Tortured Skin by James Gillen

Meet Paul Isaac: a cigar smokin’, tough talkin’, take no crap, lifelong hater of vampires. He’s got good reason though – his parents were brutally killed by vampires when he was young. And given his disposition toward the undead, he’s got the perfect job; he’s a legal Vampire Executioner. When vampires take a human life or when a human is forcibly “turned” by a vampire, Paul’s the guy the police call in to examine the body and hunt down the vampire culprit. It’s a dirty job, but Paul actually enjoys the gig.

Okay, sometimes he enjoys it a little too much . . . .

As such, he’s persona non-grata with the powerful vampires in the city who have decided to get rid of him once and for all.

While working a crime scene one night he spots a vampire on his hit list. After giving chase, apprehending and questioning the vampire, he’s attacked by a gang of young thugs. In the process of defending himself he kills one of his attackers, only to discover that the kid was human. As if by magic, members of the Vampire Council (the vampire governing board that oversees and controls the actions of vampires in the city) appear at the scene. Paul realizes he’s walked right into an ambush. The vampires can either kill him outright or go to the police and report him for the murder.

Turns out, the vampires have a reason for orchestrating this setup: they want Paul to find the daughter of the most powerful vampire in the city and return her to safety. He’s told that the city’s alpha werewolf has taken the girl and that Paul will likely have to kill the shapeshifter in order to rescue her. He’s also told that the werewolf may be responsible for the string of recent killings that have taken the lives of several women. To ensure his full cooperation the vampires inject Paul with a poison that will turn him into a vampire in 3 days. If he succeeds, they’ll give him the antidote and $2 million dollars. If he fails, he becomes one of the very creatures he’s devoted his life to killing.

Paul soon realizes this is no straightforward task. Since he’s always distrusted vampires he suspects from the start that they aren’t telling him the whole story; he just doesn’t know how deep the treachery lies. His mission proves to be quite complex and eventually forces him to not only form an unlikely alliance but to also pit himself against one of the few people he thought he could trust. This fast-paced storyline is chock-full of double crosses and misdirection. Just when I thought I’d figured out the real villain(s) I was thrown for a loop. But oh, how I enjoyed the ride!

Gillen has developed a flawed but entirely likable character in Paul, primarily because of his steadfast commitment and dedication to whatever job he’s on. Sure, he’s sometimes bullheaded, violent and merciless, but you gotta’ love his determination and his overarching “take out the bad guys” philosophy. On top of that he’s got a great sense of humor.

Tortured Skin is a mixture of mystery and fantasy with a bit of horror thrown in for good measure. The plot, given the setting, was believable and the dialogue and narrative successfully kept my interest level high. Overall, I found the book to be entertaining and entirely enjoyable. As such, it gets a top recommendation from me. I hope to read more about Paul Isaac in the near future.

Check out Tortured Skin at online outlets like Amazon and Barnes and Noble.