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beckys_books's review against another edition
4.0
This book wasn’t even on my TBR when I created it at the beginning of May, but it was a book I’ve been dying to pick up for a while and, after a few DNF’s, the perfect read to kick me out of my slump. It’s a story about possession, about women reclaiming their stories and about the freedom in accepting the things you can’t change.
1960’s Los Angeles, Lucy Westenra and Bertha (Bee) Mason are existing. They’ve been alive for centuries, tormented by the men who made them what they are; Lucy a bloodthirsty Vampire who tries her best to not give in to her baser needs and ignore the voice of Dracula she can’t seem to escape from; and Bee, the mad woman from the attic who is constantly pursued by Mr Rochester, unwilling to allow his first wife a life of peace. Then one day, the men who have pursued them from afar end up much closer to home and Lucy and Bee will have to decide how much they are willing to risk to reclaim their stories once and for all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, Kiste moves her story along at a rapid pace, never allowing us, much like her characters, to get comfortable or settle into the story. The atmosphere she creates is one that transports you to 60’s California filled with hippies, free love and the easiness with which people could fall under someones thrall. It’s undoubtedly a story of trauma, of attempting to overcome it and what people will do to try and escape oppressive situations, but it’s also a story filled with heart. One that shows that doing the right thing might not necessarily be what we expect, but in working together, women can take down the men that try to take over their stories and lives, and take back what is theirs. It’s brutal, bloody and in parts heartbreaking, but thanks to Kiste’s witty and atmospheric writing style you never feel too bogged down, despite the sometimes depressing nature of the story.
Though the characters in her book may be fictional, she still manages to make them believable by allowing us to liken Dracula and Rochester to other men at that time, men who thought they were gods, who swept in and dazzled young women until they were too far under their spell to ever try and leave or save themselves. Bee and Lucy are two women forgotten by time, not even the main characters in their own stories, but these are two women who have lived through incredible trauma at the hands of men, men who wanted nothing more than things to play with, and even centuries after the events of their stories they are still living with that trauma now. Kiste shows them as incredibly resilient, whilst also being irrevocably tied to their stories thanks to the men not allowing them any reprieve and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing them, not escape their trauma, but learn to use it. Acknowledge that what scares them, their weaknesses, might just be the weaknesses of the men hounding them, and once they realised that, they realised that they might just be able to take back their stories for good.
It’s certainly not an easy read in parts, it eludes to rape as well as abuse both physical and mental, but I felt this was needed in the story to get you sufficiently angry, because this book was undoubtedly written to make you angry. Angry at all the men who have ever tried to demean you, make you somehow lesser than you are, and angry at the women who never stood up for you in your time of need. That being said, there are still plenty of light and humorous parts of the story and I loved delving into the relationship between Lucy and Bee, learning how they came to meet and end up in LA. It’s certainly a little quirky in parts and there are some characters who make an appearance that I won’t mention because they add a little surprise, tension and emotion to the story, but it’s a story that focuses on violence towards women, so you should definitely be prepared for the darker tone and events before going in.
This book wasn’t what I expected, but I think I loved it a little more because of it. If you ever wanted to read a story that allows you to see how some of the most prominent literary characters would survive in 60’s California, stories that read as parables, as ode’s to all the forgotten women out there whose stories have been overwritten by the men in their lives, you definitely need to pick this one up.
1960’s Los Angeles, Lucy Westenra and Bertha (Bee) Mason are existing. They’ve been alive for centuries, tormented by the men who made them what they are; Lucy a bloodthirsty Vampire who tries her best to not give in to her baser needs and ignore the voice of Dracula she can’t seem to escape from; and Bee, the mad woman from the attic who is constantly pursued by Mr Rochester, unwilling to allow his first wife a life of peace. Then one day, the men who have pursued them from afar end up much closer to home and Lucy and Bee will have to decide how much they are willing to risk to reclaim their stories once and for all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, Kiste moves her story along at a rapid pace, never allowing us, much like her characters, to get comfortable or settle into the story. The atmosphere she creates is one that transports you to 60’s California filled with hippies, free love and the easiness with which people could fall under someones thrall. It’s undoubtedly a story of trauma, of attempting to overcome it and what people will do to try and escape oppressive situations, but it’s also a story filled with heart. One that shows that doing the right thing might not necessarily be what we expect, but in working together, women can take down the men that try to take over their stories and lives, and take back what is theirs. It’s brutal, bloody and in parts heartbreaking, but thanks to Kiste’s witty and atmospheric writing style you never feel too bogged down, despite the sometimes depressing nature of the story.
Though the characters in her book may be fictional, she still manages to make them believable by allowing us to liken Dracula and Rochester to other men at that time, men who thought they were gods, who swept in and dazzled young women until they were too far under their spell to ever try and leave or save themselves. Bee and Lucy are two women forgotten by time, not even the main characters in their own stories, but these are two women who have lived through incredible trauma at the hands of men, men who wanted nothing more than things to play with, and even centuries after the events of their stories they are still living with that trauma now. Kiste shows them as incredibly resilient, whilst also being irrevocably tied to their stories thanks to the men not allowing them any reprieve and I thoroughly enjoyed seeing them, not escape their trauma, but learn to use it. Acknowledge that what scares them, their weaknesses, might just be the weaknesses of the men hounding them, and once they realised that, they realised that they might just be able to take back their stories for good.
It’s certainly not an easy read in parts, it eludes to rape as well as abuse both physical and mental, but I felt this was needed in the story to get you sufficiently angry, because this book was undoubtedly written to make you angry. Angry at all the men who have ever tried to demean you, make you somehow lesser than you are, and angry at the women who never stood up for you in your time of need. That being said, there are still plenty of light and humorous parts of the story and I loved delving into the relationship between Lucy and Bee, learning how they came to meet and end up in LA. It’s certainly a little quirky in parts and there are some characters who make an appearance that I won’t mention because they add a little surprise, tension and emotion to the story, but it’s a story that focuses on violence towards women, so you should definitely be prepared for the darker tone and events before going in.
This book wasn’t what I expected, but I think I loved it a little more because of it. If you ever wanted to read a story that allows you to see how some of the most prominent literary characters would survive in 60’s California, stories that read as parables, as ode’s to all the forgotten women out there whose stories have been overwritten by the men in their lives, you definitely need to pick this one up.
annamack2023's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
topazsky's review
3.0
You know those movies where superheroes team up to defeat the ultimate supervillain? This is like that for lit majors. Lucy, the bloofer lady from Dracula, and Bertha, the madwoman in the attic from Jane Eyre, are immortal and living (undead) in California in the summer of love. They are still tormented by them men who made them what they are - Dracula and Rochester.
Having read and loved both Dracula and Jane Eyre, first thing I thought was, "how did the author think to put these two characters together?" I don't know the answer to that. This book was weird, and poignant, and weird. It's about the choices you have and don't have. It's about women not being blamed for what men have done to them. It makes a lot of excellent points. But it's weird.
Having read and loved both Dracula and Jane Eyre, first thing I thought was, "how did the author think to put these two characters together?" I don't know the answer to that. This book was weird, and poignant, and weird. It's about the choices you have and don't have. It's about women not being blamed for what men have done to them. It makes a lot of excellent points. But it's weird.
ninjamuse's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Cannibalism, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Violence
danslalune's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
littlecoffeebean's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
3.75
sailor_marmar's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
emilyyjjean's review against another edition
emotional
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Men suck, and women have to stick together!
I picked this up from the library a while ago, and I completely forgot what the blurb had said about the book. I thought this was just a story about vampires, but it was so much more! I really liked the concept of bringing Lucy and Bertha together to share their immortal years together, and trying to avoid the horrid men that made them this way.
I love how the ending wrapped up!
I picked this up from the library a while ago, and I completely forgot what the blurb had said about the book. I thought this was just a story about vampires, but it was so much more! I really liked the concept of bringing Lucy and Bertha together to share their immortal years together, and trying to avoid the horrid men that made them this way.
I love how the ending wrapped up!