Digging Deep into the Vampire Psyche: Themes in Vampire Fiction

Why do you read vampire fiction? For the sexy guys? For the action? For the intrigue? For the romance? I bet your first answer wasn't "for the philosophy."

But one of the most powerful things about fantasy is that it gives us an opportunity to explore philosophical questions in depth, because the impact of those issues can be easily amplified in the lives of fantasy characters.

For example, we all, at some point in our lives, are forced to struggle with the death of a loved one. For a vampire, that struggle becomes even bigger. An immortal doesn't just lose immediate family and friends—a few dozen losses over a lifetime. He experiences hundreds or thousands of losses, each as deeply painful as the one before. Vampire fiction allows us to explore what it's like to outlive loved ones, to experience that feeling of loss and imagine how we might deal with it ourselves.

The question of how one deals with loss isn't the only philosophical question that vampire fiction can tackle. Some other questions that vampire fiction often deals with are:

• How can we make peace with our predator nature?
• What kinds of relationships should we have with other species? Especially those species that we rely on as a food source?
• How does being forced to hide your true nature change you?
• What is the value of human life? Does extending it make it more precious, or less?
• Do humans have souls?
• Is it your nature that damns you, or is it your actions?
• How would you choose to live if you knew you had all the time in the world?
• How do you deal with the fact that the world you were born into no longer exists? How well do you adapt to change?
• How much control do you have over your desires and instincts? How civilized are you, really?

Of course, you can explore any theme you wanted in a vampire story, depending on what sort of character your vampire is. But these themes that I've mentioned above are inherent in the concept of an immortal predator who disguises itself to live among humans.

What's your favorite vampire story, and what themes did that story explore?

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Madeleine Drake writes feisty, fast-paced paranormal romance and erotica that spans the space-time continuum. Raised by a pride of cats, a friendly mutt, and the Sonoma County library system, she loves to read about ancient history and mythology, anthropology, gender roles, and sexual archetypes. Her current stories include Blood Hero (Excessica, 7/9/10) and Faery's Bargain (Cobblestone, 10/8/10). Her homeworld is located out past the constellation Orion, but she currently resides in Texas. You can find her online at www.madeleinedrake.com.

BLOOD HERO: She's Sex, He's Death

A vampire and a succubus join forces in ancient Babylon

---+ An AllRomanceEbooks bestseller +---

When Babylonian soldier Rihat discovers that his village is being terrorized by an akhazu demon, he seeks help at Marduk's temple. He meets Iltani, a demigoddess who's been cursed by Ishtar to live as an ardat-lili, enslaved by lust, a night-maiden who feeds on sexual energy.

Iltani offers Rihat the power to slay the akhazu, if he'll agree to serve her every need without question. But will the price of that power be more than Rihat can bear to pay?

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EXCERPT:

Rihat knelt before the limestone statue of Marduk, more out of despair than reverence for the stern-faced war god. Tomorrow, Rihat would seek out the monster that was ravaging his village, and tomorrow, he would die.

Once he was dead, who would protect his sister from the beast?

Anger tightened its hold on his throat, and he growled, trying to clear the ache that threatened to choke him. He'd wasted too much time already, first begging his fellow soldiers to fight with him, then trying to bribe palace staff to give him an audience with the king of Babylon, and finally spending his last few shekels on a scrawny pig for Marduk's priests to sacrifice on his behalf, hoping they could tell him how to defeat the monstrous akhazu by himself. All for nothing.

What could he do now but face the beast himself and die with his honor intact?

If he died well, perhaps Marduk would protect his sister.

As he opened his mouth to repeat his prayer, a fierce prickling crawled over his skin. Invisible, fiery needles pierced every inch of him, stinging his arms and legs, burning his belly, inflaming his cock. The air turned thick and heavy, and he gasped, blood pounding in his temples, a sudden, involuntary erection straining against his loincloth, lifting his kilt. His strength ebbed; the muscles in his thighs trembled.

Had Marduk noticed the frustration behind his plea, and chosen to punish him for it?

Behind him, a scuffing sound. Rihat jumped to his feet and whirled, lightheaded with the effort, grunting with the pain of stiff knees forced to move too quickly.

A woman.

Not just a woman. A beautiful woman. The most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

She wore a robe of white linen so sheer he could see the red-brown circles of her nipples and the dark, furry triangle between her legs. Her skin shimmered gold, like the desert sand at midday. Her hair, black as pitch, was unbound, flowing down her back to brush against the back of her thighs like a veil. A huge carnelian, like blood turned to stone, hung from the intricate chain around her neck.

His cock throbbed harder, as if trying to tear through his clothes to get to her. If he were naked, it would be pointing straight at her.

Why hadn't he heard her enter the room?

She examined him deliberately, head to toe. When her kohl-lined eyes paused at his groin, she smiled and licked her lips with a delicate pink tongue.

"Who are you?" he rasped.

"Rejoice, Rihat," the woman answered. "Your prayer has been answered."

* * * *

She could smell his arousal with every breath, a musky, salty scent far more pleasing than the smoky-sweet myrrh permeating the temple. He was clearly a soldier, dressed in the standard leather tunic reinforced with bronze scales, a fringed wool kilt and battered sandals. Alert brown eyes over his straight nose, broad cheeks tapering down to his strong chin, wavy black hair pulled back with a cord--she would have found him attractive even if she hadn't been half-mad with the need to feed.

Iltani reined in her hunger, ignoring the deep ache in her core, the dampness between her legs. She'd finally found a warrior who might suit her purposes. She couldn't risk frightening him off before she'd had a chance to talk to him.

Even if he doesn't accept your offer, he might let you feed anyway. Few men had the willpower to resist an ardat-lili. As much as she hated what she'd become, Iltani could only restrain her hunger for so long.

He looked like he was about to speak. "It won't help to call out," she said. "No one will hear anything until I'm finished with you."

"Who are you?" the tall, well-muscled warrior demanded again. His fingers twitched, clenched into fists. "How do you know my name?"

"I heard you praying. You may call me Iltani."

The warrior took a sharp breath. Sweat beaded on his brows, highlighting the rapid pulse at his temples. "What are you?"

"My father is Ea."

"A goddess," he breathed, fear flickering over his face. He banished it with a scowl that in no way distracted Iltani from the prodigious lump beneath his kilt.

She was so hungry. "Half-goddess. My mother was human."

"What do you want with me?"

The prayer Iltani had overheard was for his sister, and Rihat was clearly prepared to die in order to protect her. A man who could love that deeply deserved the truth. But was he brave enough to look that truth squarely in the eye? Or would he recoil with disgust as soon as he learned what she really was?

"I served as one of Ishtar's handmaidens, until the goddess caught her consort Tammuz ogling me." Even the anger roused by the memory of her exile wasn't enough to eclipse her swelling hunger for Rihat. She wanted to push him down, to kiss him, to drink in the vitality he radiated. The delicate linen of her robe, soft as it was, seemed to scour her swollen nipples with every breath she drew. The tingling between her legs grew stronger. "Ishtar cursed me to be an ardat-lili and banished me to live in your realm."

Rihat didn't back away, or start praying, or make that silly gesture humans believed would protect them against evil spirits. Was he that brave? Or did he simply love his sister that much? He asked, "Why me?"

Hope welled in Iltani's heart. Had she finally found a man who would help her? She'd already released three others from their vows of service--two because she caught them abusing their newfound abilities, and a third because he'd proven too squeamish about her curse to be reliable.

"I require a warrior to help me break the curse. In return, I can give you the strength to defeat your akhazu."

Rihat regarded her in silence.

"Once the curse is broken," Iltani added, "You'd be free again. But until then, you must serve me without question."

"Free," he repeated dubiously. "Why would you release me once I've agreed to serve you?"

She shrugged, tried to hide the trembling thrill she felt as his eyes followed the movement. "That is not your concern."

* * * *

"How?" Rihat asked, barely able to think for the thunder of lust through his veins.

"How what?"

"How would you help me kill the akhazu?" It was a mistake to bargain with her. How many men had she killed, seducing them and feeding on their souls? Sucking them to husks and abandoning them, the poor bastards still crying for her touch with their dying breath. No matter that her father was the God of Wisdom, this woman was a demon, and any sane man would run from her.

But if she could save his sister, he'd give up his sanity as willingly as he'd give up his life.

Iltani licked her lips again and the muscles in his thighs shivered, his aching cock shifting beneath the fabric that restrained it. He was certain all the blood in his body was gathering in his groin. Even knowing what she was, he wanted her more than he'd wanted anything in his life.

"The blood of the gods still flows through my veins," Iltani answered. "Drink from me, and you'll have the strength of fifty men. For a while."

He could barely talk, he was working so hard at restraining himself. He wanted to seize her, to back her up against the wall and take her. Right now. "How long is a while?"

"Long enough to save your sister."

"While I serve you, you'll...feed from me?" he asked.

"I won't take enough to weaken you. I need you to be strong."

Did he believe her? Did it matter? She was the only hope he had of defeating the akhazu. A deal with a demon. It was foolish, but he was desperate.

No doubt, he would enjoy serving her as much as he would regret it. "I'm ready."

The ardat-lili smiled. "Take off your tunic."

AVAILABLE AT: Excessica (http://tinyurl.com/2fuobmz), All Romance Ebooks (http://tinyurl.com/2fmv7a3), 1 Romance Ebooks (http://tinyurl.com/2czypvy), OmniLit (http://tinyurl.com/24lt3jc), Smashwords (http://tinyurl.com/22jmog5), Fictionwise (http://tinyurl.com/2bv8ugo), Amazon (http://tinyurl.com/2eomyed), Amazon UK (http://tinyurl.com/29g4r9n)

"Hot, exotic, fast-paced and downright mesmerizing, this is one short story lovers of the erotic won't want to miss."

--Amanda, Rants-n-Raves

"Ms. Drake does a wonderful job of bringing action, sensuality, and passion into the story. "

--Claudia Rhyes, Manic Readers

"This is a very short, fast-paced read that left me breathless. I was hooked from the first page, drawn in by the fabulous writing and the original plot. ...Ms. Drake, please continue Rihat's story, I want more of him...um, his story I mean."

--Strega, The Pagan and the Pen

"The sex was hot...Though this was an erotic paranormal read, it was so much more. The plot was fully realized, creating a new world, new rules and an intriguing story."

--LynneMarie, HEA Reviews