Review of TEETH by Chele Cooke

See full issue for 2017 01-23
 

The Rundown

In an unnamed city, Thomas awakens with the worst hangover in his life. Literally, he opens his eyes to discover a woman trussed up and hanged over him, bleeding to death. It is also the last hangover of his life.

His human life, that is.

So begins Thomas’ introduction to the secret world of Vampires and their arcane rules for survival. He must dispatch his own sire, Cleo, in order to have a place in their society. The reasons for the limit on their numbers are cleverly misdirected until the end of the tale, but it’s sufficient to understand that no new Vampire can be created without the destruction of another Vampire.

Almost every Vampire he meets loved Cleo and blames him for her death. Although most acknowledge that her destruction was as much as suicide as anything, this creates conflict with the two leading Vampires in his new Brood… August, who loved Cleo for centuries, and William, who was Cleo’s lover and Childe. Both are capable of great violence, one seeming to strive for chaos and the other order. Of course, it is more complex than that.

Because Cleo’s final death throws their house into turmoil, August assigns the second youngest Vampire to teach Thomas the ropes while he seeks to restore harmony internally… to his soul as much as to the Brood he polices.

Spence is a modern boy, like Thomas, barely a Vampire for five years. While he manages to keep Thomas alive; he’s ill-prepared to handle the newbie’s shark-like feeding frenzy at his first kill. And he is even less prepared when Thomas takes out an entire cafe in an event that upsets everything they were taught to believe about Vampires and the city that they live in.

There’s a nice bit of world building here, even with a bit hidden by necessity from the reader and the characters themselves. It’s not a full immersion, but that gives the reader enough freedom to put the action in the nearest urban center that comes to mind.


The Recommendation

Cooke has a deft hand with realistic dialogue that serves her well here. Her most graphic scenes are slightly spartan in their description; side stepping any concerns of a gore fest. In fact, the most violent scenes are tastefully skipped over right to their blood drenched aftermath. Occasionally, she may linger over a throat closing scene or two. But some of us do find trying not to choke a bit sexy. *cough*

I found the characters more than a bit compelling. I might have liked to have gotten more into the head of William as I find some of his “growth” in the course of the story a bit suspect. It’s also more August and Spencer’s story than Thomas’, the catalyst of the tale. But then, I think Cooke would have slipped more away from horror and into dark urban fantasy if she’d given us that.

I recommend this book for horror fans who don’t need the full CSI checklist in the aftermath of a kill and for dark urban fantasy fans looking for something with real emotions and not YA level romance.


The Rating Reviewer Rating: 4 Stars

4 Stars (out of 5): Recommended. For the right audience, this book is a great read. It can hold its own against any traditionally published novel in its genre.

The Pros & Cons

Pros: Characterization, Dialogue, Strong World-Building
Cons: Plot Sometimes Jumpy

The Links

More about Teeth on UBR

The Reviewer

Bill Kieffer

Visit Bill Kieffer‘s website.
 

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