The second release in the Vampire Genevieve series under the new Warhammer Horror Imprint, Genevieve Undead, is a collection of three linked novellas. This novel was originally released in 1993 and has now been newly re-released to drum up some interest into the Warhammer Horror imprint. After all, Newman is a recognized and popular horror novelist, so it is a good idea to release the novels that he (practically) cut his teeth on even though those same novels are not indicative of either the direction that the Old World fiction ultimately continued in, or even that the Black Library strives towards right now. This means that both quality and mood are markedly different from what you'd normally find in the Black Library's stable.
The whole Genevieve series uses numerous horror tropes, and is very comfortable with giving homage to various classics of both horror literature and other types of horror fiction, and in Drachenfels and Stage Blood in particular; the blood-drenched boards of the Grand Guignol serve as the main springboard for the action.
The first novella here; Genevieve Undead, takes place after Beasts in Velvet, the second complete novel to actually feature the vampire heroine, but in which she's delegated to a mere cameo. Nevertheless Beasts is actually my favourite of the four novels. I'll talk more about that one when I review it.
You could read Beasts in Velvet first and catch a few references though it isn't really necessary to do so, as the first novella; Stage Blood, is still the first story to chronologically follow Genevieve and Detlef five years after the events of Drachenfels proper.
-----
Already a genius before the events at Castle Drachenfels 5 years earlier, the experiences in its dark halls have given Detlef Sierck a new insight and an unstoppable urge to drive his plays into darker territories, and now, together with his Vargr Breughel company he is staging a new production based on an older morality play.
As Detlef seeks to perfect both his new take on The Strange History of Dr Ziekhill and Mr Chaida, and his own dual performance in the title roles, the vampire Genevieve begins to grow aware of the toll it is taking on her lover, how inhabiting the evil character of the transformed doctor is threatening to drive out the good in Detlef. And soon she may have to acknowledge that her relationship with him might also be responsible.
But the darkness is a generous muse, and soon the halls of the Vargr Breughel theatre will resound with rapturous applause.
But behind the walls, behind the one-way mirrors, in the passageways and in the haunted recesses of box seven, the theatre's Trap-door Daemon looks on everything that happens, and has designs of his own.
And then there's still the old evils... And the dangers within will be joined by those from without.
Because in the destroyed fortress of Drachenfels a vestige of the Great Enchanter has been unearthed, and soon his last vengeance will begin to make his way to the unsuspecting artist, and his undying lady.
I spent quite some time on the blurb here as Stage Blood really is a damn fine story and I felt it deserved something extra. (The other two don't have blurb as that would constitute spoilers and in the case of The Cold Stark House I would have to explain the story for it to even begin to make sense.)
As it follows the previous book's principal protagonists, Genevieve and Detlef, and in some measure also that one's main antagonist, it pretty much serves as the direct continuation for the Drachenfels story line.
I'm not exaggerating when I say that Stage Blood is magnificently done, its cores theme revolving around the idea of duality and man's struggle with his darker side. The longer the story goes on the more you realize at how many points this is explored and how well it all actually fits together.
The story is funny, horrific and ultimately heartbreaking, ending on a real note of poignancy, the inevitability of certain developments no longer able to be put off. Though it easily evokes a response from the reader, I can't help but feel as if there should have been slightly more build-up for Genevieve's decision at the end of the novella. It's a small niggle though, as the decision itself feels logical and inevitable even as it breaks your heart.
Stage Blood's quality has the unfortunate side-effect of making the other two novellas in this collection feel like disembodied little side-jaunts, removed in both tone and style from the rest of the Genevieve stories.
-----
The Cold Stark House picks up Genevieve's story some time after the ending of Stage Blood but at its start you can be forgiven for being confused about where it belongs, as the novella is a bit of a mess. This is mostly down to our point of anchorage, Genevieve herself, suddenly having become a stranger to us, with a lot her backstory massively, glaringly, altered.
Or at least that's how it appears.
The conceit of the story can be figured out quickly after a certain point, but until that time the reader will be floundering, unable to connect, irritated by the seemingly endless stream of contradictions that come with a cast that is straining the seams of the novella with their inconstant backstories, altering characteristics, and of course their frequent dying and resurrecting.
But of course, it is this last development that reveals the story for what it is, or at least its nature, and it is at this point, a few resurrections in, that the plot becomes clearer and less aggravating.
Nonetheless, it is comfortably the worst of Newman's tales that I've read, if not worst then it is the least fun to read.
It's also in this story that I realized how little agency Genevieve actually has, and has had, throughout the series. Maybe this is due to the Immortal-Vampire aspect of her character, being pretty removed from the affairs of the world, disinterested due to her extreme lifespan, but it frequently ends up with her acting only as an observer in the affairs of others.
Or at least that's how it appears.
The conceit of the story can be figured out quickly after a certain point, but until that time the reader will be floundering, unable to connect, irritated by the seemingly endless stream of contradictions that come with a cast that is straining the seams of the novella with their inconstant backstories, altering characteristics, and of course their frequent dying and resurrecting.
But of course, it is this last development that reveals the story for what it is, or at least its nature, and it is at this point, a few resurrections in, that the plot becomes clearer and less aggravating.
Nonetheless, it is comfortably the worst of Newman's tales that I've read, if not worst then it is the least fun to read.
It's also in this story that I realized how little agency Genevieve actually has, and has had, throughout the series. Maybe this is due to the Immortal-Vampire aspect of her character, being pretty removed from the affairs of the world, disinterested due to her extreme lifespan, but it frequently ends up with her acting only as an observer in the affairs of others.
-----
The last story here, Unicorn Ivory, is a step up from the previous outing, but it still has the odd conceit of introducing our heroine as someone other than whom we have come to know. This time we're wise to the act though and we'll be able to happily go along with what Newman has in store for us, leading to a pretty intricate and satisfying tale that nonetheless feels a little bit off, a little bit hurried, in its ending. It's a good thing that Chronologically in the Genevieve series there's still a short story after this one, else it'd be a bit of a lackluster ending.
No comments:
Post a Comment