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Out for Blood
- Narrated by: Sean Duregger
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
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Out for Blood
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Summary
Young Chris Callaway finds escape from the diagnosis of his terminal illness in the company of vampires, but he soon discovers that "life" among the undead holds its own set of terrors.
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What listeners say about Out for Blood
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ryan Pascall
- 23-06-20
Given his choices, I would.
I’ve been trying to remember the last time I read a vampire novel. I don’t mean a tale revolving around the Brian Lumley’s body-sculpting Wamphyri or Colin Wilson’s sexy Space Vampires but good, old fashioned vampires and I think it was probably The Vampire Lestat which I read the 90s as a rebellious teenage and so it was with interest that I started Out for Blood.
Synopsis wise, it’s an interesting premise and the idea of Chris Callaway, a young gay man suffering from leukemia, was certainly a different take than the usual person seeking excitement, revenge or power. The portrayal of his fear and frustration over his illness was well defined while avoiding it making it seem he was steeping in self-pity and I quickly grew to really like him and this was aided in no small part by the excellent narration by Sean Duregger who really gave him a beautiful sense of reluctant resignation.
Enter Beth, stunning goth girl who admits that she’s a vampire and has fed on him once and now wishes to offer him eternal life as a vampire. In a very short time, he’s died, been reborn and met the local pack of vamps and we learn that the vamps are not blood-thirsty killers but live with a very carefully regulated feeding ethos and take great care to avoid killing or turning.
This was a really nice change from the typical portrayal of vampires, as party animals revelling in death, blood and chaos and felt extremely refreshing. Another new addition is Chroba, the form that blood takes within a vampire after feeding and used to fuel their existence. I can’t remember the last time that a book about ‘classic’ vampires created anything new but this is certainly one such instance.
Things are not all fun and games as Chris learns and the problems don’t just involve hiding his new condition from humans as there are those who would use Vampires to their own ends and, following his meeting Temsik, he learns that there are things that even Vampires need to fear but to know what that is, you’ll just have to find out for yourself.
And I do recommend you do, this is a great story full of likeable characters, an original take on vampires and a really exciting story. To think that was published 30 years ago with a gay main character is brillaint and I honestly can’t think of many gay characters this well portrayed from that era.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- R. Johnson
- 14-10-23
Queer, fun horror
I was a horror-obsessed gay guy growing up in the 90s, so this book immediately appealed to me. The author does an excellent job of capturing the time period, so much so that at times it felt I was reliving my youth! And much respect to the author for creating an extremely likeable, sweet, interesting and fully-rounded gay protagonist who is undamaged by his sexuality. I also greatly appreciated that a same-sex romance was positioned at the very front and centre of the novel, rather than being relegated to a minor sub-plot. In fact, this book could arguably just as easily be classified as romance than as horror.
Balancing horror and humour is difficult, as usually one is emphasised to the detriment of the other. Plus, humour is subjective. Nevertheless, I found the light and frothy tone of the book, and the fact that it didn’t take itself too seriously, very enjoyable. Just don’t expect a really dark, intense, stifling, gothic, viscerally blood-soaked take on vampires.
The narrator was excellent. He had a very pleasant voice, spoke clearly so every word was understood, talked neither too fast or too slow, and portrayed the main character very well. At no point was I taken out of the story by poor narration.
My only complaint about this audiobook is that I was left wanting more. So, if the author happens to read this review, John please write a sequel!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Debbie McLean
- 08-06-20
fantastic
what a fantastic audiobook from the pen of John Payton Cook and narrated by Sean Duregger xxxxxx
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Helen
- 25-04-20
Wonderful book
I really enjoyed this audio book very much can’t wait for more audio books
Great book
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rellim
- 07-03-20
Excellent book & narration
I don’t actively seek out horror books (well, not since I was on a Stephen King kick in middle school), but I’m thrilled to have found this audiobook. I think it technically qualifies as a romance too, but this will be best enjoyed by folks who are OK with that being a small part of the story.
Chris Calaway is 22, dying of leukemia, obsessed with vampires and I immediately fell in love with him as a character. If fatal optimism is possible, that’s Chris. He’s really so excited to be free of his disease and becoming a part of a world he has fantasized about his whole life that I couldn’t help but jump into the world with him.
Cooke has a unique take of vampires and does a fantastic job on world building. He also spends time on the history of certain characters that entertains and it’s not until later that you realize what parts are relevant to current day. 1991 current. Perhaps it’s because I was not much younger than Chris in the early 90’s, but the book felt nostalgic instead of outdated. There is quite a bit of well crafted mystery and suspense going on, punctuated by enough humor to keep the nightmares at bay. I was enthralled from beginning to end and finished it in 2 days.
My only complaint, and I admit it’s unfounded other than I really like a good romance, would be to have heard more about Chris and his beau. Is it possible to demand a sequel 30 years later?
Narration:
Sean Duregger did a fantastic job with the narration. This was a huge cast of characters and Duregger gave each of them their own unique sound as well as skillfully expressing various emotions. I look forward to more of his work.
Trigger Warnings (possible spoilers):
It’s Vampires. There’s blood sucking and a few murders. While somewhat detailed, I didn’t find it overly gory.
I received a free copy of this audiobook from Audiobooks Unleashed and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Listen Up
- 09-12-20
A gripping vampire story, superbly narrated!
I’ve listened to and read dozens of vampire stories, and it can sometimes feel like a genre that has been bled dry (sorry, I couldn’t resist). Not so here! Not so at all!
This story brings some truly original ideas to the vampire mythology, and illuminates a well crafted, original blond-sucking universe through excellent plot, character, and story structure. We are introduced to this visceral vampire world by Chris, a delightfully honest, and mildly cynical, newly turned bloodsucker. The plot takes some nicely unexpected turns, moves at a great pace, and builds to a very satisfying finish.
The vocal magic is performed here by Sean Duregger. His obvious love of this genre and the craft of horror storytelling shines through in every chapter. His voices are distinct, and every character is wonderfully sketched out by his performance. Sean has an obvious talent for finding the music of a story, and relaying the emotional journey of every character and scene.
I found I couldn’t stop listening to this, and after I ran out of errands to run to keep listening in the car, I sat back in my office to complete the book. I was sad to find there is no sequel, so listeners should savor every minute of this tale, as Sean carries you along on this sensual, suspenseful ride. This is one I will come back to. Very highly recommended!
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Magnus
- 13-04-20
Unique take on vampires
John Peyton Cooke & Sean Duregger brought Chris to life, you will laugh and cry. This was a bit more of an adventure story than expected . Overall it was a nice listen but felt like something was missing, but will listen to it again.
This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- D J Barton II
- 20-01-23
Love John Peyton Cooke’s writing
Have enjoyed everything I have ever ready by him. His wiring is usually queer and a bit horror or mystery.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Breezybealle
- 26-03-20
Not what I was hoping for...
Based on the reviews, I was so looking forward to listening to this. It seemed like it would be something dramatic and interesting. Unfortunately, I couldn't make it past the first hour or so. I honestly don't know if it was a combination of story and narrator, or just that the narrator didn't do the story justice, but it all just felt super cheesy. Almost like a really bad porno without the porn. Something I could totally picture being mocked (if in movie form) on an episode of MST3K. If that's your schtick then go for it, but I am definitely exchanging.
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