This is the 27th review I’ve written for Carry on Screaming and it is the first for a book not written by a white man. That’s not on me. As you know, at Sci Fi and Scary we look to amplify diverse voices wherever we can. In 70s and 80s British horror though, the amount of diversity on offer was pretty slimmer than an After Eight mint. That probably isn’t surprising, but obviously it’s a shame. Especially as our first book by a female author is so much fun.
I owned a paperback copy of Suckers in the late 90s, but it was a book that never quite made it to the top of the to read pile. Rediscovering it 20 years later I wish it had, as I think I might have liked it even more if I'd read it in my 20s. It's a fast-paced, extremely engaging read that switches effortlessly from humorous to horrifying and packs in both contemporary (but still resonant) social commentary and a subtle take on the human condition that is beautifully honest.
Set in early 90s yuppie London, and populated with a cast of media types, it tells the story of the vanquishing of a powerful female vampire and her apparent reappearance a few years later. The protagonist, Dora, is as believable, likeable and sympathetic a lead as you could wish for, even when she is doing truly horrible things. Most notable, though, is the brilliant energy and sense of nihilism that Billson (and Dora) bring to the tale. There are traditional horror elements here, and Billson's vast knowledge of vampire lore and popular culture is abundantly clear, but at heart this is quite a punky book. Many of Dora's acts of civil disobedience reminded me of Tyler Darden from the later Fight Club and, at times, the (far cooler) hero of ‘Escape from New York’, Snake Plissken.
Even nearly 3 decades on from its original publication, ‘Suckers’ feels like a fresh take on the vampire legend. It’s more of a satire than a horror novel, but when the blood flows it flows freely and Billson’s love of the genre is evident on every page. It’s a novel with bite and balls and a refreshingly different addition to the Carry on Screaming list of recommended reads.
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Dark. Funny. Well-written. Great capture of a time and culture. Also a dang good vampire novel. ( )

I got this book based on the author's short story in Granta's 'Best British Novelists.' (And I was like, 'what? A vampire novel I've never heard of?') It was interesting, but I don't think I'd place it in a best-of-the-best list.
It was extremely 90's, to the point of feeling a bit dated sometimes. It reminded me a slight bit of Bret Easton Ellis in tone and attitude.
The narrator, Dora, a 'creative consultant,' discovers that her sometime-lover's girlfriend is a vampire, and proceeds to uncover a massive plot by vampires to take over society through a business conglomerate.
The really notable thing about the book is what a horrible, nasty person the narrator is. She's not even slightly sympathetic, nor is she supposed to be. Sometimes the sharply satiric tone of the book works, at other times, for me, it fell flat. ( )

Dora and Duncan thought they had foiled the vampire menace 15 years earlier, but now there are worrying signs that Violet might be back and that London could be facing an even greater vampire menace than before. A vampire yuppie conspiracy set in late 1980's London and with a truly unsympathetic and borderline sociopathic protagonist (and I'm not talking about a vampire here!).

I borrowed this from the library a long time ago, but recently found a copy for a quid in a local bookshop and decided to read it again. ( )