Reviewed by Elizabetta

TITLE: En Memoriam

AUTHOR: Tami Veldura

PUBLISHER: self published

LENGTH: 44 pages

BLURB:  

Paul has seen Victor before, he just can’t remember where. The rush of fear in his stomach when Victor glances his way is familiar. Paul knows the slant of his smile. There’s nothing safe here, but when Victor offers to meet over coffee, Paul is swayed by this sense of knowing. Victor’s touch feels like an old lover. His hands have been here before.

Paul is sure he once learned something Victor is trying to hide. His hair stands on end whenever Victor gives him attention, like his body reacting to danger that his mind can’t recall. He’s not sure uncovering more is a good idea but he craves what Victor might give him. 

Paul wants to know why he longs for Victor’s voice. He dreams about conversations they’ve never had. He desires a darkness he’s never seen before. They met only once, but this longing is too intense. Victor is keeping secrets, Paul just can’t remember them.

Expanded from Mile High Vampire, a reader favorite flash story previously published in the collection Fanged. En Memoriam stands alone.

REVIEW: 

Wow. Most vampire erotica follows the usual suck and fuck tropes. While this can get pretty stale after a while, not all fangster reads are equal, and I would set this one apart. 

It’s kind of a mind fuck, too, as the title suggests. The author sets up an interesting dilemma based on the ‘glamour’ aspect of vampirism. You know… where the undead can manipulate their victim’s mind and memory.

Paul meets Victor, but he seems so familiar… surely they’ve met before? The two men are magnetically drawn to each other and have a series of hook ups. But Paul has fractured, selective memories of them. It’s confusing, and the reader is confused, too. So much so that you wonder what is real and what are the erotically charged fantasies that Paul indulges in whenever he thinks about Victor. And he thinks about Victor a lot. The booty calls are kinky hot; who knew fangs could be so sexy… 

“He’d never had a bite fetish like this before. He did’t like the pain but the gentle suck on his neck pulled like a slow blow job.”

This one is hard to review. It’s not conventional. While the unfolding and folding of the plot intrigues, it’s also disturbing. Because of Paul’s dilemma and Victor’s manipulation, the hook ups fall into dubious consent… “He knew this burn. He knew the stretch of Victor’s bare cock. Submit or be forced.”

Victor is no simpering, angsty vamp; he is the monster of your dreams. 

Is this a romance, or isn’t it? Does Paul get his happily-ever-after, or not? You be the judge.

What you can count on here is a creative take on the genre. And it’s amazing that it gets done in less than fifty pages. I keep returning to this author. Whether it’s sci-fi (Closer Than Touch) or pirates! (Blood in the Water) I can expect well written, twisty, engrossing storytelling. En Memoriam will stick in my memory for some time.

(Ok… I do have to mention that there are a LOT of references to coffee in this story. The guys are continually drinking it or meeting at coffee shops. Or, it’s used descriptively: “The voice purred, smooth, like a French roast.” “…the vampire laughed in his head like bright espresso.” “The sound shuddered through Paul and he savored it like a hot coffee.” I might be missing the joke here, if there is one, but this was distracting.)

RATING:  

BUY LINKS: 

Tami Veldura

Amazon

Amazon.uk

ARe