Blood of the Lamb    by Sam Cabot Order:  USA  Can Penguin, 2014 (2014) Hardcover, CD, e-Book      Reviewed by Ricki Marking-Camuto What do you get when you combine vampires with Catholicism? The fast-paced thriller of religious intrigue that is Sam Cabot's Blood of the Lamb. Currently on sabbatical, Professor Father Thomas Kelly sees no reason not to head to Vatican City when his mentor, Cardinal Lorenzo Cossa, the newly-appointed Vatican librarian, calls asking for help. Once there, Father Kelly is tasked with finding an important document, the Concordat, that Cardinal Cossa believes was stolen from the library over a century ago. While researching the suspected thief, a 19th-century poet named Mario Damiani, Father Kelly meets another professor, Livia Pietro. As the two are poring over a book of Damiani's poems about Trastevere, they are attacked and must make a run for it, with the book. Theft from the Vatican library gets the cops involved, but Father Kelly and Livia have no time to be upstanding citizens. They must discover the hiding place of the Concordat before their enemies do, or a secret that the Church has kept for centuries could disrupt the faith of the whole world. Blood of the Lamb may be a vampire novel, but it is more a tale of mystery, conspiracy theories, and religious secrets. Cabot blends these genres together so well that is it hard to classify Blood of the Lamb as just one. And so, it definitely appeals to fans of either genre, and Cabot's tight writing and excellent pacing, along with plenty of puzzling clues, will keep readers frantically turning the pages. Blood of the Lamb is a must read for anyone who loved The Da Vinci Code or A Discovery of Witches. I cannot wait to see what religious secrets Sam Cabot uncovers next. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Fantasy books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews