BiblioJunkies' Shel on Triumph of Death: modern day Hardy Boys with high tech gadgets and vampires

We have a great new review of THE TRIUMPH OF DEATH from our old friends at Bibliojunkies. Shel writes:

This third installment of ALEX VAN HELSING has Alex and a mysterious new friend, Astrid, trying to stop the “Triumph of Death” a spell which would create darkness and allow vampires to essentially take over the world...
...
As with the rest of the series, The Triumph of Death was fast-paced action-adventure and completely irresistible.  Alex is such a lovable character and the world created by Henderson is so much fun.  Probably the most mature 14 year old I can think of Alex's adventures are great for all ages.  I've recommended this series to people from age 6 to adults in their 50s and 60s.  Whenever I recommend the AVH series to someone, I tell them to think of modern day Hardy Boys with high tech gadgets and vampires.
I know the book description says that this is the final installment in the series, but I really hope that isn’t so.  I would hate to say goodbye to Alex and friends!   I have been thinking all day that I cannot be the only person who thinks AVH would make a great movie or tv series...

Hardy Boys. See that? It's like she read my mind. That's what I really want to do here, adventure stories like I used to read. Personally, I love wide-open series like REACHER and Cornwell's Kay Scarpetta, and that was what I've tried to emulate-- a world where instead of one epic story for the characters, you have a set of characters who conceivably can go on forever.

Ms. Yingling loves Alex Van Helsing: Triumph of Death

Head on over to Ms. Yingling Reads, a blog focused on books for middle school readers (especially boys) for a new review of Alex Van Helsing: The Triumph of Death!

John Wilson said it best: things have to blow up in the first chapter, and Mr. Henderson never forgets this. So many strengths in his writing-- good action, lots of travel to exotic places, a tiny bit of romance, good friends, supportive but not intrusive adults, and in this case, a fairly thought provoking mystery. Excellent stuff. This series is a must have for my middle schoolers who love the Cirque du Freak series.

Check out the rest!

Kristi Bernard on Voice of the Undead: Excellent!

Awesome new review of Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead! Check out Kristi Bernard's blog for her review:

ith the help of Sangster, his mentor and the Polidoruim, Alex must stop Ultravox, a leader of the Scholomance with a deadly viral voice....
This novel is the second installment of a series written by Jason Henderson. This is an excellent book for all teens but especially boys. It has monsters and excitement to keep them turning the pages and wanting more. If you missed Vampire Rising, you can still follow along with Voice of the Undead, each book can stand all on its own.

Check out the rest!

Girls in the Stacks: Voice of the Undead

Another neat review, this one from Girls in the Stacks reviewer Nancy Tuuling!

my take: Alex Van Helsing returns with a book full of action, villianous vampires, and budding teen romance! We enjoyed the first book in this series (see Vampire Rising review here) and I enjoyed this second book even more.

Nancy even keys in on my New Wave obsession, which creeps into the book:

I have to mention one of my favorite lines – when Alex asks “Who is Ultravox?”, Sangster said, “Well, for one thing it’s the name of a New Wave band.” “What’s New Wave?” Ahhh, Sangster – your young padawan needs some musical instruction. That, or vampires need to find names that don’t make the adults reading hum “Vienna” in their heads. Oh, wait, isn’t that the girl’s name with the green scarf? Hmmmm… Oh, Jason, you punny man.

Yes. Yes it is, Nancy... and here's my favorite Ultravox song (but not the only one that influenced Voice of the Undead) "Vienna."

Associated Press/ABC News on Alex Van Helsing: "Tapping Into the Market of Books for YA Boys"

A great notice on Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead turned up from the Associated Press on ABC's website:

In "Voice of the Undead," Alex attends school during the day and spends his nights searching Lake Geneva for the magic-protected Scholomance, an ancient vampire school. During one of these missions, he burns down Glenarvon Academy, which is forced to relocate to an all-girls academy down the road.

Summer Moore, AP

Meanwhile, the Polidorium want Alex to track down a vampire named Ultravox.


The Alex Van Helsing series is tapping into the market of books for young adult boys, and does so successfully. The novels are engaging and suspenseful, without relying on a central love story.

Check out the rest! And thank you so much AP writer Summer Moore!

@Bibliojunkies: 4.5 Stars to Voice of the Undead

Awesome Bibliojunkies review of Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead from blogger Shel:

My love of the Alex Van Helsing books is pretty well documented and that love continues. This book is fast-paced and fun. I enjoy the way the author illustrates Alex’s thought process when facing stressful situations. I also enjoy that while Alex is extraordinary in many ways, we also see how in many ways, Alex is a typical 14 year old. It was reminiscent of reading The Hardy Boys, except with vampires and cooler gadgets! All in all, I say 4.5 stars and I cannot wait for Alex No. 3! I also cannot wait until my 4 year old nephew is old enough to read Alex. Please tell me it is coming soon!

Read the rest!

Thanks Shel! First off, Alex Van Helsing: The Triumph of Death is coming next Summer. I've even got a draft finished already.

But thank you for kindly comparing Alex Van Helsing to the Hardy Boys-- that's absolutely my goal, to create a new boys' adventure series that can last a long time and mean something important to new readers. Thanks for making my day!

Ms. Yingling loves Voice of the Undead:"textbook example of how to write for the Adrenaline rush"

The fantastic Ms. Yingling blog weighs in on Voice of the Undead:

I liked Vampire Rising so much that I nominated it for the Cybils Awards.The second book is a textbook example of how to write for the Adrenaline rush: Alex is chased by two cars, has blood sucking leeches thrown at him by Elle, is attacked by the leeches again in his dorm room, and then the dorm catches on fire. That's just the first two chapters! The boys from Glenarvon have to move in with the girls at LaLaurie school until repairs are made.

Check out the rest-- but warning: SPOILERS!

Thanks Ms. Yingling!

SciFiChick review: Alex Van Helsing series "completely engaging, exceptional"

SciFiChick turns in a new review of Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead and loves it!

As the complex story unfolds, the intensity increases. Fast-paced and action-packed, this sequel is completely engaging. There are plenty of surprises and twists leading to a climactic and dramatic ending. A few mysteries still linger that will leave readers wanting more. Full of mystery, adventure, and teenage angst, this fantasy series for young adults is exceptional.

Thank you, SciFiChick!

Examiner 4-Star Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead Review (Countdown Minus 18)

With Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead coming out on July 26, I'm counting down 60 cool vampire things. Today:
Examiner gives Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead 4 Stars


Caitlin Stanford, in an Examiner review that's been a zillion times from the India Times to the Chicago Hello, weighs in on Voice of the Undead:

Caitlin Stanford

Alex Van Helsing, 14-year-old Polidorium agent-in-training and descendent of Abraham Van Helsing of Dracula, returns in Jason Henderson’s new book, Voice of the Undead.

Suspicious things are afoot at Glenarvon Academy in Geneva, and as usual, Alex Van Helsing is in the thick of them. Continually harassed by the vampire Elle, a name readers will recognize from the first book, Alex gets into deeper trouble when a new villain, Ultravox, arrives at the Scholomance.
...
Voice of the Undead has a few new characters for the readers to love, including Ultravox, as well as old friends like Sid, Paul, Minhi, and Mr. Sangster. There are also still plenty of cool techno-gadgets and weapons to go around, not to mention motorcycles, WaveRunners, yachts, and, of course, wooden stakes.

Alex’s character continues to grow in Voice of the Undead, and soon he is learning more and more about himself and his family. He’s still very relatable and very funny, and fans will enjoy learning more about him.

Continue reading on Examiner.com: Review of Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead - Dallas young adult literature |

Thanks Caitlin!

1897 Reviews of Bram Stoker's Dracula (Voice of the Undead Countdown Minus 23)

With Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead coming out on July 26, I'm counting down 60 cool vampire things. Today:

Contemporary reviews of Bram Stoker's Dracula.
This is fantastic reading-- a collection of reviews of Dracula from the period of the books' release.

Here, then, is the Daily Mail:

By ten o’clock the story had so fastened itself upon our attention that we could not pause even to light our pipe. At midnight the narrative had fairly got upon our nerves; a creepy terror had seized upon us, and when at length, in the early hours of the morning, we went upstairs to bed it was with the anticipation of nightmare. We listened anxiously for the sound of bats’ wings against the window; we even felt at our throat in dread least an actual vampire should have left there the two ghastly punctures which in Mr Stoker’s book attested to the hellish operations of Dracula.

Here, from the Spectator:

Mr. Bram Stoker gives us the impression — we may be doing him an injustice — of having deliberately laid himself out in Dracula to eclipse all previous efforts in the domain of the horrible, — to “go one better” than Wilkie Collins (whose method of narration he has closely followed), Sheridan Le Fanu, and all the other professors of the flesh-creeping school.

Great reading for any Dracula fanatic, check them out here.

Pacer Review: Voice of the Undead Countdown Minus 39

With Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead coming out on July 26, I'm counting down 60 cool vampire things. Today:
Newcastle Pacer Reviews Alex Van Helsing Series
Check it out-- Darla Welchel took the time to review the first two books in the Alex Van Helsing series, including the upcoming Voice of the Undead:

Henderson's follow-up novel to Vampire Rising, Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead, due to be released July 26, 2011, takes our young hero into greater dangers as his work with the secret society of vampire hunters continues.

The book begins with a nail-biting motorcycle chase and of course, more vampires. Van Helsing soon uncovers a plot to turn Glenarvon's sister school and its students into mindless killing machines. And he also realizes that one mad vamp chick has a personal vendetta against him.

Armed with an arsenal of cool toys that would have James Bond envious, Alex takes on the bad guys and gals with fangs and attempts to save the world once again, this time, from a truly vile vamp called Ultravox.

Written with young readers in mind, the Alex Van Helsing series is written with more action and less clever dialogue, but still the story held my attention. The hero will appeal to young boys, so if you have one who is a reluctant reader, these books might just be the ticket to draw him into the world of literature.

Although the target audience is young males, I believe girls will enjoy the tough vamp-kicking girls in the books as well. Plus there is just enough budding teen romance to entice young girls - nothing as steamy as Twilight.

Check out the rest here!

4-Star Review of Voice of the Undead: Countdown Minus 48

With Alex Van Helsing: Voice of the Undead coming out on July 26, I'm counting down 60 cool vampire things. Today:
I Live, I Laugh, I Love Books reviewed Voice of the Undead!
Okay, can I just say that the first reviews you get of a new book, especially before it comes out, are terrifying. After all, the book is going from zero reviews to now one, now two-- so think of the weight of a bad review that represents 50% of the available reviews. But anyway, Lucia of Houston (Clear Lake, one of my own high schools!) actually liked Voice of the Undead, and I was thrilled to see how much:

Once again, Jason Henderson does not disappoint with this clean young adult adventure fit for paranormal fans of any age. This title was even better than the first, with an even scarier villain and much higher stakes. New characters are introduced, and several play bigger roles in this one. There's a bigger mystery element in Voice of the Undead, and some characters take a turn for the evil as time goes on.... It was exciting, and I couldn't stop reading until the very last page.

You can read Lucia's fantastic review for which I'm so grateful-- and yes, relieved-- here.

Thanks Lucia!

More Authors and Bloggers Freaking Out about One Another

Bookalicious Pam has a cool post today on another recent instance where a blogger writers a negative review and the author lashes out in a less than professional way.

Read and enjoy. But oy, sometimes I wish we could have a big roundtable and discuss all this stuff-- I get the sense that several years in, we're still figuring out the edges of this new world of book blogging. We have writers who desperately want to control the message and bloggers who don't quite grasp that the writers are always just a click away, just virtually right at the next desk.

You want to know what happens to cause the writer above to act the way this one in the blog story did? I've seen it before in writers and artists. They read a comment and a million things go through their heads: oh my god! What if someone out there were to read only one review, and this one is it? This one! And they lash out. Writers: seriously try not to do this.

Writers overreact because we perceive that web buzz about our books is important. And it is. We can't claim that reviews online don't matter when we know that seeing positive reviews makes a reader judge your book more positively, and a reader thinking of buying your book may be dissuaded by a negative review. Either social networking matters or it doesn't, and it does.

So if blogs matter, the negative reviews matter. I would hope that I personally would never freak out and say nasty things to a blogger, but what I and the author in question have in common is both of us are looking at a portfolio of reviews and we value bloggers very highly.

For what it's worth? I don't write negative reviews myself anymore; there's plenty to read out there, so if I don't like something I move on. But I'm a writer; your mileage may vary.

Rewrites and Which Reviews Matter (all of them, but in different ways)

Alex Van Helsing #3 (title TBD, though I think I have it figured out) is into its next stage: rewrites of the rough draft. There to the right you can see my printout, which I let stew for a few weeks and am now going through making changes great and small. This is once again taking up the bulk of my time, and the next draft is due in to the publishers on March 1.

Meanwhile, I read some interesting blog posts on book reviews here and here. Mainly the gist is this: authors sometimes receive bad reviews, and reviewers are uncomfortable with authors taking offense.
Here's my take on reviews: reviewers and authors have different goals. Reviewers want to tell the truth about what they think; they want to be good reviewers. Authors want to sell books. They want to be good authors, but at the review stage, they want to sell books, because to sell books means to be able to publish more books. So a bad review isn't troublesome because we feel hurt-- some of us may, but really, who cares? A bad review is troublesome because we are in the business of selling books, and bad reviews don't help. Send us a good review and we can do so much with it-- we can be thrilled, sure, but more importantly we can link it, share it, send it, post it, anything at all to help sell more books. Send us a bad review and what can we do with it? Nothing.
You can't even respond, even if the review makes a mistake. Oh, on a social networking level you can: if a poster asks on a website "why on earth did the author set this book in Vermont?" it seems to me the author can answer. After all, it's a question, and the author knows the answer. Now, what I just said is in itself controversial. Some authors say no response is the rule. I disagree. We live in the age of Facebook. The writer is expected to be in a conversation with the reader. So converse! I would love to see Dean Koontz wade into a long discussion of his own books. Not that he has time, but isn't that what a platform is for? Doesn't a relationship go both ways?
But a point for point disagreement with a review is verboten, and the big reviews, the Publishers Weeklies of the world, are not identified by name anyway. The reviews there are anonymous. Those you just read and hope for the best.
A writer must not take his best reviews too much to heart. They can make us feel better in the long dark nights, but we have to remember, that's ego. The negative reviews have just as much right to our soul, if we allow any. But from a business side? Any writer will say: good ones help; send more.


If you're wondering, yes, I read my bad reviews and good reviews alike. I use the good reviews and I take the bad reviews under advisement in case there's a recurrent theme that's helpful. Most of us writers do.

Review: Infected: Prey by Andrea Speed

Andrea Speed's Infected: Prey is a hard-boiled detective book with were-cats. It's very, wonderfully traditional in the detective-book sense, in that the lead, Roan McKichan, is a cynical ex-cop who will follow the clues wherever they lead, no matter what seediness he uncovers. Like most such detectives, Roan has the right to move through all worlds, from the cop world he used to inhabit, to the tony neighborhood where his new, wealthy clients yearn for the return of their missing son, to the dance clubs where most of the son's friends hang out. So it's a detective story-- the romance stems from a committed relationship Roan is in already. And oh yeah, Speed's world features a community (they don't like the word) of people who can change into cats. Oh, and oh yeah, Roan and partner Paris are gay. The book takes their relationship, and the various tensions and feelings of inadequacy between tough, jaded Roan and beautiful, funny Paris, seriously. But this is a detective book, not a romance, so if you're looking for erotica, this is not your book.

Andrea Speed's world of cat-people is riveting and full of detail. There are a couple of kinds of "Infected"-- those who are born with the cat virus, and those who catch it. The transformation of man into tiger, lion, or cougar is painful and wrenching, and some of Speed's best writing comes in the passages where Roan has to lock up his partner Paris so that Paris can spend an hour painfully changing, and then remain locked up. These are beautiful, heartfelt passages, and Speed is good at capturing the sensitivity in Roan, outwardly a constant wisenheimer. Speed has built her world out with all the rules it needs, down to laws to keep the Infected in check (they *have* to lock themselves up) to wacko churches that cater to teens who want to become infected. Neat stuff.

Infected: Prey as collected in paperback is actually two Perry-Mason-length novellas, which is nice, because you can read a whole story and then move the the next one. As I look at my shelf, the true hard-boiled detective stories, your Saints and Hammers and Marlowes, were thin and efficient volumes, and would have stayed that way if not for the dawn of enormous Patricia Cornwell-style mega-thrillers. Stories like this that focus on a private eye and the cast of characters that surround him fit the novella length perfectly and also fit perfectly into the rhythms of TV drama series, which INFECTED could easily be.

I enjoyed entering this world and can't wait to read more of it.

Review: The Vampire Book, Third Edition

The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead is one of the most valuable books I use in the prep work I do. I've been using it for years-- the version I just got is the third edition, making this the second time that I'll be donating a dog-eared previous edition to the Outreach Center. (Note: I don't bother selling used books. I donate them. Goodwill, Outreach, Library, whatever. At the end the year you can write off some amount, and it's not as tiresome as waiting on a small sum in trade at the Half Price Books. Just donate them.)
The Vampire Book is over 800 pages of articles on all things related to vampires in folklore, pop art, history and culture. There are articles on everything from Dracula, the book, to Dracula, the 1979 movie, to Chelsea Quinn Yarbro and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, to Twilight, with an individual article on Isabella Marie Swan.

Isabella gets her own article in the Third Edition. 

I use this encyclopedia as a survey book to guide me to other sources because it's the most definitive and broad reference-- and certainly the most up to date-- that I know of. If you're looking for a massive brick of a book as a stocking stuffer for a vampire fan friend, The Vampire Book is the way to go.

Commonsense Media on Alex Van Helsing: Vampire Rising

Commonsense Media is a site that will be mystifying to anyone without kids: they take books, movies, games, whatever, and essentially give a factual rundown of what happens in the work with an imaginary parent in mind.

I'll bet your mileage will vary on this site if you have a favorite, violence-strewn YA book, but I like that the site doesn't judge so much as record. They just put up a report on Alex Van Helsing that was actually a lot of fun for me to read:

Parents need to know that this action-packed vampire story has more violence and much less romance than the first book in the Twilight series. It also has more humor! The first two thirds of the story focus on the friendships between Alex and three new friends, the boarding school experience and Alex's discovery about his parents, his powers and the literary history of vampires. The final third veers into more traditional vampire storytelling, with blood drinking, holy water and death by staking. Despite several murders, the blood and gore level is not overdone.

It's strange to read your own work being analyzed this way, with little graphs and grades for curse words used (some) and whether or not any alcohol is consumed (no.) You can check it out here.

Alex Van Helsing "James Bond Meets Buffy"

Reading on the Dark Side weighed in with a nice look at Alex Van Helsing: Vampire Rising::

Alex Van Helsing is definitely a Young Adult book, which is not a bad thing. I can really imagine that readers around the same age as the protagonist (especially the male ones) will really enjoy this book.
What really appealed to me were all the literary references throughout the book: Jason Henderson ties his vampires to Lord Byron (yes, THE Lord Byron), Dracula, Frankenstein and adds a literary nod to zombies and you get a James Bond meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer for Young Adults, even though older readers might prefer another kind of book. 

I really appreciate this because it brings up an interesting question. Do you have to be younger to gravitate towards a story that's much heavier on adventure then relationships? I think that well describes the rockem-sockem world of Alex Van Helsing, who is 14 when we find him in his book series. They are action-adventure first, though the cross-relationship complications will grow as the series progresses (certainly there's more in Book 2.)

I'm really thankful for these reviews, by the way, especially when they're coming from around the world-- Dark Side, for instance, appears to be in Germany. I'm especially thankful because this book has been out since May, so we're in a quiet period until the launch of Book 2 in July.

Ice Princess: Alex Van Helsing

Great review of Alex Van Helsing: Vampire Rising from Koorihime-sama, the Ice Princess:


Unlike most young adult (and adult) books I read, this book actually has details of events, scenery/places, characters, etc. I felt more engaged in this book than in most books I read. The characters feel realistic, and the action/suspense is something to look forward to.
Also, something even more interesting, the author ties-in not only Bram Stoker’s Dracula, but Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein as well. Why is that interesting? Because I have never seen any other vampire book tie in another horror book, and use some of the writings in it as well as use Dracula as clues for vampires and the history behind it.
Now, shoo, go read it.
You can read the rest of the review here.

AN IMAGINARY EXERCISE
Incidentally, I totally can't comment on whether I use more or less detail than other books. But this opinion does make me think of what would be a fun exercise: imagine asking ask six or seven authors to write the same minor scene-- Lead Character parks her car at the airport and has to get to her gate, and while she's going through security she gets an important cell phone call but has to hang up her phone, losing the end of the conversation.

I can imagine many ways of writing the scene, with more description or less, lots of dialog:

                    "I gotta cut this short," Ronnie said.
                     "Did you stop by the courthouse?" Marcus asked.
                     "Yes, and I need to get off; is there anything else?"
...  or narrated dialog:
                         The second conversation was short-- Ronnie let Marcus know she'd already visited the courthouse and there wasn't anything else to say.
... and I can imagine the scene with almost no description and with a lot. I do know too much is too much. But also coming into play-- probably more so than description--- will  be rhythm and pacing.

More to come on that. Thanks for the review, Ice Princess!

Awesome Alex Van Helsing review at Blogcritics.org

Mel Odom, who has written more books than seems possible for one human not named Patterson, turns in a review of Alex Van Helsing that keys in on the literary angle:

Interestingly enough, Henderson not only ties the vampire legend to Dracula, but also to Frankenstein, and he’s set the series near Lake Geneva, where Mary Shelley first wrote the famous short story that would later become a book that will live on in the annals of horror – oh yeah, literature, too.
The literary history captivated me. The story of that weekend where Mary Shelley (then 18 years old), Lord Byron, John Polidori, and Percy Shelley has been mined by several writers, but this is a new twist. The two literary histories, vampirism and Frankenstein, are inextricably bound in this book, and it looks like that’s going to be a staple of the series.

Read the rest at http://blogcritics.org/books/article/book-review-alex-van-helsing-vampire/#ixzz0sG2IYtrI