Fevre Dream, by George R R Martin

13/100 I picked up George R R Martin's "Fevre Dream" out of curiosity, just to see what sort of book it was, whether he could hold my interest aside from "Game of Thrones". Somewhat to my initial disappointment, it turned out to be a vampire novel, but luckily it was not a run-of-the-mill story. The year is 1857, the place is St-Louis. Abner Marsh, a riverboat captain on the Mississippi, is offered a partnership by a mysterious aristocrat, and the chance to turn his luck for the better by building the best and fastest steamboat to run the great river. Abner is a bit doubtful about the deal, because the stranger, Joshua York, has some very odd conditions to make - mainly that Abner should never, ever question what Joshua does, no matter how odd or bizarre. The lure of gold and the opportunity to captain the best steamboat overcome Abner's doubts. He names the boat "Fevre Dream". 

The maiden voyage of the Fevre Dream does not turn out like Abner ever dreamt of even in his chequered career which has seen plenty of violence and bloodshed. What I liked very much about this book was the period setting, with the Civil War, slavery and other historical events woven in with great skill and to excellent effect without taking away from the story itself. You'll have to take my word for it that this is a vampire horror novel unlike any other I've come across. There are vampires and then there are vampires...and both kinds are to be found here. Be warned, you'll come across the "N-word" a few times here, used in the interests of authenticity in language and the mores of those days - those were not PC times, after all. ‪#‎100bookpact‬