Night Calls by Katharine Eliska Kimbriel

On January 7, four of us met at the FACT Office to talk about Night Calls, the new fantasy by Austin writer Katharine Eliska Kimbriel. Two others had read the book but were unable to attend the meeting, so they e-mailed comments to be brought to the discussion. Kimbriel’s novel , set in 19th century America, is about a frontier family confronted by werewolves, vampires, and other supernatural creatures. The e-mailed comments included “it is charming” and “I love this book! I rushed out immediately to buy the sequel, only to find that it’s not out yet.” Those physically in attendance also liked the book quite a lot. The frontier atmosphere was well portrayed. One person compared the book favorably to S. P. Somtow’s Vampire Junction. Most of the group liked the details of frontier life, but there were too many quilting scenes for my personal taste. We liked how the book delivered on the horror elements suggested by the cover, yet refrained from explicit gore. The voice of the narrator, a teenage girl, felt “real” to our group. While the story reached a satisfying closure, it left opportunities for a sequel. It looks like Ms. Kimbriel now has several people looking forward to her next book.

–A. T. Campbell, III