Of Flesh and Blood A Novel

A forensic psychiatrist’s investigation into an infamous Louisiana serial killer leads him down a dangerous path of obsession as he discovers they share the same cursed blood.

This chilling debut horror novel will captivate readers of Chasing the Boogeyman and What Moves the Dead and fans of True Detective.

In 2008, a serial killer known as the Cajun Cannibal brutally murders and consumes the flesh of eight people in a small Louisiana parish. With law enforcement closing in on him, he takes his own life before he can face the inside of a courtroom.

Ten years later, when forensic psychiatrist Dr. Vincent Blackburn discovers he and the Cajun Cannibal are more closely connected than he realized, he begins a case study into the sociopathy behind the killer’s grisly deeds, only to find a torrent of small town politics, interracial family dynamics, and whispers of the supernatural muddying once clear waters. 

When copycat killings start anew, Vincent is thrust into the center of it all, putting his life, his family, and his own sanity at risk. As monsters—both figurative and literal—begin to manifest, Vincent discovers that untangling the truth from the lies is only the beginning of his nightmare.

Told through the pages of Dr. Vincent Blackburn’s case study memoir, and certain to appeal to readers of A Flicker in the Dark, this macabre psychological horror will leave your heart racing.

Authors N.L. Lavin and Hunter Burke grew up together in Louisiana and remain close friends and creative partners today. N.L. is a full-time child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist; a part-time writer; and a husband and father in whatever time is left. Hunter is a professional actor, recognizable to viewers of Netflix’s Sweet Magnolias, the Amazon original series Bosch, and the Academy Award-winning film The Big Short. Blood Vermilion is their first novel.