Rating: 
Summary: Genius at Play
Review: The author captures a period of time, at the height of Communist dominance, to provide a commentary on the evils of the totalitarian state. He does it with an entertaining action scenario. It would be hilarious if not such a sobering example of the idiocy of man.
Rating: 
Summary: Subtle it is not!
Review: The idea of this story is entertaining. The writing is just too bad. It does not suggest in a subtle way that communism is vampirism, it blatantly states it-over and over! I finished the book-I always do. However, I almost never get rid of a book once I have finished it. this one, though, I couldn't wait to finish and bring to the used bookstore.
Rating:
Summary: Orwell meets Dracula in Kafka's Castle
Review: This is an amazing novel. I can strongly recommend it as a delightful allegory of organized socialism in the last century. (Delightful being a relative term, of course!) It takes a lot to get me to read a novel in one sitting - Vampire Nation is just such a page turner. Moreover, I've never been a big fan of the genre (or genre fiction in general), but Sipos' treatment has transcended genre with its handling of the premise.Without exaggeration, I can say that there are echoes of Orwell, Stoker, and Kafka in this novel. (And perhaps just a touch of Jonathan Swift? I couldn't help but feel, as I read the descriptions of the vampires as seen by Henry, the protagonist, that there was a touch of Gulliver's Travels, when Gulliver commented on the physical appearance of the pores in the giant's skin.) The trouble with statements like that, however, is that they compare the literature of today with the literature of the past. Sipos' vision is uniquely his, and uniquely modern, despite the "A meets B" cliche of the title of this review. For those who like grim descriptions of morbidly graphic scenarios, there are plenty of those in this novel as well. What is particularly disturbing about Sipos' gift for the graphic, however, is that his descriptions of the ghouls in the children's hospital is probably less horrific than the reality of those awful places. Whether you wish to read it as an allegory, or just an adventure filled romp through Communist Rumania, this book certainly only rarely gives the reader a chance to catch his or her breath.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Story and a good lesson also!!!
Review: This rather short novel about the supernatural nature of socialism is wonderfully clever. The author, who is an escaped native of the area, takes every opportunity to compare one form of blood sucking to another!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Story and a good lesson also!!!
Review: This rather short novel about the supernatural nature of socialism is wonderfully clever. The author, who is an escaped native of the area, takes every opportunity to compare one form of blood sucking to another!
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