Fledgling

Dana Y. Bowles

A COMPELLING PIECE OF FICTION............

"Shori Matthews is a 53-year-old vampire encased in what is seemingly the body of a preteen child. She has awakened from a healing sleep...broken, burned, and with no memory of the harm that has befallen her. She also has a voracious hunger...caused by the fuel that her body has used in its efforts to heal itself. Wandering through what appears to be a village that has been burned to the ground, Shori is picked up by a stranger who simply sees a child wandering the roads alone. It doesn't take long for Shori to discover her desire for blood....and the stranger, Wright, becomes her symbiont. Returning to the village hoping to find some clue about who she is, Shori eventually encounters a man who claims to be her father. He informs her that she is indeed a vampire, part of a proud race of people called Ina. The Ina are all vampires...and are tall, blonde, and very pale; very unlike Shori herself. Shori is informed by her father that she is a feat of genetic engineering; a successful experiment performed by her family in which a male Ina sired a child with an African-American woman...hoping that the darker pigmentation will make their offspring less susceptible to the harmful rays of the sun. In addition, Shori is horrified to find out that the burned out village was actually the home of her mother, sisters, and extended female family (male and female Inas do not live together). Who would want to kill an entire village of women and children? Shori and Wright make plans to meet her father later and move to his village with him...he is thankful that Shori has survived the massacre. When Shori's father does not show up to meet them at the designated time, Shori and Wright set off to his village on their own...only to find that his village has met the same fate as that of her mother's, with only two lone survivors. The question is...who is killing her family, and why? It soon becomes clear that the killers are indeed Ina themselves, and that the motive for doing so lies in the color of Shori's skin...... An amazing web of the supernatural and science fiction--coupled with a simple study of racism and prejudice even among a seemingly superior race of people, who to that point had been completely unaware of color. A wonderful book, that I could have seen with a sequel were it not for the author's untimely passing. DYB ["

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October 7, 2006 Verified Purchase

Beth F Levine

A new take on the whole vampire thing!

"Octavia Butler's last novel, Fledgling was a fantastic read. It is sad that she is not around to finish what seems like should have been a trilogy. I definitely want more. That being said, if you are a fan of vampire lore but bored with the current offerings this novel might be just what you are looking for. Shori Matthews wakes up in a cave one morning severely injured (burned and bludgeoned) and with no memory of who or what she is. Her only instinct is to survive any way possible. And survive she does. She begins to heal, quickly and soon comes to the realization that she is a bloodsucker. As the story moves on she discovers that she is from a race of beings called Ina who survive by sucking the blood of humans. They take on human symbionts. The humans benefit from their Ina with good health and longevity. The Ina and humans become completely bonded and dependent upon each other. Shori's quest is through out the story is to learn about herself and her race and figure out who tried to kill her and why. I completely enjoyed this story and its unusual take on the vampire lore. I only wish there could be more! ["

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May 16, 2014 Verified Purchase

Letty

A vampire story for readers who don't like vampire stories

"I'm a huge fan of Octavia Butler, though her writing can make me squirm at times. This was the last of her novels I hadn't read, so I started it, not even knowing what it was about. When I realised it was a vampire story, I nearly put it down, because that genre of fantasy doesn't interest me in the least. But something had already piqued my interest, despite my discomfort with the subject, so I kept reading... and got completely hooked. Butler's conception of vampires both acknowledges and far transcends the common mythology and movie portrayals; it is far more complex and interesting. Through the eyes and experiences of the central character and a fascinating, page-turning plot, Butler challenges the reader with some of the most profound moral issues facing humanity, especially racism, responsibility, loyalty and honour, what is "family," and the possibilities for loving relationships and commitment. Far beyond the suspension of disbelief required to accept vampirism - especially this novel concept of vampirism - the reader is stretched to "think outside the box" of relationships as most of us have been conditioned to do. There's plenty here to give humans pause to consider new and liberating possibilities. An excellent choice for readers of enquiring minds and compassionate hearts. ["

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June 26, 2016 Verified Purchase

Bingereader

Vampires meet Lolita, but in reverse

"I purchased this book because I started a new video series on my YouTube channel called Horror Around the World. This video series started off with Black Authors. I choose a handful that I wanted to read from a horror standpoint. I tend to read reviews first before I commit to a book. I look for clues to whether the person's opinions are near my own in the likes and dislikes department. However, in this case I didn't read any reviews until after I had read the book and was forming my own thoughts. This book is definitely more than I was bargaining for. In the synopsis, you read that "the story is of an apparently young, amnesiac girl whose alarmingly inhuman needs and abilities lead her to a startling conclusion: She is in fact a genetically modified, 53-year-old vampire". I was looking for those boxes to be checked. Amnesia...check, vampire check, what I wasn't anticipating was 10 year old sex with adults, both men and women. Our main character Shori, wakes to find herself in a dark cave suffering from some severe injuries. She is in and out of wakefulness for a few days before she gets too hungry she has to find something to eat. Her instinct leads her to a deer that she captures and eats raw. At this point in the story we are assuming she isn't "normal" and since I went in knowing this book was about vampires, I knew why she was feasting on the animal. She needed it for strength and healing. What I was surprised about was that she was eating the entire animal, dragging it back to the cave like a big cat. In all the vampire stories I have read they only drink the blood. Days go by and Shori finally is well enough to search for answers on where she is and what has happened to her. This leads her to a burned down ruin that she has no memory of and then the highway, where she gets picked up by a 23 year old stranger by the name of Wright. This is when the book reveals itself to the type of book you will be reading because after a discussion that Shori is not excited about she bites Wright which causes him to reevaluate the situation and conclude that he has sexual feelings for this 10 year old girl. At this point in the book I was flabbergasted and then creeped out. Shori has no memory of who is is or what has taken place in the recent past. She does not know her name and so Wright calls her Renee, which means reborn. Wright takes her back to his cabin outside of Seattle and the two get it on. Here's the thing that is new to me: girl vampire protagonist. She is the one molesting and raping the adults in her life. She at first feeds off of them for sustenance and as the humans get aroused by her venom she then has sex with them. That of course doesn't make the situation better, it's just as bad. The venom is like being roofied and so even though the victims are enjoying themselves they didn't necessarily consent. Later, after the adults realize she isn't a ghost or a dream they consent. But, that is also a piece of the book that is talked about. Do the humans have any control over their emotions. Once you are bitten by a vampire do you have a conscious decision in staying with the vampire or are you compelled/sired to this being. Wright is given the option to leave Shori/Renee at the beginning. She will erase his memory of her if he wishes, but Wright believes that now it would kill him to be without her. He can already feel how the addiction is too great. Wright is aware of the situation, but can't or won't change it. There is another vampire book that I've read that did this. In the Vampire Academy series, a character searches for a vampire and when she finds him she allows herself to be consumed by his reality. She is in love with him and although she knows it's wrong to be with this vampire, that the "relationship" they are having at the moment isn't real....she wants so desperately for it to be true and lives this fantasy for a few weeks. Allowing the vampire to continually bite her. She lives in euphoria, but deep down she knows and decides to leave. According to the Fledgling world, that isn't a possibility. Once the human is bitten so many times leaving their vampire will kill them. Another way this book is like the Vampire Academy is that in this world vampires are born. You can not bite a human and turn them into a vampire. Humans are blood bags only. They are called symbionts. They are food companions. In the Vampire Academy human volunteers offer themselves as blood bags for the pleasure of the bites. The experience is addictive. What the symbionts get that the latter humans don't is an extended life. In Fledgling if you are a symbiont you will never get sick or get cancer and you will live for at least 200 years. With the lore of this story, not only is Shori getting a companion for their human lives and a continuous food source, but the companion is getting protection and a longer life. I guess that is an even trade. This book would be a perfect 5 star read IF Shori wasn't in the body of a 10 year old. Let's talk about the age difference. In vampire years Shori is 53. However she matures like baby Yoda. It takes her body a lot longer to develop. So even though her body is of a 10 year old child, her actual age is 53. The other vampires know this and the symbionts know this. But it's still is morally wrong in our society to have sexual relations with a child and so this book was definitely uncomfortable to read. Octavia never allows the reader to forget this age difference because she is always mentioning how the adults are always picking her up and putting her on their laps like a child. Her naivety of her past also pushes the child-like persona. Lastly, I want to talk about the racism in this book. We learn right away that Shori is a little black girl. With the people she encounters that is not an issue, but to certain vampire families she is an abomination. Not only because her DNA has been mixed with humans in order to walk in the sunlight, but because she is black. Milo Silk calls her a "clever dog". The racism isn't prominent in the book, it only takes place at the end when there is a family council or trail. What I don't understand is how can their be no other vampire races. That was the part that confused me. If the vampires are only born I guess I can see that, but its just difficult to comprehend in this fictional world so like our own. I read this book in 2 sittings because it is so engrossing. Yes it made me feel uncomfortable. Just as Lolita made me feel uncomfortable, but the plot kept me reading and the vampire lore was just so interesting. I'm definitely interested in reading Octavia again in the future. She is an excellent writer. The subject matter is taboo, but the story itself is very engaging. Highly recommend. ["

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August 23, 2021 Verified Purchase

Jeszika Le Vye

Unique!

"What I feel about Octavia Butler's books, is that the writing itself is always superb. So superb, that in reviews, people forget to even take note of it. The reviews often center around the plot or the ideas, but the writing is so seamless that it becomes almost invisible. I would like to give her craftsmanship the recognition it is due. It is fantastic. There is a reason she is considered a master writer. So many scifi writers have interesting ideas, and are proficient at the skill of writing, but few ever reach the elegance and simplicity of her writing. She never drags the story down in exposition. She offers (invisibly) just enough information to keep you immersed in the story without coming right out and telling you everything. She never comes out and says vampire, she just paints you a picture of a person, a culture, a world, and you fill in the blanks. I am not particularly interested in vampires, and probably would not have read this book if it was written by anyone else. I was not disappointed. Like all of her stories, it was unique and fresh. Taking ideas from the genre but weaving them into something new and original. I highly recommend this story. ["

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December 27, 2012 Verified Purchase