Hemo Sapiens - Emily Weedon

HEMO SAPIENS

EMILY WEEDON

*****

These women are out for blood.

Detective Luke Stockton is preparing for his first child with his wife, Beatrice, but balancing work and home is a challenge as she is behaving with increasing strangeness. Beatrice begins to frequent a medspa offering mysterious prenatal checkups, leech treatments, and vampire facials. And, against his will, Luke finds himself irresistibly drawn to the spa’s sophisticated owner, Cleo, who has a deadly secret to keep.

The pressure builds for Luke as he investigates a series of murders involving exsanguinated runaway boys. Trailing a perplexing killer, and bent on protecting his wife and their child, Luke is thrust into a shadowy, erotic world of wealth, subterfuge, and danger. And the closer he gets to the truth, the more danger he courts for himself and his family.

Hemo Sapiens is an audacious and bloodthirsty fairy tale, pitting one man against a community beyond good and evil, in a modern tale of intrigue and female sexuality.

MY REVIEW

*****

It’s spooky season at Kindig Blog and I love a good vampire tale - Hemo Sapiens, with it’s feminine and up to date spin seemed perfect for my October reading list!

Detective Luke is expecting his first child with wife Beatrice, whilst trying to solve a case of men killed by exsanguination. The new MedSpa his wife wants to use initially seems harmless but there’s something strange lurking just below the surface…

Although not necessarily a short book, Hemo Sapiens was a read I devoured in a few sittings. It’s sometimes hard to create worldbuilding for a standalone novel, but Emily Weedon manages to introduce strong main characters, create an intriguing crime spree with victims you sympathise with and expand on Vampire lore and traditions to create a compelling read.

The chapters alternate perspectives throughout – mainly between Luke and Heloise, but Laura, Tomas and other characters are also used as the book goes on. Laura’s perspective offered some essential backstory with her ‘research’ of what these strong women could be. I also loved the imagery used in Heloise’s chapters – the writing is so evocative and uses themes of hunting, predators and hunger in such a powerful way. Luke is grounded – the central point through which we find out information, although he is also flawed in places which made his story feel realistic. The only odd thing is that he is referred to as a ‘Trainee Detective’ at various points, which is taken to mean he trains other detectives, not that he is a trainee, which I don’t think is the correct terminology.

The pacing of the plot never lets up – from the explosive first chapter, the stakes build and build to the blood-stained climax. Emily Weedon is also not afraid to pull punches and kill seemingly important characters off throughout as well, which keeps the reader off balance throughout. Although the main story is wrapped up, there is perhaps space left for a spiritual successor of a sequel if so desired. The ending twist I did see coming, but I enjoyed none the less.

Overall, this Halloween season, if it’s vampires you’re after, you’ll love this feminine and modern take on a traditional spooky tale. Thank you to NetGalley & Dundurn Press for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

LINKS TO BUY

Amazon UK