Everyone knows vampires don't exist...
It all started with a routine bureaucratic decision to
increase creativity at the secretive organization known as
the Laundry. Bob Howard, a bureaucrat who also happens to be
a trainee necromancer, develops a project to search data for
anomalies, hoping to uncover demon possessions. What he
finds instead of demon possessions are vampires. But
everyone knows vampires don't exist! Bob will have to face
the hazards of bureaucracy if he is to help the Laundry
continue to protect Britain.
THE RHESUS CHART is the fifth book in The Laundry
Files series but can easily be read as a standalone.
Charles Stross does a magnificent job at quickly acclimating
new readers to his weird and wacky world where the
supernatural and the bureaucratic collide. We get to know
the characters quite well, although I suspect long-time
readers of the series may have a stronger reaction to some
of the twists Charles Stross throws into the mix.
I love Bob! Bob is the quintessential government worker,
trapped by the bureaucracy that surrounds him. Bob reminds
me of a slightly demented Dilbert with paranormal powers. I
couldn't help but laugh out loud as he meets the challenges
of mindless meetings, pointless assignments, and a plethora
of super-secret confidential file names.
THE RHESUS CHART is a quirky, slightly crazy, but
captivating cerebral supernatural thriller. Charles Stross
blends together technology and the supernatural and then
hampers his main character with the mindless bureaucracy of
government agencies- it's nothing short of brilliant! I
couldn't stop laughing as Bob works his way through to the
final thrilling conclusion. THE RHESUS CHART is a
hilariously original approach to both the supernatural and
vampires!
As a newly appointed junior manager within the Laundry—the
clandestine organization responsible for protecting Britain
against supernatural threats—Bob Howard is expected to show
some initiative to help the agency battle the forces of
darkness. But shining a light on things best left in the
shadows is the last thing Bob wants to do—especially when
those shadows hide an occult parasite spreading a deadly virus.
Traders employed by a merchant bank in London are showing
signs of infection—an array of unusual symptoms such as
superstrength and -speed, an uncanny talent for mind
control, an extreme allergic reaction to sunlight, and an
unquenchable thirst for blood. While his department is
tangled up in bureaucratic red tape (and Buffy reruns),
debating how to stop the rash of vampirism, Bob digs deeper
into the bank’s history—only to uncover a bloodcurdling
conspiracy between men and monsters...