Also by this author: Planet of the Dead, Palace of GhostsBen Harker, Harlem native. WWI veteran. Vampire slayer.
In the year 2044, reporters from the Public Relations Ministry gather at the home of Benjamin Harker, the last surviving member of the Harlem Hellfighters. At the age of 144, he is the oldest recorded man alive.
Hidden among them, Clyde Bruner is looking for a different kind of story. Across the United States, despite the Great Walls and patrol drones built to keep America secure, something has found its way in. And now towns are vanishing during the night. Entire populations, gone. Only to return after the sun sets, changed, unholy, and lethal. And whatever this evil is, its spreading west.
According to a bedtime story Bruner’s grandfather told him when he was a boy, Benjamin Harker has seen this before. He’s faced this scourge. Fought this evil. Survived them. Killed them. From the trenches of the Great War to the jungles of Vietnam to the sands of Iraq, Harker will search his past to save our future.
But as each city light extinguishes across the country, is there no time left to stop what’s coming?
"THE LAST HELLFIGHTER is an extraordinarily enthralling novel with a blow-me-out-of-the-water reader's hook. The central figure is Benjamin Harker, native of Harlem, black WWI soldier, later Oklahoma homesteader--and vampire-fighter. I love this character (and James Reese Europe, jazz musician and WWI Lieutenant). I love and admire them" -The Haunted Reading Room.
Find the Author: Website, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Amazon
There is so much I want to say about this book, but no matter how many words I come up with, I still feel like I could never truly do it justice. The Last Hellfighter was PHENOMENAL. Hands down one of the best vampire books I’ve ever read.
I’ve come to enjoy the writing style of Thomas S. Flowers. He can be mild and calm or he can hit you with a ton of bricks, or even both, where you think everything is calm and moving along and the next thing you know, BAM! You’re whacked in the brain with a story you can’t put down, leaves you dying inside, and wanting more even though it’s just not possible.
The Last Hellfighter follows Ben. He’s the oldest living man in the US and is telling his story to the grandson of a now dead soldier whose life he saved decades before. He’s fought in several major wars and has lived much longer than anyone (including him) has ever expected or wanted. He’s been searching for a way to kill the vampire Queen and she’s just been toying with him over the very, very long years.
I loved the music selections mentioned in this book. It helps to place the time and mood to some degree and it’s something I, for one, appreciated immensely.
Overall, there is really only so much I can say without giving away too much of the story. I will say this, if you overlook this book you are doing yourself a great disservice.
Purchase Link
Amazon
About Thomas S. Flowers
Often called The Hemingway of Horror, Thomas S. Flowers secludes away to create character-driven stories of dark fiction ranging from Shakespearean gore feasts to paranormal thrillers. Residing in the swamps of Houston, Texas, with his wife and daughter, his debut novel, Reinheit, was soon published with Shadow Work Publishing, along with The Incredible Zilch Von Whitstein, Apocalypse Meow, Lanmò, The Hobbsburg Horror, and FEAST.
His military/paranormal thriller series, The Subdue Series, including Dwelling, Emerging, Conceiving, and Converging, are published with Limitless Publishing, LLC. In 2008, he was honorably discharged from the U.S. Army where he served for seven years, with three tours serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2014, Thomas graduated from University of Houston-Clear Lake with a Bachelors in History. He blogs at machinemean[dot]org, where he reviews movies and books and hosts a gambit of guest writers who discuss a wide range of strange yet oddly related topics.
One Response to The Last Hellfighter by Thomas S. Flowers