My second 2024 Halloween read.
I have to say, I enjoyed most of 'Lucy Undying'.The writing is engaging and addictive, never testing my patience with over-description. While the pacing is slow and the plot - mostly told in letters and diary entries (à la 'Dracula'), and therapy client transcripts - is slow-building, it manages to never be boring. I was intrigued by everything that was happening, in the present and the past, as I was reading. There are clever and truthful lines in abundance. There are plenty of well written moments of heartfelt introspection, action, and shocking violence - the thrills and chills of it, plus character relationships worth caring about - to balance it all out. It's its own kind of poetry.
The themes of abuse, cults, MLM enterprises, corruption, the tragedy of humanity repeating its history, its mistakes, over and over again, and figurative and literal bloodsuckers, are frightening, devastating, raw and relevant.
The characters are likeable, memorable, interesting, and even funny, with their laugh-out-loud dialogue. I felt for them, and I wanted them to succeed, and be safe and happy.
A potently striking feature in 'Lucy Undying' is its gothic, dark, creepy, ominous, enthralling, delectable, sensual atmosphere - its essence - in its writing, that makes you feel like a vampire while reading it. Maybe even while you're not reading it; the spell is cast, and the feeling stays with you.
I think it would have made Anne Rice proud.
It had that strange power over me even before I started reading: its cover is to die for (give the artist and designer all the accolades!), and I like vampires and feminist retellings of classic works of fiction, so I was curious about how a story where Lucy Westenra from Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' is a survivor and a hero would be executed. I'd read the mixed reviews, but I couldn't resist; I had to read it for myself.
Lucy is a big, bad, boss lady vampire. Smart, sexual, formidable and deadly, and you still sympathise with her and root for her. The immortal vampire Lucy draws attention to the room wherever she goes, while at the same time she is multilayered, complex, largely misunderstood, vulnerable, and lonely.
She was only nineteen when Dracula turned her. Killed her. Undid her. Cursed her to be undead. Destroyed her life, how she's existed, forever. Though he wasn't the only man responsible for her tragic downfall...
Nonetheless, she persists. She lives, in a manner of speaking, in her own way.
In every sense, and through every tragedy and hardship for over a hundred years, she survives.
She is still finding herself.
And Lucy is queer as hell. The whole book is queer as hell, and sapphics rule it as quite literal queens. They've always existed. They've existed throughout the ages, and in the present there is trans rep, and a gay human married couple as side characters who are the most adorable and wholesome people ever. This is great to see in a mass-marketed book in our current era. It's great to know that these are being supported and published. The racial and ethnic diversity is also excellent, though the main characters are white women, and they given the most focus.
So many female characters - individuals with various and versatile personalities, and strengths and skills - and so much girl love and support, are presented in 'I Love Lucy Undying'. If I wasn't let down by the bad, shifting ending, I would have called it a celestial, goddess-sent blessing.
Yes, sadly 'Lucy Undying' is yet another book that is undone by its last quarter. It loses steam about one hundred pages from the end. It had a good run, but it definitely overstays its welcome. I know I said it is never boring with over-descriptive writing, and it is highly engaging, in spite of its slow pacing... but by the end I was so exhausted by it! It just keeps going! It becomes obviously, undeniably overwritten.
I agree with a lot of reviewers that 'Lucy Undying' does not need to be nearly 450 pages long. Even the original 'Dracula' novel doesn't feel as long.
It seems that nowadays so many books feel the need to be gigantic bricks in order to be successful. Why? Do authors think it will give them more merit? Do publishers think big hardback monsters sell the best? That they will be more noticeable, and draw the most attention, if they take up as much space as possible on bookshelves?
'Lucy Undying' changes its direction, tone, purpose, and settings at around 310 pages. The writing changes. The letters, diary entries, etc. framing devices are abandoned. Perspectives shift, and become conflicting and incompatible. There are chapters, long and short, told from random character perspectives - there's not even any in-universe framing to justify them; they're short stories added in the narrative - and I think, "Who are you? Why should I care about you?" and "Why is this chapter written like this?" Many characters are suddenly introduced, and then suddenly discarded. A mostly pointless waste.
These could have easily been edited out and nothing would have been lost.
One minor yet annoying flaw: new vampire rules are introduced out of nowhere.
But I will admit to seeing another noteworthy flaw post-the-300-page-mark. I will comment on a bizarre creative choice:
Practically every vampire lore, trait and superstition exists in 'Lucy Undying'. All myths are true, apparently. Grave dirt and hallowed grounds are included. And Lucy and other vampires can physically change their appearance... and turn into moonlight, and get through anything at will. Uh, I know it's explained in-universe that vampires are unexplainable, that they are creatures that can't be rationalised and pinned down and grounded in science - they should not exist but do anyway - but I have to ask: do the vampires' clothes shapeshift with them? Do clothes turn into moonlight with the supernatural beings? That point is never addressed.
And Lucy is queer as hell. The whole book is queer as hell, and sapphics rule it as quite literal queens. They've always existed. They've existed throughout the ages, and in the present there is trans rep, and a gay human married couple as side characters who are the most adorable and wholesome people ever. This is great to see in a mass-marketed book in our current era. It's great to know that these are being supported and published. The racial and ethnic diversity is also excellent, though the main characters are white women, and they given the most focus.
So many female characters - individuals with various and versatile personalities, and strengths and skills - and so much girl love and support, are presented in '
Yes, sadly 'Lucy Undying' is yet another book that is undone by its last quarter. It loses steam about one hundred pages from the end. It had a good run, but it definitely overstays its welcome. I know I said it is never boring with over-descriptive writing, and it is highly engaging, in spite of its slow pacing... but by the end I was so exhausted by it! It just keeps going! It becomes obviously, undeniably overwritten.
I agree with a lot of reviewers that 'Lucy Undying' does not need to be nearly 450 pages long. Even the original 'Dracula' novel doesn't feel as long.
It seems that nowadays so many books feel the need to be gigantic bricks in order to be successful. Why? Do authors think it will give them more merit? Do publishers think big hardback monsters sell the best? That they will be more noticeable, and draw the most attention, if they take up as much space as possible on bookshelves?
'Lucy Undying' changes its direction, tone, purpose, and settings at around 310 pages. The writing changes. The letters, diary entries, etc. framing devices are abandoned. Perspectives shift, and become conflicting and incompatible. There are chapters, long and short, told from random character perspectives - there's not even any in-universe framing to justify them; they're short stories added in the narrative - and I think, "Who are you? Why should I care about you?" and "Why is this chapter written like this?" Many characters are suddenly introduced, and then suddenly discarded. A mostly pointless waste.
These could have easily been edited out and nothing would have been lost.
One minor yet annoying flaw: new vampire rules are introduced out of nowhere.
But I will admit to seeing another noteworthy flaw post-the-300-page-mark. I will comment on a bizarre creative choice:
Practically every vampire lore, trait and superstition exists in 'Lucy Undying'. All myths are true, apparently. Grave dirt and hallowed grounds are included. And Lucy and other vampires can physically change their appearance... and turn into moonlight, and get through anything at will. Uh, I know it's explained in-universe that vampires are unexplainable, that they are creatures that can't be rationalised and pinned down and grounded in science - they should not exist but do anyway - but I have to ask: do the vampires' clothes shapeshift with them? Do clothes turn into moonlight with the supernatural beings? That point is never addressed.
Oh, here's another error: As carefully researched and observed as the Britain and America settings generally are, with their differences and distinctiveness, it is obvious that the chapters told from English Lucy's POV are written by an American, from how certain words are spelled, and terminologies are used. In the UK, we say "towards", not "toward"!
Ahhh, 'Lucy Undying', one of the most anticipated novels of the year... really, thinking about it now as I write about it, I find I'm just tired of it. I'm exhausted and frustrated by it, for how its story progression ended up, and how it seemed it would never end! I've also been rather vague about it because I don't wish to spoil anything vital and solid.
One thing I will spoil a little is: by the end (urgh! the ending!), 'Lucy Undying' is not as feminist as it appears in the rest of the book. It is rather careless, in fact, and bloodthirsty; enabling, condoning and relishing violence instead of ending it; ending the cycle of abuse and suffering. There are powerful female characters and figureheads who are done very dirty. As in, women in positions of power and wealth.
*sigh* Not this again! FFS.
There is a lot of bullshit in the final chapters I could not stand.
'Lucy Undying' didn't need extra blood, gore, horror, life, love and passion - it has plenty of those.
It needed an editor.
I recommend it if you're curious like I was, however. There is much to like about it, and much to learn from it. It contains clever, modern ideas, and mainly addictive, fun writing that is like devouring candy and popcornnot blood. Anyone in the LBGTQ+ community is likely to get something out of the desperate, undying love for humanity, and the marginalisation of outcast humans and vampires, in 'Lucy Undying'; something to appreciate. Any reader may appreciate everything the author was trying to say and accomplish here.
'Lucy Undying' is clearly a passion project for Kiersten White. I like it a lot better than her debut, 'Paranormalcy', from 2010, which I remember hating even back then. It's a sign of improvement, and it's a testament to second chances.
Additionally, in the Acknowledgements, at the finishing line/touch, where White describes her love/hate relationship with 'Dracula', I find it to be quite hilarious. Not too disrespectful, just... interesting. Food for thought, something to think about.
Have a fang-tastic Halloween, everyone. And stay safe. And loving.
Final Score: 3/5
Ahhh, 'Lucy Undying', one of the most anticipated novels of the year... really, thinking about it now as I write about it, I find I'm just tired of it. I'm exhausted and frustrated by it, for how its story progression ended up, and how it seemed it would never end! I've also been rather vague about it because I don't wish to spoil anything vital and solid.
One thing I will spoil a little is: by the end (urgh! the ending!), 'Lucy Undying' is not as feminist as it appears in the rest of the book. It is rather careless, in fact, and bloodthirsty; enabling, condoning and relishing violence instead of ending it; ending the cycle of abuse and suffering. There are powerful female characters and figureheads who are done very dirty. As in, women in positions of power and wealth.
*sigh* Not this again! FFS.
There is a lot of bullshit in the final chapters I could not stand.
'Lucy Undying' didn't need extra blood, gore, horror, life, love and passion - it has plenty of those.
It needed an editor.
I recommend it if you're curious like I was, however. There is much to like about it, and much to learn from it. It contains clever, modern ideas, and mainly addictive, fun writing that is like devouring candy and popcorn
'Lucy Undying' is clearly a passion project for Kiersten White. I like it a lot better than her debut, 'Paranormalcy', from 2010, which I remember hating even back then. It's a sign of improvement, and it's a testament to second chances.
Additionally, in the Acknowledgements, at the finishing line/touch, where White describes her love/hate relationship with 'Dracula', I find it to be quite hilarious. Not too disrespectful, just... interesting. Food for thought, something to think about.
Have a fang-tastic Halloween, everyone. And stay safe. And loving.
Final Score: 3/5
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