Two re-releases up for review!
Dark Shadows: Angelique’s Descent and The Salem Branch.
With the recent release of the movie Dark Shadows staring Johnny Depp as a very different sort of Barnabas Collins, there is a renewed interest in the cult series and anything related it. Tor too has joined in and has republished several books in honor of the movie’s release.
They are written by one of the original show’s characters Lara Parker, who played Angelique and contain a historical and gothic flavor which I am liking a lot.
The third in the series will be re-released later this year by Tor. It’s called Dark Shadows: Wolf Moon Rising.
Dark Shadows: Angelique’s Descent ~ by Lara Parker; Tor Books; April 2012.
Blurb: The dashing heir of a New England shipping magnate, Barnabas Collins captures the heart of the exquisite, young Angelique amidst the sensual beauty of Martinique, her island home. But Angelique’s brief happiness is doomed when Barnabas deserts her and becomes engaged to another. With this one betrayal, Barnabas unleashes an evil that will torment him for all time.
For Angelique is no ordinary woman. Raised in the mysterious black art of voodoo witchcraft, she long ago pledged her soul to darkness and became immortal. Vowing to destroy Barnabas, a vengeful Angelique damns him to eternal life as a vampire—a companion to accompany her forever. Little does Angelique understand the depth of Barnabas’s fury....
Dark Shadows’s two most popular characters, Barnabas Collins and Angelique, were eternally bound by love and hate. Now actress Lara Parker, Angelique herself, tells the story of how it all began.
Dark Shadows: The Salem Branch ~ by Lara Parker; Tor Books; April 2012.
Blurb: Freed from his vampire curse, Barnabas Collins is ready to embark on a new life and marriage with his savior, the virtuous Dr. Julia Hoffman. But when Antoinette, a beautiful flower child with a shocking resemblance to the immortal witch Angelique, rebuilds the Old House, his past returns to haunt him. Discovering a grisly corpse in the basement--where his old casket once lay--Barnabas realizes another vampire has invaded his domain. His fight to protect his family from this new threat will take Barnabas back through time to an evil moment in America's history: the corrupt witch trials of old Salem.
Author Bio: Lara Parker grew up in Memphis, TN, attended graduate school at the University of Iowa, where she worked on a MA in Speech and Drama. She was cast as Angelique on Dark Shadows, and moved to Los Angeles in 1972. In 2004 she earned a Master's Degree in Creative Writing, and now teaches in Los Angeles.
Lara has written three novels. Her first book was published in 1998 - Dark Shadows: Angelique's Descent. It was a bestseller and has been reprinted three times. In 2006 Tor Books released the sequel, The Salem Branch. Both have been re-released this April and a third Dark Shadows novel, Full Moon Rising is due out in fall.
Today Lara and her husband live in the Santa Monica mountains. For more information see the author’s blog: http://laraparkersite.blogspot.com/
What are your experiences with the TV serial Dark Shadows and/or the new movie?
2 comments:
Ooh, I didn't realize there was a book series!! I'll definitely have to check it out - I wasn't a huge fan of the new movie, but mostly because it felt largely underdeveloped, probably since it was coming off of a full series.
Susie -
I didn't know either until I saw it from Tor.
As for me I have this thing about Dark Shadows since my mom would not let me watch it as a kid.... lol. So, I bet I will like the movie too. We shall see.
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