The Strain

Pan's Labyrinth director Del Toro and thriller author Hogan (Prince of Thieves) team up to launch the first volume of a modern-day vampire trilogy. The story begins onboard a grounded plane that has just landed at New York's JFK airport. Police and emergency medical crews are called to investigate the possible outbreak of a mysterious disease, which has killed all but four of the plane's passengers. Unknowingly, something more ominous is responsible for the carnage, which now threatens the city and soon the entire country. Unlike the sexy bloodsuckers of paranormal romances and the cuddly vampires of teen fiction, these undead creatures are slick, dark, and frightening. This novel reads like a story made for the big screen, and with writer/director Del Toro, that is entirely possible. Despite the somewhat slow start, the story builds up steam quickly, and fans of horror, vampire fiction, and Del Toro's Hellboy films will line up for this one. Buy multiple copies. Highly recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/15/09; Rayo will publish the simultaneous Spanish-language edition.Ed.]Carolann Lee Curry, Mercer Univ. Medical Lib., Macon, GA Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.