Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter

Publisher's Summary. Indiana, 1818. Moonlight falls through the dense woods that surround a one-room cabin, where a nine-year-old Abraham Lincoln kneels at his suffering mother's bedside. She's been stricken with something the old-timers call "Milk Sickness."

"My baby boy..." she whispers before dying.

Only later will the grieving Abe learn that his mother's fatal affliction was actually the work of a vampire.

When the truth becomes known to young Lincoln, he writes in his journal, "henceforth my life shall be one of rigorous study and devotion. I shall become a master of mind and body. And this mastery shall have but one purpose..." Gifted with his legendary height, strength, and skill with an ax, Abe sets out on a path of vengeance that will lead him all the way to the White House.

While Abraham Lincoln is widely lauded for saving a Union and freeing millions of slaves, his valiant fight against the forces of the undead has remained in the shadows for hundreds of years. That is, until Seth Grahame-Smith stumbled upon The Secret Journal of Abraham Lincoln, and became the first living person to lay eyes on it in more than 140 years.

Using the journal as his guide and writing in the grand biographical style of Doris Kearns Goodwin and David McCullough, Seth has reconstructed the true life story of our greatest president for the first time-all while revealing the hidden history behind the Civil War and uncovering the role vampires played in the birth, growth, and near-death of our nation.

Review. According to author Seth Grahame-Smith, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter was inspired by the most popular books in 2009: books about Lincoln (to celebrate the 200th anniversary of his birth) and books about vampires. Being bombarded by these diverse subjects led Grahame-Smith to wonder what would happen if they were combined? The answer is a uniquely imaginative story that will appeal to a broad spectrum of readers.

History and fiction are seamlessly blended in Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. In the author’s interview at the end of the audio book, Grahame-Smith notes that he took great care to be faithful to the historical facts, when used, out of respect to Lincoln and his many admirers. In fact, I could envision crafty parents playing this audio book on long car trips to slip in a bit of a history lesson for their teenagers. While the book is clearly in fun it is also an enlightening presentation of some of the key moments of the Civil War. For instance, a few of Lincoln’s famous speeches were included in the novel.

I thoroughly enjoyed the audio book version of this book. The narrator sounded exactly how one would imagine that the real Lincoln spoke. In addition, I found the author’s interview to be very informative as to the writing process behind the story.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is the perfect audio book for passing the long road trip hours!



Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; First Edition edition (March 2, 2010),352 pages.
Review copy provided courtesy of the publisher.