Who would've thought that after
centuries of being regarded as the monsters in Transylvania and the
bloodsucking undead, people would suddenly fall for these
supernatural creatures with the damned soul? With the fourth
installment of the Twilight saga coming up, different vampire books
popping out here and there like the potato mines in Plants vs.
Zombies and the thousands of screaming ladies bent on having Robert
Pattinson as their very own leading man or leading vampire rather, I
figured we should take a rest from the whole
vampires-take-over-Hollywood scene and maybe rewind a bit but not too
far from the supernatural world though. Move over Vampire Diaries'
Stefan and tone down on the killing spree a bit Buffy because classic
literature has been bitten as well by the fang epidemic as Claudia
Gabel gives us Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, this time injecting
the obvious vampire twist.
The book still centers about Romeo and
Juliet, the two star-crossed lovers and their tragic story of a love
that cannot be. As far as the characters, setting and the plot is
concerned, there were little alterations involved: Vlad, the impaler
makes his cameo as a prince, the state of Verona has been transformed
into the eerie land of Transylvania, which as we all know, is the
birthplace of all vampire stories and as for the plot's twist, I'm
going to have to leave that to you to find out. The theme of the book
basically revolves around the fusion of the supernatural vampire
world with the romance of the timeless classic novel. If you're one
of the people who's a little bit synched in on vampires 101, then
you're going to enjoy all the details enveloped about it on every
chapter. Levitation, burning in the sunlight, no reflections and
transformation rituals are the few additions to this modern-day
remake of the Capulet-Montague love story. Ofcourse there's still the
romantic love at first sight scene and the undying Juliet monologue
slash confession in the balcony of hers that will send those hearts
skipping a beat. Tragic was not only present to the story but also to
my expectations. For me it lacked the capacity to bring its readers
straight to Wallachia, Transylvania or to the real emotion that the
two lovers shared because the style of writing that was presented to
me just didn't capture my whole being. It could be better, that's
what I can add, though. The story was indeed a fast-tracked one and
it left me hanging. Gabel's take on this classic couldn't be called
disappointing but it is not that clever as well. It has the elements
to tickle your imagination for a while but maybe not enough flavor to
capture a literature fanatic's taste buds. Nevertheless, its still a
great find, unique in fact. So if you're in for a break from all the
glitz and glamour of the current vampire age, then flip open the
pages of Romeo and Juliet and Vampires and sink your teeth into the
chapters that have a knack for bringing one of the world's most loved
couples of all time into another dimension.
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