The Parliament of Blood (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: The Parliament of Blood April Spisak Richards, Justin. The Parliament of Blood; Bloomsbury, 2008 [336p] Trade ed. ISBN 978-1-58234-721-9 $16.95 Paper ed. ISBN 978-1-59990-148-0 $7.95 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 6–9 Late nineteenth century London is the ideal Gothic, gritty setting for this ultimate showdown between increasingly power-hungry vampires ready to take over the world and a scrappy but woefully small group of intrepid humans hoping to thwart their plans. The lives of vampires over the centuries have been too easy, resulting in a surplus of vamps and not enough indigents and orphans to feed them all. An elaborate plan of rotating sleeping schedules has grown wearisome, and the un-dead are now ready, with the aid of their newly arisen mummy lord, to go public and intimidate and bloodsuck their way into full power and glory. Unfortunately, George, his crush Liz, and Eddie, the child whom he has taken in, three otherwise ordinary human Londoners, stand in the vampires’ way, and they (and a few other strategically important allies) are willing to risk their necks to quell this uprising. If it all seems a bit campy and overwrought, it is, but to good effect: the Victorian setting (all shadows and death carriages and underground tunnels dripping with mysterious fluids) is a nice complement to the dramatic showdown, the heroic trio are affable even if they are rather stereotyped (the gallant gentleman, theatric damsel, and plucky orphan), and the vampire/mummy alliance is both genuinely creepy and B-movie reminiscent all at once. The fact that the relatively happy conclusion (although there are still vampires, the world-conquering is certainly long delayed) comes down to a clever solution regarding the memorably described pipes jutting out of the mummy lord’s chest is both delightfully absurd and deliciously unexpected. Horror fans and Victorian buffs alike may find this a bit overdone on occasion but considerable fun to read anyway. Copyright © 2008 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois