Blood Groove by Alex Bledsoe

Date Published: 2009, Tor Books.
ISBN: 076-5-323-087
# of Pages: 302

I found this book when I was browsing a small bookshop in the local mall not too long ago. I'd never heard of it before, but was itching for some funny obscure vampire book, and figured I'd found one. It was actually placed in the YA section, which surprises me a bit. After reading it, I'm not sure how many parents would be comfortable with their child -- even their teen child -- owning it.

The plot mainly involves a vampire, who was staked and paralyzed in the early 1900s, reviving in the 1970s in Memphis, and dealing with the social situation of the time. It's as much a book about race and discrimination as it is about vampires, and in many ways it deals with these themes more effectively. However, that's not to say that it's simply a metaphor or a simple parable, it's got some seriously dark, gory and violent stuff in there. It worked for me, but it may not work for everyone. Also included are some pretty graphic sex scenes. I was surprised to find it, but not put off. It worked somehow.

The main characters were very likable and intriguing, but not overly so. I was, at times, legitimately appalled by their behavior and yet attracted to them nonetheless. After a certain point, you've gotten to know them so well and are so attached to their viewpoint that they can apparently do anything, no matter how heinous, and still carry your favor. I think this is evidence of good writing and character development.

The plot itself is not contrived or cliche, and is actually quite refreshing. The vampire cliches used in the novel actually serve to accentuate just how far Bledsoe was willing to go to differentiate his tale from the other vampire books being published recently. They stood at a stark opposition to the originality, and even then they were often traditional elements that were re-imagined in some grim, non-traditional ways. There is some vampire-induced hypnotism in this book that is seriously disturbing.

Anyway, I'd recommend it to folks that are looking for something new in the genre and don't mind sex and violence, and especially those that like seeing characters that are allowed to show their dark side and yet still fill the role of the "hero".