by Krystal (link)
Genre drama, horror, supernatural
Pairings Taylor/OFC
Length 46 chapters and an epilogue
Status Completed (first in a trilogy)
Reading The Quiet One pretty much cemented me as a fan of Krystal’s writing. It isn’t overly flowery, there’s a subtle humor to it that I like, and the various relationships in that story were handled wonderfully. I have plenty of hope that I’ll enjoy Just Another Victim as much if not more — afterall, I do love vampire stories.
While I love a good vampire story, there are bits and pieces of Krystal’s mythology that were different than what I’m used to. Different isn’t necessarily bad, though. A lot of the mythology was all at once out of necessity after Taylor’s rebirth as a vampire, but it never felt like an unnecessary load of exposition. The whole story seemed very well paced, in fact.
Much like in The Quiet One, what really sticks out here are the relationships. Krystal takes what could be just a basic horror story and makes it all about the family relationships. I really love the contrast between the Hanson family values and the very, very different world of the vampires. That contrast only makes each world richer.
As the story continues, the vampire politics become more and more important, though what’s left of Taylor’s human nature continues to play a huge role as well. I suppose that’s the whole theme of the story — can human nature win out, or will animal instincts take over? And is Taylor really just another victim, as the title says? I anticipate the loose threads left at the end, as far as the vampire politics are concerned, will play a bigger part in the second story, and I’m definitely looking forward to reading it.
Review by Bethany (website)