Mike Sullivan is a rookie cop in late nineteenth-century Los Angeles. There are only seventy officers on the squad, and they still ride horses on patrol. The city population reaches over one million, and crime increases with the growth; but Mike is a cop, ready to face any foe. Or so he believes.
When the Adelaide docks at San Pedro and off-loads two bodies that weren't on the cargo manifest the Los Angeles police force is placed on alert. An old sailor tells Mike that the deaths were the work of a vampire who rounded the horn on this last voyage of the season. Mike is skeptical until the sailor pulls out a copy of Bram Stoker's Dracula and suggests that Mike might find his answers in there. As Mike delves deeper into the mystery he is distracted: by his mother's serious illness and his love for Jennifer Fitzgerald, the woman he hopes to marry. But he must set all this aside. Having finished reading the book, Mike realizes that the old sailor is right: all the evidence points to the truth. A vampire hunts the streets of Los Angeles. Conventional police work and his skill with his firearms will no longer be enough. But what will it take to get his fellow officers to believe and how will Mike protect those he loves from the horrors of the night when L. A. Screams?
Excerpt
Sammy and I left Cap’s office and walked through the back door toward the stables. I knew that Sammy wasn't too happy about this so I kept my silence. We had a job to do and Sammy would do it. We headed to the address that had been noted on the report. One of the good things about all that new-fangled paperwork was that facts got recorded; it made follow up that much easier.
We headed out to the address on Figueroa. The body was already gone by the time we got to the scene. We had made a quick trip to the morgue to see what could be learned from it, so now we just looked around for anything the night guys might have missed. I was standing there, sort of staring at the wall when my eyes focused on what I was looking at. There was a blonde hair caught on one of the bricks.
“Hey, Sammy, look at this.”
He looked up from the pile of refuse he’d been examining. “What is it?”
“It’s a long blonde hair. Didn't that sailor, Bill, mention that the woman aboard the Adelaide might have been a blonde??”
“Yes, he did. And the corpse we looked at was also a white man. So how do you explain this?” Sammy stood up with something in his hand. I wrapped the hair I had found in my handkerchief and went to take a look.
Sammy was holding three short, curly hairs. They looked to be brown in color. “One long, blonde and straight and three short, brown and curly hairs. There were at least three people in this alley last night - and one of them was a Negro.”
Not wanting Sammy to notice my excitement I tried to brush it off. “Could be anyone; lots of blondes and Negroes in this town. Figueroa is a busy street, day and night.”
Sammy gave me a funny look, and then his eyes averted. “Look over there, by the base of the wall.”
I went over and squatted. At first I didn't see it, then I did and my heart lurched. “Is that blood?”
Sammy grunted; a very un-Sammy-like sound. “Yeah, and it isn't quite dry, yet. With this humid weather it probably got there sometime last night. These brown hairs were caught in the blood.”
I stood up and we looked at each other for a moment. “What now?” I asked him. “Where’s the other body?”
Sammy looked shaken. I couldn't blame him – something was not right about all this.
“What other body?” He asked.
“Well, the woman on the Adelaide was a blonde. The corpse in the morgue is a white male. Those hairs you’re holding were caught in fresh blood. So, did the Negro see what happened? Was his presence here accidental – just some drunk who happened by? Either way, where is he now?” I had to keep reminding myself that, not having read the book, Sammy had no idea what I was driving at.
“You’re supposed to be the expert. You tell me what the next step is.”
I stared down at the small blood stain, my mind racing. “Well, I guess all we can do is ride around and see if anyone is worried about their husband or brother not coming home last night. Let’s get these to Doc first. It’s his job to decide what to do with samples like these.”
Professional Reviews
Vampires in Early Twentieth Century Los Angeles
I bought this book not knowing what to expect. Was it just going to be another pulp vampire book?
Happily, this was not the case. While about the hunt for a vampire murderess, the book gives us incredibly vivid views of turn of the century (20th) Los Angeles. The author has certainly done her research, and the details she presents make the first person narrative incredibly real. Characters in the book are fully developed, and I marveled at this female author's realistic depictions of the feelings of a young man at the beginning of his life as an adult.
And then there's the mystery. Who is this vampiress? What is the relationship between the blond accomplice and the mysterious "Negro" vampiress whom we just barely glimpse? Thankfully the author appears to be hard at work on the sequel. I can't wait!
A great read
'L.A. Screams' is not just a vampire book, although vampirism, brutal murders, and even Bram Stoker and his evil creation take up a good percentage of the pages.
'L.A. Screams' is a meticulously researched description of life in Los Angeles in 1900. Su Boddie paints a lovingly detailed picture of changing times - the advent of telephones, electricity, automobiles - a society where colored servants can be treated almost as part of the family (behind closed curtains, of course), and where a husband and wife go to their honeymoon as virgins.
The one thing that I felt was missing was an equally detailed description of Los Angeles itself. Outside of the Sullivan home, Police headquarters, and a couple of other buildings, there was little description of the surroundings. But other than that one small niggle, 'L.A. Screams' was a wonderful read and I can't wait for 'Paris Bleeds'.
It also helps that I've known the author for several years - she was even my 'best man' at my wedding. Congratulations, Su, on what we hope is the first of many books.
L.A. Screams ... for more.
I enjoyed reading the book. Did not want to put it down, but had to drive. It's a quick read; left me wanting more.
I was hesitant, not a fan of vampire books. That category is an injustice. Read it; you won't be sorry.
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