Chaos ensues in this horror/comedy sequel as humans and bloodsuckers with varied agendas race from the
Southwestern United States to Mexico.
Blake Barker has become one of the infected as vampirism plagues New Mexico in the 1980s. He has sworn to take out
fellow “night crawler” Romero Lopes, who murdered someone Blake loved. But first Blake must save his young son, who’s
now missing along with the family’s former caretaker Lorena Pastore. She’s just who Romero is after since she possesses
a powerful obsidian knife that, unlike regular blades, leaves vampires with never-healing wounds. Blake and Romero head
south after learning that Lorena is lying low in Santa Sangre, Mexico. And they aren’t the only ones; Lorena’s vampire
brother and at least two men in love with her (a Navajo physician and Blake’s brother in Houston) aren’t far behind.
Meanwhile, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientists are desperate for an effective vaccine, quite unlike a
military division, which strives to weaponize vampirism. Once rival drug cartels enter the mix, no one is safe from a
potentially savage and bloody death. Hill and Cavaretta follow up The Night Crawler Protocol (2021) with an action-fueled
second installment. As numerous characters speed across state lines and the border, the narrative is constantly moving.
Despite vicious night crawlers and humans, much of what unfolds, like the preceding book, is tongue-in-cheek. Even
viscera-laden scenes boast facetious details, such as Blake’s slicing a gang member into bits with the delight of a
“choreographed Broadway musical.” Still, abundant medical discussions treat night crawlers realistically—they’re merely
people infected with a virus—and there’s a hint that “cycles” of vampirism (like one just seven years before) stem from an
ancient source. The authors round out this gripping story with a few startling deaths and leave plenty of questions lingering
for the trilogy’s final volume.
A riveting tale of a vampire outbreak that’s both amusing and brutal.