Fangoria review of In the Blood
February 8, 2010
Their website is down right now, but, lucky you, I have my copy handy:
IN THE BLOOD by Miranda Luna is a story about a young woman who the “average” person would most likely label as problematic. Zoe Starr has an addiction to heroin and a far from healthy obsession with blood, in her art and in her sex life, the two of which often over-lap and blend to become one in a world where fantasy, smack-high and dreams are quite difficult to distinguish from reality.
Luna grabs your attention immediately in the prologue with a healthy dose of sex, dream and blood. While wildly entertaining from the beginning, this story morphs from reality to fantasy, which caught me off guard, and I’m not sure if it happened in a good way or not, it just sort of happened. Because of all the drug use there is a sort of non-reality reality that is abruptly shattered when the story shifts into actual unreality. Also, the, what I will call, “thought communication” that occurs throughout the book can be confusing since the person doing the thinking is rarely indicated, slightly interrupting the flow of conversation.
All in all, I found this book very original and entertaining, with enough sex to satisfy and tantalize, enough drug use to confuse and tempt, and enough blood to make me cringe and mentally evaluate my bandage stock. With it’s harshness and whimsy, IN THE BLOOD delivers a fantastic reality that will leave you pondering the power of true blood lust.
3.5/5 skulls
