3 Stars

Nancy Gideon

MIDNIGHT ENCHANTMENT

ImaJinn Books

ISBN 1-893896-04-8

1999

Although this latest novel in Nancy Gideon's "Midnight" series of vampire romances features brief appearances by recurring characters, MIDNIGHT ENCHANTMENT stands on its own. Gerard Pasquale, an ancient vampire in 19th-century New Orleans, finds his privacy invaded by a greedy young lawyer. Percy Cristobel blackmails the wealthy Gerard into marrying his stepsister, Laure. Raped by an abusive former suitor and burdened by the scandal of her family's voodoo heritage, Laure welcomes the chance for refuge in marriage to a man she visualizes as a reclusive invalid. Gerard's virility and his enigmatic nature come as a shock. At first the vampire assumes that Laure shares her stepbrother's mercenary goals, but of course she thaws his cold heart, and the newlyweds soon fall in love. Their relationship is complicated by the discovery that Laure carries her rapist's child, while Percy and one of Laure's own relatives, a power-mad voodoo priestess, conspire to murder the couple.

The unusual variation on the "marriage of convenience" plot grabbed and held my attention. Although typical of vampire romance heroes in his self-isolating bitterness and anguish, Gerard is a strong character who, at least, doesn't spend much time feeling sorry for himself. Laure, with her loving compassion and innate magical talent, proves a worthy match for him. Their story evokes echoes of Beauty and the Beast. I also enjoyed the image of a vampire as foster father to a human baby.

The only significant flaw I noticed is probably not the author's fault, judging from the quality of her earlier books. Amateurish copyediting produced exasperating errors, notably a recurrent inconsistency in verb tenses and, worst of all, the constant use of "it's" for "its" (possessive). Otherwise, this novel is an attractively packaged trade paperback. Grit your teeth against the grammatical errors and enjoy the story.

Reviewed by Margaret L. Carter.