Cheshire Red Reports Books in Order

The Cheshire Red Reports are fast, funny urban fantasy capers led by Raylene Pendle, a vampire and professional thief who prefers valuable art, rare jewels, and work that does not involve vampire politics. She has her own rules, a sharp mouth, and little patience for being told what to do.

Naturally, trouble keeps finding her.

Bloodshot introduces Raylene when Ian Stott, a blind vampire with complicated history, asks her to retrieve confidential government files. The documents concern the secret experiments that cost Ian his sight, so the job is personal from the start. Raylene's search takes her across the country and puts her in the path of a ruthless scientist, government agents, and people who do not care whether she survives.

Raylene may like to work alone, but the series is also about the strange crew that gathers around her. Ian becomes an important ally, as do Adrian deJesus, an ex-Navy SEAL and drag queen, and two young children who have their own unusual abilities. Their relationships give the books a found-family center beneath all the thefts, chases, and supernatural chaos.

Nobody in this crew is entirely uncomplicated.

In Hellbent, Raylene is drawn into another job involving dangerous artifacts, while Ian becomes the target of violent enemies after a death in his vampire family. The mystery, the heist, and the threat to Ian all converge, forcing Raylene to decide how much she is willing to risk for people she insists are not quite her family.

The books are urban fantasy rather than gothic vampire romance. Raylene is an adult thief, the cases move quickly, and the supernatural world includes secret programs, magic, rival vampires, and a fair amount of criminal improvisation. The jokes are dry, the danger is messy, and the emotional stakes come from people who have good reasons not to trust anyone trying to build trust anyway.

Start with Bloodshot, then read Hellbent. The second book depends on the relationships and unanswered tensions established in the first. Expect a vampire thief, a heist-like plot, strange government secrets, and a crew that gets more loyal the more loudly they deny it.