Vampire Files by P.N. Elrod

I love it when I come across fresh Dieselpunk. However, it’s frustrating when I learn of that what I thought was fresh had actually been around for decades and I just wasn't aware of it. This applies to a series of novels I've just discovered.

Imagine Sam Spade as a vampire in 1930s Chicago. That’s the premise of the Dieselpunk fiction series The Vampire Files by P.N. Elrod. The first book of the series was Bloodlist, which was published in 1990:

I, VAMPIRE

I've always had a weak spot for strange ladies. One very beautiful girl had even warned me that she was--get this--a vampire. But did I listen?

No.

Well, before you know it, I'm being chased by an ugly thug with a gun, and a bullet blasts its way through my back, and--believe it or not nothing happened. I survived!

How?

You guessed it. I, Jack Fleming, ace reporter, have been transformed into ... a vampire! Which has its advantages. You never die, you never grow old, you sleep all day, and best of all ...

You can hunt down your own murderer.

The Vampire Files Volume. 1 is a collection of the first three books in the Vampire Files series: Bloodlist, Lifeblood, and Bloodcircle. I’ve just started the Vol 1 and I will say that I’m enjoying it greatly. Elrod has the pulp noir style down, the mystery is intriguing, and his take on the vampire myth is very creative.

I plan to write a full review of Bloodlist once I’ve finished.