The Geomancer

August 3, 2015
The Griffiths spin a new series off of their Vampire Empire trilogy, highlighting the unlikely love between vampire Prince Gareth and human Empress Adele of Equatoria on a steampunk alternate Earth. In a previous story, Adele, a geomancer of considerable talent, destroyed the vampire population of London—except for Gareth, a fairly progressive vampire who turns on his more backward clan. Now other vampires have created amulets that render them impervious to Adele’s powers, and have employed a Witchfinder who plans to use the legendary Tear of Death to kill every human on Earth. Can Adele and Gareth save humankind? Will humans and vampires ever learn to live together in peace? These questions and others are answered as our hero and heroine swashbuckle their way around the world. Despite some infelicitous writing and an occasional lapse in logic (why would vampires want to wipe out humans, their only source of food?), the Griffiths know how to keep the action moving, and in Prince Gareth they have created a surprisingly multidimensional character whose complexity goes far beyond the run-of-the-mill creature of the night. Agent: Ann Collette, Helen Rees Literary.

September 15, 2015

Kingmaker, the final volume in the "Vampire Empire" trilogy, concluded with the end of vampires and geomancy in Britain. However, peace didn't last long, which rather suits Princess Adele and her lover Gareth, aka the Greyfriar. In this spin-off, they are more than ready for a fresh challenge when seemingly unkillable vampires appear in London. When word reaches them of possible survivors from the former London vampire den, Adele doesn't hesitate to do whatever needs to be done to save Britain and the world from this unexpected threat. VERDICT Aficionados of the trilogy and of steampunk fiction will be delighted by this series launch. First-time readers will be able to jump right in to the new story line. With plenty of airships and action, try suggesting this to fans of Gail Carriger or Pip Ballantine's "Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences" adventures.--JM

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