CARESS OF A PSYCHOPATH

by: Cinsearae R. Santiago

Reviewed by: Spider

To "touch lovingly; kiss” is what the dictionary says a "Caress" involves. A “Psychopath" exhibits "aggressive antisocial behavior." With this as a kick off you can see that this is not a nice little story; quietly told. Sallos, the main character of this portrait is a street tough kid raised in the school of hard knocks. The street guided him, but he was almost predestined to be as he was or is or will be.

There is two of him to meet and get to know. The first is the street punk who uses people until he is toppled by Love. The second one to meet is the Vampire which is where his steps lead him inevitably.

His father is nearly nonexistent in his life although his father’s suicide with a shotgun has a deep effect even Sallos is not aware of afflicting him. He cares deeply for his mother. Her death from a suicidal overdose of pills crushes him and embitters him to other people. What happens next is another hammer blow in forging his personality and the reader cheers on many of his actions and reactions until realizing it has gone too far and Sallos’ sickness is exposed.

Not looking for it, he is surprised by love. He amazingly has fallen for a waitress in a strip joint. They love each other and their lives blend strangely. He is happy and totally unprepared for what will be the most formative incident in his life.

This is a hard read for those who are of a delicate nature, but if you wonder what it takes to make a leader in a family clan of Vampires; namely the Philadelphia Gratista Clan, Ms. Santiago has laid out the recipe and leaves no stone unturned... no matter how gritty. The sex is blunt and explicit as life on the street makes it. Death happens and the reader soon sees how delicate is the thread that keeps us here. Along the way, the equally delicate balance of the Gratista Clan in their desire to survive, surfaces. For the reader to not find similarities to their own life is unusual.

This story fits in with others Ms. Santiago has assembled. Peopled with believable characters, it is hard to stop reading even for essentials such as eating and sleeping. The reader will want to find the rest of her books and see what occurs with this Clan of Vampires. These turn out to be immortal creatures not that far from ordinary mortals and Sallos is strangely trapped by himself... but you'll need to read that for yourself.

Caress of a Psychopath tells the story of Sallos, a brash young man living in Philadelphia, as he makes his journey from humanity to vampirism. It is written in the first person from Sallos' perspective, and we get to see deep into the mind of this intensely dynamic individual. Although he partakes in some of the more decadent activities of society - porn production, gang involvement, etc. - his wry wit and humor make him a very likeable character, as he intends no harm to innocents, in his human life at least. Cinsearae Santiago crafts all of her major characters with complexity and background, and Sallos is the most complex of them all. From the beginning, he is torn between a repulsion of the vileness of humanity, having been deeply injured by tragedies early in his life, and the need for companionship and love. He is one tough bastard, with a hell of an I-don't-give-a-damn exterior, but inside he fears being alone and struggles throughout the story as he tries to deal with the emptiness that haunts him. Santiago draws us close to him, sometimes describing in intimate and forthright passages Sallos' views of life, which many times are cynical, but when he meets his one true love, we see that he does indeed have a capacity for great sensitivity and compassion.

After becoming a vampire, much of that compassion is lost or buried as his hatred and hostility toward humanity intensifies. His strength is vastly increased and he spends much of his time seeking vengeance against those who wronged him - and sometimes it doesn't take much for Sallos to feel that he has been wronged! Many of his vendettas may seem shocking, but they are always accompanied by Sallos' darkly humorous comments, and Santiago provides us with a great mixture of horror and wit.

Throughout the story, as both a human and a vampire, Sallos is also quite admirable as a stud - confident and proud, he turns on the charm for the women he meets. His sexual adventures (and there are many) are written with steamy eroticism that would make any guy wish he could walk in Sallos' shoes!

In summary, Caress of a Psychopath is an exciting, erotic, and emotional tale where the fun never ends - not even after death!

This book was definitely given the right title. The main character, Sallos is a sick F***. I understood that a series of really crappy events happened to him during his 'human' life that forced his downward spiral...but damn, this is one SCARY dude. He's absolutely disgusting, but very 'wordly wise' and sometimes too smart for his own good. Although detestable, I actually admired the fact he could laugh at his own self.

There's a lot of gratuitous sex in here, the only times the sex was meaningful was when he was with his girlfriend Zeena. Unfortunately their relationship was short lived when she was gunned down, but I don't want to give away too much of the story.

When Matthew becomes a vampire, that's when all hell breaks loose. His mentality is now WAY over the edge, and damn right frightening. I'd definitely lock him away in maxium security. There's a lot of things he does that he needs to be shot for,like turning a kid into a wild, untamed vamp. I actually liked him better while he was still human. The way he treats his new vampire family is disturbing and very careless. I'm surprised he didn't get kicked to the curb by his Siress earlier.

He's cunning, a liar, deceitful, murderous, easily bored, easily angered and a pleasure seeker. A 'psychopath', again, as the title correctly states. He freaked me out completely. Reading this from his point of view made me feel like he was there talking to me the whole time, and I think that's why I got freaked out the way I did. I wouldn't want this guy near me. Ever.

After reading the other reviews this book got, I can agree that it was scarily well written. I hated to put this down because I HAD to know what happened next. Sallos felt VERY real to me for some reason. But sallos himself? Absolutely sickening. I felt bad for everyone he encountered. If you like disturbing sick stuff, then you'll like something like this. The author must have put a lot of heart and soul into molding this guy to be what he is, because he was just too real for me. You'll either love him or hate him. Either way, Sallos is definiely unforgettable.

First off, I gotta say...Sallos is ONE sick puppy. There's a lot of stuff the leads up to what he becomes, hence the title. So in that way I feel bad for him. I mean, he starts off a regular good guy (kinda, HA!) but after he becomes a vampire, WATCH OUT! I would definitely say he needs a shrink, but his vibrant and 'colorful' personality is what makes Sallos a DAMN GOOD CHARACTER. He's such a vicious, cruel unrelenting bastard, and yet, he makes you see his side of things! The sex scenes are hot hot hot!!! Beyond scorching to the point where they're even a bit scary. Either you'll be panting, or your jaw will be dropping with shock in each situation. Not sure whether to call this 'smut', erotica, borderline porn, or 'erotic horror'...this is just a wild as hell, unique read. It has all the sinful tempting elements we crave, vampires, lust, love, a bit of over the top violence here and there, all the while giving smidgens of in-your-face truths about people and the world today.

Sallos thinks a lot. and he LOVES to rant. he also must be a Gemini--he's sweet and sympathetic one second, cold and callous the next, but again, this is one of the several tell-tale signs of a true psychopath. He's got issues with everything, even Death him(or 'it')self!!! There's even some very unsettling necromantic magick going on in here.

Delightfully disturbing, Caress of a Psychpath ROCKS.

I read this again after some time...and I should have posted a warning ages ago--if you are prude--DON'T GET THIS. I'm sure you'll be turned off by his ways, violent and sexual! This is not for those 'goody-two-shoes' people!!! This stuff is gritty and raw and damn right scary. If you're up for quite a few sex romps or just freaky, then I'm sure you wont mind this book at all. *grin*

After reading this, I literally had to pause to collect my thoughts. To say this book was awesome would be a grave understatement. “Caress Of A Psychopath” is a book with a very jagged edge. It’s raw, yet passionate, serious yet silly, erotic and sensual while standing on the brink of being X-rated---“Caress…” is a fast-paced myriad of events that’ll keep you on your toes, that’s for sure.

Sallos’s vampire wickedness really shows itself in this book. If you’ve read the “Blood Touch” series (see her website) you really don’t see how insane Sallos can really be until you read this. If you haven’t read the series, “Caress…” is something like a prequel, more or less warming you up to the first two books. But even if the series didn’t exist, “Caress…” can stand on its own, definitely.

From beginning to end, I bet this book will have you slack-jawed. Just when you think you can breathe easy, another wild situation occurs, whether sexual, violent or just plain goofy. Sallos is an amazing character, giving true meaning to the word ‘psychopath’. If you love vampiric, slightly twisted stuff complete with dark humor, I highly recommend this, no doubt.

Treachery. Deceit. The ache of desire. Ill-fitting peers. Cinsearae Santiago has outdone herself with "Caress of a Psychopath--Sallos: His Former Years". Miss Santiago takes us on a ride of total abandon with Sallos, a deviant and deliciously evil predator.

This novel is by far, Miss Santiago's best achievement. The rogue, Sallos, insatiable in his sexual tastes, enters the illicit area of red-light films. On his spiral downward, he meets fringe dwellers, who, not unlike himself, are rootless, violent and self-serving. His exploits are arcane and delightfully sinful. Make Sallos the archenemy of all that is sane and ordinary!

As usual, Miss Santiago uses her amazing sharp wit and limitless imagination to provoke shock and excitement throughout this ambitious novel.