Genevieve Undead Warhammer Horror Book Review

This is the second book of the chronicles of The Vampire Genevieve, and is actually composed of three independent short stories only loosely tied together.  I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did Drachenfels.  The three short stories just don’t develop to the same scope as Yeovil’s first Warhammer novel.  Nevertheless, this book is very enjoyable and won’t disappoint Warhammer fans who’re looking for something a bit darker than you get from most fantasy books.  Many of the scenes here are downright disturbing.


The fist story, Stage Blood, is highly similar to the novel Drachenfels, with many of the same characters (including Deitlef Seirk) and having a theatre theme.  Drachenfel’s mask retains its creator hatred for the heroes and sets out to do them in.  The danger is not as potent as in the first novel, but the characters are just as realistic and likable.  An unlikely hero emerges in the form of a chaos-altered (but kind-hearted) mutant.


The second story reads like a mystery/horror, with Genevieve becoming lost in some kind of bizarre dream-like haunted house where murders occur regularly but without long term effect.  Some of the most disturbing and graphic scenes of any novel I’ve ever read are found in this story.  I liked it a lot, but it was fairly anticlimactic.


The final story, Unicorn Ivory, is my least favorite.  Here Yeovil introduces some deeply disturbed individuals with some rather strange behaviours (like hunting real people) and impulses.  Genevieve has been blackmailed into murdering Graf Rudiger, but she needs to find out more about his before she is willing to.  Hunters are sort of made out to be a bit evil in this one, killing unicorns just for the sake of the kill.  It is only a so-so story in my book.


Overall, this novel is mildly disappointing, not having much depth and not really contributing too much to Genevieve’s character or the greater story of her finding purpose in life.