Remaining Aileen is author Autumn Lindsey’s debut novel. Lindsey provides new nuances to vampire lore as she twists women’s fiction and vampire paranormal to produce a unique blend that is at times light-hearted and at others vampire-dark. It’s a Twilight meets soccer mom sort of book.
Aileen is a mom’s mom, facing mountains of laundry, a perpetually disordered home, two lively daughters, a hot firefighter spouse, and a body that at thirty is beginning its downhill descent. But things go to hell in a hand basket when she decides to take a weekend away from her family to celebrate her thirtieth birthday with a friend. The plane she’s on crashes. She’s the sole, miraculous survivor. When she comes out of her coma, she is not only uninjured, but has survived only she’s been turned into a vampire. Once she’s out of the hospital, Aileen finds new challenges, including wanting to suck her husband’s blood and having to run out of the house to avoid eating her children. She juggles her new vampire identity while trying to hold on to her prior identity of wife and mother, of being herself, Aileen.
Remaining Aileen provides a terrific sense of place from forests laden with deer and their beating hearts to the cozy home Aileen shares with husband and children. The characters are well-developed, especially Aileen and her children. A fun read, despite the darkness of its life-after-death themes and a mildly abrupt ending.
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Remaining Aileen is available through Amazon though with limited availability as it is out of print.
