The Damned, the second installment in The Beautiful series—available July 7th from G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books.
The night I stole a copy of Anne Rice’s Queen of the Damned from my father’s bookshelves, I became obsessed with all things vampire. The idea that a creature existed who could not only cheat death, but bottle youth, control minds, and beguile the senses, spoke to my little Slytherin heart on so many levels.
Thus began my love for all things paranormal, which only grew with time. Of course I followed all my trusted reader friends down the Harry Potter rabbit hole, just as I lost sleep over Twilight and all things Team Edward. And before anyone starts grumbling, I won’t apologize for it. Our society spends enough time denigrating the things young women love, and I refuse to participate in such hogwash.
But all the while I considered myself an OG vampire lover. I reread Dracula until the book fell apart. I bought the soundtrack for Interview with the Vampire, music I still use to this day for writing inspiration. I even read George R. R. Martin’s obscure vampire novel, Fevre Dream, which I will contend is among the best things he’s ever written. Fight me on it. I’m not afraid to draw blood.
Since I believe myself to be such an expert on the matter, I present to you my list of the five most badass vampires in literature and pop culture.
In honor of the fortieth anniversary of A New Hope, more than forty contributors lend their vision to this retelling of Star Wars. Each of the forty short stories reimagines a moment from the original film, but through the eyes of a supporting character—including Captain Antilles, Aunt Beru, Biggs Darklighter, and more! From a Certain Point of View features contributions by bestselling authors, trendsetting artists, and treasured voices from the literary history of Star Wars. Available now from Del Rey.
Below, we’re pleased to share a preview of “The Luckless Rodian” by Renee Ahdieh, about a mercenary’s last bounty…
