Last Breath: The Morganville Vampires [Paperback]

Things never get a chance to calm down in Morganville as it seems like one crisis after another arises. The last few installments have proved that. However, now vampires are going missing, and it doesn't seem like the "rebels" are to blame this time. His very being permeates evil and he's been the last one seem with some of the missing. Yet it seems as if Claire is the only one who can see him. With the town's vampires acting quite strange, she may be the their only hope, but at what cost?

There was a slight change in the way this book was narrated from previous installments. In Bite Club there were times when we would get a direct view into Shane's head and that really helped the reader get a better idea of the whole picture. In Last Breath, Rachel Caine took that idea one step further and added in a few chapters with perspectives other than Claires. Amelie, Shane, Michael and Eve all get a little time showing their side of things. I particularly liked getting into Amelie's head as it shows a lot of her inner struggle. She's always going to do what she thinks is best for her people, no matter the cost. However, that look into her head showed how much of a struggle it was for her to make those sacrifices and hard choices. She really isn't quite the cold creature she seems to be.

After the slight let down of the last installment, I had high hopes for redemption in Last Breath. I got what I asked for and then some as Last Breath completely blew my socks off. Things started off somewhat sedately, and built so steadily until the pressure almost snuck up on me as it boiled over. It is a wonder that I have any fingernails left after that nail biting read that kept me on the edge of my seat. You would think after reading the past ten installments, there wouldn't be much room for surprise, but Last Breath was one big shocker after another. One of the biggest being the answer to a long standing question: Why would vampires build their town in the middle of a desert when the sun is so deadly to them? This complex addition to the world building was pulled off brilliantly, adding a horrific twist to things that I never could have seen coming.

While the nonstop action was heart pounding, the utter depth of raw emotion was what really cemented this as the very best of the series. The highs are so high that you feel like you are soaring right along with the characters. As for the lows, well lets just say devastation has never been more aptly portrayed. Anger, fear, loss, betrayal, jealousy, love, and desperation, all play huge roles in Last Breath. But the one emotion that stands above it all is hope, and nothing is stronger than that. To be able to feel such hope after everything that happens in this book is nothing short of amazing, and it made Last Breath a truly phenomenal read. I highly recommend setting aside a solid block of time to read this book, as once started, it will be impossible to set down. You won't want to miss this utterly captivating book that will leave you breathless in the end. Bravo!

Claire Danvers is an extra-ordinary girl living in the extra-ordinary town of Morganville, Texas. What makes Claire so special? She's super-smart, having started college early, and, among other things, works after school in a lab with Myrnin, who's a little crazy...and a vampire. In Morganville though, that's no so unusual - there are lots of vampires in Morganville.

While there is usually an uneasy truce between the humans and the vampires, things are currently a little strained. Someone's planning a wedding, and as the countdown ticks down, it's plain that the wedding is one thing that everyone in town seems to agree on: no one thinks it should happen; not the vamps, and definitely not the humans.

But while the town is focused on the approaching nuptials, Claire and the gang learn that vampires are going missing. Just a few at first, but as the days go by and there's no sign of the missing vampires, things start to get weirder than usual. Claire sees something she shouldn't but can't remember what it was, Amelie gets a cryptic message that leads her to the decision to close down Morganville, and Myrnin has a decision to make. Will Claire and her friends solve the mystery and save Morganville? Do they even want to save Morganville? Or is this their chance to be free of the vampires forever?

My thoughts:

Last Breath is a can-not-miss installation to The Morganville Vampires series! As I've come to expect from this series, the story is fresh and the players are like old friends. As an added bonus, in Last Breath, we are treated to viewpoints from not only Claire, but also Amelie, Eve, Michael, and Shane.

Fans of Myrnin will love Last Breath: he continues to be one of my favorite anti-heroes. Even faced with the possible demise of Amelie, Morganville, and possibly himself, he steps up and does what needs to be done. And Shane...oh Shane...*sniffs* Shane faces possibly the most heartbreaking section of the book.

Without giving anything away, we do learn why this book is titled Last Breath; and believe me, you're going to be holding yours. After 10 books in this series of characters we have grown to love, Ms. Caine continues to captivate the reader with jaw-dropping scenes like this:

I lifted my head, and I knew my eyes were flaring with white power, driven by my rage, my revulsion, my desperation. "Silence them Myrnin. You know you must."

He stared back at me for a moment in mute horror, and shook his head. "I can't," he said. "God witness me, I cannot do it. Not to her. The boy, yes, but not her. Amelie, there must be another way."

"Jesu, you think if there was, I wouldn't take it?" I shouted it at him, fists clenched against the need to strike. "You will do it. You must." And I put my will on him, pushing in a way that I so rarely did these days. That I so rarely had to do.

~page 74, Last Breath

Last Breath was impossible to put down; every time I thought I knew where Ms. Caine was going to take us, I was wrong. This new villain in Morganville is dangerous and scary; so terrifying that even the vampires are panicking. And it's stealthy, sneaking up on us while we're busy looking somewhere else.

I have one complaint...usually Ms. Caine ends her stories nicely and things are as wrapped up as they can be, without ending the series of course, but that's not the case in Last Breath. Last Breath ends with a definite cliffhanger, and I felt like the story was left unfinished.

Last Breath is probably the most emotionally-charged installment in the series to date; fans of the books will not be disappointed. Between the surprise twists and the seemingly impossible challenges Claire must overcome, Last Breath left me gasping for breath.

Rachel Caine is an evil, wicked author for what's she has done to her characters--and by extension her readers--in LAST BREATH, the eleventh book in her crazy fun Morganville Vampire series. Not since GLASS HOUSES--which ended with with the decapitation of a main character--have I been as shocked by a book in this series...and yes, that means someone else very important dies.

I am continually amazed at how after so many books, the stories about Claire, Shane, Eve, Michael, and Morganville still feel fresh and exciting. What's more impressive is that the stakes--pardon the pun--escalate with each book too. How Rachel Caine manages to top herself with each book, I'll never know, but the reader in me is just thrilled that she does.

Vampire politics have become an increasingly pivotal plot point in the series overall, but like in previous books, there is a very personal storyline in LAST BREATH too, involving Michael and Eve's impending nuptials. Not to mention the ever volatile relationship between Claire and Shane, who actually didn't make me hate him even once this time. That's a new record. There were also some very difficult realizations that Claire had to make about a different relationship. I am extremely excited about what this could mean for the future of the series.

As in the previous Morganville book, LAST BREATH isn't told exclusively from Claire's perspective. We get chapters from Shane, Eve, Michael, and even Amelie, the last of which was a little odd. I think I prefer her as the mysterious and aloof Founder rather than knowing her thoughts. But these new perspectives did provide TONS of answers about Morganville and it's citizens, so I'm not complaining. I can only hope that we get a chapter from Myrnin next time. And there will be a next time. Rachel is under contract for at least three more books in The Morganville Vampires series. Up next is BLACK DAWN, which will be published in May 2012, and after the end of LAST BREATH...the series may never be the same.

Sexual Content:
Kissing. References to sex.