On the Soul of a Vampire (On the Soul series) [Kindle Edition]

On the Soul of a Vampire is an impressive debut novel for such a young author; one can almost believe that she was born in her main characters' time period and knows them and their surroundings intimately. That's the depth of writing and characterization that author Krisi Keley manages to convey in this intriguing work.

In Keley's Amazon description, she says: "For some it takes a lifetime to discover their raison d'être. Imagine searching for eight centuries. In 1997 Philadelphia, 800-year-old vampire Valéry Castellane comes face to face with his reason to be, in the person of Angelina Lacroix, a young mortal woman whose understanding of immortality is about to change all he's known as truth and which will take him and his readers on a journey into the human soul..."

This book gripped me from the beginning as Keley describes in a unique, archaic prose how Valery discovers Angelina, stalks her and finally confronts her...and Keley does it in the Vampire Valery's voice, never faltering with her word choices throughout. What a lilting, poetic accomplishment!

I have read many vampire books--from teens lusting after vamps to the original "vamp in bat form visiting the lovely damsel in the dark of night"--but none has impressed me like this one. Those others were rather "campy" and read for entertainment, while this one is unique and definitely food for thought.

In On the Soul of a Vampire, Valery is stunned that a mortal girl knows all about him and he becomes obsessed with learning more about her and how she acquired her knowledge of centuries-old happenings. Through a series of guarded questions and even more guarded answers that continue throughout the book, the reader learns some of the secrets at the same time Valery does.

From their first meeting, Valery desires Angelina more than he's ever desired anyone or anything, and it's obvious she has "loved" him all her life. At first he thinks he'll turn her into a vampire and/or kill her as he has so many others, but soon learns he can't harm her in any way. Valery is frustrated by sensing that he will never be able to...

Angelina does not fear him at all, which further mystifies this complex vampire. She makes it clear that Valery is her life purpose and her trust in him is boundless.

Angelina is such a mystery to him that he has to confide in someone, so goes to his long-time friend, a vampire that he had "turned" and lived to regret it. Valery has "good" and "bad" vampire friends and foes who plan to destroy Angelina for various reasons.

What follows are theological discussions and visions that delve into the souls of the vampires and the humans, their relationship with God and their deepest desires.

Just who is Angelina? What's her connection to Valery and why is she focused on him? How does she know all about vampires and their ancient history? Why can't any of them harm her? And who is the lovely lady (an apparition?) in a corner of Valery's childhood bedroom as his mother ministers to him when he's deathly ill? How does the lady help him then? And does she figure in his current situation?

But most important, what is the internal battle waging inside all these mortals and vampires?

Author Keley answers most of those questions brilliantly in the first book of this series and is currently working on books two and three. She's always been intrigued with supernatural, paranormal and horror fiction and how these myths try to answer humankind's questions about the spiritual, good vs. evil and the nature of man. So expect more new theories about both vampires and the human soul from this well-educated writer and artist who has a degree in Theology and education in foreign and classical languages.

I eagerly anticipate learning more about vampires from Keley's next books. I heartily recommend this intriguing book, even if it did make me think deeper than I normally wish to. In fact, if there's one shortcoming in the book, it's that Angelina and Valery tend to dance around each other when answering questions, taking longer than I think necessary before giving a satisfactory answer...but that's their polite, cautious way and fits the characters' backgrounds and intentions... The fault is mine, not the author's.

Reviewed by Betty Dravis, September 21, 2010
Author of "Dream Reachers" (with Chase Von) and other books

Vampires have a large hold on our collective imagination. The teeth, the haunted eyes, the seeming melancholy, the erudition, the charisma, the sophistication (Vampires all went to a university somewhere). Vampires all seem to belong to an archaic upper class- the formal language, the formal courtesy. No vampire worth his salt would talk like a slangy American so our vampire hero, the wealthy Valery from Philadelphia, dresses suavely, speaks in cadences, and long, long ago he was an aristocrat who lived in a castle. We like our vampires in the Balkans somewhere. Our hero comes from provincial France, good enough. He's beautiful, too, but is a vampire little more than a serial killer and can a vampire have a soul?

There are two principal players among many others on this stage: Valery, the Vampire, and Angelina, the clairvoyant girl who somehow sensed the presence of Valery from the day of her birth, are the protagonists. And they share the same birthday. She's a total enigma, but perhaps she could be said to be Valery's alter ego and represents all that is good in humanity. She represents goodness and light, light wrapped around darkness. Does Valery, then represent evil? He represents, rather, human fraility, darkness wrapped around light. Even though he is no longer human, but immortal, he has retained very human doubts and emotions. For 800 years he has been struggling to discover his raison d'etre but until he meets Angelina and together they journey into his past, he is as clueless as any human as to why he exists at all.

At the beginning of her book, author Keley quotes from G.K. Chesterton, and to understand the complicated vampire personalities in this novel this quotation has to be kept in mind because we are dealing here with creatures who are killers. Can we love them? Or perhaps even more importantly, can we forgive them?

Love means to love that which is unlovable
Or it is no virtue at all

Forgiving means to pardon that which is unpardonable
Or it is no virtue at all

This is the difficulty of this charming book. Can we look on Valery as a sort of Byronic hero, narcissistic, introspective, wounded by fate, extremely self-absorbed? Or is he simply a not very appealing anti-hero who kills without repentance? I think we have to favor the Byronic hero similarity otherwise Valery comes across rather like a serial killer. He has a certain nobility, a certain specialness, a certain flair but he is the darkness wrapped around light. He is rather like the introspective Heathcliff, perhaps, but Heathcliff was seldom charming,and Valery often is. But let us get back to the story.

"On the soul of a vampire" isn't really a story of redemption because Valery continues to kill without provocation. You could say once a vampire always a vampire and that vampire is going to act like a villain because he is programmed that way, programmed to kill. And it may be because he is programmed to kill that Valery can't help himself.

I asked author Keley for her take on the subject of Valery's murders and she made this reply:

"I thought the flashbacks and how many times he says and shows he's disgusted by being a killer would make it apparent that he is sorry for what he does, but he keeps doing it anyway, the same way many human beings keep doing something they know is wrong because they are getting something out of it too pleasurable or too addictive or too something to give it up. And of course, in Valery's case, his choice is to continue with this ultimate in experiences or basically commit a long and slow suicide by starvation of sorts..."

All of the characters in the book are extremely deep thinkers and philosophical and theological discussions will wrench you in one direction then another. Flashbacks into the past (Valery was the only child to survive the Children's Crusade of 1212) are interesting and well done but always, whether in the present or in the past, passions run very deep. You can almost say the characters are mowed down by them, and you the reader are mowed down, too.

Can a vampire have a soul? You bet!

Love the unlovable, forgive the unforgivable... this novel has the distinct and original voice of a fine new writer. Keep your eye on Krisi Keley as you will be hearing from her again- her first novel is the first of a trilogy and paves the way for some great writing in the future.

Although I am not a big reader of the "Vampire Romance" genre, several of my friends are. In the words of one of them- "Oh, they're like eating cotton candy- light, sweet, and just plain fun!". Nothing wrong with that, I enjoy some books just for fun, not everything can be or should be great literature.

This book is more like fine French cuisine than cotton candy, however. There are deep philosophical and even theological underpinnings and meanings here.

Not that there's not romance- there is. Valery (our 800yo French Vampire) is passionate about Angelina, and passions burn hot and deep throughout this book. There are some pretty steamy "love scenes" too, but this is not a "bodice ripper romance". The feelings of the characters in this book are well portrayed.

Not that there's not Vampires- there are. Besides Valery, there are also two other vampires heavily involved here. I like the author's take on vampires in this book- they are neither sparkly superhumans, nor foul undead beasts. Valery is the only survivor of the tragedy known as the "Children's Crusade" and some interesting historical flashbacks are thrown in.

Our heroine is Angelina, a young enigma, and the love interest here. She- alone of all the mortals- can sense Valery and his kin. The relationship between her and Valery is intense, passionate, and surprising. Who is she? Why does she have this connection to Valery? The answers (most of them, anyway) await you.

All the main protagonists speak in an interesting and well done cadence, as if they are speaking English as a Second Language... and a 800 yo dialect of French as their primary. I loved the way they talked- the rhythm, the lilt of their almost poetical speech.

Have you ever wondered if a vampire can truly love, has a conscience, or most importantly- a soul? Can such a monster, such a killer, be redeemed? This book explores those subjects, and perhaps you'll find the answers within. I think you should explore the pages, and think about the meanings and ideas- while enjoying the passions and prose.

I think this is a very well done book for a first time author. Yes, it lacks the polish one would expect from a established author. Also, clearly- "to know Valery is to love him", and the author knows him the best. However, we can't know him as the author can, and sometimes he comes across as rather unsympathetic at times. But it's an interesting take, and it's hard to categorize. Look at my tags- "Christian Fiction" and "Vampire Romance"- not too many books fit both. I am looking forward to her next book, if she improves as she should it will be a great read.

This is Krisi Keley's first book. She has a degree in Theology from DeSales University and has studied French for eleven years. Both show here. The book is liberally sprinkled with French phrases (all nicely translated) and has some scholarly notes on the language.

Note that I rcvd a copy for review.