Skarlet

Emson (the Vampire Babylon trilogy) feeds fresh blood to the vampire genre in this visceral hybrid of plague, panic, and the paranormal, which launches a series worth watching. Unlikely allies and ferocious monsters populate a world gone mad with blood thirst as ancient conspiracies are realized through contemporary greed and corruption. Nightclub bouncer and disgraced ex-soldier Jake Lawton becomes a chief suspect when a lethal designer drug kills a group of clubbers, including Jake’s estranged girlfriend, Jenna. He teams up with Christine Murray, a vindictive journalist, to unearth an ancient conspiracy as the dead rise to feed on the living. Furious pacing doesn’t preclude harsh poetic imagery as human greed blurs lines between friend and foe, victim and victimizer. Lawton’s personal crises enrich the splattery carnage, and the plot is lent pathos by a misguided human population as dismal as the undead. The vampires of this energetic and philosophical fable are the rotting, deadly creatures of folklore, and a refreshing change for readers who weary of the sexy undead. (Oct.)