Book Review
Title: Blood Countess (Lady Slayers #1)
Author: Lana Popovic
Genre: YA/Horror
Rating: *****
Review: I managed to get an ARC of this YA horror release that really caught my eyes as it is based on the infamous real-life inspiration for Countess Dracula. Set in 17th century Hungary, we are introduced to Anna Darvulia, a scullery maid for Countess Elizabeth Bathory. Anna meets the Countess for the first time at 13, when a kitten she rescued runs in front of their wedding carriage and she immediately feels a connection to the beautiful woman. We also know that both the Countess and Anna like women as it is in the prologue that they do become lovers at some point, and I am excited to see that. 3 year later she is called on by the Countess again for her healing skills and we learn a lot about Anna, her disdain for men and how she refuses to let her mother’s life become hers as she’d prefer a life of servitude over marriage.
As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, Anna is faced with several challenges in the wake of helping the Countess’ son. First, the Countess wishes Anna to be her chambermaid which would make sure her family is well fed but her father refuses unless the Countess pays double, which was a stupid thing to do but her father is a cold and cruel man only favouring his sons. In the wake of this her best friend Peter proposes to Anna which would give her some breathing room from her father and provide for her family, but Anna doesn’t want to burden him without a dowry and she also finds that she doesn’t really want to marry Peter despite his handsome appearance and kind heart. The final challenge she faces is what she plans to do as the eldest child when her father is killed in a freak accident. Anna had seen warnings signs of her father’s death all day but hadn’t put them together until her mother told her the news. In the wake of this she considers Peter’s offer but ultimately decides the following morning she will go to the Countess and become her chambermaid. However, the Countess took her refusal hard even though it wasn’t Anna that refused the offer and no longer wants her. Anna pleads her case and eventually the Countess bends offering her a place as scullery maid with the opportunity to work her way up if she doesn’t disappoint her again. Despite the knowledge that she will be working for a fraction of the price Anna is overjoyed that she can provide for her family, but she has already received several warnings about becoming the Countess’ chambermaid and ignored them all as she did on the day her father died.
As we cross the ¼ mark in the novel, Anna spends her first night in the castle only to hear some of the most heinous rumours about the Countess she has only known to be kind. One story even details how she made her seamstress sew her own fingers together because she wasn’t sewing fast enough for the Countess’ liking. Anna takes these rumours with a pinch of salt after what she has seen of the Countess but her recent behaviour with Anna has sown a seed of doubt in her mind. Anna’s healing abilities have spread throughout the staff of the keep and it isn’t long before Anna creates an opportunity to be in the Countess’ presence again and this time she proves to the Countess that she understands her and might be able to help in her in more than one way as she is having trouble conceiving a child, so it’s no surprise when the Countess calls on Anna the very next day. Anna also sees her father in the Countess’ husband and the Countess evens goes as far to claim Anna as a distant cousin in order to keep her husband’s wandering eyes away from her. From the brief conversation Anna and the Countess have it isn’t hard to see that they have a lot in common despite the gulf of their birth rank which separates them and that might come into play when their relationship forms further.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, Anna is beginning to see Elizabeth for who she truly is when she threatens to cut of Ilona’s fingers, another servant she had become friends with, and she has to lie and agree with Elizabeth’s action to protect them both. However, her behaviour doesn’t make sense to Anna when Elizabeth protects her from her husband without any regard for her own safety even as her husband drags her off to “remind” her who she belongs to. Given her husband’s behaviour we assume that he is going to physically punish Elizabeth for her actions, which would explain her hostility towards the servants as she punishes them harshly to avoid her husband’s wrath. In the aftermath, Elizabeth and Anna’s relationship crosses the line from friendship into romantic and despite the times they live in, it is Elizabeth who reveals that it isn’t uncommon for her to take female lovers as her husband doesn’t mind them. She elevates Anna well above her station even dressing her in the finest clothes and jewels, but we can’t help shaking the feeling that something is wrong but in these happy moments we ignore it much like Anna herself.
As we cross the halfway mark in the novel, Anna is beginning to see more and more of the dark side of Elizabeth but because of her position there isn’t much she can do but she uses her sharp mind to direct Elizabeth’s attentions to places where they will burn out quickly. When Elizabeth orders one scullery maid into the frozen pond where she almost freezes to death, it is Anna who plants the idea that parading her naked through the keep is a fitting punishment for her transgression and Elizabeth agrees. While this may seem cruel it is a very smart decision on Anna’s part as she gets the girl back into the warm and prevents her from dying that day. However, Anna learns she has no friends in the keep any longer but even as she desperately tries to make her case they reject her, and we see some tiny measure of Elizabeth’s cruelty seeping into Anna. Elizabeth and Anna have the next few months alone together, but secrets don’t stay hidden in the keep and when Elizabeth’s husband returns home at Christmas he knows of their relationship and holds a feast in their honour. However, this feast isn’t a normal one as it appeals to their bloody and violent nature and Anna only steps in to save Ilona without destroying the cover she has built.
As we approach the ¾ mark in the novel, we know Anna’s family is receiving her money and doing well but Anna life within the keep is getting more and more dangerous as every day passes but she is bound by the role she has built for herself. After the feast Anna has finally reached her wit’s end with Elizabeth’s husband and the madness that Anna has seen in Elizabeth has infected her. Anna isn’t built for this level of malice and her descent into madness reminds me strongly of Lady Macbeth and I can’t wait to see what the conclusion has in store for me. Now, Elizabeth has latched on the notions of creating a potion that might extend her life and beauty so she can secure another husband. Together with Anna they make the brew, but Anna has no illusions as to what Elizabeth is anymore. One by one many fall to Elizabeth’s growing evil and Anna desperately searches for a way out, to be free of her and finds none since her family depend on her wages that she sends back.
As we cross into the final section of the novel, I had the sinking feeling that Anna is going to do something that will results in Elizabeth’s death, her death or both. Anna no longer feels anything for Elizabeth that she once did, and she has come to realisation that a life under a man like Peter would have been a thousand times better than the life she is living now. I can honestly say the tension that is building towards the climax of the novel fell just short of giving me heart trouble. In the end, the ending of Blood Countess was just as beautifully dark as the rest of the novel and this book has firmly cemented Lana Popovic as an author I will be keeping my eye on in the future, especially if she writes more like this.
A little note for UK readers wanting to buy this, it won’t be available on Amazon until January 2021 in paperback format.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
I received this copy for review consideration from Abrams & Chronicle.
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