As a child, I lost my heart to vampires watching Interview with the Vampire. I hadn’t read any good vampire books recently though, so I was delighted when my boyfriend pointed out The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave while book shopping, which is an origin story of Dracula‘s brides.
The Deathless Girls
The Deathless Girls is the story of Lil and her twin sister Kizzy. They are travellers who roam the mountains together with their family and friends. On the eve of their divining, when they will finally turn 17 and learn their fate, tragedy strikes. Their community is brutally slain and the sisters are captured and enslaved by the Boyar. Working in the castle kitchens, they soon learn that there’s a monster on the prowl, who is only sated by human sacrifices.
A fascinating origin tale
I loved this re-imagining of the Dracula legend. I had to get used to the writing style at first, but once I did I loved every minute of it. The story reads like a tapestry, richly woven with magic and traveller culture. There are far less vampires in this story than you might suspect, and the tale – naturally – doesn’t have the typical ending that you might expect from YA-fantasy, but it was fascinating and engaging from start to finish. Four out of five gemstones!
Age Category: Suitable for a broad audience
Representation: LGBTQ+ main character
Trigger Warnings (click here, may contain spoilers)
Warnings for parental death, attempted rape, animal cruelty, threats of sexual assault, racist murders.Do you want to discover more?
If my review inspired you to pick up the book, don’t hesitate to check it out at Goodreads or at the below online stores.
Amazon.nl: Hardcover Edition
Amazon.nl: Paperback Edition
Amazon.nl: eBook Edition
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The next book by Millwood Hargrave that I am going to read is The Girl of Ink and Stars, which is a young adult fantasy novel about a cartographer’s daughter who volunteers to lead the search for a missing friend.
As one can never own enough lesbian vampire stories, I bought Carmilla & Laura after finishing The Deathless Girls. This story is a retelling of the classic Carmilla and I cannot wait to discover it.
The writing style of The Deathless Girls reminded me of Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik. A couple of years ago, I received this loose retelling of Rumpelstiltskin as part of a mystery book box, and although I was intrigued by the story, it didn’t manage to hold my attention and I never finished it. I hear nothing but praise for it, however, so I will definitely start it again.
The atmosphere of the story also called to mind Among the Beasts & Briars by Ashley Poston. I loved this magical story with its Beauty and the Beast vibes, set in a magical (and slightly creepy) forest. My review can be found here.