Peter Octavian is a private investigator. He has lived in Boston for ten years but soon it would be time for him to move on as people are bound to realise that he is not ageing – because Peter is a Vampire.

When Janet, the daughter of a friend goes missing Peter decides to investigate. However, as he visits the Publik House, the bar where Janet was last seen, he is passed by a number of police cars and ambulances. His curiosity gets the better of him and he finds himself at the scene of an apparently motiveless killing.

Soon it becomes clear the disappearance and the murders are symptoms of an ongoing battle between Saints (members of the Catholic Church, dedicated to the elimination of the Vampires) and Shadows (Vampires who defy the laws of life and death). However, like many such conflicts, things are not always black and white.

Of Saints and Shadows is the first book in the Shadow Saga and introduces the reader to the concept of Saints and Shadows. Although on the surface it would seem that the Saints are on the side of good. However when this "good" includes the murder of any one who gets in the way of their quest to destroy all Vampires, the whole idea of good versus evil is thrown out of the window.

Now, this isn't to say that the Vampires are all misunderstood creatures with an unfortunate allergy to sunlight and strange dietary preferences. Yes, some of them are essentially the heroes of the work but as in the real world there are a number who find no problems treating humans as a mobile buffet.

Before reading this book I had never read any of Christopher Golden's non-Buffy work. This is a situation that I intend to rectify. I find his writing style compelling and entertaining. The characters are detailed and convincing and the concepts are original and fascinating.

If you enjoy a good Vampire story and want to try something a bit different then I recommend this book to you.