What a weird -in a good way- little story about -very horny- vampires on a queer cruise! It was a bit chaotic in the execution but fast-paced for a quick and nice read. I liked the whole idea, especially the change with the vampires feeding on emotions and people's energy rather than blood. Rebekah was a wickedly funny narrator and the change operating on her during the last bits of the book just makes me want to say "good for her".

This book was weird! It wasn’t for me, because I am, sadly, a little normal. I do know, exactly who it is for, though, and I do think I’ll be recommending it for the Queer bookclub around Thanksgiving!

This was an incredible read! It was fast paced, interesting, yet the characters had depth and were well developed. I was hooked and couldn’t put it down and read it it one sitting! I cannot recommend it enough!
Thank you to the publisher and net galley for the ARC!

I had high hopes for this book. Queer vampires? On a cruise? What's not to love? Unfortunately it was hard for me to root for the main character. However, I was definitely rooting against the antagonist. Which when we get to the climax, was disappointing. It was a lot of built-up, for them to be dispatched so easily and quickly. And for the protagonist to move on From their paramour, with so little emotion, seemed bizarre. But maybe that's what vampires like that are.

Vampires at Sea is a book I judged by its cover—and it disappointed me, unfortunately.

The writing was the main issue for me. I couldn’t get into it or enjoy any aspect of the story. The writing was unfortunately corny and cringey which made the entire reading experience unenjoyable.

this is currently being marketed as a quick, fun romp, but all it is is a quick romp. what is it they say, two out of three ain't bad?

to elaborate: i'm not really sure what kind of humor youre supposed to be packing in order to enjoy the "humor" this one claims to have. i didn't laugh once, not even a pity-snort.
i guess what im trying to say here is that the bar was low. all i expected was to laugh at least once. at the very least, half a laugh. a snort, even. none. nothing. very boring characters in a bland story.

but let's go back to what i said: 2/3 isn't really a bad miss. it's just not for me.

thank you NetGalley for the eARC!

This was a weird one and while it didn't work for me I can absolutely see why other people are loving it.

You jump right into the world with basically no world building or context, into a relationship that's existed for a long time and then everything changes so rapidly! It's a whirlwind 2 weeks at sea with 2 vampires.

I'm sure this will work for plenty of people and I have to say the ending satisfied me

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a free eARC of this book

Vampires at Sea
Lindsay Merbaum

3.5 / 5

This one was slow to start, but once I got into it, I found it really fun, frisky and funny.

If you're prudish, you might not enjoy it as much, but I had a blast. Recommend.

It was…fine. I found myself really enjoying it at times. I love how vampires were handled in terms of them draining emotions instead of blood. I think it could’ve paralleled in an interesting way with what Heaven was doing but it just…fell flat. Ultimately my biggest issue is that I don’t feel like I read a finished story. The ending seems like it comes out of no where and is incredibly unsatisfied. The author poses this question about Rebekah’s past that she doesn’t remember and it’s repeatedly brought up and it’s never answered, which could be fine, but instead of wrapping it up in any kind of way it’s just left as a dangling plot thread. Pretty much the entire plot is left as a dangling thread. What war is going on? It seems to be framed as a world war, yet it doesn’t seem to be effecting most of the world just the part the author needs to be plot relevant. What was going on with the ship? They were stuck at sea one chapter the miraculously at port the next. I don’t feel like Rebekah had any meaningful character growth even though that’s the only real point I can see. Yeah she ditches Hugh at the end, but it doesn’t feel like growth it just feels like a continuation of her being upset at him. It all just felt incredibly disappointing because these are cool characters, this is a cool idea, the prose is nice, etc but I feel like I’m missing half the story here.

Vampires at Sea by Lindsay Merbaum is a very unique novella that is sleek, mysterious, and sexy at once. This book mainly follows Rebekah, a vampire who feeds on naked desire rather than strictly blood and her husband Hugh as they meet an influencer named Heaven on a queer cruise in the black sea. Hugh falls in love, whereas Rebekah despises Heaven.

This was a fun novella and I was certainly never bored while reading it. Many aspects of the story were left unexplained, and while I wish some of them had been made more clear I do think that leaving them unexplained was purposeful. I was really fascinated by the dynamic between Rebekah and Hugh, and I did like the lore bits we got of how vampires and shapeshifters work. This was a pretty fascinating and fun read, overall!

This was certainly one of the most unique books I've ever read. I didn't know what to expect and I was surprised! The mysterious, magical, lustful atmosphere was so interesting and engaging, and so was the setting. I mean, a queer cruise ship in which everyone's horny all the time and there are vampires and... other creatures... Really cool concept.

I understand that this is a short book and the idea of making everything seem very mysterious and unexplained was intentional, but I would have liked a little more explanation on certain things– especially regarding the supernatural elements and this looming war in the background. It is a matter of taste and preferences, as I'm sure many readers enjoy this overly mysterious element. I just felt, for the most part, as if the author knew so many things I didn't know, and that it was all being whispered next to me, and I couldn't figure out what was going on.

Rebekah, though, was such an interesting main character. You could really feel her insecurities and fears through the page, being masked by her sense of power and immortality. I would have loved to know more about her past and her decades roaming the Earth preceding the story.

The last 40% of the story was very well-paced and I couldn't stop reading. The beginning was a little confusing and slow, but with some time you get used to the curious atmosphere and the quirkiness of it all.

This book provided commentary on the sacrifices of women and how we stamper our ambitions and wishes for the ones we love. It was a powerful novella that was thought-provoking and deeply resonated with me. I appreciate the realizations throughout the story of what she wanted only to have given up so much of herself for her husband and compromised her wants and behavior to please him. I will think about this book for months and how it emotionally rocked me. Superbly done!

Thank you, NetGalley and Creature Publishing for the opportunity to review and provide my feedback.

this book includes some of by favourite things: comedic horror vibes, queer dynamics, and vampires. nothing about vampires or how they operate is known or explored in this book. however, i think this is because the vampiric nature of the characters is more metaphorical than a driving force behind the plot or characterisation. vampires conjure a sense of consumption: whether that is sex or love or attention. at its core this is a story about the intensity of love, of watching the person you love fall away, of fruitlessly clinging onto that love, of learning who you are without that love, and ultimately of understanding that even when it hurts, you’ll be okay and be able to move on without that love. having this happen on a cruise added to the absurdity of this story and allowed for the forced proximity which made the protagonist go through all of the above in such a short amount of time. the length of the story worked well in that it gave us all we needed without excess—which is ironic as the protagonist is all about excess.

This was unlike anything I have ever read before. I went in with no expectations and found the story slow to begin with until I got stuck in. I do not know if it is a book that will stay with me though I appreciated the representation within it and loved its queerness. I am a fan of all things Vampiric and this was definitely one of the more unique vampire stories I have ever read I have to say.

I will say that the pacing felt a little off and the writing style was sometimes not to my taste but I am still very much glad to have been able to read it.

This was a fun and funny read, moved quickly and amused me throughout. World building was minimal but pacing was good and the cruise setting somehow made it all funnier. Entertaining novella.

A very interesting quick read about queer vampires being on vacation. I found that the emotions coming across were particularly emphasized so that they were over-the-top, and the slow burning was unnaturally satisfying. The novel doesn't focus too much on plot, rather focusing on the characters. This is not a scary story, though at first it sounds like it would be forbidding. Instead, we get a romcom. The writing style takes a moment to get into.

Thank you NetGalley and Creature Publishing for the arc copy for my honest review.

Vampires at Sea by Lindsay Merbaum is a dark, atmospheric tale that blends gothic horror with high-seas adventure, creating a unique and immersive reading experience. From the moment the ship sets sail, an eerie sense of foreboding builds, making it clear that danger lurks beneath the surface—both in the ocean’s depths and among the passengers themselves. Merbaum’s lush, evocative prose brings the setting to life, wrapping readers in a world of salt, blood, and shadowy intrigue.

The novel’s strength lies in its rich character work and slow-burning tension. The protagonist is compelling, caught between fear and fascination as the truth about the voyage unravels. The vampires in this story are anything but traditional, adding a fresh and unsettling spin to familiar lore. While the pacing occasionally drags in the middle, the mystery and creeping dread keep the story engaging, leading to a finale that is both haunting and satisfying.

Despite a few slower moments, Vampires at Sea is a beautifully crafted and eerie novel that offers a fresh take on the vampire mythos. Merbaum expertly blends horror, history, and atmosphere into a gripping tale that lingers long after the final page. A strong 4-star read—perfect for fans of gothic horror and unsettling maritime mysteries.

3.5 / Vampires at Sea was a super quick and super weird read. I very much enjoyed it!

This book follows emotional vampires Rebekah and Hugh, as they take a vacation on a queer cruise. Whilst there, they meet Heaven, an upbeat and enchanting social media influencer. Hugh quickly falls for Heaven’s charm, but Rebekah thinks somethings up, and she is determined to figure out who and what they really are.

The story itself took me a couple of chapters to get into, but once I figured out the writing style, I flew through the rest. It was quite a light and easy read, and I loved the range of queer rep. And although I do think parts of the story lacked some depth, I felt that it was easily forgivable as it worked well enough that the story was still enjoyable.

As for the genre of this book, I just wanted to mention how it is marketed as ‘comedy-horror’ but I’m not sure that I entirely agree with that. Now, whilst I did think that this book was fun, I don’t know that I would call it a comedy, and while there are horror elements to it, I wouldn’t exactly class it as a horror. This is just my opinion and it’s not at all a bad thing. It didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book, it’s just that I did originally go into it expecting something a little darker.

Overall, I had a nice time with this one. If you’re looking for a queer vampire romp, definitely check out Vampires at Sea!


Thank you Netgalley and Creature Publishing for the eARC!

I really liked the premise for this book, but sadly dnf’ed. I think I was expecting it to be more scary and more literary but the voice made it feel like I was reading a romcom. Not for me but I think that’s just my personal taste.

I had fun reading this book overall! It took me a bit to get into the groove of the writing style and the pacing, but once I did it was a pretty solid, light read. I read it in bursts, but it probably took me a collective five hours to read this one, I'd recommend it as a good plane ride pick or even one for an afternoon read at home!