This fifth book in the Vampire Earth series takes place 50 years into the Kurian rule of Earth. The year is 2072. Giant worms till the ground, kind but strong Grogs help people, and gargoyle-like Harpies and Big Wings cruise overhead and attack.

The novel's hero is David Valentine, a 27-year-old Reaper-killing cyclone and major force in the human-held Texas Republic and Ozark Free Territory. Valentine is human, but he has enhanced powers, such as the ability to hear things that most people don't notice. An old buddy, William Post, asks Valentine to find his ex-wife, Gail Foster, who is lost in the Kurian territories. It's possible Post's ex-wife has become a Kurian slave pawn, known as a Quisling to the few surviving humans.

With more than a touch of the Lovecraftian tentacle, Valentine's Exile mentions Miskatonic, "the main scholarly center for research into the Kurian order." Miskatonic data leads Valentine to the conclusion that the octopus-bat Kurians are trying to create new forms of life that provide better auras than those provided by current humans. Keep in the mind the hint—the Kurians are interested in the evolution of humanity. So why is Gail Foster enslaved somewhere in Kurian territory? By the closing pages, the novel supplies the awful truth.

A series that continues to have bite

As mentioned, Valentine's Exile isn't an average vampire novel. In 1896, H.G. Wells wrote The Island of Dr. Moreau, which was filmed as The Island of Lost Souls in 1933. In the Wells story, a mad scientist creates macabre semi-humans out of animals. The resulting beasts resemble humans in overall shape but are seriously not human in other ways. In Valentine's Exile, the vampires and their soul-sucking Lovecraftian masters are like Dr. Moreau on steroids. This is nicely drawn horror: not gross, not psychologically terrifying, but very ... creepy.

It's hard to maintain pace and interest as far into a series as book five. Many series tend to drag in book two, pick up in book three, drag for a while, and maybe, just maybe, pick up pace again down the line. It's incredibly difficult to write a book five that will appeal to people who have read books one through four, as well as those who have never picked up any book in the series before number five. Somehow, E.E. Knight manages to draw the reader into Valentine's Exile, book five in a series, whether the reader has previous background with Valentine or not.

E.E. Knight is a master of his craft. His prose is controlled but interesting, and his characters are fully formed and come to life. The point of view is tight and rigidly maintained, and the transitions are beautifully handled from scene to scene. The novel maintains a constant sense of place, with touches of sound and taste keeping each setting vivid and acute. Consistent tone and voice and excellent pacing keep the reader glued to the action and adventure. Even the futuristic touches are drawn with just the right tweaks of reality: never overdone, no R2-D2 types, no Trek guys. E.E. Knight's work is creative, and his voice is his own.