Bloody Acquisitions are the third book in Fred, the Vampire Accountant series by Drew Hayes. It was first published 2016 by REUTS Publications, LLC, and the audiobook that I listened to is narrated by Kirby Heyborne. This is a paranormal comedy, following the vampire Fred as he enters a world filled with Parahumans.
Fred is back, this time a vampire clan has moved into town, drawn by his legend, to try and take over the void left by Fred’s sire Quinn. Not wanting to die or being forced into a clan who cares little for other things than powers, Fred is determined to try and find a solution. Preferably one without violence which is not easy when ancient beings circle the conflict, ready to intervene on his behalf.
We see Fred take a more solid form as a character, showing a bit more will as he is shown to refuse power and is adamant to solve his own problems instead of using his powerful allies. We are introduced to two new characters, Leroy and Lilian, if I remember correctly, and reintroduced to the old characters who are given more purpose than just being around.
I am a bit tired of the agents, each book has introduced a new one, each more powerful than the rest, but are never explored. The book tells us they are more powerful than his girlfriend Crystal who already is one of the rarest and most powerful creatures in the world, but never tells us why and they never use their abilities so it makes me wonder why they are even there. I’m guessing the answer will come in later in the story, otherwise I see no reason why the author keeps introducing new characters with similar introduction, but it has become a cliché by now in this series.
This book is by far the most developed and put together I have read, more like listened to, and I always enjoy seeing an author grow with each book they write. This book is also divided into smaller parts, but unlike the two books before this one, this book hold a red thread throughout the book. The red thread being the vampire clan and all parts is about how to handle this thread. It is a better way to write the book, which makes this one my favorite by far.
If I where to criticize about something then I would mention that the threat in the book is only spoken about, it is never shown. The villain, the vampire Petra, is only shown one time where he pretty much just says hello and forces Fred to take on Lilian as an employee. Then he just vanishes until the end, and I never really felt him or the clan being a threat outside the book constantly telling me that they are. Now, to be fair, when powerful beings tells Fred he is in danger, it does give room for belief, but it is still a vague one at best.
I also must mention that there is a lot of characters by now and not everyone gets much scenes. Albert hardly gets any scene despite being the reason why they go to the paranormal city in one part. Neill get a few lines but I can count them on one finger. Bubba, if I have spelled that one correctly, get’s pretty much just one scene and hardly any lines. They are just there to take up space though a reason is given in this book for their presence. It still becomes a bit shaky though when the author has no time to use all the characters in the books because they are too many and still decides to introduce new ones instead of expanding on the ones he have already introduced in previous books.
This is a matter of taste though, I prefer fewer but more well-developed characters while others, who for example like Games of Throne, prefer a multitude of characters who are colorful but in nowhere near developed enough to be called round characters.
Overall, this book is the best of the bunch and the things I criticized did not bother me and if you don’t hate those things, then you won’t even notice them. The story is more put together, the writing has improved vastly since the first book and the world is wonderfully put together. For me, this one was a 10 out of 10, despite is flaws because of what it has become. I would highly recommend this book for its intrigue and worldbuilding.
With Kind Regards
Senefer.
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