Good vampire/werewolf books

[rakkoon]

So, I've recently given up on the Anita Blake series since you can't find the story anymore between the sex scenes. On to a new series.

I'm finishing "Cursed to death", a crimson moon novel. Not bad, same kind of world but not really a wow moment. The autor also wrote The Vampire Huntress novels, are these better or are there even better Vampire/Werewolf series out there?

[Lord of Rapture]

Though Tsukihime isn't really about vampires by themselves, seeing as it has to do with a lot of other supernatural ****, it's still a great visual novel and series to check out. There's an entire Let's Play of the game here (http://lparchive.org/LetsPlay/Tsukihime/).

[rakkoon]

Looks cool but not easy to read on the train as I understand from the Visual Novel idea? Still looks cool though

[Lord of Rapture]

What's really impressive is that the author went and thought out an incredibly detailed and comprehensive magic system, creatures, and world, which shows up in his later works. I salute Nasu for putting that much effort into his works, although I personally can't make heads or tails of it myself.

[Asheram]

one foot in the grave (http://www.webscription.net/p-306-one-foot-in-the-grave.aspx) Vampire-werewolf-(insert all kinds of mythos) action-comedy.

Good stuff. ;)

[rakkoon]

I liked that one.. there is a sequel (yep yep (http://www.webscription.net/p-98-dead-on-my-feet.aspx))? Sweeeeet, thanks

[Asheram]

I liked that one.. there is a sequel (yep yep (http://www.webscription.net/p-98-dead-on-my-feet.aspx))? Sweeeeet, thanks

Note, Four sequels. ;)

[Closet_Skeleton]

The first few Anne Rice books are supposedly okay, but I haven't read them yet.

Pretty much the only vampire stories I've read are the classic out of copyright ones :smallwink:

[rakkoon]

I read the original Dracula, fun for historical reasons, not really a huge page turner.

I saw Interview with a Vampire. Didn't like it.
Read the book. Didn't like it.
Considered watching the movie again but meh.
She has sold millions so it must be me.

[Athaniar]

Read Silmarillion, it has both werewolves and vampires, and also orcs, trolls, balrogs, and dragons.

But if you want a "real" vampire/werewolf book, and liked Underworld, you should read Blood Enemy (?), the prequel book. Not sure if the new prequel film made it non-canon or not, though, haven't seen it yet.

[Serpentine]

Which one had Krishna and time travel and stuff? I think I liked that one, but for the life of me I can't remember the name or anything...

I also read a couple of the Ravenloft books before I even knew about D&D. I found them to be quite enjoyable. Depending on which one you read, there's always 1 vampire, sometimes more, often a werewolf or two, and others.

[Prime32]

Try The Saga of Darren Shan for vampires - if you've only seen the movie you may not believe me, but it's a very dark and gritty story about religious wars and destiny. His follow-up Demonata series has werewolves in it, but mainly focuses on demons. (Mind, the vampire series has a feral Wolf Man, and the vampires worship wolves)

You know, one of the characters in the Demonata series makes me think Shan might have been reading Tsukihime - his ability can be summed up as "seeing the points of portals" (his vampires are nothing like Tsukihime's though). Both writers also have a tendency to give their stories awesome plots which are expressed awkwardly. :smallconfused:

[Kris Strife]

Most of the Discworld books after Men at Arms have at least one werewolf, and vampires become more frequent through out the series.

It is a comedic/satirical series, so it might not be what you're looking for.

Read them anyways.

[Mr. Scaly]

I've heard good things about The Women of Otherworld.

[Cyrion]

The Vampire Lestat is easily Anne Rice's best vampire book. Where Louis is whiny and conflicted in Interview, Lestat revels in being a vampire, and it's before she goes power/apocalypse crazy in Queen of the Damned.

I'd be interested to see if there's an original written story to Highlander and if it's a vampire story. Bear with me and let me 'splain- they're immortal, they can only be killed by cutting off their heads (a traditional vampire staple- stakes don't really kill them, you have to cut off their heads and stuff the mouths with holy wafers), their actions are restricted on holy ground, and they drain each other of knowledge and skill when they kill each other.

For some offbeat stuff- check out Tanith Lee's Sabella (Vampire) and Lycanthia (werewolves). Sabella is a vampire on Mars or the Moon as I recall, and Lycanthia is a somewhat more typical gothic werewolf story, but I quite enjoyed it.

[pita]

George R. R. Martin's Fevre Dreams is my favorite vampire fiction, and his The Skin Trade (Found in Dreamsongs) is my favorite werewolf fiction. The second one is currently being adapted to both graphic novel and movie.
True Blood is pure trashy vampire TV series. It's a lot of fun but no brains whatsoever. If you go for "vampires are sexy", this is the show for you. I've described it in the past as "How Twilight would look if it were any good".
I can't think of anything else, but there's plenty more that I liked. Neil Gaiman wrote a great story about a werewolf in Innsmouth that could be found in Smoke & Mirrors, if I recall correctly.

[chiasaur11]

Mike (Hellboy) Mignola and Christopher Golden's Baltimore.

Vampires! Werewolves! Giant evil puppets!

And one of the more badass vampire hunters in fiction. Old school the only good vampire is a dead vampire fun.

[Gullara]

I have "The Vampire Genevieve" its pretty good.

Here's a pic of the cover
http://morrslieb.dk/wp-content/uploads/Gnollengrom-forside-Vampire-Genevieve.jpg

[YPU]

Dresden files, its a bit rough and tumble at times. Magic can and will go boom and some people find the les subtle nature of the magic not to their liking.
I find them a very good read.

The first book, stormfront has mostly focuses on a rogue mage, but has vampires in it, the second one focuses on werewolf’s of multiple types and a group of them become secondary character troughout the series (they are also RPG geeks and reference their campaign every now and then) grave peril sees the start of the vampire wars, a theme that runs trough in the rest of the series I believe. Then summer knight focuses on fairies but has both the vampires and werewolfs mixed in, beyond that, I haven’t read yet.

[Trai]

The most original, best werewolf series I've read in recent years is the Kitty Norville series by Carrie Vaughn, if you haven't already read them. I've been a fan since the first book in 2005 and they've just gotten better.

Kitty and the Midnight Hour
Kitty Goes to Washington
Kitty Takes a Holiday
Kitty and the Silver Bullet
Kitty and the Dead Man's Hand
Kitty Raises Hell
Kitty's House of Horrors (forthcoming in Jan.)

There are also vampires in the universe, too-- they become real heavy hitters in Silver Bullet, and it's hinted that they'll be big players in the books to come.

Plus, Carrie Vaughn is an OOTS fan, so what can be bad? :smallbiggrin:


George R. R. Martin's Fevre Dreams is my favorite vampire fiction, and his The Skin Trade (Found in Dreamsongs) is my favorite werewolf fiction. The second one is currently being adapted to both graphic novel and movie.
True Blood is pure trashy vampire TV series. It's a lot of fun but no brains whatsoever. If you go for "vampires are sexy", this is the show for you. I've described it in the past as "How Twilight would look if it were any good".
I can't think of anything else, but there's plenty more that I liked. Neil Gaiman wrote a great story about a werewolf in Innsmouth that could be found in Smoke & Mirrors, if I recall correctly.

True Blood's based off the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. I've read the first three. They're not bad, but I like the show better because it makes the focus less about Sookie and turns it into an ensemble cast; the books can get a bit monotonous when it's all Sookie all the time.

Also, Kelley Armstrong is great. Her universe is werewolves, vampires, witches, necromancers, etc.

Bitten
Stolen
Dime Store Magic
Industrial Magic
Haunted
Broken
No Humans Involved
Personal Demon
Living With The Dead
Frostbitten

[pita]

I know that True Blood is based on novels. I've read the first two.
But I find that out of either novels or show, I'll recommend the show, because while both are trash, the show is much more fun.
It features Meekus (Of Zoolander) as a snarky vampire. In the novels, he isn't as snarky, and you can't imagine him saying "Of course he knows what hair spray is, he's a model".

[Telonius]

"Interview with the Vampire" and "Vampire Lestat" are good, as already mentioned.

"Salem's Lot" by Stephen King deserves a mention.

"Dracula" by Bram Stoker is an obvious starting point.

[Lord Seth]

The Dresden Files is great and has vampires and werewolves, but the most werewolf-centric book (the second, Fool Moon) is also in my opinion the weakest book in the series. That said, the vampires in the series are awesome, though they don't really show up until the third book, and the series isn't centered around them.

[TheThan]

I read the original Dracula, fun for historical reasons, not really a huge page turner.

I saw Interview with a Vampire. Didn't like it.
Read the book. Didn't like it.
Considered watching the movie again but meh.
She has sold millions so it must be me.

No your not. The only reason why interview with a vampire was as success is because it stared both Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise.
(you know, back when they were sex symbols)

[Assassin89]

Most of the Discworld books after Men at Arms have at least one werewolf, and vampires become more frequent through out the series.

It is a comedic/satirical series, so it might not be what you're looking for.

Read them anyways.

For specific books:

Carpe Jugulum is one of the books in the series that mainly concerns a group of vampires that drink wine, eat garlic and enjoy the sun, better than the books that disgrace the name of vampire.

The Fifth Elephant involves a group of werewolves, none of which are pedophiles by necessity.

[Asheram]

True Blood's based off the Sookie Stackhouse books by Charlaine Harris. I've read the first three. They're not bad, but I like the show better because it makes the focus less about Sookie and turns it into an ensemble cast; the books can get a bit monotonous when it's all Sookie all the time.

I probably would've liked the show if it weren't for Sookie... Sookie Stackhouse... Aaaaargh! I want to go all "Hulk Smash" Whenever I hear that incredibly stupid name.

[warty goblin]

George R. R. Martin's Fevre Dreams is my favorite vampire fiction, and his The Skin Trade (Found in Dreamsongs) is my favorite werewolf fiction. The second one is currently being adapted to both graphic novel and movie.


I absolutely second both of these, particularly Fevre Dream. I consider that book to be a masterpiece, like Moby D ick, but a lot shorter and with vampires. Really, really scary old school vampires.

[Aidan305]

I'd recommend the Magic Bites series by Ilona Andrews. It's like Anita Blake, but without the devolving in to rampant copulation every five pages.

[rakkoon]

Now we're talking, thanks for all the hints , keep them coming.
After my elf phase, I'm entering my WW phase apparently.
Oh and I have over forty Terry Pratchet books, the man is a legend!

[SilverSheriff]

I've been hearing good things about this new 'Twilight' series... :trollface.jpg:

[pita]

I can't believe I forgot the Night Watch Trilogy Series. Night Watch, Day Watch, Twilight Watch, and The Last Watch, feature vampires and werewolves and wizards, oh my, and are very decent. They're by Sergei Lukyanenko, and originally in Russian. While I haven't read the originals (No speekee russian), the translations are very decent.

[Lioness]

When I saw the title, I was so tempted to run in, shout 'Twilight!' and run out again. But someone beat me too it.

And they're not good

And I like my life.

[SilverSheriff]

When I saw the title, I was so tempted to run in, shout 'Twilight!' and run out again. But someone beat me too it.

And they're not good

And I like my life.


Yeah, Great minds think alike.
http://img02.imagefra.me/img/img02/1/11/19/black_pants_guy/f_1fjdt6tef42m_df5a624.jpg

[zeratul]

Well obviously there's Bram Stoker's dracula which is amazing, and I recommend highly. Other good ones include

Snow Glass Apples (a Neil Gaimon Short Story): This is basically a very ****ed up version of snow white and is highly disturbing and well written and creepy as hell. If those things appeal to you as well as that whole "dark fairy tale" vibe, then I recommend it

30 Days of Night: A great graphic novle, the basic premise being that during the 30 days of darkness in alaska vampires start assaulting this town, it's really gory and creepy and pretty well written if i recall correctly.

[Lioness]

I'll also recommend Bram Stoker's Dracula. It's really good.

[Turcano]

I haven't read it myself yet, but I've heard good things about Bareback/Benighted by Kit Whitfield (the title depends on which side of the pond you're on).

[Dienekes]

I liked I am Legend.

Though I can't abide vampires in general so I'm probably not the best person to listen to

[bibliophile]

Bram Stoker's Dracula, and Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot have both been mentioned, but bear repeating.

[wormwood]

I liked I am Legend.

Though I can't abide vampires in general so I'm probably not the best person to listen to

I am Legend was one of my favorite books back in my high school days. i've re-read it a couple times and still enjoyed it. Unfortunately, Hollywood hasn't made a good film adaptation of it in 45 years.

[DSCrankshaw]

I'll third the Dresden Files by Jim Butcher. It's not vampire/werewolf centric, but I really enjoy the books.

[Psyborg]

Fourth to Dresden Files, and third (at least) to Bram Stoker's Dracula. Nothing like the original.

[Jokasti]

This is an incredibly easy question to answer.
Anything Pre-Twilight, not including Twilight itself, is awesome, regardless of actual quality of novel. If it's Post-Twilight (read:Apocalypse) it is automatically bad, regardless of actual quality of novel.
We have met the enemy, and they are us.

[Ecalsneerg]

Drachenfels by Jack Yeovil has a vampire protagonist, but other than that isn't too vamp-focussed. I haven't read any more of his Genevieve stories yet, so it's possible some are vampirey.

[Iku Rex]

The Hollows/Rachel Morgan books by Kim Harrison, starting with Dead Witch Walking (http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Witch-Walking-Hollows-Book/dp/0060572965/), aren't bad.

[Comet]

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova. It's kind of like Dan Brown's books. Except it's about Dracula. And unlike Dan Brown's books, this one was actually interesting.

One of the best books I've ever read. Combines real historical research with just the right amounts of fantasy and cool detective work. I consider it the best book about Dracula. Even better than Bram Stoker's.

[Talya]

So, I've recently given up on the Anita Blake series since you can't find the story anymore between the sex scenes. On to a new series.


Hah...based solely on the thread title, I was about to suggest the first three or four Anita Blake books, but go no further due to it sliding into fantasy-erotica beyond that point.

If you liked Buffy, Season 8 comics are worth reading...

[Hadessniper]

I probably would've liked the show if it weren't for Sookie... Sookie Stackhouse... Aaaaargh! I want to go all "Hulk Smash" Whenever I hear that incredibly stupid name.

Sookie isn't nearly as annoying in the books as she is in the show. I actually like she character in the books where as I can hardly make it though an episode without wishing Eric would rip her throat out.

[Platinum_Mongoose]

Let the Right One In. I can't recall or pronounce the name of the author. (He's Swedish.) I haven't read the book, but the movie is quite excellent and most sources agree that the book is equal to it.

[Mr. Scaly]

Hmm, a friend of mine mentioned this one book series that's just new...The Strain. He said it was pretty good. And it's by Guillermo del Torro if that matters.

[ThreadKiller]

The Passion by Donna Boyd is pretty good werewolf fiction. Check out amazon.com for a description (http://www.amazon.com/Passion-Donna-Boyd/dp/0380790947/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259302585&sr=1-1).

[rakkoon]

Fabulous people, I've been asked for a wish list for the holidays and some of these will definitively be on there!

[Iku Rex]

I haven't read it myself yet, but I've heard good things about Bareback/Benighted by Kit Whitfield (the title depends on which side of the pond you're on).(Just read it. Interesting concept, but gloomy, not very well written, and often dull. Did not like.)

[ghost_warlock]

The Hyde Effect (http://www.amazon.com/Hyde-Effect-Steve-Vance/dp/059514781X) by Steve Vance is a pretty good werewolf novel, although it gets a bit surreal at the end. There's a sequel, titled Shapes, but it essentially ceases to be about werewolves at that point.

[Berserk Monk]

For vampires, start with the most well known: Bram Stoker's Dracula.

And remember, vampires don't sparkle.

[LurkerInPlayground]

Let the Right One In. I can't recall or pronounce the name of the author. (He's Swedish.) I haven't read the book, but the movie is quite excellent and most sources agree that the book is equal to it.
Seconded.

A little boy meets a little girl, who, shock and surprise, is a vampire.

The movie is really good at implying that this boy isn't going to have a happy future. The fact that they're apparently children stuck with adult problems enhances this effect. Properly horrific stuff.

[ghost_warlock]

Let the Right One In. I can't recall or pronounce the name of the author. (He's Swedish.) I haven't read the book, but the movie is quite excellent and most sources agree that the book is equal to it.

Oh, yeah, I rather liked that one...in spite of finding some of the dialogue somewhat cheesey and off-putting. Some of that seemed to be due to translation issues, though, as if they couldn't quite find the right English phrases for the dialogue the characters were trying to get across.

I, personally, found Let the Right One In to be oddly heartwarming. :smallsmile:

[Platinum_Mongoose]

I, personally, found Let the Right One In to be oddly heartwarming. :smallsmile:

I know, right?

[Blackfang108]

The first few Anne Rice books are supposedly okay, but I haven't read them yet.

Pretty much the only vampire stories I've read are the classic out of copyright ones :smallwink:

THe first two/three are great.

4 is fun, and five is decent.

Then the Ho Yay kicks into overdrive, and I stopped reading.

Alice Bordschart(sp), Anne Rice's Sister, has some Werewolf novels that ROCK. The Silver Wolf is the first one.

Also; Carpe Jugulum = Greatest Vampire comedey ever. The Fifth Elephant has some excellent werewolf action. (all of the Night Watch subseries except for Guards! Guards! and Night Watch have an awesome werewolf. Terry Pratchett is the God of Comedy.)

Patricia Briggs isn't terrible. I find her stuff entertaining (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitlemlheqr7b3csw?from=Main.SoOkayItsAverage). (And not for the same reason I liked 2012 (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Ptitlethsq3mffp09i?from=Main.SoBadItsGood).)

EDIT: The Dresden Files is made of so much win, you won't care that the werewolves and vampires aren't the stars, and aren't in every book. (I think there's at least one vampire in every book, but the Alphas aren't in all of them. But they rock HARD when they are.)

[erikun]

I kept The Historian by my bedside for a month. That's because that's how long it took to read, and it always put me to sleep. :smalltongue:

I've read quite a bit of vampire stuff, yet am surprised that I don't have much to recommend. Probably because I normally just grab random vampire books, and 90% of vampire books end up being pulp. :smallannoyed: Well, at least I know what authors to avoid. If I can ever remember them...

For the D&D Ravenloft books, I'd recommend Vampire of the Mists (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_of_the_Mists) and the two I, Strahd books. I didn't read them all (and having seen the new ones) but most of the others weren't as interesting, in my opinion, as the ones I mentioned.

If you're interested in expanding into manga, the I highly recommend Record of a Fallen Vampire (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Record_of_a_Fallen_Vampire), sometimes just listed as "Fallen Vampire". Interesting characters and an excellent way of revealing the plot, but the drawback is you'll need to buy 9 volumes to get the whole story. :smallfrown: Anita Blake (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anita_Blake:_Vampire_Hunter_(series)) is good too, and you can get them in self-contained books.

Beyond that, The Reformed Vampire Support Group (http://www.catherinejinks.com/default.asp?PageID=166) was a good laugh, if nothing else to kick the whole "sparkling vampire" genre in the balls.

[LurkerInPlayground]

I know, right?
"Tragic" might be a better word for it.

Unlimited and unconditional devotion counts for squap once you see what happens to the girl's caretaker and realize that the boy is very likely to end up with the same fate as an adult.

[Frostwolf]

I am actually shocked, that some of the most obvious choices haven't been mentioned yet.

First of all, I believe that the first books of the Anne Rice series, starting with "Interview with the Vampire" are actually worth the read, and in a way the foundation for "modern" Vampire Myths.

But especially regarding the whole Werewolf/Vampire Crossover thing, absolutely nothing beats the "Old" World of Darkness series.

While most of the novels of the setting don't focus on the conflict between those parties, both supernaturals play an important role in this world.

Based on a role playing game system, the setting actually offers pretty Anne-Rice'esque Vampires, a very fresh take on Werewolves (which is by far my favorite "Werewolf Version", but might be a little odd for people who love the classic wolfman mythos) and lots of other supernatural influences, such as the impending doom by ancient blood gods, human hunters, traditional mages and their techno-mage adversaries, cosmic forces of entropy and spirit worlds.

I actually encourage you to get the RPG Sourcebooks, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, and Vampire: The Masquerade, since they offer you an introduction to this world. There is also an overhauled setting, a "new" World of Darkness, and the Systems are called Werewolf: The Forsaken, and Vampire: The Requiem. I guess, it comes down to personal taste, but I prefer the "old" system.

But the actual novels are pretty good, and I can recommend the Clan Novel Series of Vampire, and Tribe Novel series of Werewolf, but I do believe that it might help to get a little introduction to the setting first in order to understand all references. Especially the Werewolf setting is beyond the "classic" Werewolf fiction.

But if you are into Werewolf versus Vampire action, THIS is were you find it.

[Froogleyboy]

Not sure if anyone's mentioned 'em, but the Sookie Stackhouse books (by charlein harris) are fracking AWESOME!