"The Strain" by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan

For those who long to hear a good, old-fashioned, scary vampire tale; who may not be interested in Edward and Bella; who are not sure about Zoey Redbird; and who care not a whiff about the graduates of the Vampire Academy, this one is for them.  ‘The Strain’ resurrects the horror of the classic lore – and I do mean “horror” – associated with ‘vampire’, as del Toro and Hogan frighten you not with what you can see, but rather with what you are not permitted to see.  They draw intense pictures of the vile creatures the victims of this disease become, while seldom allowing you into view of an attack.  They set you upon the doorstep and warn you of the plague of vampirism consuming New York City, eager to spread with its virus across the world.  Therefore, if you would rather not start suspecting every shadow and jumping at every sound, steer clear of this horrifying tale, as it is the book to make a person, once again, afraid of the dark.  Read it in the middle of the night, in solitary confinement, with a dim bulb as the only illumination, casting the shadows that encroach on all sides, and you too will revisit those frightful days of innocent youth when every shadow was filled with evil and every little sound haunted you with impending doom.


I loved this story because it not only returned the vampire genre to its roots of evil incarnate consuming mankind (hopeless, man is when facing pure evil with nothing more than his own devices), but it also a new wrinkle to complement the old: equating 'becoming a vampire' with the ravages of a disease, making it a 'strain' that consumes a normal person just as a vile disease destroys a healthy body.

Up to the point in the story where the major players take the fight to the vampire creatures (they are creatures in the purest sense of the term), this is a true horror story.  When they confront them, parts start feeling a bit campy for my tastes.  I don't recall precisely what methods they used to engage the fight to them; I just recall the silly factor weighing into the picture.  Nevertheless, a horrifying tale up to the point.