Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw

June 17, 2022

Strange Practice by Vivian Shaw

Dr. Greta Helsing (descendent of Abraham Van Helsing, the vampire slayer) has a very specialized practice. She is a doctor to the undead and the supernatural, treating mummies for bone loss, vampires for garlic poisoning, and chronic bronchitis in demons. Her practice is family tradition, a field of medicine unknown to most humans. When a cult of monks begin killing humans and supernaturals alike, Greta must stop the cult to save her patients, her practice, and herself.

Fun and creative. A new take on the horror story, where the undead are integrated into society and live among us as productive citizens. There are clever references to classic horror tales - the undead usually don't care for the way novelists portray them. Recommended if you enjoy a non-traditional spooky story.

Dreadful Company by Vivian Shaw

August 20, 2022

Dreadful Company by Vivian Shaw

Dr. Greta Helsing, physician to paranormal beings, has been invited to a conference in Paris to present a paper about her work. Her good friend Edmund Ruthven the vampire accompanies her to spend a few days in Paris. But they observe some strange happenings, even with a supernatural conference in town. Little supernatural animals are turning up, as well as ghosts of the long-dead, demanding to know where the rest of their body parts are and a rogue vampire coven (they are all linked). Ruthven returns to England to deal with a structural issue at his family home, expecting to pick Greta up at the airport on Monday. But Greta disappears into thin air, and Ruthven and vampyre Sir Francis Varney (yes, that's vampyre with a y, and he gets all starry-eyed over Greta) travel to Paris to search for her in the Paris catacombs with the help of an amiable werewolf and a pair of psychopomps.

Such a fun and clever series! Vivian Shaw has put a lot of thought into the characters' backstories as well as adding new characters that make sense. This is the second book in the series (first book was Strange Practice) with a third book to follow.

FYI, there are urban explorers called cataphiles who explore the catacombs, take people on tours, and even hold parties and picnics there. The catacombs were created when the Paris cemeteries got too full to hold any more bodies, so the existing graves were excavated and the bones were hauled down to crypts below the streets of Paris.

The Paris Catacombs