Red Sails

by Edward M. Erdelac

Under the full moon, a pirate crew of werewolves and vampires gives chase on a cannibal isle.

When their ship is mercilessly sunk by pirates, British marine Jan and Dominican priest Timoteo are brought before the captain of the Trivia. Under its strange red sails, they hear the terrible tale of Captain Vigoreaux, a vampire captain with a crew of werewolves.

With the full moon rising, the men are put ashore on a remote cannibal island and turned loose--to be hunted for sport. But with the aid of Sampari, a native girl with a passionate desire to put an end to her tribe's oppression, the three of them just might find a way.

Genres: Horror, Pirates, Vampires

Kindle Edition

First published March 6, 2010

About the author

Edward M. Erdelac is the author of thirteen novels including the acclaimed Judeocentric/Lovecraftian weird western series Merkabah Rider, Rainbringer: Zora Neale Hurston Against The Lovecraftian Mythos, Conquer, Monstrumfuhrer from Comet Press, Terovolas from JournalStone Publishing, and Andersonville from Random House/Hydra.

Born in Indiana, educated in Chicago, he lives in the Los Angeles area with his wife and a bona fide slew of kids and cats.

Reviews

[Michael Fierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

For years, I've been interested in reading books by Edward M. Erdelac.

I started with this short story.

Red Sails is a high seas adventure story crossed with horror, involving pirates, werewolves and a vampire.

A vampire that is a pirate captain.

Visually, worldwise and character-wise think, Pirates of the Caribbean mixed with Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.

Story-wise think, The Most Dangerous Game AKA The Hounds of Zaroff ~also filmed many times (most successfully in 1932, produced by Merian C. Cooper of King Kong (1933) fame).

Janek Puzan, an 18th century British soldier, is captured and imprisoned aboard a Spanish galleon named, La Dona Marisol. After being attacked by pirates, vampire Captain, Absolon Vigoreaux, and his crew of werewolves, set him loose on an island with the Spanish priest, Timoteo, to make sport of them. To the death.

Will they escape and sail into the sunset?

Or will their story end gray, bleak, and without hope?

To tell more would be to tell too much.

Some may say that Red Sails isn't perfect. That it borrows from other sources. That it is simple. That it hints at larger possibilities, needing more world-building, more character development, and yeah, whatever. It may be true from some readers point-of-view. I found it fun right from the start and all the way through.

If I wasn't already enticed to read something by Edward M. Erdelac before this, I was now. In fact, only a few pages in, I knew he was my kind of author. His novels and short stories are comprised of tales involving horror, adventure, pulp-school charm, the Weird West, Sinbad, demons, giant creatures, voodoo, etc., - I pretty much want to read everything by him!

So I bought Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter & Merkabah Rider: The Mensch with No Name , so far.

I own the Kindle version of Red Sails . Unfortunately, it is not available in that format any longer. Luckily, you can find it in his collection, With Sword and Pistol , along with 3 other stories.

* Recommended!

[Christopher Gadomski · Rating 5 out of 5]

A spectacularly imaginative story of pirates meet the supernatural.

[Monster]

Vampires, werewolves, pirates, human sacrifices and cannibalism with intermixed explosions – the perfect horror combination. In Edward M. Erdelac’s novelette Red Sails, set in the early 1700s, a vampire captain and his crew of pirate werewolves sail across the ocean taking down ship after ship, stealing their cargo and murdering most of the crew, but saving a few to dine upon or to hunt for sport. Domincan priest Timoteo and British marine Jan’s ship has been destroyed, with the crew savagely murdered in the process. Unfortunately for Timoteo and Jan, the vampire captain, Absolon Vigoreaux, has chosen to save them as a treat for the werewolves to hunt in sport on a remote island. With the help of a native on this island who desperately wants to save her tribe from having to continually deliver up human sacrifices, Timoteo and Jan devise a way to overtake the captain and his brood and possibly save themselves.
The pace is quick starting within the first few pages, and it never relents. The fight scenes are grisly, the pain is raw, and the landscape is beautiful. The contrast between its destruction and beauty is poetic.
I thoroughly enjoy reading Erdelac’s works, as he is a master craftsman. His knowledge of the subject matter shines through and his prose is unparalleled. He writes almost lyrically with incredible detail and care taken in choosing each of his words. Red Sails is a fine example of a wonderfully written piece. I highly recommend Red Sails for an adult horror collection.
Contains: Graphic violence
Review by Kelly Fann

[Pamela Fryer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Totally engrossing. A fresh new turn on the vampire/werewolf genre. I hope to see more from this author.

[Evelyn S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a surprising find at a small publisher (Lyrical Press) but very good. A nice shift on the tried-and-true monster story. I would buy more of this author's works if I could find any.