Vampire Empire - The Greyfriar

By: Clay Griffith, Susan Griffith

Narrated by: James Marsters

Length: 10 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Paranormal, 2013

1870. A time known as The Great Killing. The vampire clans arose and slaughtered humanity with unprecedented carnage in the northern parts of the world. Millions perished; millions were turned into herd animals. The great industrialized civilizations of the world were left in ruin. A remnant fled south to the safety of the ever present heat which was intolerable to vampires. There, blending with the local peoples, they rebuilt their societies founded on human ingenuity, steam and iron. The year now is 2020. The Equatorian Empire, descendant of the British Empire, stretches from Alexandria to Cape Town. Princess Adele, quick witted, combat trained and heir to throne is set to wed the scion of the American Republic, a man she has never met. Their marriage will cement an alliance between the nations and set the stage for war against the vampires in an attempt to retake the north. Prepared to do her duty she finds herself caught in a web of political intrigue and physical danger.

The Greyfriar, a legendary vampire hunter from the north, appears ready to rescue the Princess and return her home—but he harbors secrets of his own. As the power struggle between the vampires and humans increase Adele and The Greyfriar are caught in the middle, on the run, being hunted, and fighting for not just their own lives, but for future of humanity.

©2010 Buzzy Multimedia Publishing Corp. (P)2012 Buzzy Multimedia Publishing

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Nominee, Paranormal, 2013

Well Done

Would you consider the audio edition of Vampire Empire - The Greyfriar to be better than the print version?

I have to admit I haven't read the book, only listened to the audiobook.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Greyfriar and Mamaru (sp?) were great characters as well as the Senator. This will undoubtedly make a great movie taking advantage of the Steam Punk trend.

Which character – as performed by James Marsters – was your favorite?

Every character voiced by James Marsters is one worth listening to. He is possibly the best audio book reader out there. I read this only because he narrated and I have to say I wasn't disappointed. Great job as usual.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Without a doubt. Listened to the entire book driving from Dallas to El Paso and back.

Any additional comments?

Make sure you bring back James Marsters for the sequels!

loved James Marsters narrative!

James, as always, made the book come alive. After listening to him narrate the Dresden Files, I craved to find and listen to more books with him narrating. I'm excited i found this series. Loved the story line and characters; can't wait to get started listening to the next book in the series. Highly recommend it!

Compelling story and excellent readerď

I thoroughly enjoyed this audible book. To be frank, I selected the book because it was read be James Marsters who is an awesome reader. He doesn't just read, he voice acts, giving each character a different voice personality. It was a big plus that the story is also a fun one. I am downloading the second book right now.

Interesting story

It started slow and I put it down. A year later, I started it again and couldn't put it down. I really found myself caring about Gareth and Princess Adele. The reader was very good. He brought everyone to life for me.

Started kinda slow at first but could not stop.

Started kind of slow but as the book progressed I found that I could not stop. Great new veiw on the world of vampires. I would definitely recommend this book look forward to reading the next one.

Wonderful BWWM (kind of) paranormal love story

She is a dark skinned princess (mother was dark skinned persian father pale european) She is next in line to rule but the world's countries are fighting common enemy VAMPIRE race. The vampires are a race of people that are born & eat/drink off humans.. One of the vampire countries has a prince that doesn''t like his kind treating humans like CATTLE.. He wants to live along side with humans with respect. He becomes a super hero called the Grey Fryer.. Public doesn't know that this super hero that save & helps humans is a prince vampire. Gray Fryer falls in love with the princess when his 1/2 brother kidnaps her.. He helps her escape & they have an adventure with reveals corruption among humans to sell out other humans.. This is a great series. The princess finds out that she has "powers" that can kill vampires.. This story is about this journey between them I evil people wanting power.. Both vampire & humans can be self & evil..

WOW, another great series for my list!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would and have. The vampires, not the type expected. The steam-punk...definately NOT expected; a wonderful surprise!!!

What other book might you compare Vampire Empire - The Greyfriar to and why?

I can't compare this to any other book that I've read, the steam-punk aspect was a unexpected and gave me a new genre to try.

Have you listened to any of James Marsters’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I picked up this book, strictly because James Marsters was the narrator. I absolutly LOVE his narration of the Dresden series. Now this is a new favorite series. Both author are very well written, but Marster's narration hickes it up several notches!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Vampires, steam-punk, and head strong princess. The hero has his work cut out for him.

More than just Steampunk/Future Vampires!

While the premise of 'steampunk vampires' initially turned me off, it seemed a little gimmicky, I am really thankful that I passed that and actually read the story!

The story is incredibly nuanced while still staying relatively light hearted and fun. This isn't a heavy read (or listen) but it still manages to stay away from tropes and pitfalls. The characters are believable and all as reasonably flawed as they are charming. Characters double-cross for good reasons, make unexpected turns that are still within character, and their interplay is truly delightful.

Another great thing about this series is the use of supernatural/magical powers. This is managed really well, without being over-powering or eye-rolling. It's really gracefully done while keeping the premise fresh and interesting.

In short, I would highly recommend this series to anyone! If you liked this series, I would also recommend The Riyira Revelations. Similar level of fun.

Slow start but captured you toward the end

I got kinda board for the first little bit. But the second half really got going. Buying the next one!

Fairly good. Worth the credit.

First of all James Marsters is, as always, excellent. Let me get that out of the way now before I start in on this one. I have never been disappointed by his readings, and this book is no exception.

Now then. Was this a great book? No, it was not. It was entertaining, assuredly. The world is pretty well thought out, though it felt like the steampunk theme had been shoe-horned in on a story that would have been fine without it, and didn't really gain anything by its inclusion. Does the Greyfriar wear a mask? Yes. Also, he wears goggles. Because you see, it's a steampunk book.

Don't get me wrong, Im fine with the genre, I just didn't feel like this particular story had any reason to -be- steampunk. There isn't enough history to explain why there is steampunk, but I guess that isn't really important.

The story is standard adventure fare, with a vampire twist. The 'shocking secret' is neither shocking nor a secret, but i'm not sure it was meant to be. Somehow I doubt it.

I don't know that I will read or listen to the sequel. It was entertaining, but there are a lot better books to be had. However, if you are a big fan of vampires, alternate history, steampunk, or oldschool adventure books, you will probably like The Greyfriar. If nothing else, the portrayal of vampire culture and mindset was certainly interesting.