Vampire of the Mists (Ravenloft Books) | 
 enlarge | Author: Christie Golden
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Category: Book
List Price: $5.99
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Avg. Customer Rating:  57 reviews
Sales Rank: 385691
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 31
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 4.3 x 1
ISBN: 1560761555
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9781560761556
ASIN: 1560761555
Publication Date: September 1991
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Product Description
Jander Sunstar, an elven vampire from the Forgotten Realms world, is pulled into the newly formed dark realm of Ravenloft and forges an alliance with the land's most powerful inhabitant--Count Strahd Von Zarovich, himself a newly risen vampire. But as Jander teaches the Count the finer points of being undead, he learns that he is tutoring the man that drove his lost love insane!
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| Customer Reviews: Read 52 more reviews...
 D & D Campaign novel July 23, 2008
With the Ravenlost campaign by now defunct TSR, bought out in this reprint by Wizards of the Coast, D & D land tries to create a dark and brooding gothic atmosphere. I've seen better stuff in Anne Rice and Cradle of Filth, though it is a lot better than fat butt Acheron. A mediocre attempt at bringing more romanticized gothic fashion to D & D, and I picked it as my campaign, but why wait until Halloween? For wannabe tough D & D gamers.
 Simply put, Wow! September 29, 2006
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Vampire of the Mist by Christie Golden is the re-release of the first book that launched the Ravenloft world. This book was first released by TSR in September of 1991. It seems Wizards of the Coast may be trying to revive the Ravenloft world as they are starting to re-release some novels that have been out of print for a long time. I will say this, if you are a fan of fantasy vampire novels this is a must read.
The plot of this book is a very well thought-out plot. It is deep and has several layers to it that the reader is always left wondering what the next page will bring. The basic plot is that of a elven vampire who is trying to seek revenge for the death of someone he loved. The journey and self-discovery that this elf (Jander) partakes in is a fantastic ride. Along the way there are various small sub-plots, but they by no means hinder the overall plot, quite the opposite they add considerable depth to the story and allow the reader to `feel' the story as Ms. Golden intended it. Being that this was the first book in the Ravenloft world Ms. Golden also does a phenomenal job at describing all the things that make Ravenloft unique and interesting. Things such as the fog, the gypsies, Castle Ravenloft, history and countless other things. This truly is a gem of a book.
The characters in this book add so much to the overall story. They are extremely well fleshed out and the development of the characters rivals that of any fantasy book I can think of. Characters such as Jander, Strahd, Sasha, etc develop so much it's amazing that this was only a 300 page book. If you are wanting to read more about Jander there is an additional short strory in the Wizards of the Coast Anthology titled Best of the Realms and the short story title is called `Blood Sport'. The depth that Ms. Golden gives Jander just makes the character so much more real and fun to read about.
Overall, this is one of the best single novels I have read in quite a long time. Everything about this novel `works'. There is just enough of things to alow the reader to form a mental picture, without over burdening the reader with unnecessary facts that slow the story. As I said before, if you are a fan of vampire novels you must read this. If you are a fantasy fan I am almost certain you will enjoy this as well. If you are a fan of reading and are looking at a fantasy book, I would without a doubt recommend this one. I truly can't say enough about this wonderful book. I highly recommend this to everyone.
Vampires in all their splendor July 16, 2006
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This was my first Ravenloft book and not having read much fantasy mixed with horror in the past few years this was a delectable plunge into a world I couldn't even begin to describe. Vampire of the Mists is an exquisite tale of darkness, lost love and a quest for vengeance through the eyes of Jandar Sunstar, a gold haired elf from gentle hills of Evermeet. Ever since he was made into a vampire, he has roamed the night alone for five hundred years, filling his dead body with blood, living on the lives of others he was an undead creature who sadly looked forward to eternal lonely existence until one day, while out feeding he met Anna. She lived in a mental asylum but captured his heart that was still full of hope and goodness despite his curse only to slip away, leaving him a clue as to her painful past and the reason why she went mad.
I absolutely loved the writing of Christine Golden, her descriptive, rich and fluid language seeped of the pages like honey, and filled my head with images and treasures, of wolves, vampires, gypsies and villagers of Barovia. The fantasy world or darkness and light, the story lines and the characters married into the tale of Jandar and his promise to Anna for avenging her death. He was mystically transported to Barovia's Castle Ravenloft, where he befriended, or so he thought, Count Strahd Von Zarovich. His name alone gave me Goosebumps as he welcomed the elf to his home, wanting to learn form his wisdom and slowly trying to corrupt whatever good was left in Jandar. Strahd was one sneaky bastard, cruel and evil yet captivating, he used magic and commanded wolves to do his bidding, he turned beautiful women into vampires and drained the villagers of their happiness and resources. He played mind games with everyone and had many secrets as to how he came to power. Jandar starved for truth as he spend years trying to decipher the castle and its mysteries only to find out a secret so shocking and brutal that it opened up like a can of warms, searing him in hot anger and destined to set things straight.The book was a non stop rollercoaster of action and was so rich and well detailed that I could see the stars in the sky, the silver gleam of the moon falling on the running wolves, their strong paws hitting the bud, their warm breath curling for taste of human blood. The Vampires turned to dark bats or into a mist traveling through the dark hills and roamed for unsuspecting victims to feed on.
Jandar was a great soul, sad, at times savage when angered but he cared for beauty and he longed to have the sun hit his face, but he was on a quest to dig up the dark buried secrets that Strahd guarded in the Ravenloft Castle with his hordes of wolves and vampire slaves. I can't wait to read the rest of the Ravenloft series, for this was a magical and satisfying read, and warmly recommended to everyone who loves good book. After all this is what reading is about, the love and enjoyment of a good story that leaps of the pages.
- Kasia
Excellent book that keeps you hooked May 13, 2006
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This is one of my most favorite books I've ever read. I enjoy every part of this book, especially the plot. The characters are colorful, the setting is dark and haunting, and the story is entertaining. On top of all that, it has a good length, not too long, yet not too short. It kept me reading it, and was very hard to put down. For examply, when I began it I found myself reading 20-30 pages a day, but as I went on, they increased to 50, 70, and even up to 100 pages! By then, the book was over, leaving me fully satisfied.
I must say that my favorite part about the plot is Jander's view on being a vampire. Most books might portray it as being some sort of cool gift, but this one describes it as a lonely and terrible existence, and the writing shows it. Throughout the book, many years pass; you see boys grow into men, people dying, having children. It's a great experience, to say the least, when you look back and see how different characters were as children. There's a real sense of character development in that, I believe.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a great read, doesn't mind a little darkness in their tales, and loves character development. Beware, however, this is not your average vampire book!
Good story, but seriously lacking in both ambition and credibility April 24, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
It seems rather odd that TSR would choose an author who had never before published a novel to write the first in a series of novels based in the Ravenloft campaign setting. Wouldn't they want a well established author, a master of his or her craft, to start the whole thing off with a serious bang? They certainly didn't make a bad deciscion in hiring on Christie Golden, as this is an entertaining book and there are plenty of good things that can be said about it. One can't help but wonder what it would have been like if a more accomplished author had gotten their hands on it though.
If you've read the other novels about the vampire Strahd ("I, Strahd" and the sequel "The War Against Azalin") this will be a welcome addition to your library. It was certainly a breath of fresh air to read about Strahd from someone else's point of view. In the aforementioned novels Strahd, of course, paints himself as the most noble of men, a victim of tragic circumstance and just ruler of Barovia. Here we are given a much different picture. "Vampire of the Mists" tells the story of Jander Sunstar, a nature loving elf who falls under the curse of vampirism through the treachery of a friend. When Jander becomes witness to something he sees as a grave injustice, he utters an oath of vengeance and hate - which gets him transported to Barovia, the demi-plane of dread, a place that reacts to negative emotions such as hate and despair.
The use of description in this book is decent, never getting too out of hand or overly simplistic. The pace is varied every now and again so as to not bore the reader or keep things running at break-neak pace throughout the whole book. Despite these commendable traits, "Vampire of the Mists" has it's share of problems. Foremost is that it never takes any single idea or theme nearly far enough. Yes, Jander hates the fact that he is a vampire, and yes there is some internal struggle there, but there isn't nearly enough of it. What should have been a story that brings the reader to tears instead was just an interesting novelty. It the author had just taken this theme a little bit farther, expanded on it, gave us some real tragedy, this would have been a five star book.
The paradox of time as it pertains to vampires - the fact that they have so very much of it ahead of them, yet it seems to move at a much faster pace than normal, isn't really adequately described here until the second half of the book. Jander's relationship with the insane girl Anna is rushed much too quickly. A full decade passes within the span of a page, and in an entirely unconvincing manner. Later on in the novel the author seems to get her bearings in unfamiliar territory however, and the reader is given a much more satisfactory experience involving large spans of time. It's critical in these instances to show the reader the going-ons of less important characters when large amounts of time transpire, to give the world a sense of realism, instead of making all existence hinge solely on the main characters.
Jander also seems to be curiously constantly shifting in his powers and abilities (his "level" in D&D terms). First of all, when he is transported to Barovia - he has absolutely no weaponory, either magical or mundane, or any kind of special (non-vampiric) abilities. This is a bit hard to swallow, considering at this point he is seven hundred years old. Now, if you've ever played Dungeons and Dragons, you know that magic items are like stupid people - you can find them EVERYWHERE. Yet Jander has none. Later on in the novel in a flashback sequence, we learn that Jander was once a member of the group known as the Hellriders of Elturel, and that he fought the five headed dragon Tiamat in her lair on Avernus, the first layer of hell. See, here's the problem with that : Tiamat is a GODDESS. You know, of the "created the universe and has infinte power" variety. At the time Jander was less than two hundred years old (young for an elf) and nothing but a standard fighter type. Beginning to see why this doesn't work? At the end of the novel, when Jander and Strahd finally butt heads in a manner more intense than merely verbal sparring, Jander is nigh on useless in any sort of combat situation. He fought a goddess - but can't bring any sort of effective defensive against another vampire, and one who is admittedly younger and less powerful than himself? I know, it's nit-picky and verges on the meta-gaming mentality, but it's a valid point.
If you are willing to let a few bumblings by a first time author slide, you'll find an overall enjoyable story. Just be sure to read the other novels regarding Strahd to see how other people handled the same subject matter.
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