Blood Heritage

A demon curse, a vicious but beautiful woman, a cult that specializes in killing virgin children-- sounds like typical horror fare. Only this isn't typical horror. This is typical horror written by Sheri S. Tepper. From the moment that you realize that the main character's name is "Badger" to the introduction to a coven of good witches, the book manages to deviate from genre in all kinds of remarkable ways. If you're a Tepper completist, this is well worth reading to see how many of the threads that are so identifiable in her writing show up even in a very early pure genre play like this one. If you're a horror fan, _Blood Heritage_ should manage to give you what you're looking for, with just enough extra spice to keep it from being banal.

Blood Heritage as one of Sheri S.Tepper's earlier works is a nicely written horror story with a happy ending, read in conjunction with her other works the beginnings of some of the common threads in Tepper's writing are evident. The ability to create characters with enough whimsy to endear and enough humanity to identify with is part of what makes all Sheri Tepper books worth reading and re-reading.