With Dracula as The Groom It Is a Wedding Night Like No Other

Excerpt from The Fourth Bride (of Dracula).
It is Dia's wedding night. Dracula is the groom but she is to love the other brides as well...

“I don’t want to sleep...”

“Yes, little one. You must sleep, and you shall. And you will dream.”

And so I did. I dreamt I heard soft murmurs all around me. It was not unpleasant for I was reminded of fairy tales and magical legends. I heard singing too; the sound of sirens perhaps. The songs were haunting, sad and beautiful all at once.

I saw three figures in the shadows. I reached out to touch them in my dream, and they came forward. 

“Sister!” they called.

Something cool yet comforting touched my lips. I opened my eyes to see a graceful hand lingering there. A woman was smiling at me. She leaned over and kissed me on the lips. And although her lips were icy, it was pleasing.

“Am I dreaming?”

She smiled. “Yes, some of it.”

“Who are you?”

She didn’t reply, she only took my hand in her cold one and kissed it. “ Dia...”

“How do you know my name?”

“The master told us.”

I was suddenly aware of other voices. Voices that answered in perfect unison. “The master,” they repeated until it sounded like a chant.

Then, in the soft glow of candlelight, I saw three women. They were strangely beautiful, garbed in long flowing white gowns. Suddenly they began to float up toward the bed ever so slowly, their fingers reaching out toward me as they called, “Sister.”

Were they ghosts or spirits from another world? Before I could ponder that question any longer, they began sweeping over me. I was frightened but thrilled at the same time, for there seemed about them the promise of joy and untold pleasure.

Their icy hands sought the top of my night gown, which they peeled away until I was naked. First one reached over and then the other two, each of them touching me.

“Mmmm.”

A soft sigh sounded in my ears as cool lips touched my neck.

“Beautiful.”

I moaned as the hands continued to sweep over me. Gentle yet persistent fingers probed my secret places—places previously unexplored—caressing and invading my body.

Lips replaced fingers. Icy lips, blue with undeath but soon to be reddened with life, my life—but I did not know then, that would be one of my very first lessons.

I felt two at my neck and one at my breast. Then I felt something sharp stab into flesh and nearly cried out but fell silent. For there by the fire stood a man. I could only make out that he was tall and slender. He moved toward the bed. Not to help me but to watch...!

At last I knew I was not dreaming. There were three women touching me and whispering as they did.

“Yes, now,” the man said.

Once again I felt their teeth upon my flesh. “We drink you and love you...”

It was only painful for a moment for when one bit me, another caressed me. And so it went on like that for an eternity it seemed.

I drifted away then, retreating into a warm place full of shadows, a netherworld so near the living one. How I wished to remain there.

In my mind I saw myself covered by three female figures and a male as well. I opened my eyes to see Dracula’s own burning like two red coals. I saw in their depths a new world I would soon be entering.

I watched as his mouth sought my neck and then my breasts. I felt the sharp sting of his teeth and the pressure of his suckling and drawing out of my blood. Yet, it was pleasurable and I wished him to do whatever he liked. There had never been a greater pleasure than this for me. I cried out in ecstasy.

After he fed he pulled away and in the semi dark I saw my blood on him. . “Beloved!” he cried.

“Now you shall drink from me, for it is our wedding. I watched as he slit open his chest. “Drink and you shall never know death.”

And so I did.

I was thirsty and lapped it up. There was no wine sweeter than this; his own ruby port.

As I swallowed, I saw images of a life...a boy becoming a man. I saw battles and bloodshed, joy and sorrow. In the light and darkness of the visions appeared faces of creatures I could not identify. And then I saw the sisters calling out to me.

At first I thought I was still dreaming, but then I smelled their blood. “Sister, you are one of us now,” they said in unison.

I watched as they bent over me, each taking a part of me as though I were a feast set before them.

“They drink from your fountain for you are the new covenant. You are ours now and forever,” Dracula said.

The night was endless it seemed, and if there was pain, that pain would soon disappear and have pleasure replace it. Fathomless pleasure, the joy unending, for this was the beginning of the ritual of the blood.

“Love the blood,” he whispered. “The joy is in the blood...the passion is in the blood...endless life is in the blood...!”

I felt him mount me then. His eyes swept over my body before he took me in sight of the sisters, those who I would soon call the brides.

It was sometime later that I heard them whisper. “Dawn is breaking. Let us take her to the crypt.”

This excerpt if from The Fourth Bride

it is book 4 in The Blackstone Vampires Series. 

AMAZON 

It can be read as a standalone. It is included in the box set for $4.99

2014 - Amazon Bestseller in Dark Fantasy - THE BLACKSTONE VAMPIRES OMNIBUS

2015 - Amazon Bestseller in Vampire Horror - THE BLACKSTONE VAMPIRES OMNIBUS

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CAN A DEMONIC CREATURE LOVE?

Can monsters? Can vampires feel love and passion?  I think most readers of paranormal and Gothic fiction would agree they can.

But can they love without being 'good'? In other words, can thoroughly evil, vicious, demonic creatures such as demons and vampires actually 'love?'

Why not, everyone has their good and darkside? Sound silly? Well, let's consider!

For those of us who like real, dark villains, not pouty vampire ones, this is a question we like to consider.

Can't there be a part of a monster that actually can love? I think there can be. I think the tragedy of the monster suddenly feeling something that tames him and mellows him even if it is for a short time, is to be explored, developed and written about because it's interesting!

Those of us who adore Coppola's film of Dracula know what that means. I've blogged about it before.

In fact, I was inspired to write The Fourth Bride (of Dracula) because of that film! 

In my novel, just as in the film, Dracula is not diminished in the least. He kills and corrupts, he is evil, he is hellish but he is also tragic.

He loved once as a human being and he loves again, not just those lusty 'brides' of his, but the profound love he felt in his living life he experiences again when he sees Mina in the film and Dia in my novel.

And by the way, this, the fourth book in my series can

be read as a standalone. The Fourth Bride

This question of a demon feeling love, spawned two books. Those two books are Unholy Testament - The Beginnings and Unholy Testament - Full Circle

Make no mistake about it, Eco was a vicious blood monster in the first book, The House on Blackstone Moor. He raped my heroine and would have taken her to hell with him.

However! It is in both volumes of Unholy Testament that he explains how he did this when, in fact, he had fallen in love with her! Hence, his confession to her which is what both these books are about.

This is a complex demonic vampire. This is an intelligent, corrupt being who has killed and destroyed and wallowed in sin, but who has felt love in the course of his immortal existence.

I am dedicated to pushing the boundaries with my fiction. I want to see what I can do, where it can go, where I can lead the reader. That's what this, my dark Gothic romantic fiction is all about! 

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COMPLETE SERIES/4 NOVELS

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EACH BOOK IN THE BLACKSTONE VAMPIRES SERIES 99 CENTS!

Buy singly for 99 cents. Feb. 16 - Feb 22/ The darkest Gothic romance you can read. 

THE HOUSE ON BLACKSTONE MOOR  buy here
After discovering her savagely murdered family, Rose Baines is plunged into a nightmare of hell. She is incarcerated in two madhouses, after which she is helped to obtain a position as governess at Blackstone House. Located on haunted moorland, nothing is as it seems for the House and its inhabitants have hideous secrets. There is unimaginable horror there, and love too--love that comes at a terrible price.

UNHOLY TESTAMENT – THE BEGINNINGS  buy here
Eco, first seen in the previous book, has documented all of the sins he has committed during the course of his immortal life. Trying to get Rose to forgive him, he forces Rose to read his journal by holding her children hostage.

UNHOLY TESTAMENT – FULL CIRCLE  buy here 
Vampiric orgies and satanic rituals fill the pages of this book. All of the hideous secrets of Blackstone House are revealed. Every evil that Rose Baines was subjected to is closely examined, as are those who committed the worst sins against her.

THE FOURTH BRIDE  buy here 
After the tragic and sudden death of her groom, Dia, cursed by Dracula as a babe, is taken to his castle. Once there, she is seduced and turned by the count and becomes his fourth bride. The other brides are to be her sisters. All are to love and feed upon one another. Dia’s tale is full of erotic sex and graphic violence. It is a tale of love and lust but mostly of blood, for the blood is everything.

from FEBRUARY 16 - FEBRUARY 22 - 99 CENTS/99PENCE EACH 

Review

The House on Blackstone Moor

eFestival of Words 2014: Best Villain, Eco/ Best Horror, The House on Blackstone Moor

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"92 Horror authors you need to read right now"

Carole Gill -- the Blackstone Vampires series

~Charlotte Books - EXAMINER

.

"In the attempt to find the just measure of horror and terror, I came upon the writing of Carole Gill whose work revealed a whole new dimension to me. The figure of the gothic child was there. Stoker's horror was there. Along with the romance! At the heart of her writing one stumbles upon a genuine search for that darkness we lost with the loss of Stoker." DR. MARGARITA GEORGIEVA ~ Gothic Readings in The Dark

TOP 10 BOOKS 2013

Aoife Marie Sheridan - ALL THINGS FANTASY

Publisher, Ultimate Fantasy Books

Unholy Testament - The Beginnings

"Darker than the first! Chilling and impactful.

Love Books

Unholy Testament - Full Circle 

"Is full of dark, gory, evil and heinous twist and turns which keeps your adrenaline going. Unholy Testament - Full Circle with all of the horrific things that goes on in it is just right up my alley. And believe me you definitely get plenty of evil in Unholy Testament - Full Circle. The ending left me with my mouth hanging open it was so surprising. I never expected it but I loved it."

NANCY ALLAN - Avid Reader

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The Fourth Bride

Creepy and full of evil! Carole is by far the master story teller of vampire gothic horror. Once you pick this novel up there will be nothing more important than getting to the last page! There are more dark twists and turns than a roller coaster!

WENDE SHEETS ~ Julie's Book Review

DRACULA HAD A FOURTH BRIDE. DID YOU KNOW?

THIS IS THE STORY OF DRACULA AND HIS BRIDES. IT TELLS OF DRACULA'S LIVING LIFE AND HIS IMMORTAL ENEMY. IT IS A STORY OF EROTIC LOVE AND IS RECOMMENDED FOR MATURE READERS. 

99 cents NOV 30 - DEC. 6

Although it is book 4 in The Blackstone Vampires Series, it can be read as a stand alone. It is recommended for mature readers. 

EXCERPT:

"We left the castle in the light of a full moon. I moved faster than I ever had before. In a moment it seemed I went from the castle grounds to the edge of the forest. How magical it felt. The great height of the mountain was meaningless when vampire prowess is involved. If I flew, Dracula did as well, soaring even more quickly in his bat form.

Just as we reached the base of the mountain, I slowed down so that I merely floated. It was a strange feeling but a pleasant one. If I thought we’d feed on wildlife Dracula did not. He said we were bound for a village.

“The village is not far,” he said. “But we must be careful for we will not have the aid of the Szgany here.”

That had a great many implications all of them serious. Still, we were not deterred. In fact we were exhilarated, for there is pleasure in the hunt, an indescribable thrill in the stalking.

We came at last upon a small village. There were but a few white washed cottages and an inn. The inn drew our attention for it was full of chatter. The people sounded merry; possibly the worse for drink.

I was excited. Their perceived vulnerability was like an aphrodisiac. I wondered where we would lie in wait, but then Dracula gestured toward a small courtyard. It was good for our purpose, bathed as it was in dark, shadowy depths. I crept into a space to await my bounty.

“If you close your eyes you can smell their blood,” he whispered.

As I did this I realized I could distinguish different sorts of people from one another: men from women and so on. I could even discern their ages. It is, as I have come to think of it since, the blood scent and it is unique to each human being. Some scents were more interesting than others and I told him.

“They are drunk on wine...” he said.

I nodded and smiled for it was a heady scent I could almost taste.

He asked me then if I could smell the passion in the blood. This surprised me. I hadn’t noticed anything nor had I thought of it that way. But when he said it, I realized I could!

“It’s tangy and salty all at once. I have often been led to people coupling just by that scent alone. Of course there are other scents along with that!” he waved me off. “Shh, they are coming.”

I realized he was right for suddenly I heard the sound of a man’s voice and a woman’s. The man was whispering endearments and the girl giggled. He then began to tease and coax her into coming along with him. I wondered where they were going. I didn’t have long to wait for they were walking toward a house.

I heard the woman ask: “Is this where you live?” And the man replied. “Of course, I wouldn’t go to a stranger’s house.”

They thought that immensely funny and began to laugh. Just as they crossed the road, we rushed forward. Dracula grabbed the man and pulled him into the shadows as I took the woman. Neither cried out. They were too stunned. This was an early lesson I was to learn. “You can paralyze your prey,” Dracula had said. “Just be quick and feed well.”

This I did. I sank my teeth into the woman’s soft flesh. She began to shake as I sucked her blood. And I sucked a lot. It was good and sweet and tasted of spiced wine. She did try to pull away a few times, but I held her in an iron grip.

Dracula must have drained the man pretty quickly because he was soon by my side, kneeling before the woman. I watched as he began to feed on the other side of her neck. He fed in other places too, as he sometimes fed on me and the brides. I think he realized I didn’t like him to do that because he whispered, “Don’t be jealous, you do it too.”

I made no reply but instead sank my teeth into the woman’s breast and began to feed. This was not sexual. It is good to feed there because the heart is there; that wonderful, blood-filled organ throbbing with life.

“Organs are best for they are like casks of wine to us...”

Yes, his words to me.

Suddenly, Dracula began to fondle me. To feed and to be caressed at the same time is pleasurable in the extreme. This, he did for as long as I fed. When I knew I had drained the woman, I moved away. Then in the shadows of these bloodless corpses and every bit as evil as I felt the other brides to be, I coupled with Dracula. Both our passions were raised by our feeding. Yes, it was true. The passion was most definitely in the blood.

It was nearly dawn when we left. So full of blood we found it hard to move but move we did because we had to.

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DRACULA AND HIS BRIDES!

WHAT WAS DRACULA'S EXISTENCE LIKE WITH HIS BRIDES? WAS IT AS EROTIC AS WE THINK IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN. HERE'S AN EXCERPT:

"I slept the first sleep of the vampire there in the crypt. My eyes lighted upon the great caskets. The place smelled of rot and decay, yet it was pleasing to me as this place would always be my bedchamber.

Dracula carried me in his arms. “My wife,” he said. “Now, it is time to rest.”
I barely recall closing my eyes I only remember darkness and then the sound of the casket opening.

The crypt was full of shadows yet I saw a face peering into my mine. “Come, sister.”

Hands reached out and I saw the other brides. They sat me up and dressed me for I was naked. They giggled, too. “These are your wedding clothes. Now you are his forever as we are...”

Something struck me then. Something about their eyes. Though their lips spoke of love, their eyes reflected jealousy.

They told me their names in their soft yet strangely discordant voices. Now, I could see them quite clearly. I was surprised to see they all looked alike; truly they did look like sisters.

The most beautiful of the three spoke first. “I am called Verona the fair,” she said, touching her long blonde hair. “ These are Marishka and Aleera.”

As she said their names she began to touch them and they moaned with pleasure until they were all three naked.

Dracula looked pleased. “They love one another as they will love you, dear one.”
Though I didn’t wish it, I saw that he wanted me to go to them. “Please,” he said.
Their hands and lips were once again upon me, although now it was different. Now their touch hurt and I tried to pull away.

Dracula didn’t see my discomfiture for he had turned to leave the chamber.
“Come, it is time to feed,” he said. “Our world is the night and our sun is the moon.”

The sisters were right behind me. Their giggles sounded ominous. “Yes, to feed, Dia. To feed and to love...”

I watched them drift beyond the castle walls. And remarkably, I did the same—a thrilling and strange experience. It was a dark fantasy, what else could it be? And though I wondered about it, I did not care. Just to be enveloped in it was all I wanted.

The air was cold, yet I didn’t mind. I found it bracing. Never had my senses been as keen. I smelled pungent foliage and animals, too. And blood. Yes, tangy blood. Blood I wished to drink!

Dracula stood nearby and motioned me forward. He didn’t have to; the scent of human blood would have drawn me there. A man lay on the ground, not fully conscious.

“I have half strangled him,” Dracula said as he knelt down and began feeding. At last he glanced up. “He still lives; you may only feed on the living. Come, child.”
I did not hesitate; any sense of decency was gone. I was a wanton thing, a creature of the night in search of blood and little else.

He took my hand to guide it toward my lips. “Feel them,”

I felt my longer incisors and gasped.

He dipped his finger in the man’s blood. “Taste it.”

I sucked his finger with great hunger and relish. Divine. Then with joyful abandon, I bent down to feed. I fed voraciously because I was ravenous.

As I sucked forth the man’s blood, I saw his life. I saw the simple cottage of a peasant and a woman and children—his family. Yet though I saw these things, I didn’t care. It meant nothing to me. Only the blood and my beastly satisfaction were important.

I continued to feed and began to see different scenes, all having to do with the dying man’s life. When he shuddered, Dracula touched me. “You can take no more.”

I realized the man was dead, for the shuddering had stopped. And I cried because I wished more! Dracula shook his head. “You must never weaken. Never sup on the blood of the dead for if you do, your fate will be more horrible than you can imagine.”

'92 Horror authors you need to read right now'

Carole Gill -- the Blackstone Vampires series

~Charlotte Books EXAMINER

.

AMAZON 

$2.99

ALTHOUGH BOOK 4 IN THE BLACKSTONE VAMPIRES SERIES, 

IT CAN BE READ AS A STAND ALONE

WRITING THE FOURTH BRIDE OF DRACULA

Was a work of love. I've always wondered about those three wives of Dracula. Just what did they get up to? I wondered where they came from and how they came to be vampires. And really, if I was wondering about that I was also wondering about Dracula. I had so many questions. What was he like before becoming a vampire? What were his parents like and the time he lived in?

Yes, it is touched upon in Bram Stoker's novel and in film versions, but it's not detailed. I also wondered how Dracula became a vampire. I've connected that to his attendance (which is depicted by Bram Stoker in Dracula) at a school of the occult in Scholomance, Transylvania, as mentioned in my previous post.

There's a storyline there that explains a lot. And although I was scrupulous in details about getting the story right (not diluted), I did not stint on sex and graphic violence. Let's face it, these vampires are beings from hell. They are demonic and though they lust after one another (and boy, do they ever) they do it in their own way; hence the sex and violence. When they feed they aren't delicate. These are not vegetarian vampires.

I have also given Dracula a very good reason for wanting to go to England. He wishes to raise a vampire army because of something he saw; something that horrified him. After seeing this horror, he begins to write letters. Dia, the fourth bride is witness to it. She also sees Jonathan Harker arrive.
She doesn't see Van Helsing, but she is told by Dracula's loyal Szagany Gypsies every detail, including Dracula's 'death.'

My main objective was to write a novel that embellishes the novel Bram Stoker wrote. I also wished to entertain modern readers. The wives, the blood the sex, the hideous existence of Dracula and his wives are all there. It was why I wrote the book. Darkness is at the core of my writing, but wishing to get Dracula right was the core objective of my writing, The Fourth Bride (of Dracula)!

The Fourth Bride is on offer now for 99 cents at Amazon. If you ever wanted to know more of Dracula existence, living and undead, then look no further!

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DO YOU KNOW OF DRACULA'S CONNECTION TO SATAN?

Yes! There is a connection with the devil! Anyone who doesn't think so hasn't read Dracula by Bram Stoker.

Before writing The Fourth Bride, I studied the novel, Dracula and I learned a great deal. I learned for instance, that the count attended a school in Scholomance in Transylvania where he learned the black arts. Bram Stoker includes an intriguing allusion to a mysterious devil’s school in Transylvania: The Draculas, he wrote, “had dealings with the Evil One. They learned his secrets in the Scholomance, amongst the mountains over Lake Hermanstadt, where the devil claims the tenth scholar as his due.”

The vampire himself was one of these scholars, a diabolic genius.

Now then, horror fiction is diverse as tastes are. Vampires are written a variety of ways, but one truth unites all of them. It is at the core of their being. THEY ARE DEMONIC CREATURES. They may be tortured and miserable, but they are what they are. If an author wants to dream up a different sort of being--fine. That might prove to be very interesting. But for now, please let me know that you understand that Bram Stoker who wrote the iconic novel, Dracula was writing him with a core connection to the devil. If you dispute that, you don't know what Dracula is really about.

Let the spins roll on, it's good for the vampire sub genre as long as we know what the original blood-sucking count was really about.

"Wolves Cry For The Undead!"

"His living life had been tragic. I felt his sadness and anguish. I knew I always would feel his pain.

We were quiet and thoughtful that night, for there was so much to reflect on. Later, we walked upon the castle battlements. The view was stunning from up there. The sky looked silken and moody. Black clouds slid across the moon.

I remarked on it. Dracula said the night was sad for the clouds were like widow’s weeds. Wolves began to howl. “They cry for all undead,” he said. “They are dear to me for they sing their sad song to all who will listen.”

I agreed. “They sing perhaps of what they are, of what has gone before and will be.”

“Yes, many believe that the souls of the dead are reborn into wolves. The peasants are frightened of them for they say it is a sign of bad luck when they draw close. However, the Szgany know differently. They know the wolf is teacher to all. He leads the way. There are many things to be learned from him.”

I was quite moved by that.

“Come,” Dracula said. “The night is ending. Dawn will soon break. We must rest now, my love. We will talk tomorrow.”

$2.99

can be read as a stand alone

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99 cents promo THE FOURTH BRIDE OF DRACULA!

WHAT IF THERE WAS ANOTHER BRIDE YOU DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT?!

I've always wondered about those three wives of Dracula's. Just what did they get up to? I wondered where they came from and how they came to be vampires. And really, if I was wondering about that, I was also wondering about Dracula. I had so many questions. What was he like before becoming a vampire? What were his parents like? And the time he lived in, what was that like?


Keep reading because I am going to reveal something in the story line for the first time!

Yes, his living life is touched upon in the novel and in film versions, but it's not detailed. I also wondered how Dracula became a vampire. I've connected that to his attendance (which is depicted by Bram Stoker in Dracula) at a school for the occult in Scholomance, Transylvania. That spells out exactly how it all happened. How Dracula obtained his powers.

There's a story line there that explains a lot. And although I was scrupulous with details about getting the story right (not diluted), I was intent on not stinting on graphic sex and graphic violence. Let's face it, these vampires are beings from hell. They are demonic and though they lust after one another (and boy, do they ever), they do it in their own way; hence the sex and violence. When they feed they aren't delicate. These are not vegetarian vampires.

I have also given Dracula a very good reason for wanting to go to England. He wishes to raise a vampire army because of something he saw; something that horrified him. He saw a freak show with vampires. He feared he was seeing the future! It is after seeing this horror, that he begins to write letters inquiring about property in England.


Dia, the fourth bride is witness to it. She sees Jonathan Harker arrive. She doesn't see Van Helsing, but she is told by Dracula's loyal Szagany Gypsies every detail, including Dracula's 'death.'

My main objective was to write a novel that Bram Stoker would not find fault with. I wanted to honor the count. But I also wished to entertain modern readers. The wives, the blood the sex, the hideous existence of Dracula and his wives are all there. It was why I wrote the book. Darkness is at the core of my writing, but wishing to get Dracula right was the main objective of my writing, The Fourth Bride (of Dracula)!

purchase at Amazon for $.99!

THE FOURTH BRIDE 

Excerpt from The Fourth Bride:

"The incident though, this rising up of vampire killers, disturbed Dracula and he became moody and silent. Eventually, he took me aside. He told me first of himself and of the princely blood he had, which flowed through his veins.

“These veins,” he said, pointing at them, "once ran with living blood—blood that nourished a human being and not this evil and corruption you see before you.” I scoffed at that, whereupon he smiled sadly. “No, dear one, it is true. I am not as I was, a warrior prince of the house of Dracula who did battle Turks to keep this land free..."

99 cents! DRACULA REMEMBERS (From The Fourth Bride)!

Excerpt

"He began to pace as he remembered. “Recalling one’s living life from so long ago is difficult. Yet I shall because I wish you to know. I was born four hundred years ago. My mother died giving me life. I dream of her sometimes.”
I reached out and kissed his hand when he said that.

“I am a Székely descended from Attila the Hun, and I am proud to be called Voivode for they were the highest ranking officials appointed by the king! I, like my father before him, were so honored. My father was rarely home for there were many battles in those days. How I’d miss him when he went off to battle, which was often. Servants looked after me but it was a lonely existence for a boy. When I was ten years of age my father began to teach me about my heritage.

“You will be a defender of the faith, my son. There are enemies... from the East,” he said. He called them godless usurpers, beasts that must be cut down by whatever means. Father taught me soldiering and sword play. He used our staff in order to train but it was all so intense, many servants died of their injuries or were maimed.

If I found it shocking, father did not. “They die for their prince,” he told me, meaning himself. “They are our servants and are pledged from boyhood to do our bidding. When Father thought me skilled enough to accompany him into battle, he took me with him.

“As befitted a Voivode, I, like my father, would lead our brave countrymen against the Turks! I grew up quickly, for I saw how horrific it all was. I saw men torn apart and even though they were dressed strangely and cried out in a language I did not know, I still felt sorry for them when I saw them torn to pieces...”

His voice trailed off then. But he was watching me carefully. Frankly I was shocked by what he told me.

“The ones not killed in battle were taken prisoner. Theirs was to be a horrible fate. He had them killed brutally by spreading honey and confections on their naked bodies. This, to attract insects and predators. Dia, I was shocked. Still, he was my father and I felt it was my place to honor him. This I would do by becoming as ruthless as I could be, for that was how I thought it best to honor him.

Eventually, he sickened and took to his room. He died when I turned sixteen. It was my duty then to fight for my country on my own, which I did. The battles continued for many years…”

He didn’t say anything else. Instead, he embraced me. I felt the warmth from him cooling. Such things happen after a feed when the vampire’s body cools once again.

Finally, he led me to the bedchamber, which was now inhabited by two coffins.

“Yes, I brought that in for myself.” He smiled. “Sleep, beloved. Sleep well tonight and do not have troubling dreams. Be easy with yourself for there is so much more I must tell you.”

I was flattered because I felt the more he told me of himself, the more he trusted and loved me..."

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Editorial Reviews:

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Dark and Creepy full of evil! Carole is by far the master story teller of vampire gothic horror. 

~Wende Sheets - Julie's Book Review

92 Horror authors you need to read right now'

Carole Gill -- the Blackstone Vampires series

~Charlotte Books EXAMINER

AMAZON 

 99 CENTS LAST HOURS, $2.99 AFTER THAT

OR BUY ALL FOUR (BOXED SET) FOR $3.99

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Serious Horror

What is serious horror? I’ve been thinking about this. I think it’s horror that goes back to basics, back to the starting point, back to why it was termed ‘horror.’ The time when monsters were depicted as monsters and vampires as the blood- feeding demonic creatures they are. That is not to say there can’t be room for expansion because there can be.

In my view, vampires differ as humans do. However, being vampires they face a dark existence; as dark as the night shadows they dwell in. If they are not intrinsically evil, they are tortured because they know what they are. They cannot enter a church or be turned back into the human being they were. This causes them to suffer, which in turn causes them to have complex emotions and reactions to the world around them–both the living and undead ones.

They might be shunned by other vampires, those who enjoy their beastial existence, the feeds, the orgies and so on with more gusto and less angst.

There is this, though; horror is a broad church and there is room for much experimenting. It only enriches the genre. I, however, am a pretty passionate person by nature and feel I am on a mission to go back to what I see as the roots of horror; in the case of much of my fiction, the core values of darkest horror which I enjoy portraying. I’m not without humor though, dark as it often is. This I have done more in my short fiction.

I do recognize that readers change over time and what they like changes. That is why there is much romance (albeit twisted as hell) in my longer fiction. Even if vampires are heroic and sympathetic, I still depict them as needing to subsist on blood. A creature who lives on blood is not Goldilocks. It’s either a vampire bat or a vampire, that’s what I think.

I see a great deal of dark sexuality too within the vampire’s existence. They feed and lust after one another and the living too. As Dracula says in my novel, The Fourth Bride, “there is pleasure in the blood…” He means sexual gratification. If that is shocking, it is shocking. But it is also being true to horror. Horror is horror. I’m not talking about paranormal romance. HORROR is DARK or it would not be called horror!

Now, that doesn't mean that every single thing I write is seriously dark, it isn't. I have darkly comic and comic fiction out there, there is funny to gruesome in Carole Gill's House of Horrors and Circus of Horrors also, but to a different degree.

*I still experiment. I'm doing that right now in a project I took on. I'll be blogging about that soon.

reblogged 2/2/19
New horror novel in progress*

99 cents!!! THE FOURTH BRIDE (of Dracula!)!

Complete chapter from the novel:

"I found myself standing inside a great hall, which smelled of dust and decay. A tall stained glass window drew my eye. It would have looked beautiful had it not been shattered in places. That mar was characteristic of the all-pervading gloom.

Suddenly, my host moved to stand in front of me. If I had thought him distinguished looking before, I now found he looked so horrible, I nearly cried out. I am certain I backed away. How had I not seen that his ears were pointed?

He raised one hand as if to comfort me. That was when I noticed his fingernails looked like talons.

He spoke I think to distract me for I am certain my face gave me away. “Miss Dia, permit me to show you to your room for you must be weary.”

I was not clear in my thinking. If I had been confused for most of my journey, I was still feeling dazed because I followed obediently behind him.

As we climbed the staircase, I watched the light from his lamp flicker along the wall as his tall slender shadow moved along with it.

“It is this way,” he said as he motioned me onward. The corridor was long and there were many doors. On we went until he at last opened one. The room was well lit and a welcome change from the cold, fireless hall below. “I have had a supper laid out for you. I hope it is to your liking. Come,” he motioned. “You will sleep through here...”

We passed through a small room and emerged into the bedchamber. It was handsomely furnished and I was relieved to see a fire burned within the great stone hearth.

“Please, refresh yourself and then dine...” I hesitated and he smiled. “Perhaps you are too tired to eat?”

Before I could answer, he turned quickly and said he would be back. He wasn’t gone long. When he returned I nearly gasped for he looked so different. His lips were red and his eyes shone.

“I have taken some tonic. I did not wish to look tired for you.”

I was amazed at the difference in him, for now his ears no longer looked pointed. Nor did his fingernails seem long!

He was staring so intently at me. “My looks please you now,” he said.

That quite embarrassed me. “No, you looked fine before...!”

He smiled. “I will always endeavor to look my very best for you, young lady.”

I didn’t reply, for I had other, more pressing things on my mind. I was confused. “Count...please. I am at a loss to understand what I am doing here as I recall so little. Everything seems muddled. I cannot remember much of anything. I know my name but little else.”

He nodded sympathetically. “Perhaps we can discover what is wrong. Tell me, my child, what can you remember?”

I thought a moment but it was difficult. I found there was little I could make sense of.

“A young aide of mine brought you here, do you remember?”

Yes, the coach and the trip...but from where?!

I nodded. “The man; yes, I remember him...and some of the journey, but that is all I can recall.”

“You are tired. Do not be hard on yourself. I think it is food you require.” He uncovered a great silver tray. “It is aromatic, is it not?”

It was and I nodded.

“It is freshly prepared chicken made with paprika in the way the people of this region enjoy their food. Pali’s mother prepared it.”

“Pali?”

“The young man who escorted you here.”

I smiled as I began to remember. “Yes! Pali.”

“He is a Gypsy, you know.”

Something clicked in my head. Gypsies were strange beings, clannish and not to be trusted, or so they said. Dracula looked to be measuring my response. “I have never known Gypsies ... but then again...”

“Many people hate and fear them. I do not, however; I have found them to be good and loyal servants and friends of mine. In fact, I entrust them with my very existence.” He gestured toward the food. “Please…”

I did not wish to appear rude so I took a bite of the chicken. “It is good. Very good.”

Dracula looked pleased. “I knew you would like it. And now...what is food without wine?” He reached over and picked up a beautiful cask from which he poured some wine. He handed me the goblet. “Please.”

I hesitated, expecting him to pour some for himself. Dracula smiled. “No, I do not drink...wine. Do not mind about me, please.”

He was waiting for me to drink it, so I did. The taste was rich and heavy, and spiced too. I did know eastern tastes differed from western. Spiced wines were popular throughout Hungry and Romania.

“It is good, different.”

He looked very pleased. I hadn’t taken that much but I started to feel funny and by the time my meal was finished, my eyelids felt heavy. Sleep beckoned.

Dracula rose. “You are to retire now. That is good. I will leave you in peace.” He smiled and I smiled too because now he looked almost handsome to me. So handsome, in fact, it quite touched my heart.

I stared at the closed door for the longest time, wishing him to return. That is the last thing I recall for in the next moment I heard a wolf. What a haunting sound it made.

I hurried to the window to see if I could see it, but could not. But then, suddenly, I saw a flash of something white dart across the grounds. Then, it turned and sat on its haunches to look at me! I called to it, but it made no sound; instead, it disappeared as quickly as it had come.

*

A slant of sunlight woke me, just a slant reaching out from the heavy drapes. If I felt less tired, I did not yet feel fully awake either—I felt as though I was dreaming and could not stir myself from the dream.

It wasn’t until I rose that I saw a dress laid out upon a chair. It was burgundy in color and quite pretty, if a little old fashioned.

It wasn’t one of mine I knew for I had no luggage with me. Had my host brought it for me to wear? Perhaps a servant had; after all, I didn’t think the count would have entered the chamber while I slept, though I did suspect he had brought it himself and watched me sleep. I think it thrilled me to believe he had done this. I know now I was already falling in love with him.

I dressed quickly because I was hungry. I hoped there might be a tray outside my door but as it turned out, I did not have to open my door at all because a lovely breakfast had been laid out in the next room. There were rolls and coarse grain breads I had never seen before. And pots of jam, as well as coffee in a great silver carafe.

The china was exquisite, the tray arranged artfully. When I was finished, I washed my face and left my room, intent on thanking my host. He was however nowhere to be seen. In fact, the castle seemed eerily silent.

I walked along the great stone floored passageway, heading toward the stairs. The doors along the corridor were still closed and though I did gently knock on a few of them, I soon stopped for I didn’t wish to disturb anyone.

Down the stairs I went, certain I would see someone: my host or possibly a servant. “Is anyone there?” I called. But there was no answer.

I searched in barren cupboards full of cobwebs and dust, as well as ancient looking disused kitchens, but found nothing.

At last I came upon a stairway leading down to what I assumed was the cellar. Rather than go there, I went back up to my room. For some reason, the downstairs had quite unsettled me and I wished to go no further. I would simply stay and wait for my host.

The dishes were still on the table, as no servant had cleared them. What a strange place, I thought, little realizing the oddity of my own actions, stumbling around in a strange castle.

I retreated finally to the bed. I think I fell asleep, unsure for how long. All I recall was waking to the sound of knocking.

Before I could answer the summons the door swung open and Dracula stepped inside. “I trust you have slept well and eaten? I took the liberty...”

He explained how he had provided my breakfast for me. “As for your evening meal, I was hoping to join you while you dined.”

I assumed he would be dining with me, but when I saw there was only one dish I asked: “Have you dined already, Count?”

He smiled. “Yes, I have consumed my sustenance, dear young lady.”

Although I’d have preferred it if he joined me, I began. I asked him about the wolf.

“Yes, there are wolves. They are such beautiful creatures… Were you troubled by their presence?”

“Not at all, I was rather delighted by it.”

I explained then that I had never heard or seen a wolf. Dracula nodded. “You saw only one?”

“Yes, a beautiful white one. I hope I see it again.”

He smiled and sighed. “I am certain if you wish it, you will.”

Not long after this little interchange, I suddenly begun to remember things, bits and pieces of things, many of them indecipherable but then Edward’s face flashed before me. I trembled so that I dropped my fork.

Dracula looked concerned. “Are you not well?” he asked.

“Edward!”

I saw his eyes widen with alarm. “Who did you say?”

I began to cry. “I don’t know. I am beginning to remember things now.”

Dracula encouraged me to tell him what I could.

“I was just married... We eloped and he sickened and died!”

I rushed from the table. Dracula came after me. “Perhaps if you lie down you will feel better. You have had a fright.”

“Fright nothing! I am at last remembering.”

He suggested I lie down, which I did. He left me then but returned quickly. “I have brought you something…” He held an ornate goblet. “Have this; it is a tonic of sorts, just herbs and tea. It is good for most things that ail a person.”

He was staring at me and though I didn’t wish it, I took the goblet from him. It was as though I had no will of my own!

“That is right. Drink it, my dear. It will soothe you.”

I found myself bringing it closer to my lips, all the while thinking, No! I will not! The inability to control my own movements was terrifying. The more I tried to gain control, the more powerless I felt. When I tried to walk it was worse. The room began to spin and I fell down. “Help me,” I cried, for no matter what I did I could not raise myself up.

Dracula smiled down at me. “There, child. You will be alright.”

Why did his voice sound so far away?

“Count?”

He didn’t answer at first. When he did, his voice was but a whisper. “Accept thy gifts for you will be loved forever and ever…!”

(End of chapter 3)

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This is book 4 of The Blackstone Vampires Series but may be read as a stand alone.

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EXCERPT The Blackstone Vampires, Book 4

Harker's arrival:

"He did indeed arrive the following night. I saw a coach pull up to the castle and out stepped the passenger aided by the driver. I knew at once the driver was Dracula. The man looked uneasy waiting there. Every sound seemed to unsettle him. He kept looking around for some time until at last the great doors opened and Dracula appeared. When I saw him motion the man inside, I was reminded of my own arrival not that long ago, but what is time to the undead?

Suddenly I realized I was not alone. I turned to find Verona standing beside me. Her face looked beautiful in the moonlight, her eyes burning red, her voice a poisonous whisper. “I can smell his blood,” she said. “Can you?”

If I admitted I too could smell it and was tempted, that would not have been a lie. That was probably why I hated Verona as much as I did. She was a constant reminder to me of what I had become.
“He will be ours when the master is finished with him.”

Those words rang true for Dracula had said them to me. The others soon joined her, each of them once again acting as though they were one being—the core of which would be that evil creature known as Verona.

All they could talk about was the master’s guest. “We shall kiss the life out of him... and we shall do it over and over until he is white with death.” They giggled, their mirth sounding ominous.

They left me then. And I watched them creep up toward the castle so slowly, it seemed they were gliding.
I imagined that they would lie in wait, waiting for any gift given them by Dracula. I followed along, not to wait with them but to remain by myself in the crypt, once again an outcast by my own choosing.
I would, during this time, occasionally visit Darka although my visits grew less frequent. The last thing I wished to do was to put her in danger. For her part, she pitied me. “If only you could flee,” she’d say. “But you cannot for you are so bound.”

She worried; for it was obvious things were only going to get worse for me. Darka was forthright enough to warn me yet again: “Be prepared, my sweet child of the night. He will go alone; he is so decided. There is no place for you or even his other wives in his future existence.”

That struck me. I hadn’t thought of them. Why were they so faithful to him? He didn’t care for any of us. It was always lust and nothing more.

“We are nothing to him.”
Darka did not answer, but then again, she didn’t have to.

In the days that followed, I rarely sought Darka out because I did not want Verona to find me with her. I was fearful of even going there in secret for I have often thought Verona more witch than vampire.
I had as little to do with the sisters as possible. And when hunger overcame me, I’d seek out my sustenance alone.

"The master had been keeping more to himself. And if I missed him, I knew the other brides did too, for I heard them complaining to one another.

Sometimes I imagined they laughed at me. In truth, I didn’t care. I was already resigning myself to eventual destruction, for I did not wish to exist without the master. The beginning of the end for me came the night I saw Dracula capture a small child. He had snatched it away from its home.

Yes, I had followed along, so eager was I to see where he was going and what he was doing. I had become a desperate, mad thing; both wanting him and fearing him at the same time.

He plucked the child away from its mother. The woman had only left it for a moment, just long enough for Dracula to carry it off like some predatory bird.

It occurred to me he was taking it back for the sisters, for them to feast on, and I was right. I heard their joy at having received such a gift. And though I too had done evil things to all human creatures, this troubled me greatly.

The child was devoured quickly. I heard it cry out once and then no more. The only sounds were those of enjoyment. Verona’s voice was the loudest: “Such a sweet child!”

End of excerpt

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The Fourth Bride and Harker Approaches

             Still From 'Dracula,' 1992

99 CENTS! Standalone
FAITHFUL TO THE NOVEL, DRACULA BUT WITH HIS SEXUALITY AND LIVING LIFE INCLUDED!

From The Fourth Bride, The Blackstone Vampires Series:

"I was terrified of discovery and since I rarely knew where the sisters were, I was worried, but my desire to find out whatever I could, drove me on.

I found an immense room; filled with Dracula’s presence. Book cases lined the walls, going from floor to ceiling. There was a great table piled high with books and papers. A smaller table nearby was crowded with maps and journals. There was a log book too. When I opened it, a paper slipped out.

There were copious notes on it, none of which meant anything to me, but then I read something about a ship called the Demeter. There were notations along the margins, but the writing was so cramped, I could not make out what it said.

As I turned to leave, I saw some letters. I picked one up and read the sender was one Jonathan Harker.

Mr. Hawkins has referred your enquiry to me and I look forward...

That was all I read, for I was certain I heard footsteps. I flew back to the chamber to await his arrival.
Dracula is lord and master in the fullest sense of the word and we, his brides, are his lovers but we are his servants too and no servant to the master can afford to be reckless. Bearing that in mind, I made certain to be downstairs when he returned with our feed.

Occasionally the master would bring something special for us as though to pamper us. Earlier, when he told us he was bringing us something delectable, I thought he was trying to make amends for being offhand with the sisters.

Whatever his intentions, he returned with a young insensible man, half strangled but still alive.
Dracula smiled. “I have not tasted him; I wanted my brides to have the first taste.” He looked strangely at me then I thought.

When the sisters cried with delight at the offering, I did not. And when they flung themselves upon the bounty, I hung back.

“Feed, my Dia. Feed.”

I didn’t wish to but I did as I was told.

My reticence soon gave way to my beastliness. So that I too supped like a wild animal; voraciously until our victim was nearly white with death.

Then at the first light of dawn we retired to the crypt to sleep the sleep of the damned. Once again he came to me and loved me. And once again I loved him back. I almost dared to hope he was not going to leave me. However, the next night he was distant with me and more affable with the sisters. In fact, he took the three of them. I heard the sounds of their lusty lovemaking.

This went on for hours and when I could stand it no longer I ran from the castle for I had to see Darka. I found her alone in her hut. Before I could say anything she was telling me what I wished to know. “There are letters he’s written, Pali has posted them for him. Letters arrive too that Pali brings up from the village. There is something going on. And it will not be too long before you know what it is.”

I knew at once I would go to Dracula and beg him to tell me what all this was about. If I pleaded with him, he would surely tell me, I reasoned.

Darka called me back. “Do not trust him with your heart, for though undead you still have one. You will only be hurt, Dia.”

I knew the truth, I knew it without asking. He was going to leave of that I was certain. How could my love leave me? Would he do such a thing? But then I thought perhaps not. Perhaps he will take me with him wherever he goes.

I am certain I knew the truth to that false hope, yet I chose to hold onto the hope in order to banish the worry.

The castle was nearly dark. I thought to go upstairs but then I heard Dracula and the sisters cry out in joyful abandon. I quickly retreated to the crypt; a far more appropriate place for the weeping vampire that I was.

*He seemed different to me in the weeks that followed as the sisters did. They were no longer nasty, even Verona was nicer. In fact she was more pleasant than I have known her to be.

Dracula too was kindly. In fact he insisted on showing me as much love as he ever had. There were times when he asked to include the sisters in our lovemaking. More often than not I objected. Strangely that he didn’t mind.

But then he did and lost his temper with me. His behavior had become quite erratic by then. He was moody and sullen and once again I sought out Darka.

“The young man is coming; even now he is travelling by coach, Dia. You will see him before too long.”
I hurried back to the castle and confronted my master. He screamed and shouted and raised his hand to strike me, but I cared not.

“Are you leaving with the one who comes? Would you leave me? Would you do that to me, master?
He only looked at me; his expression; disdainful. His words harsh: “I will do what I must, Dia. I am to reside in London...the man who is coming will advise me on some property I purchased there. You may all do with him as you wish after I leave...”

He went to join the sisters then. For myself, I had no wish to see them or my master. Instead I hid myself away in the crypt, in sight of that long dead corpse in the cage, that errant bride.
In truth I no longer cared what happened to me.

Darka was upset. “But you do care, Dia! The death of the vampire is horrible and, that who can say what follows?”

I was struck by that and asked her what she meant. She shrugged. “I cannot know, beyond this world for I am mortal. There are truths beyond all understanding. Some say though vampires have no soul...they have spirit and who knows where that spirit may go after undeath!”

When she saw I could not be comforted she smiled. “Please, my child. Do not choose death lightly, nor let it choose you!”

She tried so to reason with me. And because she saw how greatly I worried she spoke optimistically. “Perhaps it will all be better and not as you think... Remember, he lusts for them but cares for you...”
Darka’s words said so often we both came to believe them.

At last Darka called me to her. “It is best for you to know. That which you dread is nearly here. The man comes...he will be here tomorrow.”

(end of excerpt)

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