A Thrilling Descent Into Darkness: A Review of 'Vampires and Victims: Rise of the Wraiths' by Martin M. McShane

Martin M. McShane's 'Vampires and Victims: Rise of the Wraiths' is a captivating read that plunges readers into a chilling world where ancient evils awaken. The story follows a group of diverse characters, each grappling with their own personal struggles, as they face a growing threat: the emergence of the Wraiths, a powerful and ancient vampire lineage.

**Strengths:**

* **Compelling Characters:** McShane crafts a cast of characters that feel real and relatable. From the hardened detective, Michael, to the haunted priest, Father Thomas, each individual brings their own unique perspective and depth to the narrative.
* **Intense Atmosphere:** The author masterfully builds suspense and tension throughout the novel. The setting, a dark and gritty city on the brink of chaos, adds to the overall unsettling atmosphere. The constant threat of the Wraiths, their sinister presence lurking in the shadows, keeps readers on edge.
* **Thought-Provoking Themes:** McShane delves into themes of faith, morality, and the nature of good and evil. The novel explores the complexities of human nature, forcing characters to confront their darkest impulses in the face of overwhelming darkness.
* **Fast-Paced Plot:** The story moves at a brisk pace, keeping readers engaged from start to finish. The action sequences are well-written and thrilling, offering a satisfying blend of horror and suspense.

**Areas for Improvement:**

* **Predictable Twists:** While the story is generally well-paced, some of the plot twists feel predictable. This could be addressed by adding more unexpected turns and surprises to keep readers guessing.
* **Lack of Character Development:** While the characters are interesting, some could benefit from more in-depth exploration. Further development of their backstories and motivations would enhance their impact on the narrative.

**Overall:**

'Vampires and Victims: Rise of the Wraiths' is a thrilling and suspenseful read that will appeal to fans of supernatural horror. With its compelling characters, intense atmosphere, and thought-provoking themes, this novel offers a chilling and engaging experience. Despite some minor flaws, the overall strength of the writing and the compelling story make it a worthwhile read for those seeking a dark and captivating adventure.

Vampires and victims had interesting world building, interesting characters and creatures. I really enjoyed Charlie and the Nana's stories. It was good to get the perspectives of the vampires and mutanti but felt Charlie and Nana's stories held my attention more.

This was a somewhere in the middle of good and not great. Not terrible by any means but when you're doing something as classic as humans and vampires. It has to be amazing in order for people to really love it.

The atmosphere of this book was breath taking. The way Martin was able to capture England the way that they did was amazing. I actually felt like I was there and feeling the way they wanted this to be written.

My problem with the book was the plot being mildly boring and drawn out. I'm a sucker for a good solid conflict and I don't feel like I got that here with this book.

I would definitely read more from this author.

Anything with vampires has my full attention with that I enjoyed it wasn't my absolute favorite read but it was good

Martin M. McShane knows his vampires and his vampire lore. Vampires have been around for hundreds of years but no author until now has been able to create such an epic Vampire World - every bit as unique, brutal and innovative as Gormenghast - with all it's technicolor blood and creatures not yet even named.
The vampires drink blood but also like to root around innards and slurp down gut juices. And then there are Lycanthropes, Wraiths and Demon Children.
Horror fiction written in bold strokes and with a feverish urgency.

This was perfectly ok. I do like a vampire novel (and no I don’t mean PNR) but I guess I want something a little different each time. This felt very done in many respects. It was a good version of already well trodden paths, but I guess I was hoping for something innovative. If you like vampire tales though, this could be exactly what you’re looking for, especially if you’re a fan of the world of darkness franchise.

Thank you net galley for providing me with a copy of Vampires and Victims in exchange for a honest review.


As excited as I was to read this I was utterly disappointed by the confusing plot lines and repeated lore. The characters were quite blank and felt one dimensional, making this an overall not good read.

Since the signing of ‘The Treaty’ four hundred years ago the Humans of the Cauldron and the Vampires of Storm Hill have lived alongside one another in comparative peace. However, following the rebellion against Lord Harbinger, Cauldronians are disappearing.

Many Elders believe Vampires are kidnapping their kin to feast on them while others are convinced they are being taken to work as slaves in Vampire factories, mills and mines.

The truth is unimaginably worse.

To keep safe, the Carter family move in with Nana Lyons, despite Charlie Carter being terrified of what he witnessed going into her coal cellar as a child. The stakes are raised to new heights when Jed, Charlie’s little brother, goes missing.
Really enjoyable read totally recommend
Thank You NetGalley and Matador
I reviewed Vampires And Victims by Martin M. McShane. #VampiresAndVictims #NetGalley

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was a really interesting story idea and premise to me, and I was really excited to see where this story would go. Unfortunately there was much that simply fell flat to me. I wished i could’ve connected more with the characters however there was much left to be developed, and I felt little to no connection to most of them. While the premise was promising, there was far too much repetition within the prose that made it clunky and hard to get through. This book needs a really good thorough edit. While not amazing, it certainly had potential and I’d be interested in future work from this author.

Vampires And Victims by Martin M. McShane is an interesting and very intriguing story.
The plot was extremely intense. I couldn’t wait to find out what happened.
I also love the characters. The characters are very well written and developed.
The writing style feeds the reader's curiosity brilliantly.
The worldbuilding was phenomenal too!
Highly recommend this book.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Matador,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for a copy of the book for an honest review.

I was very drawn to the description of this book. Who doesn't like a story about vampires...

Let me begin with a few pros:
The prologue was a great attention grabber. I was pulled right into the action wanting to know more.
If you like a story that doesn't always follow the main protagonist, has other mythical creatures, and don't mind slow paced, go ahead and give this a try.
I would defiantly like to know more about these characters if there was a little more character development; but it all felt very stagnate.
There is defiantly a lot of mystery and suspense keeping me wanting to know how they were going to resolve this new issue with Human vs Vampires.

Let me jump into some of the cons:
Like I mentioned above there is no character development. Our main star here Charlie remained very insensitive towards others and it felt that he only believed he was allowed in the spotlight.
Fighting a war especially as a child is going to cause dramatic changes; I can't think of another book where this would not be the case.
When I read a book I live in the moment, I want to feel the characters learn from a situation, learn from their mistakes, learn how to communicate better. Which brings me to another issue I had with this story, the drama felt so chaotic. The character would be calm one sentence, screaming the next, then back to calm. Sometimes we would get to see how they are feeling but there was no build up to these different emotions just a lot of "shut up."
I also spent a lot of time trying to pick apart what a sentence meant due to poor phrasing.

Overall I'd give it a 2/5. It's not the worst writing I've laid my eyes on but defiantly not the best. I for sure see areas where there could be improvement. Keep-up with the attention grabbing, work on building more into conversations; give me some smells, what are these characters seeing, how is Nana's face changing when she gets angry. When I read a story I want to be able to view the world with you, paint this beautiful picture.

I was intrigued by the premise of this book, but the execution fell short for me.

This story was not character driven enough for me, and I found Charlie whiny and unsympathetic. I also didn't find Charlie to be very well developed and the premise was a bit redundant, limiting development of the character.

Occasionally there were phrasing issues in the writing that further yanked me out of the story, although I may be more keen to this as an ELA teacher. However, this sort of thing would further make me reluctant to include this in a classroom library, particularly when working with a high population of students where English isn't their first language.

I really enjoyed this, there was so much going on that I just kept whizzing through. It was well written with a comeplling storyline and well developed characters that I loved. Everything that I want in a gothic, dark, horror and fantasy book is in this. I loved it.