Cheshire Red Reports: Bloodshot

Spectra

Bloodshot
Cherie Priest
2011

The Summary
"Raylene Pendle (AKA Cheshire Red), a vampire and world-renowned thief, doesn't usually hang with her own kind.  She's too busy stealing priceless art and rare jewels.  But when the infuriatingly charming Ian Stott asks for help, Raylene finds him impossible to resist--even though Ian doesn't want precious artifacts.  He wants her to retrieve missing government files--documents that deal with the secret biological experiments that left Ian blind.  What Raylene doesn't bargain for is a case that takes her from the wilds of Minneapolis to the mean streets of Atlanta.  And with a psychotic, power-hungry scientist on her tail, a kick-ass drag queen on her side, and Men in Black popping up at the most inconvenient moments, the case proves to be one hell of a ride."

The Good
Bloodshot is strange novel that draws on the terrible, terrifying mythos of Dracula and creates an unsympathetic, tough-as-nails narrator with a dry sense of humor and a wicked temper.  It fashions a fast-paced, adrenaline-pumping story that sends Raylene haring off across the country with a super-secret branch of the government in tow.  It's an odd novel, to say the least.

But I can't say I didn't enjoy it.

Although I wasn't particularly impressed by the historical anecdotes offered by Raylene, as they felt contrived and rather false, I did like the action-packed drama.  Raylene is pretty awesome.  She's a vampire and a thief, a cold-blooded killer and a remorseless criminal.

Sometimes, she has moments of warmth and kindness, but I kind of liked having a narrator for whom I didn't need to feel sympathy.  She does what she wants, which I found kind of appealing.  It made her a wild card for the duration of the story, giving her an air of danger and mystery and darkness that lent itself well to her heritage.

The Bad
Unfortunately, the Cheshire Red Reports is not a series I intend to pursue.  It just wasn't what I anticipated, and it wasn't quite what I wanted in a vampire novel.  I only semi-liked Raylene as a narrator.  She was a touch anti-heroine, but she has a tone of voice that I just couldn't seem to appreciate.

I mean, for a vampire who was sired in the early part of the century, she's surprisingly modern.  I get it, she has adapted to her circumstances and managed to stay attuned to the technological and cultural changes of the ensuing decades.  But she doesn't appear to be influenced by her age.  She doesn't let much slip in the way of her past; rather, her reminiscence feels forced and a bit phony.

For instance, when Raylene speaks about her father, she refers to the Pinkerton Agency.  Being the history buff I am, I found my interest immediately piqued.  I was curious to see how Raylene would refer to her past, how she would describe the glitz and the glamour and the corruption of the Roaring Twenties.  I expected mentions of Prohibition, Al Capone, speakeasies, private eyes, and Casablanca-esque noir, especially when Pinkerton came into the mix.

But I was sorely disappointed.

Truthfully, Raylene's narrative leaves something to be desired all around.  It's hard to describe, but I feel like she didn't really develop as a character--she's a vampire, she's dead, so I wasn't expecting much admittedly--and she didn't really stand out in my mind among all the vampires I've read.  Sure, she's a great representation of the monstrously ruthless, terrifyingly efficient killer; however, she doesn't distinguish herself in any way and she doesn't utilize history to her advantage to give the novel depth.

Thus, I will not be following Raylene's future adventures.

The Ugly
She's a vampire.

As such, the body count is pretty high.