''Some of Your Blood'' is a short

horror novel Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J. ...

epistolary Epistolary means "in the form of a letter or letters", and may refer to: * Epistolary ( la, epistolarium), a Christian liturgical book containing set readings for church services from the New Testament Epistles * Epistolary novel * Epistolary poem ...

form by American writer

Theodore Sturgeon Theodore Sturgeon (; born Edward Hamilton Waldo, February 26, 1918 – May 8, 1985) was an American fiction author of primarily fantasy, science fiction and horror, as well as a critic. He wrote approximately 400 reviews and more than 120 sh ...

, first published in 1961.

Plot summary

The book opens with a prologue addressed directly to "The Reader", informing the reader of the fictional basis of the novel. The novel presents as a case file of Dr. Philip Outerbridge and attempts to "falsely" emphasize the fictional basis of the novel. The novel takes place in the middle of an unnamed war. The novel focuses on George Smith, an American soldier, transferred to the military psychiatric clinic, where Outerbridge works. Smith was brought to the clinic due to a confrontation with a superior officer. Smith was labeled psychotic and told to recount his story in the

third person Third person, or third-person, may refer to: * Third person (grammar), a point of view (in English, ''he'', ''she'', ''it'', and ''they'') ** Illeism, the act of referring to oneself in the third person * Third-person narrative, a perspective in p ...

. Smith's autobiography takes up about half of the book, describing his childhood as the son of the town drunk. Smith is imprisoned for shoplifting, and eventually joins the army as a means of escaping an uncomfortable situation with his lover, Anna. The rest of the book consists of documents relating to Outerbridge's treatment of Smith, therapy sessions and correspondence between Outerbridge and his superior, the increasingly impatient Colonel Williams. By using information gained in his treatment to fill in the gaps in the narrative, Outerbridge deduces Smith to be a non-supernatural

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

who feels compelled to drink blood at times of emotional crisis. The novel ends with an explanation of various potential and unrealized outcomes.

External links

* 1961 American novels 1961 fantasy novels Epistolary novels American horror novels Novels by Theodore Sturgeon American vampire novels {{1960s-epistolary-novel-stub