Cary, Kate. Bloodline. Razorbill/Penguin Putnam,  2005. 323 pp. ISBN 1595140123 $16.99.

****

This horror novel reads like a sequel to Dracula. Set during WWI, a bloodthirsty captain falls for the sweet and innocent sister of his wounded lieutenant. Quincey Harker’s supernatural strength in battle and Lt. John Shaw’s hazy memories of military raid hint that there is something sinister about his superior–will he be able to figure it out before his sister is in love with a monster? 

All the traditional trappings are here: wolves at the beck and call of the vampire, great winged bats, wooden stakes, garlic, the crucifix. The biting scenes are blatantly seductive.

Like it’s sire, Bloodline is told through journal entries and letters, giving voice to several characters and points of view. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, and Cary can be commended for her details, voice and sentence structures evoke the ghost of Bram Stoker. Dark and gothic, Bloodline will be most appreciated by those who have read Stoker’s classic.