Can you really believe in the classic vampire, the creature who lives only to extract blood and perhaps, in the sexy vampire novels, to inject a bit of his own fluids? Who would want to live for eternity in a coffin filled with dirt, able to rise only when the sun is down? And was Rice's explanation of the origin of vampires unsatisfactory?Try Monahan's take on it, in The Book of Common Dread. It is quite a novel novel in the supernatural thriller genre. Other than his highly original vampire, his characters are the usual stock ones, but the action rolls on and on, the situations are uniquely believable, and he even manages to inject dry humor. This would make a heck of a motion picture. So would its sequel.