cover image Innocent Blood: The Order 
of the Sanguines Series

Innocent Blood: The Order of the Sanguines Series

James Rollins and Rebecca Cantrell. Morrow, $27.99 (448p) ISBN 978-0-06-199106-6

Biblical prophecies and vampires drive Rollins and Cantrell’s unwieldy second Sanguines thriller featuring archeologist Erin Granger and Sgt. Jordan Stone (after 2013’s The Blood Gospel). According to the long-lost Blood Gospel, Armageddon can only be averted if three figures—the Knight of Christ, the Warrior of Man, and the Woman of Learning—seek out another mysterious figure, the First Angel. Fr. Rhun Korza has been identified as the first, Jordan as the second, and Erin may be the third. Jordan and Erin are sent to Rome to help locate the vanished Korza and are drawn into a battle of wits and force with vampiric bloodsuckers known as strigoi and with Sanguinists, strigoi who serve the Catholic Church. The result is a less than convincing blend of fractured religion, history, and mythology. 5-city author tour. Agent: (for Rollins) Russ Galen and Danny Baror; (for Cantrell) Mary Alice Kier and Anna Cottle. (Jan.)