This is my second of the Vampire Memories series, and I am reminded by how much I enjoy this alien and slightly disturbing series. Eleisha and Phillip remain as much co-dependent as in love, Eleisha's altruistic quest still sends them out into danger to help others, but in GHOSTS OF MEMORIES a new danger emerges from the shadows. While IN MEMORIES WE FEAR focused on the dynamic of Eleisha's group, GHOSTS OF MEMORIES takes us out into the memories of a few new characters... and a potential new villain.

Fans of Kristen Cashore's Graceling series will recognize how dangerous and insidious Hendee's new character is, and I liked how Hendee gave me closure on one plot line while leaving the door open for future drama. GHOSTS OF MEMORIES is very accessible as a stand alone book, both in terms of how Hendee sets up this story and resolves it. It made me so happy to read about Maxim's slow recovery, how he's adopting animal strays and making himself at home in the Underground. All of the major characters are shown enjoying some measure of peace and contentment in this book, bracketing the usual cat and mouse action of finding new vampires while evading Julian. I even enjoyed how much of this book takes place in the past, as telepathy allows characters (and therefore us) to experience past events as if they were there. This allows Hendee to take an essentially modern story and transport the narrative into the past.

Full review to follow.

Sexual Content: None. ( )

Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.
allthingsuf.com

This is my second of the Vampire Memories series, and I am reminded by how much I enjoy Hendee’s alien yet human vampires. Eleisha and Phillip remain as much co-dependent as in love, Eleisha’s altruistic quest still sends them out into danger to help others, but in GHOSTS OF MEMORIES a new danger emerges from the shadows. While IN MEMORIES WE FEAR focused on the dynamic of Eleisha’s group, GHOSTS OF MEMORIES takes us out into the memories of a few new characters… and a potential new villain.

GHOSTS OF MEMORIES is very accessible as a stand alone book, both in terms of how Hendee sets up this story and resolves it. It made me so happy to read about Maxim’s slow recovery, how he’s adopting animal strays and making himself at home in the Underground. All of the major characters are shown enjoying some measure of peace and contentment in this book, bracketing the usual cat and mouse action of finding new vampires while evading Julian. I even enjoyed how much of this book takes place in the past, as telepathy allows characters (and therefore us) to experience past events as if they were there. Hendee uses this mechanic to take an essentially modern story and transport the narrative into the past. Fans of Kristin Cashore’s Graceling series will recognize how dangerous and insidious one of Hendee’s new characters is, and I liked how Hendee gave me closure on one plot line while leaving the door open for future drama.

While GHOSTS OF MEMORIES is a satisfying end point, I’m sad to see the close of the Vampire Memories series. Hendee leaves enough potential woven into the book that I feel like her characters are living on past that last page. Given how much I enjoyed this author’s unique take on vampirism, I’m looking forward to her next project, the Mist-Torn Witches.

Sexual Content: None. ( )

Our Review, by LITERAL ADDICTION's Pack Alpha - Michelle L. Olson:
*ARC provided by the Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Ghosts of Memories is the 5th installment of Barb Hendee's VAMPIRE MEMORIES series, but can easily be read as a standalone novel.

In this installment, Eleisha, our sweet & charming 'vampire social worker' is still on the hunt for others of their kind to offer them refuge at the Underground, the shelter she runs out of a church with her damaged protector and lover Philip and heroic human partner Wade. She's also still making a home for Maxim, Rose, and their ghost Seamus, while helping each to heal in their own way. They've become more than just a group helping one another. They've become a family.

Unfortunately, there's still a diabolical and unstable vampire out there whose only goal is to wipe out any and all vampires whom he sees as competition, and in his head, that's pretty much any vampire except Eleisha, whom he feels he needs to track down those remaining of their kind - in order to eliminate them all.

When Wade and Eleisha find Christian and Ivory, two vampires running a bit of a con game, they set out to make contact and try to convince them to return with them to the Underground where they can keep them safe and introduce them to others of their kind. Things don't go quite as planned, however, and those that they're trying to help just might end up being more trouble than they're worth.

I loved the way that Barb introduced more than 1 villain into this story, and even though the greatest threat started out as Julian in continuation with the books before, it became clear that a calculating vampire with a God complex and an unbalanced sense of self-righteousness is a much greater threat than any crazy psycho with a blade.

I also loved how she used flashbacks to give us more character information and introduce additional emotion into the story. The overlapping histories were a beautiful spin as well and made the interaction between the characters in this release that much more compelling.

While one storyline of the series may have been wrapped up in this installment, the door was opened for a multitude of other possible plotlines for either this series or a spin-off and I can't wait to see where Barb takes us next in this unique and gripping world.

Ghosts of Memories was a wonderful 4 1/2 skull read. I love these characters and I love the emotion that Barb brings in every book! ( )