I must confess to a strong subjective bias with this book. It is the most recent of the books my husband and I have read to one another, so my love of our bonding and tradition may have transferred onto the story.

Regardless, its lovely prose contributed to an atmosphere which was dark and mysterious in an elegant old-fashioned way. The meticulously researched history and rich description gave it a sense of reality despite it existing in the vampire genre. One could almost believe.

The love story I could have lived without, but it was tolerable and only caused eye-rolling two or three times.