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|  | |  | | | Glass Houses (Morganville Vampires, Book 1) | | | | | SKU:
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Usually ships in 1 business days | | | | | | College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation, where the popular girls never let her forget just where she ranks in the school's social scene: somewhere less than zero. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better. Her new roommates don't show many signs of life. But they'll have Claire's back when the town's deepest secrets come crawling out, hungry for fresh blood.
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| | Product Details | | Author: | Rachel Caine | | Mass Market Paperback: | 256 pages | | Publisher: | NAL Jam | | Publication Date: | October 03, 2006 | | Language: | English | | ISBN: | 0451219945 | | Product Length: | 6.72 inches | | Product Width: | 6.88 inches | | Product Height: | 0.7 inches | | Product Weight: | 0.27 pounds | | Package Length: | 6.69 inches | | Package Width: | 4.17 inches | | Package Height: | 0.87 inches | | Package Weight: | 0.26 pounds | | Average Customer Rating: |  based on 211 reviews |
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| | Features | ISBN13: 9780451219947Condition: NewNotes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
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| | Customer Reviews | Average Customer Review: ( 211 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
79 of 86 found the following review helpful:
 Five-star entertainment! Jun 15, 2007
By Carol A. Strickland
I'm 51 years old and I LOVED this book! Sure, the main characters act a little immature now and then, but THEY'RE KIDS.
This is my first book by this author and I could only put it down with difficulty (as opposed to the second book in the series, which I absolutely could not put down at all). The background of the town and vamps has been intricately built, with fascinating characters on all sides. Claire, the lead, is especially interesting and multi-dimensional (and I hope someone points her towards birth control real soon because she's gonna need it).
There is a real fear factor in the scary parts, real humor in the funny parts, and the guys are hilarious when they're being guys. The pace is get-up-and-go (2nd book even more so). All in all, tremendously entertaining.
The only sore spot was the sudden cliffhanger at the end, which (disregard the "look ahead" excerpt at the end of the book) is speedily dealt with in ch. 1 of Part 2. It almost made me NOT buy volume 2 after I'd determined that I wanted more of this author, but I bought it and am darned glad I did. Beware: volume 2 also has its own cliffhanger as well as numerous plot threads that need to be resolved fairly quickly. But that's what series are all about, right?
Buy this book! I don't like many vampire books, but this one is a winner.
74 of 82 found the following review helpful:
 New Series Oct 15, 2006
By Mary Kate
Under attack by an upperclassman and her cronies, Claire Danvers, a young college freshman, moves into off campus housing with a group of teens that clue her in on the realities of life - and unlife - in Morganville.
Glass Houses had strengths and weaknesses. When a clique of psychotic popular girls is decidedly scarier and far more vicious than the vampires controlling the city, something doesn't seem right. In this, the first installment of a series, the vampires were, unfortunately, very much one dimensional, and aside from Amelie, uninteresting.
Caine did a better job with the heroes. Claire, Eve, Michael and Shane had distinct personalities, a good mixture of maturity and immaturity and enough quirks to make them seem real and likeable. I cared about them, and that drew me into the story.
This was the first book I've read by Rachel Caine, and while I had problems with a few of the characterizations, I found enough to like in this story to want to check out some of her other books.
21 of 24 found the following review helpful:
Wow--great read for all! Oct 14, 2006
By Mystik
"Mystik"
Rachel Caine fans are in for another rockin' ride in this new series!
Some may be tempted to compare this one to her Weather Wardens books, but that's a big mistake. Each should be read on its own merits, keeping in mind it IS a whole different world and the rules are different. Were I in the right age group for this book I'd likely go nuts over it and be craving another one ASAP. As an adult I'm still nuts over it, but for different reasons.
The characters, especially the brainy, courageous Claire, are very well drawn and likeable for their quirks and shortcomings. Each has a history, baggage, and a unique way of dealing with problems. Young Claire is scary smart in some things, inexperienced in others, and attending college in Morganville, Texas, which has nasty goings on under the surface. Psychotic classmates, sinister cops, and other threats abound in a town where vampires make the rules and unwary humans are there for the taking.
Caine has gone all out on the "What if vampires (the e-vul, bloodsucking, barely controlled fiend kind) designed and ran a town?" It ain't a pretty sight, but it's a page-turning read as Claire and her housemates figure out how to survive. As if classes, term papers, and after school jobs weren't enough on a freshman's plate, the freshman could end up being the meal on that plate!
Think Veronica Mars crossed with Buffy, throw in a gallon of espresso shots to pitch things into high gear and that's what you'll find in Glass Houses. Just like the real world, this one isn't a fair place, and it can get very dark indeed, but you can get past that and thrive if you want it enough and have the support of good friends.
The other plus is the swift, effortless pace of well-executed writing. This is a book you can finish, turn to the front, and read again. That was my favorite kind of book as a teen and still is now. High school and college are long behind me, but Claire's fortune's, tribulations, and will to survive into adulthood take me right back to what it was like when I was her age. She doesn't deal with ordinary bullies, hers are certifiably insane, never mind the vampires and other things lurking about. Caine's characters are pushed to the limit, and just when you think things can't get any worse, they do, but the heroes ARE heroic and do their thing to the best of their ability.
I can't wait for the next one!
52 of 67 found the following review helpful:
Okay, but... Oct 12, 2006
By lwd
I'm not exactly sure what age group Ms. Caine was writing for with this novel. The main action takes place in a college town, but I can easily see college students passing this one by, the immaturity of the characters is hard to stomach. High School students might also be looking for something a little more mature (sorry to say, the few in my family prefer a little adult interaction with their violence - how shocking!). This could be considered a few age bumps up in fantasy from Harry Potter, but grade school children are too young for this book, its scary enough for nightmares. Junior High? Maybe, I have no current reference. As for those in my age group (well over 30 and then some), I left college years ago, and have no desire to revisit those times, I barely got out, sanity relatively intact, without the added complication of vampires. Who's left?
I have come to the conclusion that Rachel Caine is incapable of writing a bad book, she's more than talented, and this book does show that gift. I am obviously just the wrong reader. No matter how well written this was, I never became fully captivated with the characters, the plot, or the premise. Others, however, may love it, hence the three stars. When Glass Houses does find its audience, I truly believe she will have another successful series on her hands, I just won't be following along on this particular adventure.
I really would like to recommend this book, I'm just not sure who to recommend it to...
9 of 10 found the following review helpful:
 to put it mildly: not worth buying. [light spoilers] Dec 06, 2009
By angeblah
[Very mild spoilers below. Nothing new if you've read the preview, but here's a warning just in case.]
As I'm sure many reviewers have said, Claire has to be one dumbest leads ever. I don't understand why she insists on going to class when her life is at stake, or why she keeps mouthing off to the resident cliché "queen bee with a heart of vitriol," Monica. I thought Claire was supposed to be some sort of genius, or at least smart. Where are her priorities, her sense of self-preservation?** You could argue that she's trying to stand up for herself or not give her enemies the satisfaction of seeing her cower in fear, but really, she just seems like a moron. The risks far outweigh these lofty principles, which she doesn't seem to consider anyway. She just can't seem to curb her idiotic impulses. No one with a lick of sense loves college or fears professors enough to attend classes when their life is in serious danger. Come on now.
Also, she is pathetically self-deprecating. I didn't really pity or sympathize, so much as I wished she would grow a backbone. "It sucked to be smart, because this was where it got you." Thanks for another cliché, Rachel Caine. As if anyone with a brain is a freak who gets verbally and physically abused on a regular basis. As if there is always the "hot" rich girl with her posse of airheads and jocks to smack them down. Please.
"What normal girl loved physics? Abnormal ones. Ones who were not ever going to be hot. And face it, being hot? That was what life was all about."
I honestly can't find the words to express my disgust without resorting to profanity.
But this is getting awfully long, so I'll move on.
Another major drawback to the book: As another reviewer said, the ending is a ridiculous cliffhanger. There is no way to sugarcoat it. And I do not appreciate this manipulative attempt to make me buy the next godawful book.
And I didn't. But I am in the middle of it. The only reason "Glass Houses" is spared a one-star review is because I believe in fairness and am still reading the second installment. For whatever insane reason. It's quick and easy--cotton candy for the brain. A way to pass the time when you have nothing better to do, if not a particularly good one. There's some humor, some horror/suspense, but overall I'm too distracted by the bad writing to give this anything more than two stars.
[Having read partway through "Dead Girls' Dance," I can say with some confidence that it is also filled with rubbish. And inconsistencies. SO MANY inconsistencies. I say this because I am almost certain that such errors exist within the first novel as well, although I can't remember specific examples. These books are a little "in one ear and out the other" for me, in that I tend to skim and only retain the bare necessities.]
In conclusion: If you're still interested in reading this, I'd suggest borrowing it. Not worth the money, not by far. You could spend it on so many other much more worthwhile things.
[PS: There are annoying incongruities and absurd cliffhangers in many of Caine's books. And yes, I have read the Weather Warden series. You've been warned.]
** By the way, skipping a few grades? Not particularly genius-like. Well above average, but not genius. You want a genius? There's an elementary school-age kid taking advanced courses at what is supposedly the best public high school in NYC. Just saying.
See all 211 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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