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Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead
The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh
Garkain by Anna J. Walner
Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due
Anno Dracula by Kim Newman

For over a century, Bram Stoker’s Dracula has dominated the horror genre. His work has served as the prototype for vampire books, with the invention of the aloof vampire and his seductive power. But while the character Count Dracula has been the main source of inspiration for subsequent writers, there’s another aspect to Stoker’s story that helped catapult him to fame. The dark, looming mountains of Transylvania served as the perfect backdrop to a tale of Gothic horror.

But while some books still draw inspiration from Dracula’s home country, others are taking a different approach. More and more, we’re seeing works of vampire fiction set in unexpected places. From the vibrant streets of New Orleans to the wild Australian Outback, it seems that vampires are expanding their idea of what makes a good hunting ground. In this list, we bring you six stories of vampires from around the world, each taking a different approach to this classic tale of bloodlust and horror. Each of these books tell a captivating story you’ll be sure to sink your teeth into.

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

Vampire Academy

By Richelle Mead
(Portland, OR)

The Pacific Northwest seems to be a hub for YA vampire activity. But unlike the sleepy town of Forks, Washington, the area around St. Vladimir’s Academy is anything but dull. At this top-secret high school, vampires and their half-human bodyguards — a.k.a. Dhampirs — are trained in the art of survival. Our main character Rose is the Dhampir for her best friend, a powerful vampire princess Lissa. But even when surrounded by fellow bodyguards, Rose is feeling anything but safe. She knows that the Strigoi, the deadliest kind of vampires, are stalking the school and on the hunt for Lissa. Rose will have to be on her guard at all times—no matter how distracting some of the other students at St. Vladimir’s Academy may be.


The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh

The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh

The Beautiful

By Renée Ahdieh
(New Orleans, LA)

In the year 1872, seventeen-year-old Celine Rousseau flees from her former life as a Parisian dressmaker. She’s taken in by the Ursaline convent of New Orleans’ French Quarter, where she and six other girls live alongside the nuns. The nuns expect Celine to work and keep her head down until she can find a socially acceptable match, but something about the city’s night life is calling to her. In the darkness of night, Celine joins the city’s social underworld, and even discovers an exclusive group called La Cour des Lions. But when disturbing rumors begin to spread — rumors of murders, of bodies drained of blood and a possible connection to La Cour des Lions — Celine realizes that she is dealing with something much darker than a city’s seedy underbelly.


Garkain by Anna J. Walner

Garkain by Anna J. Walner

Garkain

By Anna J. Walner
(Australia)

After 25 years of uncertainty, Amelia is ready to know who her family is. She was dropped off at a Texas orphanage as a baby, but thanks to the miracle of DNA testing, she’s flying to Australia to finally be reunited with her mother. The problem is, her mother isn’t quite … human.

With that shocking discovery, Amelia’s thrown into the secret world of The Colony, a vampire enclave hidden in the Australian Outback. Amelia’s mother reigns as queen over the other vampires, but not everything is so idyllic. The Colony’s fragile truce with the local werewolf pack is crumbling, and Amelia may be the only person who can bring peace. If Amelia chooses to help her newfound family, she may endanger her life in the very process. But The Colony has high hopes for Amelia’s chance at survival. After all, if her family isn’t human, then neither is she.

Read our full review of Garkain here.


Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Certain Dark Things

By Silvia Moreno-Garcia
(Mexico City, Mexico)

Gritty and enchanting, this book takes inspiration from Mexican history and folklore to weave a tale of magic, crime and survival. As a descendant of ancient Aztec blood drinkers, Atl needs to quench her thirst without getting caught my the local law enforcement. She’s also on the run from a rival vampire gang hellbent on hunting her down, and her only chance at life is if she escapes to South America. She knows better than to get attached to anyone in Mexico City — yet Domingo, a scrappy guy trying to survive on the streets, somehow charms his way into her good graces. The two of them form an alliance and try to look out for each other, but things get a lot more difficult when a cop finds the trail of bloodless bodies that Atl’s leaving behind. Will the two of them make it to South America with the police and a bloodthirsty vampire gang after them?


My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due

My Soul to Keep by Tananarive Due

My Soul to Keep

By Tananarive Due
(Ethiopia and Miami, FL)

When Jessica meets David, she feels like she’s found the man of their dreams. But soon after their wedding, she feels like there’s something he’s keeping from her — a side of himself she can’t seem to reach, no matter how hard she tries. Even more concerning, the people around Jessica are dying mysterious deaths, one after another. Finally, David makes a startling confession; that over 400 years ago in Ethiopia, he took part in a ritual that traded his humanity for everlasting life. But the other members of the ritual are after him, dead set on bringing him from his family in Miami and back to Africa. Now, Jessica has to outrun a group of vampires determined to tear her family apart, all while wrestling with the fact that with every day, her husband is becoming less like the man she married.


Anno Dracula by Kim Newman

Anno Dracula by Kim Newman

Anno Dracula

by Kim Newman
(London)

In Kim Newman’s lauded novel, the world of Victorian England is a lot different than our history recorded. This alternate history sees Queen Victoria remarry the prince of Wallachia — the infamous Count Dracula. Political intrigue and horror collide as diplomats run the risk of displeasing the queen’s consort and securing themselves a gruesome death.

Meanwhile, the vampire Geneviève Dieudonné and her associate Charles Beauregard are dealing with another assortment of ghastly murders. They’re desperate to track down Jack the Ripper, and save London from further bloodshed. But the Ripper’s trail is hard to follow, even for a supernatural hunter like Geneviève. How can she and Charles catch this elusive killer, when all of England is preoccupied with the vampire lurking in Buckingham Palace?


Cameron Kimball

Cameron Kimball is an illustrator, graphic artist and writer. She graduated from Pratt Institute with a degree in Communications Design and a minor in Art History. She’s a member of the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators and the Society of Illustrators. Cameron lives in Connecticut and when she’s not writing or drawing, she can be found in a café drinking tea and listening to Celtic folk music. For more of her work, visit her website at https://cameronkimball.myportfolio.com/

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