Thirst No. 4: The Shadow of Death [Paperback]

In 1996, with The Last Vampire: Creatures of Forever, Christopher Pike concluded Sita's story. In 2010, he showed us all that Sita's story was not, in fact, over. As if that wasn't enough, he also promised another book, another extension of the series, a glimpse of something more. In 2011, he delivered on that promise...and Sita's story, it seems, is concluded once again.

Or is it? I feel now just as I felt fifteen years ago as a thirteen year old girl finishing a beloved series. Things are all wrapped up nicely. There's a pretty bow tied around this beautiful tale and it appears, truly, as if the end has been reached. But I was convinced then that it was the last of the last vampire, and I was proved wrong. I have to say at this point, though I do believe Sita's tale is fully told, that I hope against hope Mr. Pike is able to continue forward from where Thirst No. 4 ends and that I am wrong again.

Thirst No. 4 picks up exactly where Thirst No. 3 left off. There's clues enough through the book, though, that even if it's been a year since you read No. 3, you should easily be able to follow everything that's currently happening. As I said in my review of Thirst No. 3: The Eternal Dawn, I know that not everything Christopher Pike writes is a masterpiece and obviously the man's writing has some flaws. This book, though, is just fantastic. The pace is spot on - not too fast, not too slow. Like most everything of his that I've read, the story grabs you by the neck and yanks you so deep inside its complex web that you're unable to surface again until the very end when you're left sputtering and gasping, yearning for just a tiny iota more and yet ultimately feeling satisfied.

The Last Vampire series is dark yet beautiful, charged with emotion, gripping, and utterly remarkable. Sita's story is tragic, fantastic, and magical and I feel honored that Mr. Pike chose to share her life with us.

Read it, people.

In Thirst 3, Pike accomplished something many of his biggest fans never dreamed possible: he returned Sita to us. Full color, full passion, full fight.

In Thirst 4, he does something even more incredible: he gives her to us full soul. Literally. A newborn vampire, fresh from the afterlife, Sita must come to terms with herself as she is on earth and in heaven...or is that hell?

On earth: She's forced to deal with her doe-fresh vampire body, find a clandestine way to sate that burning thirst she hasn't felt in ages and duck the rage likely to erupt from gorgeous and powerful Matt if he ever discovers she's slipped into his beloved's skin. Oh, and she's also responsible for a little thing called saving the world. Her enemies remain twofold, an ancient race of immortals and a corrupt global corporation, and both entwine the planet. Determined to crush them one by one, Sita uncovers their shockingly similar roots--roots that take her down into the secrets of the human mind and through the mysteries of the divine.

In heaven: What did she experience in the moment between her death and her resurrection? What waits in the afterlife for a 5,000 year-old vampire with oceans of blood on her hands? Darkness, awe...and three questions we should all be asking ourselves. In fact, when the answers--and judgment--finally do come for Sita, it's hard not to stop and wonder how we'd all measure up.

Though I was determined to read slow and make this rare gem of a book last, it became impossible not to devour it. Pike makes it easy to want more and more, masterfully infusing spirituality with fringe science with the end of the world as our favorite vampire knows it. The final chapter of Sita's 5,000 year long tale is earthshaking, sharp, dark, edgy, beautiful--but if Thirst 4 is truly the conclusion of this series as touted, it's easy to find deep tragedy in it, as well. Sita and her adventures will once again be missed.

A spectacular book. An unforgettable series. An author proving himself again and again.

After reading any of Pike's work since "The Cold One" I wasn't expecting much. The cynical part of my brain went right to thinking "clever move Pike; 'Re-branding' your most beloved character to cash in on the teen vampire books craze". I've since retracted that thought though; mainly because (thankfully) that just isn't Pike's style. He's stated in his sparse interviews that he feels that Sita was telling the story. She was his muse; most any writer knows that you cant fake that... and Pike's been writing most all his life. He's, well for what its worth: an incredibly talented writer.

But this story fell short.

Both of them did, in fact: let me start off with Thirst 3. It starts off great, actually. Sita's back, she's brilliant, she's powerful: you have the same affinity towards her that you always have. Not too long in the story conflict of course ensues. She has a fight with an enemy on her own level, better then herself in some ways. They fight, she wins! you cheer. Here comes the most awesome part of the story for me: right before he dies her opponent reveals he is from her days in ancient Egypt!!!

My memory immediately returned to "The Last Vampire 5": Suzama, the ancient meditations and spells she taught Sita, the great evil she faced with Ory. It was his second best book in the series I'd say. I wouldn't go so far as to say he left the story open for many possibilities but Suzama WAS never found... and I was completely thinking his direction would be to return to ancient Egypt in the beautiful way he framed it in "Last Vampire 5".

I was just hoping it was going that way: it seemed like a much more natural progression rather than having two completely unrelated stories originate from ancient Egypt. Unfortunately that's just what happened: and instead of getting the lush fantasy and mystery that was in "Last Vampire 5"; we're left with a story that is for lack of a better description (because there's not much to describe) just very...thin.

That's not really my point. I happen to love Pike. Albeit it's been much more a love/hate relationship after "The Blind Mirror". I cant be mad at him for not writing the story I wanted.

I'm just upset at getting such an overall CONFUSING story. I'm not going to talk about the story much because there's sadly nothing I can really grasp onto from it that interested me.

In the end I think I mentioned my original thought on the book because it sums up my thoughts pretty well: these books had potential, and for what its worth Pike has a few brilliant short bursts of inspiration that he adds to Thirst 3 and 4... but it takes a lot more than that in making a great story.

I got to the end of Thirst 4 and realized I had learned very little about anything; especially the main character; Pike's muse: SITA.

It make's me wonder why Pike even wrote this. It just wasn't inspired. Again: the vitriolic cynical side of me looks to Pike and questions if he's just cashing in. George Lucas, Spielberg, countless others of TALENTED storytellers have ruined their franchises by "Re-branding" them. Beauty and Art and a series of books that thrilled me, terrified me, and most importantly: INSPIRED me when I was in my early teens should be left alone and kept sacred.

Not turned into a franchise.

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