My Rating: ★★★★☆

Author: David Wellington

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Published by: Blackstone Audio

My Review

Story: The first 25 minutes of 13 Bullets takes you on a pretty wild ride and perfectly sets up the rest of the book. During those 25 minutes you learn a lot about the vampires that have populated the world of 13 Bullets. These vampires  much more closely resemble the traditional view of vampires than the vampires depicted in Justin Cronin’s “The Passage” and Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan’s “The Strain”. I have to admit that I felt more “at home” (if that is possible) with these vampires than I did with some of their contemporary “modern twist” counterparts. Possibly because it was easier to understand their motivation.

One interesting characteristic of the vampires was their increased stamina, strength and resistance to attack that occurs when the vampire has recently fed. During the time immediately after a feeding it is virtually invincible. For example, when the vampire is full of blood most bullets will just ricochet off it’s chest. The only way to kill one is to destroy it’s heart. All other wounds heal almost instantly which makes it extremely difficult to cause much damage to them. (By the way there is an awesome scene that perfectly illustrates this point during those first 25 minutes)

After those first 25 minutes you will be hooked. The only warning I have for you is that you should go into this knowing that there are several more books in the series. It has a good ending.. maybe even a great ending. Just don’t expect everything to be completely wrapped up at the end.

Audio Production: This was my first exposure to Bernadette Dunne’s narration and she did an excellent job. I’ll be looking for more of her work soon.

Overall: 13 Bullets is soaked in blood. It is fast paced, smart and filled with blood curdling twists and turns. I highly recommended it to fans of vampire fiction. However if you are strictly into sparkly vampires you may find that the vampires in 13 Bullets are a little too rich for your blood.

Download from Audible: 13 Bullets

Order from Publisher: 13 Bullets

Disclosure: I received this as a review copy from the publisher