To tell you the truth, I wasn’t initially interested in P.N. Elrod’s The Vampire Files. A few things happened to change that.

First, I started to hear about Jack Fleming, the investigative journalist in Prohibition-era Chicago who becomes a vampire and private investigator, and whose first case was to solve his own murder. Folks used adjectives like “surprising” and “old fashioned fun” to describe his adventures. That sounded pretty good. By then, the series had gotten pretty far along, and I wondered idly if I should pick one up. But it seemed a little late to jump on board, and I was never really sure what volume to start with. Plus some of the earlier books became harder to find, and it all seemed like just a bit too much effort.

Then Ace Books released the first omnibus volume in 2003, containing the first three Vampire Files novels. And, well, you know what a sucker I am for omnibus collections. All those hard-to-find paperbacks, in one handsome and economical package? It’s too much to resist.

Over the next nine years, Ace released all twelve Vampire Files novels in five omnibus volumes, with contents as follows:

The Vampire Files, Volume One (October 7, 2003, 464 pages)

• Bloodlist (1990)
• Lifeblood (1990)
• Bloodcircle (1990)

The Vampire Files, Volume Two (September 5, 2006, 496 pages)

• Art in the Blood (1991)
• Fire in the Blood (1991)
• Blood on the Water (1992)

The Vampire Files, Volume Three (March 1, 2011, 480 pages)

• Chill in the Blood (1998)
• Dark Sleep (1999)

The Vampire Files, Volume Four (September 6, 2011, 544 pages)

• Lady Crymsyn (2000)
• Cold Streets (2003)

The Vampire Files, Volume Five (March 6, 2012, 576 pages)

• Song in the Dark (2005)
• Dark Road Rising (2009)

P.N. Elrod’s newest series, Her Majesty’s Psychic Service, opens with The Hanged Man, a Victorian urban fantasy thriller, on sale this week.

We’ve covered several omnibus collections of interest to fantasy fans recently:

The Omnibus Volumes of Jack Vance, Part I: Planet of Adventure
The Omnibus Volumes of Jack Vance, Part II: Tales of the Dying Earth
The Omnibus Volumes of Jack Vance, Part III: The Demon Princes
The Omnibus Volumes of C.J. Cherryh, Part I
The Omnibus Volumes of C.J. Cherryh, Part II
The Omnibus Volumes of C.J. Cherryh, Part III
The Omnibus Volumes of H. Beam Piper
The Chronicles of Corum by Michael Moorcock
Von Bek by Michael Moorock
The Dhulyn and Parno Novels: Volume One by Violette Malan
The Inheritance Trilogy by N. K. Jemisin
Planets of Adventure by Murray Leinster
The Book of Skaith: The Adventures of Eric John Stark by Leigh Brackett
Starwolf by Edmond Hamilton
Assassin’s Dawn: The Complete Hoorka Trilogy, by Stephen Leigh
Hooded Man by Paul Kane
The Order of Deacons by Philippa Ballantine
The Bookman Histories by Lavie Tidhar
Enter The Wolf: Vampire Earth Volume 1 by E.E. Knight
Introducing Garrett, P.I. by Glen Cook
Obsidian & Blood by Aliette de Bodard
The Nekropolis Archives by Tim Waggoner
The Castle Omnibus by Steph Swainston

See all our recent coverage of Series Fantasy here.