"An UnDead Poet's Society in Jolly Olde England?"
"Kiss Me Forever" (formerly Walk in Moonlight)
One of the really interesting aspects of this book was that
Ms. Laurey cast a real historical figure in the role of the
vampire hero. Christopher Marlowe, a contemporary of
William Shakespeare, was a well- known poet and playwright.
His death in Deptford at the age of twenty-nine was
shrouded in mystery. Among his close contemporaries in life
and "after- life" is Thomas Kyd, another Elizabethan
playwright, who will soon have his own story. The author
blended fact and fiction, passion and humor to fashion a
wholly believable tale.
No doubt you've heard there are werewolves in London. It
appears that England hosts their share of vampires, and
witches as well. In fact one of each provide the main male
antagonists for the story.
The heroine is American, and Dixie LePage is most
definitely mortal. An inheritance brings her to England to
view the property she hopes to sell. She' d hoped for a
nice quiet vacation before returning home to her native
South Carolina. It was not to be.
Two men have an excessive interest in the contents of her
new library. Dixie's solicitor, Sebastian Caughleigh, has
nefarious reasons. He's determined to send Dixie packing
before she discovers her late aunts' secrets. Unbeknownst
to Dixie, Sebastian is also the head of the local coven of
Wiccans.
Wiccans practice the ancient religion of nature worship
which sometimes includes the practice of herbal healing.
But this
coven has been corrupt for some time beginning with Dixie's
elderly great aunts, who made a lucrative living both
healing the townspeople and blackmailing them with their
secrets. Sebastian wants the information for his own use.
He will stop at nothing to get it and plans to get rid of
Dixie ASAP.
The other man is Christopher Marlowe, or Kit, who is
interested in her obtaining her books for his own reasons.
He is a bit more pleased by Dixie's arrival, but as he is a
vampire, he must be invited into the home in order to enter
it. He had not expected to be so taken with the young
American woman. A relationship between them is just not
possible. His colony has rules regarding mortal/vampire
relations. He has reason to dislike Sebastian, and it is
not long before he's become Dixie's self-appointed
protector. Sebastian is not to be thwarted however. He
knows what Kit is, and plans to destroy him, thus gaining
Kit's power for himself.
I do so love a strong heroine, and Dixie LePage is
certainly that. Kit is a wonderful hero, and I enjoyed the
fact that even a being with supernatural strength, and
rapid healing ability, could still be vulnerable. Ms.
Laurey
introduced some new "vampire rules" as well. There are
quite a few opportunities for humor as this modern day
woman deals with the very proper historical vampires. All
in all an enjoyable read. Nominated for PEARL 2000 "Love Me Forever" (formerly Rapture in Moonlight)
When Christopher (Kit) Marlowe, former 16th century poet,
playwright, and veteran vampire, saved his lady love, Dixie
LePage, he knew she'd need to return to her native soil to
realize her
full potential. LOVE ME FOREVER finds the couple
settled in the German Village section of Columbus, Ohio.
Dixie has set up a shop, selling books on vampire lore as
well as novelty items. Kit has taken it upon himself to
discourage petty crime in the neighborhood.
The head of their vampire colony, Gwyltha, has sent their
old friend, Justin Corvus, to check up on the two of them
and to work out territorial arrangements for their colony
in the New World. Justin doesn't relish meeting his old
rival Vlad (Dracula) "cap in hand" as Vlad, head of an
already established colony, had stolen Gwyltha, the love of
his life, away from him. After many centuries, Justin has
still not recovered from her loss, but he would do her
bidding for the sake of
Kit and Dixie.
Stella Schwartz has more trouble than she needs already.
Single mother to eight-year-old Sam, she works for a dry
cleaner and is barely making ends meet. Her neighborhood
leaves a lot to be desired. Her mother is a habitual
criminal who had extracted a promise from Stella that she
would look after her house until she is released from
prison. Stella and Sam live there among young thugs and
drug dealers, hardly the place to raise a child.
The last thing she wants or needs is to fall in love with
the handsome British doctor she meets one afternoon in
Sam's favorite shop, Dixie's "Vampire Emporium". Justin is
a gorgeous and gentlemanly, but he's only visiting for a
short time. Sam needs stability in his life.
One look at Stella and all thoughts of lost love fled
Justin's mind. Here is a woman he could spend eternity
with, but she is mortal and doesn't even believe in
vampires. He is mindful that he must return to England, yet
he doesn't have much trouble convincing himself that a
small dalliance would be mutually beneficial. Convincing
Stella is another story. Becoming her self-appointed
protector, he soon runs afoul of the
neighborhood hoodlums. When Stella falls prey to their
vengeance, Justin's rage knows no bounds. He may be above
human law, but the colony had set strict limits on vampire
justice and Justin had helped establish those rules.
Breaking them carries the sentence of banishment from the
colony. His friends vow to support him, but Justin,
accepting the inevitable, must make plans for the care of
his loved ones that don't include him.
Vampires converge in Ohio, and while Justin awaits
sentencing from Gwyltha's tribunal, her lover, Vlad, asks
him for an enormous favor which could mean trouble for all
of them. To set the stage for book three: BE MINE FOREVER,
Kit's old
friend, Tom Kyd (also a former Elizabethan playwright),
arrives with the tribunal and every intention of supporting
Justin.
LOVE ME FOREVER continues Ms. Laurey's tradition of
providing strong independent heroines and passionate heroes
whose protective streaks may be a mile wide, but who are
also loyal, loving and supportive. Ms. Laurey has a knack
for weaving human reality into her fantasy, whether it be
16th century writers caught up in the politics of their
times, or a modern day single mother struggling to make
ends meet in an unsavory environment. This allows readers
to relate to her characters, while drawing them into the
realm of the vampire.
Copyright © 2004
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted October 30, 2006
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Previously released as: WALK IN MOONLIGHT and RAPTURE IN
MOONLIGHT (by Avid Books) KISS ME FOREVER
Dixie LePage didn't expect life in an English village to be
exactly like South Carolina but nothing prepared her for
what she found in the quiet little village of Bringham.
Discovering blackmail and murder horrified her. The
attempts on her life angered and terrified her. But it was
falling in love with a 400-year old vampire, the not so
dead Christopher Marlowe, that taught her the full meaning
of 'culture shock' Kiss Me Forever is set in the fictional Surrey village of
Bringham- somewhat like the village I grew up in, but minus
the witches and the vampires. LOVE ME FOREVER
Justin Corvus, one-time regimental surgeon to the Ninth
Roman Legion Hispania and present-day physician and
vampire, travels to Ohio to visit his fellow vampires Kit
Marlowe and Dixie LePage. While visiting them, he meets
Stella, a blue-collar single mother, who doesn't have much
time for men, and even less for a rich, Brit, doctor. But
neither Justin nor Stella expected the attraction between
them, or the act of violence that puts Justin afoul of the
vampire code he helped establish.
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