Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires) Review
Shallow confession time: I almost didn't read Glass Houses because I was put off by the cover. I'm just far enough out of the age demographic to find goth characters pretty offputting. But I'd heard so many good things about Rachel Caine's Morganville Vampire books, I had to give it a try. I'm glad I didn't judge the book by it's proverbial cover, because I would have missed an introduction to one of the most intriguing paranormal YA series I've encountered in a long time.
The vampires in Morganville don't sparkle. They aren't romanticized or crush-worthy. They're superior, hard-core killers that run the town of Morganville and offer lucky residents Protection for their fealty and a monthly, required blood donation. College students like 16-year-old prodigy Claire aren't so lucky. The transient population in town has a way of disappearing, and lots of people turn their heads when they do.
This is bad news for Claire, who made a powerful enemy in the dorms. She feels her life is at risk, and begins a desperate search for a new place to live after the threat turns physical. Claire stumbles upon the opportunity of a lifetime when she answers a roommate ad for the Glass House, a spooky old gothic mansion on the outskirts of campus. Not only is it a safe, spacious property full of mysterious rooms and a strange energy, her new roommates (goth Eve, sarcastic jock Shane and mysterious day-sleeping musician, Michael) offer her a chance for friends and a real home. Unfortunately, life away from the house isn't so safe for a young girl without a bracelet to signify Protection, and Claire finds herself the target of vampires with a grudge. After one of her roommates saves her life, Claire makes a deal with the enemy, goes on a search for an ancient and coveted vampire relic, and discovers that there are more secrets in Morganville than she ever imagined.
I haven't read any of Caine's adult novels, like her popular Weather Warden series, but I'm eager to do so after this introduction. Her characters are likeable and well-written. The dialogue is witty and believable, and the dynamic of the four Scooby-esque roomies reminded me of Buffy the Vampire Slayer -- in a good way. The whole thing was well-written and humorous, without sacrificing the horror elements that are the cornerstone of the vampire novel genre. And it's kind of refreshing to read a book with scary vampires again, to be frank.
Glass Houses introduced an ambitious amount of plot for a first book in a series, and the cliff hanger ending was really annoying. But overall, I really enjoyed the book. I will seek out Dead Girls Dance, the next book in the series, as soon as I can.
Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires) Overview
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Customer Reviews
A Vampire Series with Bite (pun intended) - J. Meegan - Silicon Valley, CA
Glass Houses, the first of the Morganville Vampire books, does an excellent job of drawing the reader in and establishing sympathy for the main character right off the bat. I like how it isn't terribly clear who the possible romantic lead will be until halfway through the book....and the character relationships seem to unfold in a "natural" way without rushing or forcing things too quickly. I also really enjoyed how the lines between good and bad blur a lot, even sometimes with regards to the main characters. And the world-building that goes on within this story is quite elaborate and detailed, something I always look for in a fantasy/sci-fi-type book.
Claire, the main character, is a great "every girl" who the reader can quickly identify with. We rarely, if ever, get a sense of her appearance other than the most superficial details (what color are her eyes? hair? etc)which allows the reader to "plug and play" right off the bat. The banter between the male leads and the collective roommates is truly a wonder to behold...I'm going to guess the author either has sons of her own, brothers, or spent some time teaching high school/college-aged kids. The guys really act like guys...no cheesy lines and unrealistic flowery, sappy declarations. And the bad girl, Monica, is a mean-girl on steroids. Claire can sometimes come across as too-good-to-be-true in the choices she makes (considering she's the youngest character in the book) but at least she's a strong role model which is more than I can say about other female leads I've come across in the genre.
Overall, this is an entertaining read and the series is worth delving into. Of the MANY teen series books out there, this series rises to the top of the heap as a stellar-example of "how to do a teen urban fantasy series without screwing it up". Not all the books in the series are flawless, and this book has its little moments as well, but I think overall...the collective series manages to continue the plot and develop the characters in believable ways (as believable as one might expect in a book about vampires, of course) without losing sight of the details that keep the story cohesive and closely linked together.
Trisha's Book Blog Review - Trisha's Book Blog "Trisha" - USA
I loved this book, I read it all in one day, and actually stayed up late into the night finishing it.
I really liked the character of Claire, she is a smart 16-year-old who is a freshman at college already. Claire knows she doesn't fit in, but she didn't know how much until one day she was pushed down the stairs and beaten by some of the other girls. So, Claire decides to leave campus and find somewhere else to live. She finds an ad in the paper and calls a taxi to take her to the address, which is not what she expected.
I loved her roommates. She finds out a big secret about one, why he is always gone during the day, and falls in love with another one, and becomes great friends with one. They all have great chemistry together.
The book has a lot of twists and turns and leaves you guessing on every page. There is a lot of action as well, it is just an all around great book. On to book 2.
Glass Houses - Shari S. Bergquist - V.A.
4.5! I'm really late getting to these books and I don't know why! I really loved the first book in The Morganville Vampires series and can't wait to read more about Claire, Eve, Micheal, and Shane. Claire is a college freshman but she's only 16, she graduated early with a 4.0 grade average. Claire wanted to go to a college like Yale, Caltech or MIT but her parents felt she was to young to be that far away from them. That's how she ends up at Texas Prairie University in Morganville. Little did they know that Claire would have been so much better off far, far, away from Morganville. When Claire is thrown down the stairs by another girl from her dorm she decides that she needs to find another place to live and fast. Soon after she meets Eve and learns that Morganville is indeed a strange place to live and why so many students transfer out of TPU so quickly. If you haven't started reading The Morganville Vampires series you are seriously missing out on a great read.
*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Aug 28, 2010 13:37:05
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