Review - Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising

Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising
By Lara Parker
Published by: Tor Books
Pub. Date: August 20, 2013
ISBN: 978-0765332592
Pages: 400 pages

Review:

The gothic soap opera Dark Shadows frighten millions of viewers from 1966-1971. During that time, there were many tie-in books released by Marilyn Ross. In the late 1990's the original actress to play Angelique, Lara Parker, released Dark Shadows: Angelique's Decent, followed by 2006's Dark Shadows: The Salem Branch, and now her most recent novel, Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising.

Continuing where the previous novel left off, Barnabas Collins has returned to his vampirism state and Dr. Julia Hoffman now suffers from his dreadful curse. He is still obsessed with the new owner of The Old House, Antoinette Harpignies, who happens to resemble the witch who cursed him, Angelique!

Antoinette is trying to restore The Old House to its former glory, while she is raising her teenage daughter Jacqueline, who happens to be the reincarnation of Angelique and Mirandu du Val, who lived during the Salem Witch Trials. She has been dating Quentin Collins, who has his own immortal past, but things start to turn for the worse when a portrait goes missing and reported animals attacks occur all over Collinsport, leading Dr. Nathanial Blair (the brother of Nicholas Blair, a warlock) to come knocking at the Collin's door. The Doctor is writing a book on vampires and wants the Collins to host a séance for him.

Meanwhile, the heir to the family fortune, David Collins, is now sixteen-year-old and is madly in love with Jacqueline. The two of them begin exploring the grounds while the séance is happening. Poof! After getting in an old Model T, David and Jacqueline are transported back to the Prohibition Era of the 1920s, which leads to a starling discovery.

I stumbled upon the re-releases of Lara Parker's first two books last year and I became an instant fan of her memorizing style of writing. I was eagerly looking forward to reading Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising, which is the best in the series. Within reading the first paragraph I knew I was being drifted into a long-forgotten world, resembling the old gothic dimes novels of the 50s and 60s. Laura Parker takes the Dark Shadows legacy in a whole new and exciting direction, something director Tim Burton failed to do in last year's blockbuster remake (though I still liked the movie). Many tie-in books seem to be trapped in time, whereas this series is progressing forward where it ended in 1971 and continuing it for a new generation of fans. Overall, I loved read Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising; I'm hoping the author will write a fourth entry and beyond.

*Disclaimer - I received a complimentary copy in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.