Slave of My Thirst

From the foothills of the Himalayas to the dinner tables of London, Holland conducts a research-laden, imaginary tour of the British Empire--of the living and undead--at the end of the 19th century. The cast includes a revivified Lord Byron (established as a vampire in Holland's previous book, Lord of the Dead); his physician, Lord Ruthven; Bram Stoker; Jack the Ripper; and Oscar Wilde. (In one entertaining exchange on the subject of youth and beauty, we see Wilde come up with the idea for Dorian Gray.) Told through letters reminiscent of Dracula but with the logical panache of a more credulous Sherlock Holmes adventure, the narrative begins in the Indian province of Kalikshutra, where Dr. John Eliot researches a mysterious blood disease related to the goddess Kali--the prototype of the female vampire. With dawning suspicions, he returns to London to search for a missing acquaintance, but Kali follows him in the body of the beautiful, mysterious Lilah. The reaction of the uninitiated to the vampires is standard stuff, and the blood-drinkers themselves hold no surprises, but readers familiar with vampire lore will enjoy the literate weaving of this tale--just in time for the centennial of Dracula's first publication. (Oct.)