Synopsis:
From the author of the “exciting, suspenseful, horrifying” (Stephen King) Fever House, comes Coffin Moon. This terrifying tale finds a Vietnam veteran and his adopted niece hunting—and being hunted by—the vampire that slaughtered their family.
It’s the winter of 1975, and Portland, Oregon, is all sleet and neon. Duane Minor is back home after a tour in Vietnam, a bartender just trying to stay sober; save his marriage with his wife, Heidi; and connect with his thirteen-year-old niece, Julia, now that he’s responsible for raising her. Things aren’t easy, but Minor is scraping by.
Then a vampire walks into his bar and ruins his life.
When Minor crosses John Varley, a killer who sleeps during the day beneath loose drifts of earth and grows teeth in the light of the moon, Varley brutally retaliates by murdering Heidi, leaving Minor broken with guilt and Julia filled with rage. What’s left of their splintered family is united by only one desire: vengeance.
So begins a furious, frenzied pursuit across the Pacific Northwest and beyond. From grimy alleyways to desolate highways to snow-lashed plains, Minor and Julia are cast into the dark orbit of undead children, silver bullet casters, and the bevy of broken men transfixed by Varley’s ferocity. Everyone’s out for blood.
Gritty, unforgettable, and emotionally devastating, Coffin Moon asks what will be left of our humanity when grief transmutes into violence, when monsters wear human faces, and when our thirst for revenge eclipses everything else.
My Thoughts:
I think I live for tales of revenge. Especially when that revenge is hard won. Some might even argue that in the end it wasn’t won at all. Coffin Moon provides just such a tale. Duane is a troubled character. He’s got a lot going on. And to be frank, so does young Julia. They are very much imperfect protagonists (the best kind of protag, in my opinion).
I don’t want to tell you much about Coffin Moon, because the story is so good that it deserves to be experienced entirely on its own. Although the story, on its face, may sound similar to the T. Chris Martindale Paperback from Hell Nightblood, and they do share some similarities, Coffin Moon is very much a modern take on that basic type of story.
Although it is set in the 70s, and it is definitely gory and violent, it has a level of heart to the story that you just didn’t see much in that era of paperback horrors. There is a surprising amount of emotional depth throughout. This really makes for a story that feels both comfortingly familiar, and refreshingly nuanced for the type of story you probably expected.
Rating:
Go in as blind as you can. But do read Coffin Moon. It’s so, so good.
Coffin Moon
By: Keith Rosson
Random House
Expected Publication: September 9, 2025
ISBN: 9780593733400
Hardcover, Audio, E-book
320 Pages
