Monday 12 July 2010

Vampire romance?

I love Waterstone's, but it recently irritated me to bits. I recently got an email from them, they were advertising their "vampire romance". Not the chain's fault, it is making the best of a trend, but I happen to hate, hate, hate that trend. Vampire and romance should not, should never have been in the same sentence. I want them as thirsty bloodsuckers, who can turn into bats or wolves, or mist at will. Call me old fashioned, but I think vampires have lost their bite with Anne Rice, who turned a great horror archetype into a "romantic" (read: Eurotrash) antihero (read: lovestruck teenagers with hormonal problems).

I long to a come back to the nasty predator that was personified by Dracula. Bram Stoker's novel might not have been great literature, but it was a smart, efficient book with more intelligence than any of the modern vampire books, without any of their pretention. I mean seriously, romance? There is something romantic about a creature that suck someone dry and turn him into a similar ravenous beast? I just don't get it.

4 comments:

Jazz said...

THANK YOU!

Vampires are supposed to be monsters. I blame Anne Rice...

The last good vampire was in the book The Historian.

I hate the vampire as tortured soul. They are the undead.

THEY..À
HAVE.
NO.
SOUL.
DAMMIT!!!

The Artful Gypsy aka Wendy the Very Good Witch said...

Well just be glad you don't have a 'tweenage' daughter Guillaume! You don't even begin to know how much you can loathe angsty, love-struck Vampires until you are subjected and tortured by repeated viewings of the Twilight Series movies! Woe is me!

PJ said...

J'ai cette super idée d'histoire basée sur ce principe, où il y a un vampire super charmant qui séduit les jeunes filles avec des promesses d'immortalité et d'amour, juste pour se rendre compte à la fin qu'il n'est qu'un Renfield à un paquet de vampires plus hideux et monstrueux que le Nosferatu de Murnau.

Guillaume said...

@Jazz-Yes, Anne Rice is the main culprit there. She really turned them soft big time. It is not only baffling, it is downright infuriating.
@Wendy-That is one series I will hopefully never set my eyes on.
@PJ-Intéressant. J'ai aussi une vague idée d'histoire sur des petites filles pâles aux dents acérées qui dévorent les passants en riant.