Worse Than Death

Immortality may solve certain problems, but it creates others, as retired LAPD detective Jace Levy discovers when he allows his girlfriend, luscious photojournalist vampire Risha Cadigan, to sink her fangs into his neck. In this vampire/detective sequel to Love Bite, 43-year-old Jace and eternally 30-year-old Risha expect to grow closer now that Jace is a vampire, too, but despite the fun they have together prowling for human victims, their relationship is increasingly acrimonious. Jace blames Risha for failing to warn him about the effects of vampirism on the male sex organ; Risha discovers that as a human Jace suffered from fatal Huntington's chorea, and accuses him of becoming a vampire to save himself from death rather than to pledge his undying love to her. All the while, Jace is working freelance to locate a blackmailer who extorts cash from a Hollywood producer and a wealthy accountant, both of whom were patrons of a high-class call-girl ring. Though he is a crime buster by day and a blood-sucking killer by night, Jace sees little irony in his position. In any case, he is too preoccupied by his dysfunctional sex life to pay concentrated attention to his work. The thriller plot heats up as Jace tracks a psychopathic orphan, but the resolution is far-fetched and ultimately disappointing. Gottlieb is at her best when she chronicles Jace and Risha's vampirism and the intersection of their domain with the human world--Risha has a human servant, Elliott, who helps her do things like apply her makeup--since vampires aren't reflected in mirrors, but monotonous vampire sex gets all-too-exhaustive treatment. Insatiable fans of fanged creatures will likely appreciate the tale, but others may find it simply tiresome. (Jan.)