Kevin Wignall's vampire trilogy

Huh, Kevin Wignall and vampires? Sounds quite an unlikely combination, you say? The writer of noir masterpieces Who Is Conrad Hirst? and Among the Dead? Well, it's happened: Blood is just out, under Kevin's nom de blume, KJ Wignall, and it's quite excellent, in a way the more recent vampire doorstoppers aren't.

There's a funny anecdote in this: Kevin said to me when he came to Finland that he wrote the trilogy several years ago, but at the time he was told that no one's interested in vampires anymore. But then we all know what happened and Kevin sold the trilogy. And Blood's pretty damn good! It's aimed at teenage readers, but I've read lots less mature horror novels. This is full of magic and action (and even some downright scary moments), and the sadness and melancholy that everyone who's read anything by Kevin is bound to recognize. I was ready to read the next volumes at one sitting...

The book is slightly marred by the fact it's written before the recent vampire boom and hence there's not much surprise in what makes Wignall's protagonist run.

I don't like to give away plot points and direct you straight to KJ Wignall's website here. You'll find all the scoop there. And one, not so minor point: this will be published also in Finnish next year.