Charles Boisvert is a priest struggling to overcome
his "impure" homosexual tendencies. He has almost
convinced himself that his desires are gone when an
attractive young man named Kyle wanders into his
confessional. Charles is immediately drawn to Kyle but
convinces himself that he only wants to help the distraught
man. Charles believes that Kyle is in an abusive
relationship with his lover Victor. Then he learns the
unbelievable truth that Kyle is a thrall of the vampire
Victor and is desperate to escape his hellish life with his
master. But Victor is a selfish, brutal, 2000 year old
vampire who always gets what he wants, and what he wants
right now is to make more vampires in order to gain power,
starting with his thrall. Charles decides to do everything
he can to save Kyle from becoming a monster, even if it
means putting his own life and beliefs in danger.
VAMPIRE MAKER is the fourth book in Michael Schiefelbein's
Vampire series. Although the series revolves around the
life of the vampire Victor, this installment focus more on
the human priest Charles and the thrall Kyle. As with the
prior books, the story is filled with religious overtones
and questions some of the teachings of the Catholic
Church. Victor was in love with the mortal Jesus before he
became a vampire and is haunted by the only man who refused
him as a lover. Though he still desires him, he considers
Jesus' heaven to be a static and sterile heaven and rejects
it in favor of passion and vitality. This eternal conflict
within Victor has driven much of the story since the first
book and presents him to readers as more than a ruthless
predator.
There are three main characters in the book, one who is a
man of faith, one who believes he has lost his faith, and
one who has never had faith. This brings unavoidable
conflict and strife into the story, and the fact that all
three are gay and attracted to each other also lends
complexity to the plot. There are lots of steamy sex
scenes in the book, so those who do not like same-sex
encounters should skip it. Having read the prior three
books, I believe this is a great addition to the series.
Schiefelbein continues with his straightforward but clearly
descriptive writing style, and pens an intense and riveting
plot. His characters are still a bit schizophrenic,
seeming to change their minds every couple of pages, but
they are real and likeable despite their faults. Overall,
I found VAMPIRE MAKER to be an intriguing blend of
religion, horror, and gay romance. I hope Schiefelbein
decides to continue Victor's journey in the future.
Victor Decimus has been a vampire for over 2,000 years. Once
a Roman Legionnaire, for millennia Victor has remained a
step or two ahead of rivals, would-be executioners, and the
mysterious Dark Kingdom, which sets the rules for vampires'
existence. Having left New York and his lover - the vampire
he made then abandoned to escape the vengeance of the Dark
Kingdom -Victor sets himself up again, with his thrall, in
New Orleans.
But in New Orleans, his thrall becomes the point of a new,
larger conflict. On the one hand, a local priest seeks to
break Victor's hold over the thrall; on the other, the Dark
Kingdom fears that Victor is going to become a Vampire Maker
- one who continually creates new vampires, while refusing
to take his place on the next plain of existence and thus
creating an imbalance in the powers of the universe. And
between both walks Victor, determined to have his own way,
exerts control and remains defiant to the end.
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