Belgium, 1944. A young German soldier is gunned down in a mass execution by American riflemen. Left for dead among the frozen corpses of his comrades, Matthias Bartsch is attacked by a pair of sinister creatures and undergoes a horrid transformation. As a fledgling vampire, he crosses the Atlantic to hunt down his executioners. Yet when revenge fails to pacify him, Matthias is tormented by the memories of his past and carelessly attempts to recreate the life and love he lost.
Virginia, 2014. Edison Raymer is an anthropology professor at a small college in the riverside town of Williamsport. His arrogant demeanor and unorthodox lectures on the occult have ostracized him from students and faculty alike. Yet Raymer is willing to risk his career and the lives of those closest to him in order to prove the existence of vampires once and for all.
Two hunters-one human, one undead-are nearly driven mad by their obsessions. As the lines between man and monster become blurred, only one can survive.

Matthew Heilman earned a PhD in English Literature from Duquesne University, with a focus on nineteenth-century British literature (Romanticism, Victorian, Gothic, and supernatural fiction). He resides in Pittsburgh with his loving wife and their many cats.