Relations That Suck: The Story of Eva and Dries is a short story about a friendly vampire/lounge singer named Eva, and a spider named Dries who has nothing but disdain for spending time spinning webs which can be destroyed in an instant by an unthinking human hand. The relationship between Eva and Dries is quite unusual. Eva is not happy about taking human blood, and often suffers from guilt. Dries grows into a very large spider and is able to trap small prey, such as rats, to feed Eva’s thirst.
Each page of this book narrates the tale of Eva and Dries, yet the photographs really take the spotlight upon themselves. The photography is haunting and glamorous, and I felt that photographers Angela DeCenzo and Norma Cordova did a fantastic job capturing the moods of the story.
Marilyn Yu does spin a surprisingly touching tale, although I admit to being a bit puzzled as to why two very different models portrayed Eva.
Both models Jennifer Allford and Jennifer Lazorack are beautiful, yet one has light hair and the other a darker color. Perhaps this represents Good vs. Evil? I was left a bit unsure about that. Male models Calvin Jones and Marcus Wu appear as well, and handsomely suit their roles.
While most of the photographs could indeed be used as pages from a fashion design portfolio, there are a few graphic pictures showing Eva in her glory as a vampire.
In addition to the intriguing clothing, the hair styles and makeup are flawless, with most of it done by Christal Saville, along with contributions by hair stylist Matthew Mommer and makeup artist Nikol Dedischew. The locations for the photo shoots suit the story quite well, and I do think that above all else, the photography is outstanding.
This is a book I would recommend to people who love the fashion design world and the mystery of a good, short vampire story. The spider, Dries, is quite the character too!
Laura Hinds, MyShelf.com