Have you noticed that the ‘undead’ seem to live on forever!?! WHAT is the attraction with those vampires? And don’t you love the way your circulation keeps growing because of that attraction?

We here in Library Marketing are not immune to these attractions. If you’ve been to ANY library show since last November, you’ll have noticed the stacks of NIGHTLIGHT, the hilarious send-up by the Harvard Lampoon. At TLA so many picked up the display copy of NIGHTLIGHT that I had to get out the Windex and give it a once-over in the interest of cleanliness. And the comments were so over the top in praise I won’t even repeat any of them because you’d just think I made them up. Needless to say, if you haven’t ordered multiple copies of NIGHTLIGHT for your library, you are missing out. Here’s a brief quote from the fact-sheet:

“Complete with romance, danger, insufficient parental guardianship, creepy stalker-like behavior, and a vampire prom, NIGHTLIGHT is the uproarious tale of a vampire-obsessed girl (Belle Goose), looking for love in all the wrong places (with Edwart Mullen).”

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But, you say, my money should be spent also on more classic titles! In that case I send you to DRACULA by Bram Stoker in the beautiful, classic Everyman’s Library edition. Go back to the beginning and that crumbling castle in the Carpathian Mountains.

Still need more? Something more comprehensive with a different slant? Huge value for your collection dollars: THE VAMPIRE ARCHIVES; THE MOST COMPLETE VOLUME OF VAMPIRE TALES EVER PUBLISHED. Compiled by Otto Penzler and with a Preface by Neil Gaiman, this is the biggest, hungriest collection ever assembled featuring over 80 stories by everyone from Edgar Allan Poe to Stephen King. Guaranteed to “drive a stake through the heart of any other collection out there.”

If the idea of carrying around 1,056 pages of horror doesn’t appeal to all your patrons, gear up for the clever sectioning of this collection into the following subdivisions:

BLOODSUCKERS: THE VAMPIRE ARCHIVES, VOLUME 1, mass market coming in July
FANGS: THE VAMPIRE ARCHIVES, VOLUME 2, mass market coming in August
COFFINS: THE VAMPIRE ARCHIVES, VOLUME 3, mass market coming in September

And one last treat! Coming in August from Karen Essex (author of LEONARDO’S SWANS and STEALING ATHENA), a new novel, DRACULA IN LOVE , asks the question: What if everything you knew about Dracula…was wrong? Now that question alone focused my attention like a laser beam. Told from Mina’s point of view, this is the truth of her personal voyage, and of vampirism itself. Join her in a visceral journey into Victorian England’s dimly lit bedrooms, mist-filled cemeteries, and asylum chambers — into the joys and terrors of a passionate affair that has lasted through the centuries.

Whew! My work here is done, and I sense the sunrise approaching. <whoosh>

-Marcia Lane Purcell

According to a New York Times article, DC Comics will soon be publishing a series called “American Vampire,” which, illustrated by Rafael Albuquerque, will concern itself with “a new breed of vampire through the lens of different eras in American history. The second 16-page portion of the story will be done by none other than Stephen King! His story will be about Skinner Sweet, the first vampire to not fear the sun (see above illustration).

The article also describes a story by Scott Snyder of a fame-hungry woman in the Jazz Age–which actually sounds even more interesting. Overall, the series seems like it’ll be very cool, even if it is a little bandwagon-ish.

The National Ledger, in their article about the comic, seems to be obliquely accusing Mr. King of condemning the Twilight series while also capitalizing on its popularity. But really, I don’t think he has to prove anything at this point, and he certainly doesn’t need any more money, right? Anyone think this is a bad idea?

These days it seems like the world has gone vampire crazy (or maybe it is just me).  After reading the entire Twilight series in a just over a month, I can’t seem to break free from the world of the undead.  Luckily there is no shortage of paranormal books available these days…here are a few Random House, Inc offerings to sink your teeth into, quench your thirst, get your blood flowing…I can do this all day, but I won’t.  Admittedly, these selections are more on the “Adult” side…Edward and Bella are a little chaste for some…

The fourth book in David Wellington’s action packed, grab-you-by-the-throat vampire series, takes place inside the jail where Laura Caxton is serving time for kidnapping and torturing a federal fugitive, a jail where Justinia Malvern, a vampire desperate for blood and revenge, is also holding court. Somehow, more vampires make their way into the prison, and the only “donor” they really want is Laura.

Available May 26th, is the newest sexy paranormal from Lara Adrian, Ashes of Midnight.  As night falls, Claire Roth flees, driven from her home by a fiery threat that seems to come from hell itself. Then, from out of the flames and ash, a vampire warrior emerges. He is Andreas Reichen, her onetime lover, now a stranger consumed by vengeance. Caught in the cross fire, Claire cannot escape his savage fury—or the hunger that plunges her into his world of eternal darkness and unending pleasure.

New from Keri Arthur, Deadly Desire.  In her seventh outing, Riley finds herself opening a truly strange can of paranomral worms. What looks to be a simple robbery/murder–with one of Jack’s friends as the victim–soon takes an odd turn as the robbers themselves start turning up dead, victims of a heart-eating zombie. With her life once more on the line, the only thing going right in Riley’s life is her relationship with Quinn. That is, until she finally meets her soulmate…

The seventh vampire novel from Raven Heart (that’s her real name, right?)  Jack McShane: lover, killer, seducer, family man, and vampire. In the shadows of Savannah, with its hip nightspots and moss-draped oak trees, Jack is trying to save humankind from a threat it doesn’t know it faces: an explosion of the otherworldly, the weird, the wanton, and the wicked.

Charlie Huston’s series of warring vampire clans continues in Every Last Drop. After a year hiding out in the Bronx, Joe is given an assignment he can’t refuse: one Clan needs him to inform on another. But he’s playing them both while keeping his eye on the prize: his girl Evie is on the Island somewhere and he’ll do anything to get her back. And in this case, “anything” means coming face to face with the horrendous secret that lies
beneath the Vampyre world.  Not only did Huston write a guest blog for us, he’ll be appearing at this year’s ALA conference in Chicago! 

Hope these suggestions will provide you with days (and nights) of reading fun, or the perfect book to suggest to one of your vampire-loving patrons.  And remember, when all else fails, you can always go back to the beginning.