The lady is a vamp

Our favorite newspaper takes a long look at modern-day vampires. From The Scotsman:

Vampires are all around us, in shops, supermarkets, the high street, everywhere - or so says a new book about the UK's modern day vampire scene. After tucking a large crucifix under my jumper and a discreet stake in my handbag, I went to find out more from the author of Vampire Nation. Arlene Russo is this country's foremost vampire expert, and editor of Britain's only vampire magazine, Bite Me. Reeling from the stench of garlic she offered me a mint, and debunked a few myths. Count Dracula and his revenant cronies are strictly passé. The new breed of vampire is emphatically mortal, born rather than made. So daylight is in, garlic and crucifixes are out. Contemporary vampires don't even need to nibble their victims' necks. What's the world coming to? "Vampires today are intelligent," Russo says. "Most of them just want to live with a consensual partner. You're actually very safe in a room with a vampire." snip For the book she meets Kittie Klaw, a burlesque artist and paranormal investigator. Klaw isolates the erotic appeal of the vampire thus: "So many people are still longing for sexual freedom. The debonair vamp that so many young ladies fantasise about is the perfect combination of ideal husband material and a depraved sexual mentor: Mr Darcy meets Marquis de Sade."