Powerful Pages: They Thirst by Robert R. McCammon (1981)

Powerful Pages: They Thirst by Robert R. McCammon (1981)

They Thirst is far from a great book.  It may not even be that good.  It has an abundance of flaws, and in the early stages, it was so derivative that I wasn't sure that I would able to stick with it.  And while I'm not opposed to pulp or trash, I do have my limits.  Despite these complaints and the presence of maybe half a dozen stupendous coincidences too many, I didn't put this early venture from Robert R. McCammon aside.  Why?  Three reasons, mostly.  First, while the villains were largely cliches and the protagonists were cut from the same cloth, the latter group resonated with me for reasons I don't fully comprehend.  I followed them deeper and deeper into this sprawling opus with a certain degree of trepidation, but the more I read, the more pressing my need to know how they would fare became. Secondly, McCammon did an excellent job with the ghastly elements of this vampire yarn, deftly portraying the vicious bursts of carnage that kept propelling the characters into greater jeopardy and firmly establishing a sense of creeping dread.  Lastly, raw as it may have been in so many ways, one can't help but marvel at the scope of this fanged saga.  McCammon dared to tell a vampire story on as grand a scale as one could imagine.  Maybe he fumbled and stumbled a bit along the way, but in the end, he put the entire city of Los Angeles and even the world as we know it in immense peril.  In doing so, he delivered a tremendous conclusion that may have been just as serendipitous and overwrought as the first act, but somehow proved to be both engrossing and satisfying.  Seldom has the phrase "grand finale" been so appropriate.  Yes, They Thirst is far from a great book, but it is entertaining as hell, and I have to salute the author for putting so much at stake.

Final Grade: C+

Powerful Pages: Baal by Robert R. McCammon (1978)

Powerful Pages: Baal by Robert R. McCammon (1978)

McCammon notes in the afterword that Baal was both his first novel and an "Angry Young Man" book, and it reads as such.  With that in mind, while it is energetic and compelling from start to finish, it is crude and simplistic enough at times to border on being amateurish.  Those who have never experienced McCammon's wild imagination should surely start elsewhere, and those who are accustomed to his more profound works will find this one far too elementary to share a shelf with titles like Carrion Comfort or Gone South.  Yet anyone marching in without any expectations may find this provocative battle between good and evil to be bold and shocking enough to rate it far higher than I can.  There are some creative flourishes, and the violent passages (of which there are a great many) are forceful and dynamic enough to have a powerful impact on the reader.  I did enjoy the three protagonists immensely, particularly Virga, and the settings were well drawn, so I don't mean to disparage this one without due cause.  In fairness, I should note that my first novel was also an "Angry Young Man" opus with apocalyptic leanings, and I keep that thing in a box where I pray no one ever finds it.  I'm positive that Baal towers above my first stab at bringing life to a book in every way, shape, and form, and this grim page-turner is not without its strengths.  As a whole, however, it is a bit underwhelming, and while I couldn't put it down, I did breath a sigh of relief when it finally reached its inevitable conclusion.  

Final Grade: C