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Children of the Night
  
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Children of the Night [Audiobook] [Unabridged] (Audio Cassette)

by Dan Simmons (Author), George Ralph (Reader)
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)

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Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Count Dracula kicks off the coffin lid again in this updated vampire tale, ready to stalk through the rubble of post-Communist Europe. This time, however, the count's sanguinary tippling habits may hold the cure for both AIDS and cancer. The key lies with a Romanian orphan adopted by American hematologist Kate Neuman; the infant, Joshua, has a series of rare diseases, and can survive only because his body extracts and processes genetic material from blood transfusions. If the virus in his system responsible for this ability can be isolated, his diseases could be remedied and medical marvels would be within Kate's grasp. The drawback is that Joshua has inherited his talents from the decrepit but murderous Vlad Dracula, and this patriarch of an accursed clan of blood-drinkers is more interested in perpetuating his power than in providing miracle cures for the masses. Simmons ( Song of Kali ) makes Children 's fantastical scientific claims easy to swallow, although the medical jargon in some of the American scenes is thicker than Bela Lugosi's accent (try out "hypogammaglobulinemia"). Still, the book offers a mesmerizing tour through the ghostly, gray tatters of Romania.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


From Library Journal

While studying diseases of the blood in present-day Romania, hematologist Kate Neuman adopts an orphaned infant with an unusual immune system. Upon her return to the States, the baby is kidnapped and returned to its homeland. Aided by an American priest and a Romanian medical student, each with his own interest in the child, Kate traces it to a mysterious group linked to the legendary Dracula. Her attempts to discover the motive behind the kidnapping and to reclaim the baby form the heart of this thrilling and wonderfully diverting novel. Simmons ( Summer of the Night , LJ 1/91) gives a chilling description of post-Ceausescu Romania and neatly ties the vampire legend into political history to create a new and clever twist to the idea of the vampire's craving for blood. The ending seems a bit too Indiana Jones-like, but the overall result is satisfying. An excellent choice for popular fiction collections. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/92.
- Eric W. Johnson, Teikyo Post Univ. Lib., Waterbury, Ct.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews

30 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.1 out of 5 stars (30 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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5.0 out of 5 stars LISTEN TO THEM...CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT...WHAT BEAUTIFUL MUSIC THEY MAKE..., Oct 7 2009
By Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Children of the Night (Mass Market Paperback)
Dan Simmons is simply a wonderful writer. In this unusual horror/thriller, the author combines the miracle of modern medical technology with the legend of Count Dracula, also known as Vlad the Impaler. Well-written and well-researched, the book provides a page turning, interesting twist to traditional vampire lore.

Amidst the desolation of post Ceausescu Romania, orphans are left to rot in state run institutions that are little more than places for them to die a slow, lingering death. An eminent American doctor, research hematologist Kate Neuman, becomes enamored of one little baby boy with an unusual medical condition that she feels can only be addressed in the United States. So, she impulsively adopts him, names him Joshua, and leaves the country with the assistance of a Franciscan priest, Michael O'Rourke.

Once ensconced back in the United States, Kate discovers something about Joshua's condition that provides a medical explanation for the Vampire legends of old. He has a rare genetic mutation that requires periodic blood transfusions for him to live. This condition, however, may also provide the key to cure a host of immunological diseases. Someone or something, however, wants the baby back in Romania and will stop at nothing to get him. For Joshua is a very special little baby, indeed.

The author is brilliant in his description of post communist Romania, A desolate, dreary apparatchik of Soviet demagoguery, one feels the oppression that permeates this Eastern European country. There is a miasma over it that reeks of something evil and powerful. The descriptive language used by the author is quite evocative, making the book highly atmospheric. Although the action at the end of the book may strain credulity at times, it does not diminish the enjoyment the reader will derive from reading this book. On the contrary, it will keep the reader riveted to its pages.
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4.0 out of 5 stars A thrilling time with or without your medical dictionary!, Feb 14 2004
By . "scarlet9" (OH United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Children of the Night (Mass Market Paperback)
Dan Simmons writes a modern twist on the old vampire story here. A hematologist working for the CDCs and a young orphan at the center of her focus take this story across two continents. A brilliant immersion into contemporary (to the tale) politics. Some of the medical terminology might be a little heady, but no more so than the average science fiction read concerning fictitious/not-yet-developed science.

The end of this tale is not particularly surprising, but then again this tale is centuries old so no complaints. Simmons is dealing with Vlad Ţepež as subject matter, and spins an exciting yarn as grandiose as the characters at hand. Readers annoyed with the ending of this book were probably also annoyed that their 11th grade English teacher and his 'silly' reading requirements spoiled "Oh Brother Where Art Thou".

When I read this book for the first time, I didn't put it down until well after my bedtime each night. If you are looking for the classic vampire tale couched in / affected by 20th Century medicine and politics â¤" this book is a serious page-turner!

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3.0 out of 5 stars if Hyperion is bliss, this is competent., Oct 1 2002
By Daniel Soler "GENREBUSTERS.COM" (Seattle, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: Children of the Night (Mass Market Paperback)
let me preface this reviewlet with general praise: Dan Simmons is a contemporary storyteller i very-much adore. Hyperion is one of those books i recommend to _everyone_, regardless of what they usually read.

this novel, then, was a disappointment. i was hoping that it would posit a scientific explanation of vampires, tie that in with the some juicy Romanian/Eastern European history, then delve deep into the sub-society vampires have crafted for themselves, play with the myths, toy with the characteristics of vampirism.

instead, this novel dealt with a heroine who stumbles under the fist of a despotic, Eastern European government and fights for her freedom and her family. along the way she finds a friend/lover, and suffers _a lot_!

the vampiric elements felt very secondary, and the Big Revelations were out of place in the general context of the novel. without those trappings, this would have been a decent thriller that does an excellent job of portraying how harsh Eastern Europe can be.

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 		 Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Silver medal winner
This is Simmons' latest entry into the vampire Olympics (his previous one the mega-volt Carrion Comfort), and it weighs in with a Silver medal, at least with this judge. Read more
Published on Sep 28 2002 by Glen Engel Cox

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the finest vampire novels I've ever read. Period.
I didn't really know what to expect when I bought this book on a whim. What I found when I read it was no less than the best rendition of the Dracula legend I've ever... Read more
Published on Jul 24 2002 by Jeff, an avid vampire reader a...

2.0 out of 5 stars A misfire from the master.
Perhaps I was spoiled by reading Dan Simmons' excellent horror novels A Song of Kali and Carrion Confort (both of which I highly reccomend) but Children of the Night somehow falls... Read more
Published on April 21 2002 by Luis Carrillo

5.0 out of 5 stars A new and improved (?) Vampire story....
After reading Summer of Night, retroactively by the publication date, I could not wait to jump into another Dan Simmons novel, Children of the Night... Read more
Published on Mar 21 2002 by B. Morse

3.0 out of 5 stars Not too impressed...
What I enjoy most about Simmon's Song of Kali and Carrion Comfort is that they are very different from a lot of horror fiction. Read more
Published on May 11 2001 by Matt C. Stedman

5.0 out of 5 stars Spellbinding
Reading "Children of the Night" by Dan Simmons was spellbinding for me. I tire easily with the same, simplistic vampire biting storylines, and was unsure as to whether... Read more
Published on April 20 2001 by Hallie

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun with science, fun with vampires
A while ago I wrote a review of "Summer of Night" and without realizing what I was doing, called this book a sequel to that book . . . Read more
Published on April 11 2001 by Michael Battaglia

4.0 out of 5 stars great suspense book!
This pseudo-sequel to SUMMER OF NIGHT (Father O'Roarke and several minor characters loosely tie into the other book) is a fine example of what a suspense-slash-horror writer can... Read more
Published on Jan 18 2001 by Benjamin K. Potter

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Read
I loved this novel! Dan Simmons took an ages-old story and combined it with more modern history and threw in some hemotology labwork and came up with a great book. Read more
Published on Nov 1 2000 by K. Mallory

4.0 out of 5 stars Vladdy good show, old boy!
Unlike many reviewers, I've not read everything Simmons has written. "Song of Kali' was, for me, a bust. It was too turgid. Read more
Published on Sep 11 2000 by Allan

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