by
Size: 6.00 x 9.00 in
Pages: 106
When the teenaged author met a group of sight-seeing vampires on Savannah Beach, it was a life-changing experience for all of them.
Publisher: Wordwooze Publishing
Cover Artists:
Narrators:
Genres:
Word Count: 34577
Setting: Savannah, GA
Languages Available: English
Word Count: 34577
Setting: Savannah, GA
Languages Available: English
He looked down the beach into the gathering darkness. Just back from the tideline, something was moving. At first, it seemed a large bulky shadow.
Abruptly, it separated, becoming three figures trudging slowly through the sand toward
him. One hung back, seemingly playing Chicken with the tide. He’d dash in, wait until it
surged toward him, then seconds before it touched his feet, he’d dart out of splashing range.
Again and again.
They were almost to him now, looked up, and stopped. Strangers and boy stared at each other.
All were tall, all dressed in dark coats. like Neo’s in The Matrix, long-skirted with that odd little stand-up collar. The wind came up, blowing inland, whipping straight dark hair about broad shoulders. The one who’d been teasing the surf put up a hand to tuck several strands behind an ear.
TP allowed himself a small smile. In the twilight, the ear looked slightly pointed.
READ MORE“Good evening, young sir,” the tallest of the three said.
By the looks of him, he was the oldest though they all appeared in their twenties. He had an odd accent, his words carefully enunciated, every syllable spoken clearly. His greeting actually came out as “Good e-ven-ing.”
“We’re tourists,” the man went on. Behind him the other two nodded. “Are you a native of this town?”
“Oui.” Briefly he slipped back into his pre-Attitude self.
“Oui?” The surf-teaser’s head came up, interest in his eyes. They seemed to sparkle in the moonlight. “Vouz parlez française? How can that be if you’re from this Sa-van-nah Beach?”
The last word came out more like bitch and TP snickered.
The second man glared.
TP was startled to see what looked like a flash of red sweep through his dark eyes.
“Say, did your eyes just turn red?”
“No.” The man shook his head. “It was the light of the setting sun. Reflecting.”
Sure it was.
The sun had set a half-hour before. Besides, human eyes didn’t reflect light.
Right.
Tony-Paul decided he’d better keep his distance until he found out more about these guys.
The first man glanced at the second, said a single word and the other blinked and turned away.
Fast.
“Pardon my cousin,” The third man spoke up, stepping forward. He had the same intonation as the other two. “He gets a little. . . uh. . . cranky when he’s tired. He needs a nap.”
He shot his cousin a glare that was returned.
“We should introduce ourselves. Val Andriescu.”
He held out a very slender, very pale hand.
After the slightest hesitation, Tony-Paul reached out and shook it. It was ice cold. But then so were his own. The water was chill tonight and he’d gotten his hands wet picking up shells. He wondered if Val Andriescu had been shell-hunting also.
“Tony-Paul de Vissage.”
“This is my brother, Marius.” Val indicated the first man who had spoken. Marius didn’t offer to shake hands but simply nodded. “And our Cousin Timon.”
That one nodded also, then said, abruptly, “Hi,” and smiled. It was a brilliant smile, friendly, warm. . . if a bit pointy.
Were his eyeteeth just a little too elongated?
Before TP had a chance to make sure he’d seen what he thought he’d seen, Timon looked away, mouth clamped shut.
“We were wondering if you could give us directions to a specific tourist attraction,” the third man went on.
“Sure. Glad to help.” So all they wanted were directions? “What are you looking for? The Davenport House? The Savannah History Museum?”
“None of those. The historic place we wish to see is Bloody Marsh.”
“Bloody Marsh?” This time, TP didn’t mean to laugh. It just happened.
“You find that amusing?” Timon’s tone was little short of insulted.
He had a right, TP supposed. It wasn’t polite to laugh at strangers, though his current persona would naturally do so.
These are foreigners. His conscience reminded. Don’t be an Ugly American.
He ignored his Better Judgment. “Man, you’re ’way off course. Bloody Marsh is on St. Simon’s Island, near Ft. Frederica, not at Savannah.”.
“Ah.”
Marius looked thoughtful. Val looked perturbed. Timon simply looked.
“That will be a little far for us to travel tonight. Could you perhaps answer a couple of questions about it for us?”
“Certainment.” At the same time, TP decided to satisfy his own curiosity about something. “Say, where are you folks from, anyway?”
“We’re from. . . Transylvania.” Marius looked around at the others. Val and Timon nodded and he turned back to TP.
“Transylvania? You mean the one in Kentucky?”
“Un. . . yes, that’s right.” He appeared surprised TP might know of it. “ Transylvania. . . University. . . in. . . uh, Lexington, Kentucky.”
“So you’re college professors?”
“That is correct.”
Right and if that’s so, I’m an astronaut. TP couldn’t envision any of the three lecturing to a roomful of somnolent students. With accents like that, they’re more apt to be spies than teachers. Or Russian Mafia, maybe?
Aloud, the boy asked, “What would you like to know?”
“The guidebook says. . . ” Here Timon reached inside his coat and produced a well-worn paperback, from the back pocket of his leather jeans. leather? He consulted a page. “. . . the marshes ran red with blood.”
“Probably did,” TP agreed. “So what’s your question?”
“Where did the blood go?” The words came out in an eager rush. “Did they use buckets to take it away? Did it soak in? Does it float to the surface on warm nights?”
TP laughed.
Again.
Timon stiffened. Even Marius and Val looked a little angry now.
The boy thought he heard a triple chorus of hisses.
“Sorry. . . It’s just that. . . Man, there’s no blood. It’s called Bloody Marsh because so many people got killed there. Nearly five hundred English and Spanish, I think. As for any blood that was spilled. . . ”
“Yes?” The word came out a little too eagerly, in a chorus from all three.
“I imagine it was washed out to sea. It certainly isn’t there now. Why, that was almost three hundred years ago!”
“A mere flick in Time, my young friend,” Marius snapped his fingers.
“You mean, there’s nothing there?” Timon appeared disappointed. More than disappointed. Distraught.
“Nothing?”
“Nothing but sand and marsh grass.” At his woebegone expression, TP felt forced to add, “Sorry.”
“Damn it!” Timon struck a fist in the air. He turned on his cousin. “I told you it was too good to be true. What are we going to do now?”
COLLAPSE
Charlayne Elizabeth Denney on Paranormal Romance Guild wrote:BUY THE EBOOK
The Clan Andriescu includes five vampire tales by the talented Tony-Paul de Vissage. Each story is an account of one adventure in the Andriescu vampire chronicles.
“Which Way to Bloody Marsh?” begins with a rebellious teenager who meets three strangers who are looking for Bloody Marsh—a place where a battle between the English and Spanish turned the marsh red with blood almost three hundred years ago. Here, we meet Valerius, Marius, and Timon Andriescu for the first time—along with the scribe who documents their life. Spooky and poignant sums this one up nicely as we get to know the three characters—the practical Marius, the laid-back Valerius, and the aggressive Timon.
“Remembrance of Death’s Past” takes us into Marius’s life. After twenty-five hundred years, Marius’s father dies, making Marius the Prince’s executioner. Vampires must follow the law or risk elimination, and Marius’s first target turns out to be a comrade who refuses to repent. Emotional turmoil will carry you through this one, keeping you planted in the story until the end.
In “Love, Vampire Style,” Valerius must find a vampire wife and settle down to continue the blood line. He’s anything but ready to be tied down by one woman—or so he wants his brother Marius to think. Valerius decides to travel to Castel Andriescu in the old country, only to find it in ruins. He also finds an intriguing woman. Unfortunately, she’s probably human—and thus off limits to Valerius as a possible mate. Romantic and captivating, this one hits the spot for those looking for a little romance.
In “Working Class Vampire,” Timon encourages his human wife to write a novel about the working class vampires, but she comes a little too close to the truth, risking exposure. Their life becomes endangered when the Prince’s executioner pays them a visit. Suspenseful and fast-paced, this one will feed the adrenaline junkie in you.
“Sometimes Love Returns” takes us back to Marius and his account of the beautiful Caitlan DuBarry, who sculpts a statue of Marius before disappearing from his life. Unable to forget her, he decides to reshow the statue in his gallery fifty years later, hoping to draw her out. Beautiful and fulfilling, this short epic romance will touch your heart—and maybe even break it a little.
Each of these short vampire tales brings intrigue and romance all in one collection. You can take pleasure in them all at once or keep The Clan Andriescu on your e-reader to pick up when you find yourself waiting for an appointment to begin. Either way, you’re sure to stay enthralled.
Review of the 1st Edition
Teresa D. on Vampire romance--That's Erotica wrote:5 Stars
Vampires living in 2013 have been able to hide from humans because of the rules kept for hundreds of years by their prince. Of course, sometimes these rules are made to be broken. The Clan Andriescu, led by Marius, tell their tales of their lives, and loves, to a young human friend, the author himself, Tony-Paul de Vissage. Marius falls in love with a human at the end of the turbulent 1960s and then finds her again, only to be rebuffed. His little brother, Valerius, finds a woman he can stand to marry, only to be told she’s not the right one. Their cousin, Timon, exiled for stealing one too many women from his prince...Cousin Timon finds out that the prince is not playing around about humans knowing what’s going on with vampires when his wife writes a novel.
Tony-Paul de Vissage is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors. Once again, he has scored high. I really wasn’t sure how the story was going to fall together with his telling the story of his meeting the Clan as well as their stories, but I was more than pleasantly surprised at how well it went together. Each story builds on the last, from Marius’ takeover of the family to Valerius’ love story that stretches between continents, to Timon’s wife’s situation with her foray into writing about vampires. Each had a poignant part and I actually felt sorry for them, having to deal with the laws of vampires.
I enjoyed them so much, I am actually hoping that Tony-Paul pulls each of them into his own book and expands on the world of the Andriescu’s and their prince. There’s so much potential coming out of this book for more and I’m thirsty!Review of 1st Edition
4 Stars
A young man, in a stage of rebellion, sneaks through his bedroom window. As he walks he comes across three men-vampires. Instead of becoming dinner he is made an offer; complete school and become their scribe so their history can be written.
The leader of the Andriescu clan is Marius. They eventually settled in America after being forced from their Transylvanian home. He is the most serious of the three. Although he has had his moments! Valerius, or Val as he is now called, is the younger brother. He is by far my favorite of the group. Timon is the cousin, and to me is the most hot-headed one. He also strikes me as a bit rebellious himself.
The young man who meets up with the clan is none other than Tony-Paul de Vissage himself. I thought it was really interesting the way he inserted himself into the story, it kind of makes the tales of the clan seem more authentic. I was totally wrapped up when we first meet Marius and gain some history of the family. Afterwards, de Vissage gives readers Val’s story. It was my favorite for the fact that it felt the most complete. I enjoyed the book, but I wish there would have been just a little more history and details in each of their stories.
Tony-Paul de Vissage gives the readers three wonderful characters and their stories of finding their happily ever after. It would have been easy to give each of them a full length book. I am curious to know everything about them. It would make me very happy to see these characters that have all of this great potential revisited in the future.
Review of 1st Edition
