history of the development of organized crime in America and the riseof pulp magazines, both of which influenced hardboiled crime fiction.A subsection discusses the appropriation of this genre by gay andlesbian writers.

Written in crisp, readable prose, Crime Fiction covers a wide range ofmaterial without glossing over important details and developmentsalong the way. Not only does it analyze works by well-known authorsas Poe, Conan Doyle, Christie, Sue Grafton, Dashiell Hammett, andRaymond Chandler, it also extends its discussion to lesser-knownauthors who have been unjustly neglected. Furthermore, it venturesoutside of literature to show the influences that key novels have had onpopular films and TV shows. Tantalizing trivia further adds to thepleasure of reading this book. Crime Fiction meticulously covers a largetime period, with tales of detection from the Bible to present daywriters and films. This is the delectable detection work of a competentand thorough researcher and scholar, and will be an indispensablevolume for those captivated by this popular culture genre.

Sayanti GangulyOklahoma State University

Fashion Brands: Branding Style from Armani to Zara. MarkTungate. London: Kogan Page Limited, 2005.

Who would have thought that Ralph Lifshitz, son of a Russian-Jewish immigrant, born in the Bronx, would become Ralph Lauren—arguably the king of merchants selling the perfect WASP lifestyle?Or that choosing the perfect supermodel for product promotionwould prove so crucial for a company’s success? H&M (Hennes &Mauritz) believed it. The international retail company canceled theircontract with Kate Moss after it was publicly discovered that she useddrugs.

In this well-written book, Mark Tungate delivers an in-depth reviewof European luxury fashion branding. The author’s experience as ajournalist for the World Global Style Network (WGSN) leads him tooriginal insights into the world of trends, haute couture fashion, pho-tography, modeling, and popular culture. Those interested in the areas

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of pret-a-porter, luxury fashion, brand strategy, European popular cul-ture, and retailing will find this book essential reading.

Tungate explains how consumers become addicted to style. He re-veals how the fashion industry and advertisers market their products onthe basis of creating desire for them. Desirable lifestyle associations areattached to luxury fashions through the process of branding. Unlikeessential consumer products (such as food), the continuing consump-tion of luxury fashion products is completely unnecessary but quiteprofitable (8).

The book also highlights how popular culture influences the for-mation of brands and their success or failure. Tungate does an excellentjob deconstructing the process of fashion branding. Each chapter isdevoted to a specific type of branding and product promotion such astarget marketing, strategy, celebrity endorsement, proper media out-lets, and product labeling.

In an interview, fashion designer Christian LaCroix told Tungatehow media influences from pop culture predispose individuals toidentity formation through fashion (8). In the current economy, ac-cording to LaCroix, many consumers believe they can assume newemotional identities by discarding old fashions and purchasing newones. The luxury lifestyle attached to the latest trends often misleadconsumers into thinking they can enjoy these fantasies by purchasingthese products. Consumers purchase these products only to discoverthey need the latest styles a few days later. The process becomes avicious cycle of consumption.

Tungate anticipates many questions readers may have about theevolution of fashion brands. In Chapter 14, the author reviews thehistory of the two well-known brands Gucci and Burberry. He explainshow these brands were reinvented into the trendy mega-brands they aretoday. These two brands are no longer perceived in the same way theywere during the 1970s and 1980s by the baby boomers. They nowrepresent the young, sexy, and sometimes provocative style of today’sgeneration (157– 63).

This book may disappoint readers interested in luxury Americanbrands or quantitative sales data. Tungate focuses on the Europeanmarket through long, in-depth interviews on the major characteristicsof the luxury market. While he uses some American examples, he doesnot elaborate on them. However, this omission identifies opportunitiesfor further research on the American market.

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Tungate’s book reinforces the notions that fashion is reliant onbranding to make it come alive. It also educates readers on why somemerchandise is still considered a luxury. For example, with the marketproliferation of designer handbags for women by Gucci, Louis Vuitton,Hermes, and Christian Dior, one would think the novelty has worn off.Tungate reveals how branding keeps sales soaring by stimulating con-sumer demand for more of these luxury designer accessories. FashionBrands may be quite useful in many popular culture courses exploringthe marketing of contemporary fashion.

Joseph HancockDrexel University

Blood Relations: Chosen Families in Buffy the Vampire Slayer andAngel. Jes Battis. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2005.

Blood Relations is the latest scholarly work about the mythic tel-evision universe created by Joss Whedon. The series premiered in1997, having spun off from a movie, also called Buffy the Vampire Slayer.Angel spun off from the television series. Altogether, there are 254episodes of both series, combined. They are still aired in syndicationboth in the United States and abroad.

Although the television series audience was rarely more than eightmillion viewers, its influence in popular culture has been profound.Scholars continue to deconstruct and dissect the mythos and charactersin the series. However, this is the first scholarly book to focus onnontraditional family relations in the series, and it provides a necessaryand welcome addition to the growing catalog of scholarly works aboutBuffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

Despite the interconnections—and they are all interconnected—among all the characters in the series, Battis has thoughtfully providedcharacter reviews without giving away too many plotlines and withoutreviewing episodes. However, once we begin to read each chapter, itbecomes clear that we do need some familiarity with the series in orderto understand the character analyses that form subsequent chapters inthe book.

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