Blood Red

by Heather Graham

Book Overview

When a fortune-teller shows bridesmaid Lauren Crow an omen of her gruesome death, she and her friends laugh it off as cheesy theatrics--until women begin disappearing in the night. Even as the streets become more dangerous, Lauren finds herself lusting after a man who is himself dangerous-- and quite possibly crazy. Mark Davidson prowls the city by night armed with crosses and holy water, in search of vampires, whose existence, he insists, is real...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0778324869
• ISBN13: 9780778324867
• Release Date: June 2007
• Publisher: Mira Books
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.6"

Customer Reviews

Blood Red is Great Entertainment

Blood Red is not your typical romance/thriller. It wasn't what I'd normally pick up, but I really enjoyed it. Three women are in New Orleans for a wild batchelorette weekend and find themselves the target of a vampire. The Vampire chases them and almost succeeds in killing them all, except for a tall, dark and handsome vampire chaser. At first the women don't believe his tales of vampires-until they see the evidence with their own eyes. What follows is a battle between good and evil where everyone is not what they seem. This book is a great read

A vampire thriller with chills and a touch of humor

Lauren Crow, Deanna Marin and Heidi Weiss head to New Orleans for Heidi's bachelorette party. For fun, the three girls seek out a fortune teller and pressure Lauren to go along. When Lauren looks into the crystal ball and hears the warning, suddenly all the shadows in night-time New Orleans take on a malevolent tone. To make matters worse, a stranger seems to appear wherever she goes. Even when she learns his name, Mark Davidson, can she trust him? She is mysteriously drawn to him despite his strange behavior. Mark Davidson follows women, carrying vampire weapons, claiming to protect them. Does his obsession with Lauren, a look-alike for his murdered fiancee, hide a more dangerous obsession? Lauren is actually a smart heroine unlike in many thrillers, having common sense, but it is her friends that seem to lead her into trouble. She doesn't want to ruin her friend's bacherlorette party so she goes along with them despite her misgivings and against the advice of the fortune teller. The events surrounding and personalities of Lauren's friends add to the suspense of this novel. Although the back cover blurb intrigued, I enjoyed this book much more than I expected. Don't read it in the dark with a book light unless you want an extra chill. The way Heather Graham writes the images of shadows and darkness mixed with the shadows on the ceiling from my book light in an almost bat-like image over a full moon. Chilling indeed! This book is definitely a suspense/thriller with some romance in addition to the paranormal aspect. The first scene in the prologue is very creepy (lots of blood) but, fortunately for readers a little more faint of heart, the creepiness turns more and more into a suspense-laden read with creepy undertones and some crime violence instead of an all out creepy blood-drenched mayhem. A couple of aspects of this book make this book a great read. Blood Red is infused with a level of humor, particularly in some of the tools to fight the vampires, that keeps this novel from getting too dark. The thrilling part of this thriller for me is that I always kept wondering who the bad guys really were. I thought I knew and I did at times, but the author always kept me guessing and imagining all sorts of scenarios. Readers with imagination will enjoy the twists and turns. The book has a youthful tone that made me think of some horror movies. You know how in horror movies the girl always does something stupid that a normal person would never do? In this thriller, Heather Graham writes the heroine quite well. Unlike the stereotypical thriller heroine, readers understand why Lauren left the safety to do things that might endanger her and not just remain a catatonic person, immobile and waiting to be a victim...and I probably would have done what she did as well given her courage. Warning for readers sensitive to violence: crime violence including decapitated bodies and blood in this thriller.

terrific vampire romance

In New Orleans, close friends Lauren Crow, Heidi Weiss and Deanna Marin are enjoying a bachelorette weekend together before the countdown to Heidi's wedding begins. The three pals stop at a portable table near the Cathedral where Susan the fortune teller reads their future. In a crystal ball Susan shows Lauren the image of a man offering her "a world of blood and death and darkness"; Heidi and Deanna do not see what Lauren saw. She is stunned when a dark smooth evil voice whispers he is coming for her. She makes a noise and the crystal ball breaks. Susan warns them to stay in crowded places fearing for Lauren. The vision and Susan's reaction convince Lauren that her feelings that someone is following her are true and not just a response to the atmosphere of the French Quarter. Vampire hunter Mark Davidson trails malevolent bloodsucker Stephen who has `seen" Lauren and believes she is the reincarnation of his long dead beloved. The vampire plans to reunite with her while dining on the blood of her friends. Mark plans to keep the three females safe although like Stephen he is attracted to Lauren. Although the lead and secondary cast members are three dimensional, this terrific vampire romance is owned by post Katrina New Orleans as the atmosphere of the city is everywhere in the exciting story line. Mark is a fascinating obstinate hero who finds love distracts his edge by taking away from his narrow single minded focus. Lauren also changes from a disbeliever to a firm understanding that vampires exist. Although no monster twists occur as Heather Graham's fine tale is within the BLOOD RED sub-genre norm, fans will appreciate Heidi's bachelorette weekend in the French Quarter. Harriet Klausner

4 stars

They say everyone has a twin, but being the twin of deceased Katya could prove fatal for Lauren Crow. All over New Orleans, women are vanishing, and according to a handsome, mysterious stranger, it's because of a vampire who is after Lauren because she appears to be identical to another young woman. As it happens, that woman was also this man, Mark Davidson's, fiancee. He wants to keep Lauren safe, but he can only do so if she is willing to accept the unbelievable, not just that there are vampires, but that there are some who are good. Is he crazy, or can she trust him with not only her life, but those of her friends, and even with a city's fate? **** Ms. Graham's fans will recognize some character names from prior novels and welcome the chance to see how they are doing now. Lauren is a credible heroine who carries this classic plot off well. Fans of vampire romance should not be disappointed. **** Amanda Killgore

Vampires in New Orleans? Good and bad?

Lauren Crow is with her friends and business partners, Heidi and Deanna, vacationing in New Orleans as they celebrate Heidi's impending marriage. Lauren and Deanna are to be bridesmaids to Heidi. The three of them go to a fortune teller, Susan and each has a different type of fortune told. Heidi has tarot cards and turns up a skeleton which she is told means permanent change. Deanna has her palm read but her lifeline also shows change. Lauren goes into the fortune teller's tent to look into a crystal ball but it turns red as she sees a mysterious dark man and the ball is broken! All of this only reinforces Lauren's feelings that the three women are being watched. Mark Davidson is watching them as he ran into Lauren in a bar and sees her very strong resemblance to her former fiancee. He knows an evil vampire named Stephan is in New Orleans and that Stephan knows Mark is looking for him so if Stephan sees Lauren he will want her to taunt Mark with as Stephan killed Mark's bride-to-be. Lt. Sean Canady has headless corpses of young women popping up in the river and needs to solve these murders. His knowledge of the dark side of New Orleans will having him talking with Mark and Lauren and her friends as well as getting his own group of knowledgable friends and cops on alert. This plot has a few twists and turns and lots of danger and excitement! A scary hard-to-put-down read!!