The Red Sacrament by Sara Hinkley ~ a Review

by MK French

In 1869 Paris, only a select few ever received invitations to the Théâtre Saint-Siméon. Actors on stage are mesmerizing, and never seen in daylight; Arnault and his vampires are very careful to feed as little as possible on the audience and survive in the city by being unseen. The peace is upset by the arrival of Béatrice,  a witch who forms a connection with Arnault, then vampire siblings Victor and Françoise de Rouvray. Vampires bicker, the theater needs are time-consuming, and there are premonitions of blood, death, and starvation. Change is coming for everyone. 

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

July 2026; Titan Books; 978-1835410820
audio, ebook, print (512 pages); horror

The story begins slowly, with a lot of detail about the theater and the lives the troupe leads. Arnault is protective of them all and occasionally allows guests into their theater home. The witch arrives for grave dirt but gets more from Arnault, and he's shocked enough to try tracking her down after she leaves. The vampire siblings arrive soon after and provide a different kind of distraction. Victor is eager to make friends, while Françoise looks down on the troupe. Arnault tries to keep control over the theater and deepen his relationship with Victor while having dreams where he talks to Béatrice. He doesn't generally pay attention to world events, even as there are rumors of the Prussian army coming and the beginning of shortages for humans. 

The story has incredible amounts of detail, showing us everything Arnault and the troupe go through. It's almost excessive, actually, but it gives that sense of complacency and time passing that Arnault moves through. Decades are like hours, and his troupe had existed in Paris for centuries, all with the same routine until the de Rouvray siblings arrived. When the terrible changes begin, it comes all at once and is horrible. You can't help but feel sorry for Arnault, who loves and loses everything several times throughout the centuries he lived, with no purpose other than existing to look after others. He doesn't know what he wants, which is how he winds up in the position he is at the end of the book. 

It's a quiet story, moving through the years of turmoil and danger with some questions never fully answered. Much like life, in the absence of reasons, people have to find their own meaning and connections. 

Buy The Red Sacrament at Amazon

Born and raised in New York City, M.K. French started writing stories when very young, dreaming of different worlds and places to visit. She always had an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and the macabre, which has definitely influenced her work. She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband, three young children, and a golden retriever.

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