First novel in the First Brood series. Vampires are dying by the hundreds. The Lilim - vampires born of Lilith - are accustomed to death, but their brethren are being taken in their sleep with not a single physical trace left on or near the piles of ash that were once their bodies. When Lilith calls her favorite vampire son, Auris, to investigate, he risks his very soul to find the Dreamhunter and save his kin from extermination. But this hunter's appearance dredges up painful secrets from Auris' past which may destroy his mind well before the Dreamhunter can steal his soul.