Review by Deb Vil -- The Hand Bringer

[Deb Vil]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Hand Bringer" by Christopher J. Penington.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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We all know the name Dracula, for it is the main vampire representation in popular culture. When we hear this name images of skinny pale creatures who spend their nights sucking blood from the innocent come to our heads, what many people don’t know is that this character is in part based on a real person. Vlad Dracula was the cruel Prince of Walachia in the mid-XV century, whose reign was ruled with an iron hand, executing inhuman punishments to those who wouldn’t fulfill his will. In The Hand Bringer, Christopher J. Penington presents a vampire novel with action, time travel, war, romance, treason, and the one and only Vlad Dracula, reimagining this sadistic character as the main axis in middle ages vampirism. Sound like the perfect mix, right?

After being attacked by a vampire, Dallas cop Peter Hadrian is taken to a secret government facility where besides healing him, the scientists at this facility improve him genetically, making him a superhuman with extraordinary strength and healing capacity. Because of his new skills, he is recruited along with a selected group to fulfill a mission: the eradication of the vampire epidemic even before it becomes one. Yes, in this book vampirism is a virus. To accomplish this mission not will he only have to leave Texas, but he will have to travel back in time to the year 1476, to what we know now as Romania for it is there where they think vampires were first born, more specifically they think Vlad Dracula is the key to eliminate these awful creatures.

From the beginning of the book, Penington immerses the reader into Peter Hadrian’s world, maintaining suspense from chapter to chapter. One of the things I enjoyed the most was the evident historical research the author made not only to make believable that the protagonists were indeed in the middle ages but to also show us the war conflicts between the different regions in medieval Rumania. Besides, I truly enjoyed Vlad interacting with the characters and carrying out his favorite activity: impaling people.

The main characters are well developed, each of them has a unique personality and the interactions between them feel very natural. I found myself giggling with their jokes and grieving to their sorrows, that is why it surprised me that it wouldn’t be the same for the female characters since they lacked dimension. Although they certainly had potential, they left me disappointed.

The book left me with a couple of unanswered questions, sometimes there were abrupt transitions between chapters and I felt the conclusion of the story a little rushed, but these weaknesses are minimized by the virtues of the book I have mentioned, the well-written plot of the story, and the excellent editing as well. This is why I score the book with 3 out of 4 stars.

It is worth mentioning that this book has frequent profane language, graphic violent scenes, sexual scenes, and sexual violence. I recommend this book to adults who want to read an entertaining vampire story, also those who like reading historical fiction will enjoy this book.

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The Hand Bringer
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[LiLj]

The plot of this book seemed really good, until I got to the part of your review where you said the book has frequent language, graphic scenes, and sexual scenes. I think I’ll have to pass. Thank you for your informative review.