Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay
Reviewer: Maryann
Get It On Amazon
About The Book
Seventeen-year-old Victor Callahan holds a secret as ancient as the shadows.
Employed as a night porter in a quiet Irish nursing home, the teenager watches over a group of men he once knew a long time ago. Victor has orchestrated their reunion for a final farewell, a goodbye to those whose lives have shaped him through the years.
But can he keep his secret from Lakeshore Manor’s oldest resident, James O’Carroll?
As he cares for these remnants of his past, memories of a bygone era haunt him — of wild adventures on the rugged Irish coast, of forbidden love hidden beneath the threat of eternal night, and of a shipwreck that changes everything…
Gloria Pinto, the night nurse, doesn’t like him. But maybe she has her own secrets.
THIS IS NOT A VAMPIRE STORY weaves a tale of timeless bonds, the cost of immortality, and the lengths we go to for love. But is love more important than life? Victor is about to find out.
The Review
In 1949 seventeen year old Victor Callahan awoke in a hospital. He had left school at the age of fourteen, as some boys did. At fifteen, with his Dad’s support, he got a job on a construction crew. There were a few accidents, but the crew he worked with was good at what they did. Then one day, something went terribly wrong and there was a tragic scaffolding accident as he worked along side his Dad. For three days he didn’t know he’d lost his Dad. His Mum stayed by his side and cared form him. Victor had suffered a debilitating injury, and lost the use of his arm from the elbow down, with a crushed hand.
Six weeks later, he and his Mum pack up their things and leave in their Dad’s old car. They had help from a collection from the construction crew for funeral costs, but they can’t afford the house. They’re going to the coast of Ireland and live with Mrs. Cara Morgan, aka Aunt Cara. Mum gets a job as a cleaner in a school, plus she takes care of Aunt Cara’s, cleaning, laundry, cooking and more.
As Victor adjusts to not having use of his hand, he knows he will need to find a job. He wears a glove to hide the deformity, and even names it “mickey.” And Aunt Cara doesn’t go easy on Victor – she has him drive the car into the village square, one handed, while she does her errands. As he waits and smokes a cigarette, a group of young men come his way. One is tall and attractive, and asks if he can spare a smoke. When Victor’s useless gloved hand slips out, he doesn’t say anything.
James O’Carroll seems to be his age. As the others go on their way, James stays and talks with Victor. When he goes to catch up with the others, he lets Victor know they will be at the beach later. Victor meets them there, and from then on, he enjoys a growing friendship with them all. But there’s something more between him and James, who was never very concerned about Victor’s arm and even got him a job at the local dairy.
The boys have always heard stories of washed up ships. One day they learn about a shipwreck that is sitting beyond the bay, waiting for the tide to bring her in. As their curiosity grows, they decide to take Michael’s row boat to get a closer look at the old ship. Victor has no idea how much his life will change with the terrifying ordeal that follows.
Doyle’s tale is beautifully written, dark, scary, sad, surprising and romantic. It grabs you from the start, as Victor Callahan’s life changes, and he deals with personal loss and adjusting to a tragic injury. The story flips between 1949 and the present.
There are several heartfelt lines from the story that really touched me:
“Friends are not the past. Friends are in the heart”.
“The future isn’t yours. All you have is this moment, this breath. You own nothing else”.
There is also an amazing audiobook narrated by Nicolas McGrady. McGrady does an outstanding job narrating this unique story. All his voices and tones match the characters perfectly, and are very distinctive. I loved Victor’s sweet voice and James’ with the low, growl tone. Simon Doyle is a new author for me, and I’d never heard anything narrated by Nicolas McGrady before. Their collaboration on This Is Not A Vampire Story is brilliant.
I highly recommend This Is Not a Vampire Story, both the novel and audiobook versions. It’s a real page-turner filled with excitement and surprises and I didn’t see any of it coming. I was highly entertained and this is my top favorite so far for 2025.
The Reviewer
Hi, I’m Maryann, I started life in New York, moved to New Hampshire and in 1965 uprooted again to Sacramento, California. Once I retired I moved to West Palm Beach, Florida in 2011 and just moved back to Sacramento in March of 2018. My son, his wife and step-daughter flew out to Florida and we road tripped back so they got to see sights they have never seen. New Orleans and the Grand Canyon were the highlights. Now I am back on the west coast again to stay! From a young age I always liked to read.
I remember going to the library and reading the “Doctor Dolittle” books by Hugh Lofting. Much later on became a big fan of the classics, Edgar Alan Poe, Mary Shelley, Bram Stoker and as time went by Agatha Christie, Ray Bradbury and Stephen Kingand many other authors.
My first M/M shifter book I read was written by Jan Irving the “Uncommon Cowboys” series from 2012. She was the first author I ever contacted and sent an email to letting her know how much I liked this series. Sometime along the way I read “Zero to the Bone”by Jane Seville, I think just about everyone has read this book!
As it stands right now I’m really into mysteries, grit, gore and “triggers” don’t bother me. But if a blurb piques my interest I will read the book.
My kindle collection eclectic and over three thousand books and my Audible collection is slowly growing. I have both the kindle and audible apps on my ipod, ipads, and MAC. So there is never an excuse not to be listening or reading.
I joined Goodreads around 2012 and started posting reviews. One day a wonderful lady, Lisa Horan of The Novel Approach, sent me an email to see if I wanted to join her review group. Joining her site was such an eye opener. I got introduce to so many new authors that write for the LGBTQ genre. Needless to say, it was heart breaking when it ended.
But I found a really great site, QRI and it’s right here in Sacramento. Last year at QSAC I actually got to meet Scott Coatsworth, Amy Lane and Jeff Adams.
