Descent into Dust

February 1, 2010
Old-fashioned vampire fiction—with a little postmodern feminist updating—makes a comeback in this smoothly written debut. In the gray spring of 1862, recently widowed Emma Andrews arrives at remote and dreary Dulwich Manor for a family visit. Cryptic biblical quotes are carved into the walls in odd places, a mysterious “wasting disease” is killing the locals, and Emma's young niece, Henrietta, says she's met a ghost named Marius. Emma fears that she's going insane, just like her mother did, but insanity may be easier to accept than the existence of vampires and the truth about her mother. Lepore successfully captures the mood of traditional gothic fiction, complete with soggy moors, murky religious orders, ancient ruins, dark secrets, and plenty of general mystical weirdness, and complements it with a strong female protagonist for broad reader appeal.

March 15, 2010
The newly widowed Emma Andrews has always been wary of inheriting her mother's madness. Anticipating the opportunity to spend time with her family, especially cousin Roger's daughter Henrietta, Emma arrives at Dulwich Manor to find Hen acting strangely. When Mr. Valerian Fox appears, Emma fights her immediate attraction to this man who seems to know too much about Henrietta's troubles. When Mr. Fox reveals his belief that a vampire is nearby and that they must fight this evil together, Emma isn't sure if she believes him because she's insane or because it explains newly awakened abilities. VERDICT Readers who enjoy the current trend of genteel ladies fighting supernatural evil in days gone by (see A.E. Moorat's "Queen Victoria, Demon Slayer", reviewed above) will be interested in picking up this first book in a promised trilogy. A large number of engaging characters populate this story, each with a unique role to play, and the pace alternates between slow discovery of scholarly knowledge and pulse-pounding action scenes. While there are a few anachronistic contemporary touches that don't fit this Victorian-era story, this is still an entertaining read.Stacey Hayman, Rocky River P.L., OH

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 15, 2010
Lepores debut novel, the first in the Emma Andrews Victorian gothic mystery series, has a deliciously macabre feel, and renders vampires horrific rather than romantic. When Emma, a 23-year-old widow, attends an extended house party at a cousins estate in Wiltshire, she discovers a terrible evil stalking Henrietta, her cousins child. Other guests include her estranged and newly pregnant younger half-sister; her brother-in-law, Sebastian; and Valerian Fox, an acquaintance of her host. Emma finds a malevolent presence in a hawthorn, and discovers Henrietta has been communicating with a ghostly presence, that the plague is striking, and learns that she is facing a different evil. A failed attempt to vanquish the vampire sends Emma into exile in a Benedictine monastery in France, home to a library where she may uncover what it is she needs to save Henrietta. The rural Victorian setting is evocative, and the vampire threat palpable. While Lepores tale does come to a nail-biting climax, her compelling characters are not finished with their missions, and so will continue their vampire slaying in future books, which will surely please readers.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)