Sloane Parker is dreading her birthday. She doesn’t need a reminder she’s getting older, or that she’s feeling indifferent about her own life. Her husband surprises her with a birthday-weekend getaway―not with him, but with Sloane’s longtime best friend, troublemaker extraordinaire Naomi. Sloane anticipates a weekend of wine tastings and cozy robes and strategic avoidance of issues she’d rather not confront, like her husband’s repeated infidelity.
But when they arrive at their rental cottage, it becomes clear Naomi has something else in mind. She wants Sloane to stop letting things happen to her, for Sloane to really live. So Naomi orchestrates a wild night out with a group of mysterious strangers, only for it to take a horrifying turn that changes Sloane’s and Naomi’s lives literally forever. The friends are forced to come to terms with some pretty eternal consequences in this bloody, seductive novel about how it’s never too late to find satisfaction, even though it might taste different than expected.
Dark bleatings, my thirsty tribe. Well, what can I say? She’s done it again. Rachel Harrison has done it again. Such Sharp Teeth is a fantastic story about familial relationships and womanhood, Black Sheep is basically the world’s most perfect family/religious horror, and now we have So Thirsty, one of the best vampire novels I’ve ever read.
The first thing to comment on – the thing that everyone notices about Harrison’s work – is her characters. I used to think no one could top Stephen King for how well characters are crafted buuuuuut – and I know this is a bold opinion – I think Harrison is even better. Not only are they authentic, interesting, and real, but their personalities just leap off the page at you. I don’t know that I’ve ever read another author that can so vividly paint both the appearance and personality of a character so quickly, and it’s not only that she’s a wizard at doing that, but she makes you feel really strongly about them because of how they’d make you feel.
Sloane is a relatable, flawed, likeable protagonist. She’s somewhat unhappily married to a guy who regularly cheats, and she’s resigned herself to it out of not wanting to rock the boat for fear that things could always get worse. She’s not miserable, exactly, but she does lack joy. Enter Naomi, her long-running best friend who encapsulates everything missing from Sloane’s own life. She’s charismatic, adventurous, and the kind of person who just says “eff it” for the sake of experiences, but somehow always seems to come out on top. I was immediately attached to Sloane because I related so much to her, and drawn to Naomi because she’s so fun and free-spirited. And fearless – a quality I envy, admire, and severely lack!
Additionally, I think Harrison might also be top of the writing game for how she paints relationships, particularly female relationships. I liked both these characters so much separately, but my worry for Naomi deepened as the story progressed because of how much love I could feel Sloane had for her.
So, on to the story itself! It’s great. I love vampire stories but truthfully, I have been getting a little bit fed up of recent depictions. I’ve nothing against Twilight or The Vampire Diaries, per se (after all, I love Buffy and I’m still invested in the Buffy/Angel romance), but I’ve had quite enough of sexy brooders who curse their own existence and fall in love with teenagers. It’s either those vampires, or the lesser spotted absolute monsters. I do prefer the absolute monsters, but where’s the middle ground, I ask you? Here. Here they are in So Thirsty.
Sloane’s cheating husband sends her off for a birthday weekend with Naomi, and Naomi meets a mysterious, hot guy, and accepts a party invitation on both their behalf. Sloane isn’t thrilled, doesn’t want to go, and once they arrive, really doesn’t want to be there. This is not her type of party. From there, things go bloodily awry!
Our vampire characters are pretty likeable, truth be told, but I also very much got the feeling that they could well be friends with those travelling vampires from Near Dark. There’s an edge to them that had me smiling when they appeared, but also thinking, “oh god, don’t piss them off though.” Their strong, amusing personalities were front and centre, but the underlying danger they posed was also subtly carved in to the story between the lines. I loved it.
Another thing I love is that this is a perfectly contained story, but the wider world feels enormous. There’s vampire lore and we’re told what we need to know, but there’s so much more. Harrison could probably write 10 books in this world, focusing on different gothic aspects, and create a multi-verse out of it.
It’s captivating, bloody, beautiful, and un-put-downable. I’d recommend it to fans of vampire fiction, people who enjoy strong friendships, and people who enjoy stories of overcoming hardship/mundanity. If you’d like to check out the book or the author (for the love of the Horned One, if you’ve not already discovered the joy of this author yet, correct that!), I’ve popped some links below for you:
Bleeeeat!
Happy Goat Horror 
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