Vampires. Shadow Priests. Buried Cities. An epic like you've never experienced....

"If you like Game of Thrones & vampires, you’re going to love the Vampyricon." ★★★★★ "I was enthralled!" ★★★★★ In this medieval dark fantasy epic, Aleric the Falconer, torn by war from his beloved, falls prey to Pythia, the savage mistress whose embrace means death. Get the trilogy: The Lady of Serpents (#2), and The Queen of Wolves (#3).

Set in a world of ancient sorceries and buried cities, The Priest of Blood is the first book in The Vampyricon trilogy from NY Times bestselling and award-winning author, Douglas Clegg.

“Astonishing...The Priest of Blood is a bloody gem.” – Christopher Rice, New York Times bestselling author with Anne Rice of Ramses the Damned.

“Richly layered, beautifully rendered foray into a past filled with sorcery and mystery — and a rousing good story.” – Kelley Armstrong, New York Times bestselling author.

“Stunning...gives the iconic vampire a massive makeover."– Publishers Weekly, Starred Review.

*"If you like Game of Thrones and vampires, you’ll love The Vampyricon.” – USA Today bestselling author Robert Swartwood.

**

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. The stunning first volume of a new dark fantasy epic from Stoker-winner Clegg (Nightmare House) gives the iconic vampire a massive makeover and draws fresh possibilities from its most familiar aspects. Aleric Atheffelde, a low-born medieval Breton boy with a strange knack for training birds, gets snared while serving as an unwilling soldier in the Holy Land by arch-vampiress Pythia, who through a kiss inadvertently sparks a vision in him of his regal vampire destiny. From the moment of Aleric's conversion, the tale detours sharply from the well-plowed terrain of conventional vampire costume dramas into an undiscovered country entirely the author's own. Aleric and his new vampire tribe travel to the legendary vampire necropolis of Alkemara, a marvel of gothic creepiness. There they encounter the legendary Priest of Blood, who supplies an intricate and mesmerizing view of vampire culture and projects a tragic future whose outcome hinges on Aleric. This rich and symbol-laden blend of myth and history makes intense reading while it lays a solid foundation for later books in the series.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Horror writer Clegg sets his sights on historical fantasy in the first book of the Vampyricon series. Set in medieval Brittany, it is the tale of Aleric, a young peasant born to a mother who tried to abort him. Aleric seeks to better himself when a local baron's men come seeking a boy to train birds for the hunt. When Aleric's skills with birds lead to him being chosen, he begins a new life at the baron's castle that is fraught with difficulties and dangers. Aleric jeopardizes his standing in the household when he falls in love with the baron's daughter, Alienora. When the affair is discovered, Aleric is sent away as an enslaved infantryman on a Crusade to the Holy Land. He discovers a fate far more terrifying, however, when he frees Pythia, a female prisoner, only to have her turn him into a vampire. Clegg's evocative, vivid medieval setting is every bit as appealing as the vampire lore in this promising series starter. Kristine Huntley
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved