Shining in Crimson: Empire of Blood Book One (A Dystopian Vampire Novel) [Kindle Edition]

Robert S. Wilson (Author)

Book Description

In celebration of the release of FADING IN DARKNESS: EMPIRE OF BLOOD BOOK TWO, SHINING IN CRIMSON is on sale for only 99 cents!

Set in a dystopian, religiously-demented American Empire, the city of Las Vegas is no longer a city of sin. Now called Necropolis, it is a city that eats sin. The vampires of Necropolis wait patiently for the Empire's weekly drop off of guilty Penitents; sinners and criminals full of fresh blood.

Hank Evans is one of those Penitents and he would gladly let the vampires take every drop of his blood if it weren't for one detail: Toby. Toby is Hank's only son. Now, Hank must do whatever it takes to escape the city of the dead and save his son from an Empire as bloodthirsty as the vampires it uses to keep its people in line. 

Praise for Shining in Crimson: 

"A big-scale vampire thriller that changes the rules."--Scott Nicholson, bestselling Kindle author of Liquid Fear, The Red Church, and They Hunger 

"One of the best surprises I've had in a long while. Writing with a smart, self-assured ease, Robert S. Wilson has given us a gift with Shining in Crimson. Part Underworld, part Escape From New York, Shining in Crimson is genuinely frightening, genuinely thrilling, but above all, first-rate storytelling. I'm a Robert S. Wilson fan from now on!"--Joe McKinney, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Flesh Eaters and Apocalypse of the Dead

"Robert S. Wilson shows a lot of promise here with this debut novel. Now it's time to see where that promise will take him."--Ray Wallace, The Chiaroscuro

"You'll not find some glistening torsos and smouldering eyes in this book. What you will find is a brilliantly thought out society of Vampires."--Jim Mcleod, Ginger Nuts of Horror

"The Mesh of Religious symbolism and political commentary tucked neatly between pure horror and suspense is superb."--Lisa Lane, The Cerebral Writer

"With well-fleshed characters, multiple storylines and a vampire history that makes sense, Shining in Crimson: (Empire of Blood #1) is a well-written horror novel. I am anticipating the second and third books in the series."--Trembles Horror Magazine

Cover design by Elena Helfrecht, you can find her and her work at apokryphia.weebly.com/

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

Beginning July 10th, 2013, SHINING IN CRIMSON will no longer be available in the Kindle Owners' Lending Library. So, if you're a Kindle Prime customer and you'd like to read the book for free, now's the time to borrow it!

Product Details

• File Size: 464 KB
• Print Length: 234 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: Empire of Blood Books; 1st edition (September 4, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005LD2TKK
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #188,827 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Great Suspense, Cool Vampires January 19, 2012

By W C Busch

Format:Kindle Edition

I got Shining in Crimson as a free give away and was immediately interested in the plot after reading the description. Like many of the other reviewers, I love the idea of using really badass, creepy-crawly vampires rather than the more classical versions, a la Underworld or Blade or Twilight. The one part of Shining in Crimson that really stood out to me was the suspense. The book keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what's around the next corner and keeps this up from beginning to end. Normally this would be enough for a 4 star. For me, the biggest draw back was the feeling of being told what was happening, rather than being shown. That could be just my preference (obviously it is to some degree, given the 4 and 5 stars). I think anyone who is a fan of vampire lore, especially those drawn to the grittier, more horrific vampire lore, will definitely find a nice place for Shining in Crimson in their collection.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Wealth of Depth and Richness of Character September 18, 2011

By CL Nicolas-Stegall

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

So, I've been an "aficionado" of vampires for almost as long as I've been reading novels. From Stoker's Dracula to this latest, by Robert S. Wilson, Shining In Crimson.

I have to say: I'm really impressed.

Wilson's dystopian Empire (formerly the good old U.S. of A.) is well-thought out and carries a weight and depth to it unlike many others I've read about. The vampires of his world are both tribal and democratic, as well as useful tools of the Empire itself.

The characters each have a richness to them that leads you to worry for them, hate them, admire them and/or loathe them. Hank, in particular, is a man with a fully developed back story that plays its part in defining who he is and how he handles the tragic circumstances in which he finds himself.

Although Toby could have used just a little more fleshing out, near the end of the novel we see some further depth to the boy that I hope promises some interesting turns of event in future volumes. And, let me say that I do fully expect there to be future volumes!

Such incredible conflict of character is displayed in wonderful relief with the person of Simon. His storyline is such that I would have never guessed from his entry onto the scene near the beginning of the book. Wilson has done a fantastic job in truly doing something different with the "whole vampire thing."

The only reason that this novel did not get five stars from me is the partial cliffhanger of an ending... but that is to be expected as this is to be the first in a trilogy of novels. All well and good. Now, where the hell is the next one?? :o)

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, Refreshing and Brilliant Book September 16, 2011

By Malina Roos

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Loved this so much I am re-reading it again to make sure I did not miss a thing. For a first time novel Robert S. Wilson created a masterpiece. His weaving of story lines, creation of characters the the telling of back stories work wonderfully together culminated in a refreshingly new vampire story. This is one story I wanted to go on and on.

What impressed me was the new version of the vampire genre. After reading hundreds of stories of novels this is truly an original.

Brilliant work. Cannot wait for the next one.

More About the Author

Robert S. Wilson was born in Bloomington, Indiana during the blizzard of '78. His first taste for science fiction and horror came from watching episodes of The Twilight Zone and the stories his mother told him about a supposedly haunted house his family once lived in. He is the author of SHINING IN CRIMSON and FADING IN DARKNESS, books one and two of his dystopian vampire series: EMPIRE OF BLOOD. Robert is also one of three co-editers of the Bram Stoker Award-nominated HORROR FOR GOOD: A CHARITABLE ANTHOLOGY published by Cutting Block Press.

EXIT REALITY: A RAY GARRET/LIFELINE TECHNO THRILLER, the first novella in Robert's new fast-paced cyberpunk/horror/crime series is also now available on Amazon from Blood Bound Books.

Robert lives in Middle Tennessee with his wife and two kids and spends most of his time wondering where all the time went. Samples of his work as well as the free audio serial for Shining in Crimson can be found on his blog at http://shiningincrimson.blogspot.com You can also find him and Shining in Crimson on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/robertswilsonauthor and http://www.facebook.com/shiningincrimson