Maria The Wanted by V. Castro review

The modernised vampire sub-genre is always striving to introduce new elements to the long-established tropes.

Take last year’s Sinners as a prime example, where Ryan Coogler gave us a sprawling, multi-generational vamp tale for the ages.

For her latest novel author V. Castro has shown she is also down for the challenge with Maria The Wanted.

Now you may feel like you’ve read this all before as the titular Maria is turned into a vampire within the first few chapters, but this is very much a jumping off point for this story.

Despite her burgeoning bloodlust, Maria looks to become a force for good whilst attempting to find the vampire that turned her for her own brand of justice.

There is a mixture of erotic and thriller elements in Maria the Wanted, which helped to make the story stand out from your average vampire story.

Maria becomes a fanged avenger, who becomes drawn into a world of ancient vampires, conspiracies plus a larger endgame which elevates the material’s stakes to their absolute limit.

If you’re looking for a different kind of horror read, but with plenty of teeth, Maria The Wanted is exactly what you’re looking for.

Maria The Wanted is available now in various formats from Titan Books.