The Blood Gospel: The Order of the Sanguines    by James Rollins & Rebecca Cantrell Order:  USA  Can William Morrow, 2013 (2013) Hardcover, CD, e-Book Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Bob Walch James Rollins and Rebecca Cantrell collaborate on a gothic tale that will make vampire fiction fans howl in delight. The aftermath of an earthquake in Masada, Israel, uncovers a long buried tomb that holds some remarkable and dangerous secrets. A trio of investigators (Sergeant Jordan Stone, a military forensic expert; Father Rhun Korza, a Vatican priest; and Dr. Erin Granger, an archaeologist) are sent to explore the site. What they find is a subterranean temple secreting the mummified remains of a crucified girl. When investigators are attacked it becomes obvious that there are others who want to possess the artifacts the temple contains. The most important is a book reportedly penned by Christ Himself, which holds the secrets of His divinity. The race to recover the volume will stretch from the Holy Land to Rome. These three quite disparate individuals, from totally different walks of life, are pitted against an adversary who not only calls upon special and dark powers that date back centuries but is also driven by an unholy passion that drives him to unheard of lengths to succeed. Citing Rembrandt's painting The Rising of Lazarus as the partial inspiration for this novel take on vampirism and the Catholic Church, the authors explain that this tale 'examines the line between faith and science'. They point out that blood not only plays an important role in Catholic ritual, but ancient Rome was also s city soaked in blood. Hence, they decided to tweak vampire mythology to play out against this background and create a work that would revolve around a secret sect or order called the Sanguines. The final product is a book that showcases the strengths of two well respected novelists and promises to keep readers spellbound until the final page. The Blood Gospel has action movie written all over it; the only question is how long it will take to bring it to the big screen! Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews