Vampire Earth is a series of science fiction/dark fantasy novels by American writer E. E. Knight. Plot The story begins in 2065 in a post-apocalyptic American setting. Forty-three years earlier, in 2022, an alien race known as the Kurians triggered a series of natural disasters (as well as artificial ones) that enabled them to gain control of the planet and subjugate humanity. A plague has reduced the world population to 25% of its pre-cataclysm level; nuclear explosions have created a mild form of nuclear winter, cooling the Earth, and smaller events everywhere have added to the chaos. In America, the New Madrid fault let go, destroying much of the Midwest. Major rivers such as the Mississippi have been unleashed. Story In the year 2022 CE, a seemingly immortal extraterrestrial race called "Kurians" has wrested control of the Earth from its inhabitants. The Kurians derive their endless lifespans from draining the "aura" (life energy) of other life forms. To facilitate this addiction to life energy, the Kurians employ avatars known as "Reapers". Following the Kurian takeover, many humans made the decision to serve the new overlords. These traitors, known as Quislings, are set up as members of the police and supervisory government for the Kurian Order. Nearly every other human who is not a Quisling is known as a Territorial, and is either a slave scratching out a living in various trades, or fighting with rebel organizations such as the Southern Command. After a time, the Kurian Order reduced Earth to a technological and social Dark Age, with only the few remaining pre-2022 machines and transportation networks surviving, with most of these under Kurian control. As an incentive to good and loyal service to the Kurian Lords, Quislings are awarded bonds of various lengths of years (3, 5, 10), which protect the wearers from the Reapers. Even more sought after is the "Brass Ring". A Brass Ring ensures that one never has to fear being randomly taken by the Reapers at night, although it can be revoked and cannot be passed to one's children. Pockets of resistance do exist, however. The main rebel group fighting the Order at the beginning of the series is known as Southern Command. A formal military (though classified by the Order as terrorists) is charged with the defense of the Ozark Free Territory; Southern Command would be doomed were it not for the Hunters. Setting The