Line #14 Literature/TheOrderOfTheSanguines


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/book_2012_the_blood_gospel_uk.jpg]]
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3	''The Order of the Sanguines'' is the name of a series of horror-thriller novels co-written by James Rollins (of ''Literature/SigmaForce'' fame) and Rebecca Cantrell. The series is about a secret order within the Catholic Church, sworn to protect the world from a nasty breed of creatures called ''strigoi,'' [[OurVampiresAreDifferent better known to us civilians as vampires.]]
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5	Three novels have been released so far:
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7	# ''The Blood Gospel'' (2013)
8	# ''Innocent Blood'' (2014)
9	# ''Blood Infernal'' (2016)
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11	!!Tropes found in this series include:
12	%%* AncientConspiracy
13	* AntiVillain: Bathory has shades of this, especially since it's strongly implied that she is being forced to work for the Belial. [[spoiler:And indeed, she is - as every generation of the Bathory line since Countess Elizabeth herself has been forced to give up one female to the Belial's service.]]
14	* TheAtoner: Father Rhun Korza. [[spoiler:You would be, too, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero if you had pledged yourself to God and then broken your vows to sleep with a beautiful woman, thus corrupting her soul and inadvertently turning her into one of the most infamous killers of all time]].]]
15	* BeethovenWasAnAlienSpy
16	** [[spoiler:Jesus himself, according to the series' premise, wrote a gospel in his own blood, containing the secrets to his divinity.]]
17	** [[spoiler:Rasputin used to be a Sanguinist, until he was expelled from the order due to his unconventional views (especially regarding sex). He's still alive, and he's developed a murderous reputation - and it's revealed at the end of the book that he's also kept Alexei, the young hemophiliac prince, alive as well.]]
18	* BigBad: The Belial leader, revealed in the first book's very last word: [[spoiler:Judas. Yes, '''that''' Judas.]]
19	* ChristianityIsCatholic
20	** It's said that the vestments worn by Catholic priests, monks, etc. are all designed to be secret references to the Sanguinists.
21	** However, the first book also includes some scenes in a Russian Orthodox church, albeit not any kind of scenes you would want to see happen in a house of God.
22	* {{Expy}}
23	** Jordan's personality is a mild version of both [[Literature/SigmaForce Monk and Kowalski.]]
24	** Also from ''Sigma Force:'' the Belial is every inch a supernatural version of the Guild.
25	* FieryRedhead: Bathory Darabont.
26	* GratuitousLatin: [[spoiler:Before she is revealed to be Countess Bathory, Rhun's lover was referred to by the Latin version of her first name - Elisabeta. The Hungarian equivalent is Erzsébet.]]
27	* MeaningfulName: Bathory is named after the infamous mass murderess [[spoiler:(and her ancestor)]], Countess Elizabeth Bathory, she who would kill little girls and [[BloodBath bathe in their blood to preserve her looks]].
28	* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Again, Bathory.
29	* OurVampiresAreDifferent: They're called ''strigoi,'' and while they are murderous and nigh-invincible beasts, they are different in some ways. For instance, they don't turn into bats (although bats can be corrupted with ''strigoi'' blood; these are called "Icarops.")
30	** Also, [[spoiler:the Order of the Sanguines is entirely composed of reformed ''strigoi,'' who drink the wine consecrated as the blood of Christ in order to preserve their otherwise damned souls.]]
31	* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: The grimwolves, or ''blasphemare.'' Bathory owns two, Hunor and Magor, and she can communicate with them telepathically.
32	* [[ViewersAreGeniuses Readers Are Geniuses]]:
33	** Combine this with GenreSavvy and the reader may realize, as soon as [[spoiler:Bathory Darabont is introduced, that not only is she a murderous bitch, but she is a descendant of '''''the''''' murderous bitch.]]
34	** Related, the names of people and places connected to [[spoiler:Elisabeta are real, for instance her dead husband Ferenc and the town of Čachtice.]]

Context Literature / TheOrderOfTheSanguines