Before vampires, there was a broken god. He was banished from Olympus. He was never meant to create monsters. After losing everything—his mother, his bride, and his place among the gods—Dionysus wanders the earth in grief. On the island of Naxos, he discovers his purpose as the god of the vine, bringing life back to dying land and hope to desperate people. But heartbreak changes him. And in his sorrow, he unknowingly creates something new. Something powerful. Something hungry. Centuries later, in modern Athens, an ambitious anthropologist begins researching an impossible theory: that the ancient playwright Euripides was a vampire. Dionysus watches her with amusement—until attraction sparks. He swore he would never risk his heart again. But some legends refuse to stay buried. And some loves are worth the danger. In this sweeping prequel to The Vampires of Athens , myth, romance, and tragedy collide in the untold origin of the vampire uprising. This prequel can be read before or after the other books in the series, but is best read after.