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The First Vampire: A Novel of Samson & Delilah | 
 enlarge | Author: Alicia Benson
Publisher: Virtual Tales
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy New: $14.32
You Save: $1.63 (10%)
New (14) Used (7) from $10.92
Avg. Customer Rating:  5 reviews
Sales Rank: 144893
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 272
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8
ISBN: 098015068X
EAN: 9780980150681
ASIN: 098015068X
Publication Date: October 13, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Some journeys take more than one lifetime. Ever since Delilah used a devilish brew from Lilith to turn him into a vampire (and then turned him over to the Philistines), Samson as been plotting revenge against his former lover and arch nemesis. When he finally catches up to the reincarnated Delilah in modern day New York City, it seems as though he has all the time in the world to see that the last chapter of their sordid saga is finally written. But much like old enemies, old passions die hard, and Samson is forced to make a surprisingly hard choice. Does he want her dead more than he wants her back in his bed? Intelligent, disquieting and deeply erotic, THE FIRST VAMPIRE cleverly weaves the past into the present in a captivating tapestry of suspense, intrigue and betrayal.
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| Customer Reviews:
An impressive debut -- and a bona fide fresh and original vampire novel January 1, 2009
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
It's not easy to introduce a new angle into the extensive genre of vampire fiction - let alone do so successfully - but Alicia Benson has done just that in The First Vampire: A Novel of Samson & Delilah. You remember Samson - the big guy with unnatural strength and long hair who led Israel for twenty years before his love for the evil Delilah led to his downfall. Even though he knew the woman was keen to learn the secret of his God-given strength, he finally told her the truth - and ended up captured, blinded by hot pokers, and humiliated by his Philistine enemies after Delilah used that knowledge against him by cutting his hair as he slept, thus robbing him of his preternatural strength. Samson was able to redeem himself in the end by pulling down a temple on the heads of the Philistine leaders and himself, and that's where the story ends. Until now. Alicia Benson takes up where the Bible's Book of Judges left off, restoring Samson to something much more than life as he lay beneath the ruins of the pagan temple.
Despite what people say, time does not heal all wounds. Some 3000 years later, the vampire Samson - now known as Ash Samson - is still more than a little upset with the woman who betrayed him. In fact, he has been searching for Delilah all these years, determined to exact his revenge on her. Delilah, of course, died long, long ago, but it turns out that souls are indeed reincarnated - and Samson has finally found the one he's been looking for. Ariana Chambers has no idea she was Delilah in a former life, but neither she nor Ash can deny the strong attraction between them. Ash, now an extremely wealthy man, brings Ariana to his English mansion to work as his money manager - thus finally getting "Delilah" right where he wants her. Perhaps not surprisingly, however, his plans for revenge quickly become much more complicated than he ever would have suspected. Seeing Delilah again reawakens the love he felt for her alongside the deep-seated hatred he has nursed in his heart for millennia - and other complicating factors come into play as well.
Samson may have been the first vampire, but he is far from the last. His progeny exist in significant numbers, but that number is mysteriously decreasing at the moment, as several individual vampires have been disappearing of late. Ash's relations with some of his oldest "friends" have also become rather complicated. Then there's Ariana/Delilah. Not only does she still possess the strongest of wills, it turns out that there is far more to the story of her original betrayal of Samson than he ever knew. On top of all that, you also have Lilith thrown into the mix of past and present events. (Lilith is, by some traditions, the first wife of Adam who refused to subjugate herself to her husband and became - and I'm ridiculously oversimplifying things here - the mother of all demons.)
I expected The First Vampire to tell an interesting story, but I must admit I didn't expect to find such a rich and complex multi-leveled plot that tied everything together so impressively in the end. And speaking of endings, Benson closes her debut novel out with a bang. You may think you know how this book will end, but don't count on it. I know I was surprised, to say the least. This is just a great read from start to finish.
Fun to Read November 16, 2008
This novel is fun to read because it is creatively imaginative with a well-connected and fluid plot. The dialog between characters seems natural and keeps your attention while descriptions of various scenes are vividly clear. I was especially interested in the way this novel dealt with the idea of human souls snd would like to read a follow-up to this one.
I could not put this book down. October 27, 2008
"Some Journeys take more than one lifetime."
That is the tantalizing hook on the back cover from Alicia Benson's brilliant first novel, "The First Vampire." And she does what I considered impossible; putting a brand new and completely original spin on the mythos surrounding vampires. This book manages to intertwine alternate historical fiction, Biblical references and vampirism with truly inspired results, and is destined to become a classic.
The pacing of the book is energetic - without being frenzied - and includes a plethora of unexpected twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. Alicia Benson demonstrates a masterful grasp of the English language that is on par with the finest contemporary writers.
"The First Vampire," is stylish, sexy and a must have for any fan of the genre.
History - Urban Fantasy? Stellar..... October 18, 2008
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I would give this 4.5 stars if I could, but chose to round up instead.
I am a big fan of alternate history books and Urban Fantasy. Alicia Benson has done a more than adequate job of blending the two into a fun book. The First Vampire is a story based on the Biblical Samson and his seductress/destructor Delilah. Benson does a very good job of weaving Urban Fantasy into the culmination of a millennia long search by Samson to have his final revenge.
The First Vampire takes elements of alternate history to explain how vampirism came to be through a fluke event. There are twists and turns to the story and a fair amount of sexually explicit tension and activity. This book has some hard edges and treads on some very interesting themes of Christianity without attempting to make any judgment. Benson does a great job of keeping a light shining amidst the dark.
On the whole I found Benson's writing style to be entertaining and the storyline to be involved enough that it wasn't boring. At 263 pages, The First Vampire is a quick read with a rapid pace. The First Vampire appears to be book one in a series and leaves us with plenty to anticipate in the future. Kudos to Benson for being willing to kill important characters instead of the usual habit of keeping everyone alive until the story grows stagnant.
 Fun read! October 11, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
On the surface, this novel appears to be just another vampire book, but you'll find that the historical/biblical twist gives it a surprising edge. Overall, it's a fun, sexy, edgy, and intriguing read!
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