Innocent blood

In this sequel to The Blood Gospel (2013), archaeologist Erin Granger receives a message from Cardinal Bernard, leader of the Order of Sanguines, a group of vampires operating within the Vatican, whose thirst for human blood is kept in check by the blood of Christ. The message leads Erin back into the ancient war between the Sanguines and the Strigoi, a rival group of vampires whose interests lie in a more evil direction than the Sanguines'. Now a new villain has surfaced, a man who calls himself Judas Iscariot and who may indeed be the biblical Judas. To save the world from Armageddon, Erin reluctantly joins forces with another entity whose evil nature is not to be trifled with. This collaboration between Rollins, the well-known author of the Sigma Force thrillers (contemporary stories with ties to ancient riddles), and Cantrell, author of the atmospheric Hannah Vogel mysteries (set in Berlin in the 1930s), should appeal to their fans, but also to readers who like an action-packed, epic-size story portraying the battle between Good and Evil.--Pitt, David Copyright 2010 Booklist

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.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Rollins and Cantrell follow up their best-selling The Blood Gospel with this intense and shocking thriller. Archaeologist Erin Granger thought her life could return to normal, but when she is attacked by a vicious animal, she is rescued by army sergeant Jordan Stone and Christian, a member of the secret Vatican order known as Sanguines. Drawing on the prophecy outlined in the Blood Gospel, a tome written by Jesus Christ, Erin, Jordan, and Fr. Rhun Korza will be forced to join together either to fulfill something foreseen centuries ago or witness the end of the world. Verdict The authors have written a fast-paced and compelling adventure filled with history, espionage, love, revenge, and the power of forgiveness. Starting with the first book will provide a much deeper reading experience, but it's not necessary to enjoy this nonstop action thriller. [See Prepub Alert, 7/15/13; with a five-city tour.]-Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

The religious-themed mayhem of the authors' jointly penned Blood Gospel (2013) continues in the second of a projected four volumes. There's a touch of genius, witting or no, in pairing a Dan Brownian hidden-codex mystery with a vampire tale. Let that suffice lest spoilers ruin the fun, except to say that the blood of the title is no accident. Intrepid scholar Erin Granger, fresh from the Holy Land, reunites with friend-with-benefits Jordan Stone, the tough soldier who's seen some weird times in Masada and elsewhere in the Holy Land, along with Father Rhun Korza, who always knows more than he lets on. Joining the fun this time is a childlike angel who's been around for a very, very long timeso long, in fact, that he (and/or she, angels being hard to pin down, genderwise) was there at the crucifixion and has a sidelong relationship with Judas, a figure who comes off as curiously sympathetic, playing a part in a very big passion play. Judas, natch, has been doing his bit ever since to bring Christ back to Earth: "He had spent centuries in service of this holy mission." But so have many others, each in his or her own way, from witches and vampires (with scrapbooks of human hearts, no less) to priests and earthly warriors and even Lucifer, the baddest of the bad guys, his bad self. The whole yarn is improbable in the extreme, and therein lies at least some of its draw; Rollins and Cantrell seem always on the verge of breaking out into laughter even in the most fraught of situations, of which there are manyamong them an absurd scenario featuring a cougar, a sedan and one of those weird sort-of-Jesuits known as the Sanguinists. By the time the tale gets around to hieroglyphic depictions of Jesus, things have become more Indiana Jones than Robert Langdon. It's junk food, but it's pretty tasty.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

In this sequel to The Blood Gospel (2013), archaeologist Erin Granger receives a message from Cardinal Bernard, leader of the Order of Sanguines, a group of vampires operating within the Vatican, whose thirst for human blood is kept in check by the blood of Christ. The message leads Erin back into the ancient war between the Sanguines and the Strigoi, a rival group of vampires whose interests lie in a more evil direction than the Sanguines'. Now a new villain has surfaced, a man who calls himself Judas Iscariot—and who may indeed be the biblical Judas. To save the world from Armageddon, Erin reluctantly joins forces with another entity whose evil nature is not to be trifled with. This collaboration between Rollins, the well-known author of the Sigma Force thrillers (contemporary stories with ties to ancient riddles), and Cantrell, author of the atmospheric Hannah Vogel mysteries (set in Berlin in the 1930s), should appeal to their fans, but also to readers who like an action-packed, epic-size story portraying the battle between Good and Evil. Copyright 2014 Booklist Reviews.

Rollins and Cantrell follow up their best-selling The Blood Gospel with this intense and shocking thriller. Archaeologist Erin Granger thought her life could return to normal, but when she is attacked by a vicious animal, she is rescued by army sergeant Jordan Stone and Christian, a member of the secret Vatican order known as Sanguines. Drawing on the prophecy outlined in the Blood Gospel, a tome written by Jesus Christ, Erin, Jordan, and Fr. Rhun Korza will be forced to join together either to fulfill something foreseen centuries ago or witness the end of the world. Verdict The authors have written a fast-paced and compelling adventure filled with history, espionage, love, revenge, and the power of forgiveness. Starting with the first book will provide a much deeper reading experience, but it's not necessary to enjoy this nonstop action thriller. [See Prepub Alert, 7/15/13; with a five-city tour.]—Jeff Ayers, Seattle P.L. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

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.)