Rosedale the Vampyre by Lev Raphael
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Grief-stricken by his wife’s untimely death, a wealthy New York banker turns to sexual abandon in the bordellos of 1907 New York. Then one fateful night, after a mysterious attack, he dies to his old life and is reborn a Vampyre. Once obsessed solely with making money and social advancement, he’s now driven by a new, perverse hunger for blood. Written in a period voice, this deeply erotic work takes us into dark corners of the psyche as it explores a secret world of power and obsession. (-synopsis from Goodreads.)
Rosedale is a lone man saddened by the untimely death of his wife and child. He’s a rich Jewish man who has everything…except happiness. To ease the pain he frequents the houses of prostitution in his town though they are never able to totally make him forget his pain.
One day he finds himself with puncture wounds on his neck and quickly realizes he has been turned into a vampyre. Instead of freaking out or having a bad reaction he seems to accept his fate and begins hunting his prey. It is interesting to see how Rosedale’s religion becomes entwined with his new vampyre state.
This is a short, gothic vampyre tale that is easily read in a single sitting. While the novella was a little slow getting started it turned out to be a quick and enjoyable read.
I give this book 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.
Lev Raphael is the author of twenty-four books in genres from memoir to mystery to Jane Austen mashup. He’s been in love with storytelling since second grade and a reader of catholic tastes since he discovered his first public library. Lev has published traditionally with large and small houses, and recently gone indie because it’s the wave of the future. His latest fiction, Rosedale the Vampyre, grows out of his love of The Gilded Age. Lev has been a newspaper columnist, a radio talk show host, a DJ and even an academic. He writes and reviews full-time and is currently working on three different book projects.
You can visit his website at http://www.levraphael.com.
Hop over to his blog and say hi at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lev-raphael/.