Pat Brien’s Denied is a refreshingly old-school vampire yarn that owes more to Hammer era Dracula than Meyer style teen romance (cheer or boo here as you prefer).
Brien does an admirable job of honing and reinvigorating Gothic folklore by finding ingenious and refreshing ways to reconnect disparate vampire archetypes.
Monstrous Nosferatu and brooding immortals share an intriguing new evolution and the inclusion of werewolves takes the tale to new levels of adventure, mystery and page-turning excitement.
The novel has two distinct parts, the first acting as an extended prologue, quite different in tone and location to the latter. It’s a bold structural move as readers may prefer one part of the book over the other, but Brien’s commitment, the brisk pace and engaging characters cover any cracks. A sequel is surely essential.
