Ideas for Vampire Romance

I have been doing some research and have found lots of old folk lores regarding the different "breeds" of vampires that were believed to have existed.

I took some interest in one particular kind of vampire:

Estries. They are female vampires of Hebrew mythology that were believed to prey particularly on men. I think this could be a good main character idea.

An Estrie, created at sunset in 1465, has always lived the life of a vampire - drinking the blood of living flesh. She has memories of her human life, but it has been centuries and what she can remember makes it very difficult to continue in her current lifeless days.

Her coven all live a similar lifestyle, feeding when the need arises. Her and her 3 'sisters' have been together since a century after she was changed. They discovered each other whilst on a journey through Africa. They currently inhabit a plush house just outside of Johannesburg. To feed, they head into the outskirts of Johannesburg and drink the blood of those living in the squatter camps. They believe due to the intense over-population of the squatter camps, many will not be noticed missing. They have continued this lifestyle for 300 years and no one is aware of them.

They prefer to hunt at night, in order to be unseen, but are not cursed to it like other vampires. Three of the four sisters hold permanent working positions, while the other stays home and maintains the house. They have all learnt to control their thirst, but do find it far more difficult to be in close proximity with a male, particularly an attractive one. Estries are exceptionally beautiful. Pale skin with no blemishes or freckles, portrait-worthy faces that lure you in and immaculate bodies.

It is believed that estries could turn into either birds, cats or various other animals. For the sake of the story, perhaps the main character will have the ability to turn into a dove, one sister an eagle, another a cat and another a lion. All of these phasing abilities and that which they turn into is based on their temperament. Legends state that an estrie is only able to phase if she wears her hair unbound. If her hair is bound, this will keep her grounded and render her unable to fly or change form.

Estries can only survive on the blood of living flesh, nothing else. So no chances of eating animals as a replacement. Although it is believed that if they have been injured (which is possible), they must eat the bread and salt of the one who struck her. By doing this her soul will return to the way it was before. If she does not do this, she will die. Estries were considered undeterred by religious iconography and were believed to be able to walk into holy places. Though methods described for the killing of estries were conventional, burial alone would not prevent them from returning. An estrie must have it's mouth packed with earth, or be decapitated or burned.

I can go into more detail about their lives and how each of them has made it to this point. I can explain daily lives and commit to conversation between them in order to better understand the individual personalities of each of the sisters. As I have said before, I want it to be a romance, so a male will interrupt the life of one of the estrie's, causing chaos and havoc for all involved.

I am getting excited now that I am starting to find subject material.

Please let me know if you think this is a good idea or not.

Thank you


Jinxi