Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith
 | Abraham Lincoln: |
Brief synopsis:
Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother’s bedside. She’s been stricken with something the old-timers call "Milk Sickness."
"My baby boy…" she whispers before dying.
Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother’s fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire.
When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, "henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose…" Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House.
While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln, and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years.
Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of our greatest president for the first time-all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation.
My Thoughts:
Before I tell you my thoughts on this book, I think I should point out that I am not a history buff. I have read many other reviews about this book, and several of them are bad due to historical inaccuracies in the story. I, not being a history buff, did not notice anything crazy off. What I am saying is: Who cares? This is a work of fiction, and the story told should be FICTION. Nit picking a historical timeline or location in a FICTION book seems like a waste of time to me. With that said….
I LOVED THIS BOOK! 🙂
I chose this book for my NOVEMBER BOOK CLUB read because I had been waiting for it to come out ever since I saw a video reel preview for it on Amazon. I am a sucker for vampire books. The thought of taking one of our most famous of Presidents and pitting him against vampires seemed both insane and amazing to me. I had to read it! I am glad I did, I sure wasn’t disappointed.
This story successfully blends history and fantasy into an intriguing fantastical adventure through the life of one of the greatest Presidents of all time, Lincoln. We get to meet Lincoln as a child and follow him through all of his tragedies and triumphs. Vampires (typical vampires, not the twinkling horny kind) become Lincolns main nemesis throughout this story as he seeks revenge for the loss of several of his loved ones.
Grahame-Smith was completely successful in (re)creating a world where human and vampire coexist. His portrayal of is not only plausible, but “believable”. Not being a fan of “history”, I loved that I could pull up the Googles and actually read MORE on the big events mentioned throughout. Find facts and maps about the places mentioned. Find factual information about the events in Lincolns life, that Grahame-Smith successfully interweaved vampire mythology into.
I not only found this book to be 100% entertaining, I find that it has me interested in history more than I ever have been. I love reading things about Lincoln, and the civil war. Of course now while I read I wonder what the vampires are doing at that time. LOL!!
I say get it. Read it. Love it.
‘The boundaries which divide Life from Death are at best shadowy and vague.
Who shall say where the one ends, and where the other begins?’ -Edgar Allan Poe