cover image Darlington Woods

Darlington Woods

Mike Dellosso, . . Strang Communications/Realms, $13.99 (304pp) ISBN 978-1-59979-918-6

No shortage of vampire books stock bookstore shelves today, but few combine Christian themes with ghoulish vampire villains like this headlong rush of psycho-spiritual suspense. When the wife and son of Rob Shields go missing, Shields must find them and their abductor, but only by facing his own darkest fears. In tow is essential female sidekick and moral voice, Juli: “You lost your wife and son. When did you lose your faith?” She leads Rob to Darlington, a horrific village of dread-filled citizens and “darklings” who rule by treachery and pure evil. Even Juli has demons of the past to exorcise. Never indulging in long boring tangents or fussy character descriptions, Dellosso's pacing is perfect and passionate. Even though the choice of setting and parts of the plot mirror the popular novel The Shack , readers familiar with that book will find this new combo of Christian vampire fare a quick and breathless read and will scream for more. (May)