Keeper of Light and Dust

Mostert (Season of the Witch) cleverly melds mystery with the supernatural in this Zen-tinged thriller. Mia Lockhart Cortez, a South London tattooist and martial artist, employs her mystical gifts to watch over modern-day warriors—kickboxers—in her secret role as a Keeper. Mia is particularly concerned to protect her boyfriend, Nick Duffy, who's preparing for a big fight. During an out-of-body excursion (stepping out), Mia has a violent, erotically charged encounter with Adrian Ash Ashton, an impossibly good-looking vampiric thief, who drains chi, a person's life force, instead of blood from his victims. Nick feels threatened by Mia's attraction to the seductive Ash, who may have drawn on the power of The Book of Light and Dust, a mixture of personal philosophy, diary entries and science, to murder several U.K. kickboxers. Some Net-related touches, including Ash using text messaging to taunt Mia, add to the intrigue. (Apr.)