Stephen King puts the bite back in vampires with the creation of a more robust American breed.
Do you have a hankering for a vampire tale, but are worried that vampires have lost their bite? Who, in this current climate of hunky teen vamps, can transform them back into the monsters of old?
Why, Stephen King, of course.
“American Vampire” is the tale of ruthless outlaw Skinner Sweet, who in 1880 becomes the first “American” vampire – the first vampire created on American soil. Now this is a totally new breed of vampire, able to walk in daylight and impervious to wooden stakes and silver. This frustrates the old-breed vampires from Europe, who are in the United States getting rich off our expanding country.
King and Snyder offer alternate chapters, Snyder writing Skinner’s tale in 1920s Hollywood and King providing Skinner’s origins in 1880 Colorado.
King's chapters portray a vicious, despicable murderer, who eliminates not only his enemies but his enemies’ loved ones. Skinner becomes even more monstrous as a vampire, destroying any man or vampire who crosses him. The 1920s chapters tell the tale of Skinner creating a new American vampire, a wannabe starlet, Pearl Jones. Pearl is left for dead by vampires running a movie studio. (Yes, where else can Euro vamps find eager young women and lure them to their casting couch... er... coffin?) Skinner transforms Pearl and then sets her on a path of revenge. Does he do this out of pity for her or just to vex his vampire enemies? I’d wager the latter.