The Strain By: Guillermo del Toro & Chuck Hogan

My next group of reviews were scheduled to be graphic novels. However, reading has taken over writing and I have yet to compose those reviews. In order to avoid an even bigger backlog of reviews I decided to start reviewing a book as soon as I have finished reading. Why did I not think of doing this sooner ? Chalk it up to a combination of my late night reading tendency (resulting in books being finished at 5am with sleep riddled eyes) and simple procrastination. Now onward with the book reviewing.

This novel is one of those books that I promised myself I would read either via nook or when it hits paperback, then forgot about the book. I recently found a hardcover copy in the bargain stack at my local Borders express (sad thing about Borders closing, but that is another entry.) The low price coupled with my previous fascination for the book made this purchase inevitable.

The Strain tells the tale of a plane that lands at JFK airport with all passengers dead. In a post 9-11 New York, authorities cannot help but to expect the deaths to be the result of a biological terrorist attack. However, the pathogen here is the result of an ancient evil of the blood sucking variety. When Dr. Goodweather of the CDC Canary project begins to investigate the case he is dragged into a world of vampiric lore that challenges the stereotypical ideas of holy water and crucifixes all the while chronicling the journey of a man fighting for his family and a Holocaust survivor's lifelong mission against evil.

In an age when novels romanticize the idea of blood sucking creatures, and vampires sparkle, The Stain was a welcome reminder of the blood and gore that was once associated with these creatures of the night. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone who remembers Stoker's Dracula, Leroux's Phantom of the Opera, or any other bloody monster tale that made one a little weary of night time noises and a little anxious to turn off the lights.


Happy Reading!

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