Many Bloody Returns

Just to be clear right off, I didn’t care for some of the stories in this collection. But, really, isn’t that typical of anything with variety? I don’t always like all the songs on an album either, even one of my favorite artists. After reading “It’s My Birthday, Too” by Jim Butcher I ordered his first 2 books in the Dresden Files series just because I immediately loved Harry Dresden. I even liked his brother who is not the typical vampire. “Grave Robbed” did the same thing to me. I ordered a three book collection of P.N. Elrod’s because the characters and story line grabbed me from the beginning. “The Witch and the Wicked” was way off the norm which made it very interesting and enjoyable. “Blood Wrapped” by Tanya Huff: excellent. “Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two” by Tate Hallaway: great characters. “Vampire Hours” by Elaine Viets: always love it when the cheating husband gets his in the end and “How Stella Got Her Grave Back” by Toni L.P. Kelner was just plain fun. Two vampires with a great sense of humor (Mark questioning Stella why she is called his ‘sire’ and not his ‘dam’) bantering back and forth over birthdays, small towns and nicknames.
After this fabulous romp through the supernatural world, I had to get some of the other short story collections and can recommend Games Creatures Play and Dead of Night (two stories but two great stories). I still have several to read and look forward to them tremendously.

Full disclosure, I had read Wolfsbane and Mistletoe first, so I was a bit spoiled and found the first several stories in Many Bloody Returns to be less than first rate. But then things picked up, and the last story was worth the price of the book all by itself. I have read several of the Sookie Stackhouse books and both I and my husband like them as a pleasant diversion, so we are enjoying the collections Harris has edited also.

MANY BLOODY RETURNS is an anthology of 13 short stories by written by the masters of the vampire genre. These 13 stories explore the concept of vampires and their birthdays – which in some cases refers to the actual day of their birth, but in most cases refers to the date of their transformation into vampires. MANY BLOODY RETURNS gives a “taste” of some of the best in the business and definitely leaves the reader wanting more.

“Dracula Night” by Charlaine Harris is a Sookie Stackhouse story that takes place during a vampiric celebration of Dracula’s birthday.

“The Mournful Cry of Owls” by Christopher Golden is the story of a 16 year old girl’s coming of age, and how she discovers what she really is.

“I Was a Teenage Vampire” by Bill Crider is the story of how a teenager, well, became a vampire.

“Twilight” by Kelley Armstrong is the story of a long-lived vampire who must take a human life once a year before the anniversary of her conversion, in order to remain immortal. But after so many years and so many lives, is it really worth the effort?

“It’s My Birthday, Too” by Jim Butcher is a Harry Dresden story. It is Thomas’s birthday, and Harry wants to celebrate it with him. But things never go well for our wizard and his vampire brother.

“Grave-Robbed” by P.N. Elrod is the story of detective Jack Fleming, a vampire P.I. who helps his client save her sister from a con man.

“The First Day of the Rest of Your Life” by Rachel Caine is the story of a young Morganville woman who turns 18 and must choose her vampire protector or dare to go it alone.

“The Witch and the Wicked” by Jeanne C. Stein begins at a birthday party for a vampire being catered by a witch. The guest of honor ends up immolated by the birthday cake…but is he really dead?

“Blood Wrapped” by Tanya Huff is an extended conversation between vampire Henry and wizard Tony about their friend Vicki’s upcoming 40th birthday. And all while they attempt to locate and rescue a kidnapped child.

“The Wish” by Carolyn Haines is the story of a woman who cheats death by becoming a vampire.

“Fire and Ice and Linguini for Two” by Tate Hallaway ask the question “can a vampire with a cursed birthday and his girlfriend who shares a her body with a goddess thwart a Norwegian ice demon?”

“Vampire Hours” by Elaine Viets is the story of an older woman’s vengeance on her creep of a cheating husband.

“How Stella got her Grave Back” by Toni L.P. Kelner is the story of a vampire who visits her grave on her birthday. But now someone else is buried there. What happened? Who is there? And why?

I had not previously read many of these paranormal authors, but plan to do so in the future. Most of these stories are outstanding and really appealed to me; however, some were just not that memorable. Perhaps it is best to say that not every story is for everybody, although I am sure each one has its own following. In any case, MANY BLOODY RETURNS is a fun, entertaining, and creepy read, especially for fans of the genre. It is a great volume to pick up when you only have a few minutes to spare.

14 contemporary paranormal anthology with the theme being vampires & birthdays.

This is a pretty good anthology. I give all the stories 4 stars with Jim Butcher & P.N. Elrod as my favorites. I liked Toni L.P. Kelner’s too. Probably the weakest story is Charlaine Harris’ Sookie short. Just can’t get into Sookie.

I like that it is fun to read them at several authors got together and had a good time with a specific topic. A quick sampler of different writers.

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