The Nymphos of Rocky Flats

by Mario Acevedo

Book Overview

The first book in a fun new Latino vampire series, for fans of Christopher Moore's bestselling novels, and Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino's From Dusk Til Dawn

Felix Gomez went to Iraq a soldier. He came back a vampire. Now he finds himself pulled into a web of intrigue when an old friend prompts him to investigate an outbreak of nymphomania at the secret government facilities in Rocky Flats. He'll find out the cause...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060833262
• ISBN13: 9780060833268
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Harper Voyager
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.9" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Raymond Chandler Meets Bram Stoker in Rocky Flats

I write about vampires and I like to read about them, too, and The Nymphos of Rocky Flats is the best one I've read in a long time. Felix Gomez went to the Middle East a soldier but his overwhelming grief and guilt over the accidental killing of a child ended in his becoming a vampire, and he returned home to become an immortal private investigator, hiring out to both the Quick and the Undead. Censured by his fellow vamps because he refuses to drink human blood (part of his atonement for his guilt), Felix seeks forgiveness as he goes about his undead existence. Felix is asked by a friend to investigate why the women who work at a secret government facility in Rocky Flats, Colorado, are suddenly stricken with virulent bouts of nymphomania. What follows is an entertaining mixture of aliens, vampires, Area 51, Roswell, government conspiracies, and just plain old murder. Throw in an inviting forest dryad named Wendy as love interest for Felix and it's great fun for all! Mario Acevedo's vampire mythos adds a few new things to the mix while rejuvenating the old beliefs as well!

It sucks you in...from the start

From page one, Nymphos of Rocky Flats has just about anything you want--vampires, aliens, government conspiracies, witty dialogues, and send ups left and right to famous fictional detectives. It is a great and fun choice for a summer read.

Vampires and Nymphos, Oh My!

When Felix Gomez went to war he left as a human. He came back a vampire. While in Iraq he participated in what he thought was a raid on some very bad guys, instead he helped wipe out an innocent family. Full of remorse, he wants to be punished. He gets his wish. A vampire turns him into the undead, a punishment worse than death. Back in the States he covers his vampire skin with makeup, telling those who notice that he has a skin condition. He wears contacts too, but even with lenses and gobs of makeup, he still looks, well a bit different. However, he has vampire powers (which would be stronger if only he'd drink human blood, Felix lives on the animal variety) so that makes up for his odd appearance in his new profession. He becomes a private investigator. A friend from his school days hires Felix to investigate the sudden outbreak of nymphomania at Rocky Flats, a nuclear facility that has been taken over by the Department of Energy. It seems the women who work there can't wait to drop their drawers and get any male possible into their beds. While one would think this would be every man's dream, wives don't like this, plus it's bad for business. As Felix investigates the reader is drawn into Mario Acevedo's vampire world where there are vampires and vampire hunters. Mr. Acevedo also delivers the straight dope on what it's like to be in combat in a very unforgettable way. In a way, Mr. Acevedo reminds me a bit of the late Richard Laymon and that is very high praise indeed. "Nymphos" is a book that will delight and thrill you. It's what a horror novel and a thriller were meant to be.

An amazing, funny and witty addition to the Vampire genre

All of the pre-publication buzz about Mario Acevedo's debut novel, The Nymphos of Rocky Flats, was certainly not undeserved. The cover is perfect, and from the moment I picked the book up and started reading, I couldn't stop laughing. I can't wait for book #2 in Winter '07!!!

War, Sex and Chicano Vampires

In his debut novel, Mario Acevedo lets us know early on that his protagonist, Felix Gomez, is nothing like your father's private investigator: "I don't like what Operation Iraqi Freedom has done to me. I went to the war a soldier; I came back a vampire." We're immediately thrown into the hell of war as we follow then-Sergeant Gomez and his infantry division, "still ass-deep in combat along the Euphrates valley," searching out fedayeen guerrillas in a village south of Karbala. Gomez spots a group of what he believes to be the enemy apparently armed with RPGs or other weapons. Based on his confirmation, the division's lieutenant gives the signal to open fire and they do. When the lieutenant orders cease fire, Gomez's "heart pounded in euphoric victory" and he acknowledges that the "moment was exhilarating...." But the thrill quickly dissipates as Gomez and his comrades discover that they've just massacred a family. Only a young girl shows signs of life and Gomez tries to stop the bleeding from a hole near her navel. But it's hopeless. In a guilty daze, Gomez wanders until he comes upon a stranger with eyes that shone like a wolf's; the man immediately controls Gomez with nothing more than his gaze. Gomez confesses about what he has done and that he wants to be punished for his crime. The stranger obliges and bites Gomez on the neck. Gomez feels the transformation occurring and asks what's happened. The stranger answers: "...I've given you what you wanted. A punishment even worse than death. I've given you immortality. As a vampire." Back in the states, Gomez makes a living as a private investigator using special contact lenses and plenty of makeup and sunblock to venture out in the daylight. Gomez is a vampire with a conscience: he refuses to drink human blood because of his guilt over the massacre. He makes due on animal blood which slightly diminishes some of his vampire powers such as scaling walls and transforming into a wolf. But even in this weakened state, Gomez still outpaces humans with supernatural powers so that his private investigation practice becomes almost legendary. Gomez's successes lead to a lucrative job offered by his old college roommate, Gilbert Odin, who now is the Assistant Manager for Environmental Restoration at Rocky Flats, which had been a nuclear weapons plant. It seems that the Department of Energy needs to uncover the cause of an outbreak of nymphomania among female personnel at the plant. To complicate matters, the vampire society known as nidus, or the web, has its own investigation going into a deadly group of vampire hunters who seem to show up every time there's an outbreak of nymphomania. This setup allows Acevedo to take us on a wild ride-often with a wink and a nod-delving into everything from lying war mongers and vengeful scientists to Homeland Security cover-ups and alien abduction. And let's not forget that vampire stuff. Acevedo gleefully debunks vampire lore and creates new rul