The Bone Eater King

by Steve Van Samson

Wake up. You're in PREDATOR WORLD. It has been twenty years since the world went red. Twenty years since every creature on planet Earth was forced to remove vampires from the categories of myth and fancy-but the man in red doesn't remember any of that. In fact, standing in the middle of a pitch-dark savanna, he can't even produce his own name. With wide eyes, he gapes down at his hands, confounded by strange grey skin and the still wet blood there. For many moments, the compounded mysteries transfix and hold the man, though eventually, a sound reaches his hearing. To his ear, it seems a liquid sound, restless, almost musical. Seized by primal instincts, his entire body becomes an open nerve. He reels around, desperate for answers, spying the countless pairs of burning eyes which now, all but surround him. That's when the man in red stops trying to think and just runs! Written for adults and set wholly in Tanzania, THE BONE EATER KING is a fiercely unique horror-adventure. The tense narrative unfolds moment by moment, all in a fictionalized, post Apocalyptic Africa, which is plagued by vampire-like creatures called the matsatsaku maza ("leech men"). The tale's amnesiac protagonist finds himself thrust into a trial by fire, as he scrambles to rediscover not only who he is, but what sort of hell he has awoken to. THE BONE EATER KING is the first book in the PREDATOR WORLD series.

188 pages, Paperback

Published August 22, 2017

About the author

Steve Van Samson is the author of "The Unpleasant Mister SNif", “Mark of the Witchwyrm”, "The Bone Eater King" and "Marrow Dust" and of the collections "Year of the Rattlesnake" & "Black Honey and Other Unsavory Things".

A strong proponent of character diversity & of avoiding cliché like the plague, his short stories have appeared in anthologies including “SLAY: Stories
of the Vampire Noire”, “More Lore From the Mythos volumes 1 & 2” and in the comic book anthology series “Gore Shriek: Resurrectus”.

Steve is also the co-host of the Retro Ridoctopus podcast and watches entirely too many black and white monster films.

Reviews

[Angie Bulkeley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Bone Eater King had me at the edge of my seat from start to finish, despite being someone who normally isn't in to the vampire genre that much. Samson's vampires, however, are far beyond your traditional, they-fear-holy-water vamps, in that they are far more powerful, far more deadly, and can't be stopped with simple religious icons. And they most definitely do not sparkle.

Through this gritty tale of post-apocalyptic Africa, one learns about the various stages of transformation an affected human goes through while piecing together exactly what had happened years prior in various cities and countries. With vignettes of both the past and present, each chapter is a piece of a larger puzzle, one which Samson brings together in a very surprising and unexpected conclusion.

This may be a vampire-based story, but it is certainly not without its humanity as one plays witness as a turned human tries to figure out, and ultimately come to terms with, what he has become. With no memory of his past existence, he is aided by Re, a woman who has overcome the impossible and is desperate to return home after losing those closest to her. The two form an unspoken bond wherein, surprisingly, each acts as the other's protector.

I can't recommend The Bone Eater King enough - its significantly fresh take on vampires creates its own genre of monsters, far more terrifying than a well-dressed Dracula who spends his days in a coffin. I'm very much looking forward to diving into Predator World Book 2.

[Paul McNamee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once there were no more plant eaters, carnivores had to turn on each other for food. Lion preyed upon the jackal and the hyena upon the leopard, but all cowered before the new apex, the matsatsaku maza.

Welcome to Predator World.

The matsatsaku maza are monstrous vampires and Van Samson plays with traditional tropes and African myth to create his own unique breed of vampires.

The story tells of the red man, who we learn is in some form of vampire transformation. He is befriended by a hard warrior woman, with her own secrets and emotional baggage. They make their way through the deadly terrain, heading for sanctuary - of which there is little to be found.

Van Samson's Africa, while a post apocalyptic wasteland, touches on modern Africa - poverty and success, wealth and knowledge, game reserves, poachers, industrial complexes and modern cities. The African setting is stellar - an intriguing facet of the story.

Van Samson handles the narrative very well. Confusion and fear are palatable. The non-linear unfolding keeps the reader interested and engaged.

THE BONE EATER KING is a startlingly original horror action novel that grabs you tooth and claw and does not let go.

[Kari Sanders · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great story and a new take on vampires, which rarely works so well. Set in Africa with the time and story doing a bit of bouncing back and forth, the reader really gets a feel for the entire world from all perspectives, and how the characters reached the point that they are at. The Earth is no more, welcome to Predator World, where dark things stalk the night, and the hardened survivors hunt the day. The struggle between hunger and humanity is stark, and the few remaining starving beasts have no humanity to fight with.

[Danny Brzozowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling and very original. The plot is full of surprises, and so are all the characters.

[Nicole Ayala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spoiler free review! <3

I'm usually not one for vampires, as it is a monster trope I've seen time and time again, but this novel changed that. A gruesome monster/vampire novel that is so fast, wild, and visceral I couldn't even put it down. Definitely recommend to anyone looking to diversify their horror literature repertoire. I can't wait to get Marrow Dust in the mail soon and continue this series.