My Dead Body

In Huston’s intense, frenetic and brutal conclusion to the pulp-inspired Joe Pitt Casebooks (after 2008’s Every Last Drop ), Pitt wants to hide in the sewers from the assorted vampyres he’s pissed off, but his old friend, porn producer Chubby, draws him out to try to help a young woman who has been impregnated by a vampyre. Naturally, once he’s on the surface, Joe is threatened, beaten and maimed by assorted enemies. Narrating grimly through the pain, he explores the origins of the vampyre-creating Vyrus while playing Manhattan’s various supernatural factions against each other. Readers new to the series might find this book tough to penetrate (though Huston does mix some exposition into the story), but longtime fans will jump right in, and the fast pacing, sharp dialogue and pulp action will keep them entertained. (Oct.)