Time and Blood: Evening Bower, Book 1
by Sherry Rentschler
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for Readers Favorite
Rhea is the last of her kind, a phoenix from Atlantis and before, she has lived over and over through the ages, but lately she is suffering from nightmares and a call for her to come somewhere unknown, but why and where. Who or what is calling her, and is it good or evil that awaits her?Viseral, the angel of Death, has watched over Rhea from a distant this whole time, but now he finds himself needing to stay away, to allow the prophecy to finish. Along with a cast of characters that readers meet in the prequel, The Gypsy Thorn, the fulfillment of the ages old prophecy begins in Time and Blood. Author Sherry Rentschler tells the happenings from the view of the main players in the story. Rhea, Jean-Louis and Franklin each have their own chapters to tell the events from their view, also side players such as Nathan, Rasand, Echo, and even Drayohmira have parts t o tell. This is the coming of a prophecy, but what does that prophecy really mean? Good or evil? Can anything be that straight-forward and cut and dried, or is there good in everything depending on your view?
Time and Blood is labeled as the first book in the Evening Bower series, although The Gypsy Thorn is the prequel to this book. For myself as a reader, I have to read books in order, so I went out of my way to find and read the prequel before reading this story, but I have to say that you don't need to read it first. As the reader, you meet most of the characters from the prequel, but you just aren't sure why they are on the sides that they have chosen in Time and Blood. The prequel gives you some of the answers as to why certain characters choose the sides they did, but at the same time, not knowing is almost more fun. The reader meets all the characters in The Gypsy Thorn but you don't need to really know them going into this story. Time and Blood is really about Rhea, her long dead mate, and the prophecy. It is her story of the prophecy, and it is her life that you are reading, not her whole history, but this one brief period in time when she has the chance to succeed, where the meaning of the prophecy is actually understood and everything changes. The prequel gave you information about each character, and maybe reading it after reading the first book in the series would serve the reader better, as knowing the characters doesn't effect this story, but after this point it might help. At the same time,this book is only the first, and so the story stops, but doesn't end, there are still so many questions that the reader is left begging for the next book.
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Under A Blood Kissed Moon (Blood Moon & Magic, Book 1)
by Kelleye Richards
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for Readers Favorite
Ember may be a shifter, but she was raised by vampires, and her family is everything to her, which is why she is at an illegal shifter fight. Patrone has threatened her family if she doesn't fight for him, and Ember will do anything to keep her family safe. Tonight's fight is going to be different, Ember can feel it in the air, there is a different scent in the air, something is going on. Thoren hates shifters, and who can blame him, a rogue set of shifters murdered his family and he has vowed revenge, but there is something different about Ember that unsettles him. Under a Blood Kissed Moon is the story of a vampire, Thoren, bent on killing all shifters for the mistakes of those few that destroyed his life and family, and Ember, a shifter raised by vampires but something completely different than what Thoren was expecting, and he isn't sure how to handle it. Author Kelleye Richards is actually the writing team of authors Anya Kelleye and E R Richards, and they have taken a role playing exercise and developed it into a full book series.
Under a Blood Kissed Moon is the first book in the Blood Moon and Magic series, and it brings vampires, shape shifters and witches together on a wild journey. One thing that is unique in this book is that the author Kelleye Richards gives vampires the ability to shape shift as well. This is the first time I have read a book in which a vampire can also shape shift. I found that to be interesting and different, making it something apart of all the other paranormal books out there at the moment. This is definitely an adult novel as there is some sexual content, some violence, fated mates, bonded mates, and even childbirth. Most of these topics most teenagers know about but I like to warn readers so that no one is caught off guard or offended. This is a paranormal book that doesn't follow the rules of all the others and makes you want to read it, and future books.
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Princess Dracula
by John Patrick Kennedy
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for Readers Favorite
Princess Dracula takes the classic tale of the origins of the first vampire Dracula and turns it upside down. Vlad Dracula is the father in this story, and a ruthless man, bent on winning a decades long war against the Turks, no matter what the cost, even if it means sacrificing his eighteen year old daughter Ruxandra. Too bad for Vlad he has no idea what he is doing or who he is dealing with, he is way too confident in himself and thinks he is invincible, which leads to his downfall. Poor Ruxandra has to deal with what her father has done, and what it does to her, which is ultimately to turn her into a vampire of the night. For a young girl raised for the past ten years in a convent, this is unthinkable, how can she live like this. Author John Patrick Kennedy gives the reads a first hand look into the innocence of Ruxandra's mind and her moral and ethical conflicts at having been turned into what she feels is truly a beast.
From the very beginning, Princess Dracula twists in ways I never expected and kept me guessing from the first page! I was hooked, wanting to find out how Ruxandra dealt with this change, and what she finally did. There were some parts I liked less than others, but it all seemed to work together to tell a very convincing story set in 1476. Author John Patrick Kennedy reimagined the birth of the vampire and gave it a new life and a new beginning that is completely different and unexpected. This was a great read, but it is definitely and adult book. There are some mature themes throughout the book, which kinda comes with the territory when you are talking vampires, but at the same time I would just mention it here to avoid upsetting a sensitive reader.
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A Vampire's Christmas Carol
by Cynthia Eden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Ben hated his life, or unlife. Ben was a vampire, and not a happy one. He had never wanted to be a vampire, and he felt like everything in his life was taken from him when he was turned into a vampire.
As a vampire, Ben kills, but yet he kills criminals, feeling that at least this way he can make something good come of his change.
Christmas Eve and Ben is going to have his own Scrooge experience. He is visited by a demon, an angel and a shifter - all as part of giving him some perspective on his life and focused on getting him to change his ways and embrace his life as a vampire and stop trying to destroy himself.
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Deamhan (Deamhan Chronicles, Book 1)
by Isaiyan Morrison
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
You have heard of Vampires, they consume blood, but no one really thinks they exist, but they do. What you may not know is there are also Deamhan, they consume psychic energy, and Veronica Austin has grown up all her life knowing about this because her father's organization studies them. Against her father's wishes Veronica has left California and came to Minnesota, where her mother disappeared, to find out what happened. Her first encounter with both the vampires and the deamhan throw her for a loop because they are nothing like what her father had always told her, oh a few are, but not all of them. Deamhan follows Veronica as she searches for information on her mother and at the same time uncovers information on her father and his organization. Author Isaiyan Morrison weaves a story of power and corruption and people doing whatever it takes to stay on top without regard to who they harm.
Deamhan is slated as the first book in this series, and I can see that, it sets the story, leads to more things to come and yet doesn't resolve all the past. There is so much power and corruption in this story, there is more things from the past that need to come out and more things in the future that need to be resolved. It is shaping up to be a wonderful series. Author Isaiyan Morrison creates a race of people in the Deamhan that you find yourself liking, even though at the beginning of the book you aren't suppose to like them. They are deeper, more complex and there is more to them than meets the eye. This is a great read.
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Graveyard Rose: A Gothic Fantasy Romance (The Rose Chronicles, Book 1)
by Ginny Clyde
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Set in the time of fancy dresses and horse drawn carriages, yet not your average paranormal romance. Nothing about Lena is typical, she may wear the fancy dresses to parties when required, but she is a Guardian, the only female in the ranks and she works hard to prove her worth. Far away in Transylvania, The Graveyard Rose tells us the story of a time when a select group of families were appointed as Guardians and their job was to protect the land from the upstart vampires and werewolves. At this time the werewolves are not organized, they do not hunt in packs yet and they haven't been able to access their humanity while in the wolf form. Not only does Lena protect the land, but she protects her younger sister and would do anything for her. Author Ginny Clyde tells the story of her struggles in a patriarchal society and her desire to just take care of her family.
The Graveyard Rose is titled as the first book in a series, but a note inside the book mentions that it is part one of a full novel. However you want to think of it, this book starts off the story of Lena and her life, the area where she is living and the situation going on in that time. Trouble is, it ends just as it is getting intriguing! Of course that is just another good way for author Ginny Clyde to make sure that you are reading the next book. This book has adventure and hints of romance. It combines fantasy, paranormal, historical and gothic. It is reasonably clean, so I would be more than willing to allow my middle schooler to read it. Good read for adults and younger as well!
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The Witch's Dream (Order of the Black Swan, Book Two)
by Victoria Danann
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
After getting book one, from free on Amazon, I found that if I signed up for the authors, +Victoria Danann newsletter I could get book two for free, and since I was already hooked after reading book one, I had to sign up and get book two!!
The Witch's Dream starts off within a few weeks of the end of book one. This is definitely a read in order series, in fact I would say it is more like each book is a part of a whole larger novel, so you can read the second set of chapters without reading the first. There is a review at the front, but that is just enough to refresh your memory between book publications really. Just my take on the series, as an avid reader.
Elora and Ram are at his brother's place to do what the elves call hand-fasting, which is their marriage ceremony. Everyone will be there, then they are all going to Edinburgh to work with Bakka for a bit on his new Vampire project.
This book gives you more details about Black Swan, because this time we are in Edinburgh, and so we learn more about this area of the world. We also get to learn a little more about Ram's family and we Kay's sister's. This book does focus more on Lithia and Storm, because they are off on one mission, and then Ram, Elora and Bakka are on another. We learn about Storm's requirement into Black Swan and his past, what Lithia knows of hers, and then later even more of her past. Again, there are many layers of story going on at the same time, yet they all weave together perfectly to create a perfect picture.
The whole scope of Black Swan is changing at this point because of Elora's arrival into this world, her unique blood and the perfection of the vampire cure. At the same time, the men of B-Company have been together for a long time, but they are finally finding the women that complete them and deciding that maybe the life of a Knight is done for them and it's time to retire. The question is can one ever really retire from something like the Black Swans?
This book is hard to review because anything I say can spoil book one for someone who has not read it, and yet if you are reading a review of book two, shouldn't I assume you have read book one? Not really, so I try to be vague, but vague just does not work in this book!!
Each book is dependent on the one before it - I said this before, I look at this series more like each book being a set of chapters in a large novel and when finished the complete series will make one large novel. If you look at it that way, then reading them in order and understanding that everything ties together is easier.
The thing is we have the same main characters in this book - B Company - Storm, Ram, Kay, Elora, of course Monq, the directors Sol and Simon, and Bakka. Now we add in some new characters in this book, learn more about each of the previous characters and the story grows. The situations are changing fast, things not thought possible are happening with lightening spend, and yet they are all still rolling with the punches and doing the best they can.
It's just a captivating story. You are pulled in to the point that you are laughing with one couple, crying with another, mad at one person, rooting for another, wanting to punch one and so on. They become part of your world and your life, you feel like you actually know these characters, and that is what a truly good book and a truly good author does. They make you part of the story.
The Knights of Black Swan VAMPIRE HUNTERS reading in order strongly recommended:
1.My Familiar Stranger (Black Swan 1) My Review
2.The Witch's Dream (Black Swan 2) My Review
3.A Summoner's Tale (Black Swan 3) My Review
4.Moonlight(Black Swan 4) My Review
5.Gathering Storm (Black Swan 5)
6.A Tale of Two Kingdoms (Black Swan 6)
7.Solomon's Sieve (Black Swan 7)
8.Prince of Demons (Black Swan Novel)
9.Vampire Hunter (Black Swan 8)
10.Journey Man (Black Swan 9)
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My Familiar Stranger (Order of the Black Swan, Book One)
by Victoria Danann
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
So I was posting a review the other day and a recommendation link to another book came up on my page. It was for this book, My Familiar Stranger, and I was looking at it and thought it sounded pretty neat, then I noticed a post from the author that said the book was available for free on Amazon at the moment, and I thought, well that if the perfect reason to sample the book. OMG! I am so hooked on +Victoria Danann ! I even listed her next to Sherrilyn Kennyon (my absolute all-time, favorite author in the world)in my kindle!!
So the story starts in a lab, where a teacher/professor is throwing his best student through a spiralling vortex after her entire family has just been massacred. She is scared, frightened and in shock, and you are thinking, what is going on. The next thing you know we are someplace else completely, with a whole new set of characters and new storyline and in the back of your mind you know the girl is going to come into play at some point, but you are getting into these muscle-bound men in the new line, when POOF, she appears! Only she is in no condition to talk, the vortex was not kind to her or her body.
This book is an adventure in paranormal! We have other dimensions and worlds, then we have vampires, werewolves, elves, fae, witches and who knows what all else we will uncover as the books continue! Welcome to Black Swan. Black Swan is a covert organization formed hundreds of years ago to protect the human population from the paranormal in the world. At the time it was founded vampires were their main focus, but over time other paranormals were discovered and included. Black Swan recruited the "second sons", those sons that would not inherit in the patriarchal society, and that were "hard to handle". They were trained to deal with things most people never dream of encountering.
The Familiar Stranger gives you an overview into the history of Black Swan and how it began, not its not a stiff and boring lesson, it's told in a way that makes it interesting and exciting and you are engaged in the story and learning all you can about this secret society keeping the world safe. It really sets the stage for the whole series, introducing you to some main characters, giving you just enough information on them to get you interested in them and you are starting to become party of the story.
There are many layers of story going on in the book, all at the same time, and the author does a wonderful job of weaving them all together so that you can jump from one character to another and it's almost like real life in that you see this story evolving with this person in your life and a completely different thing happening at the same time with a different person in your life, but yet it is all going on at the same time. It was amazing!!
The Knights of Black Swan VAMPIRE HUNTERS reading in order strongly recommended:
1.My Familiar Stranger (Black Swan 1) My Review
2.The Witch's Dream (Black Swan 2) My Review
3.A Summoner's Tale (Black Swan 3) My Review
4.Moonlight(Black Swan 4) My Review
5.Gathering Storm (Black Swan 5)
6.A Tale of Two Kingdoms (Black Swan 6)
7.Solomon's Sieve (Black Swan 7)
8.Prince of Demons (Black Swan Novel)
9.Vampire Hunter (Black Swan 8)
10.Journey Man (Black Swan 9)
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Mortimer the Vampire: And Drake The Dragon
by Cameron Glenn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Forflick, Oregon is your typical small town in America. Nothing much to do as a teenager but hang out at the Carl's Jr/Green Burrito or the Dairy Queen. The cutest, most popular girl , which just happens to be Lizzy, dates the football star, Chad. Everyone talks of nothing more than getting out of the town and finding something more exciting! Excitement finds them, or at least Lizzy, the day a foreign exchange student Mortimer arrives. Lizzy decides to flirt with him, but he ignores her, which has never happened, then Lizzy starts dreaming of Mortimer. Now she is hooked, she just has to date him. Enter a second exchange student, Arielle and things get complicated. Mortimer actually likes her and talks to her, which peeves Lizzy, but help is on the way in the form of a third exchange student, Drake. Author Cameron Glenn writes a comical yet believable story of high school life and lust in Mortimer the Vampire, all told from Lizzy's point of view.
In Mortimer the Vampire, we get to learn how he became a vampire through the dreams that Lizzy has. The whole time she thinks that Mortimer is showing her his true self, and that he needs her. Lizzy is definitely your typical high school popular girl with nothing else on her mind but looking good, being popular, and dating. The trouble with the dreams are that we only see them in the very beginning, right after Mortimer became a Vampire, as he was still learning to deal with what he was and didn't like it. By the time Lizzy meets him in real life it's been a couple of centuries. Author Cameron Glenn does a wonderful job of weaving Mortimer's past into the story, making the reader feel for him just as Lizzy does. Not to spoil the story, but I should mention that there is also a wizard, a fairy, a werewolf and a dragon in this story. This is a good book for any age reader, even though it is focused on high-school aged. There is no real violence or sex in the book, so it's good to go for all readers. Enjoy!!
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Cain's Coven (Begotten Bloods, #1)
by Kristin King
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Claryn hates crowds, and is not in the mood for this bachelorette party, but there is no way Kelley is letting her get out of it. It gets even worse when Kelley invites Justice, the guy from the burger joint to join them, and then makes him Claryn's date for the wedding. The thing is, he seems to understand Claryn's fears and issues with men and even more he is willing to work around them, of course Justice has his own secrets.
Cain's Coven is the story of brothers Justice and Chess as the fight and survive in the world. Claryn is drawn into their world, although Justice tries hard to keep her at a distance, he just can't. Outside of them, in the world at large lurks an evil that threatens young woman in the area, even Claryn. Author Kristin King molds dynamic characters in Chess, Justice and Claryn that you come to like and feel for easily and quickly in the story.
Cain's Coven is not your typical vampire novel, in fact there is not much of it that is typical. There are even times when you forget that there are vampires because that is really not the main focus, it is more the whole nature of the relationships and what is going on in the world in general. You've got an online computer game people are playing with the promise of immortality if they win, which has created some disgruntled few who won and found out there wasn't immortality at the end. They are not bent on slaying vampires. Then Author Kristin King decides to throw in a serial killer lurking in the community to mix things up a bit. There is no lack of action or down time in the story, it really keeps you turning the pages and engrossed in the story all the way through. This is a great read for all ages, teens, young adults and up. There is no sex, mild violence - and I do mean mild especially for a vampire story, this is very mild. I feel comfortable letting my middle schooler reading this one. Enjoy!
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Hunting the Hunter
by Collin Fairlie
My rating: 4.0 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
In a family of extraordinary people, Charlie is just Charlie. He was an average or below student in school, never very athletic, never all that great with the women, just kinda average. All he ever wanted was his father to be proud of him. Trouble was his younger twin brother and sister, the simple fact that they were twins outdid him. His father looked at it as a two-for-one. Then there was the fact that they were just better at the family business than he was. After years of begging, Charlie is finally out in the field on Long Island. Problem is he doesn't have an exact location, he has to find it himself, and he is going to. All the while collect Census Information. Hunting the Hunter is what happens when Charlie finds what he is hunting, and it turns on that he wasn't suppose to find them in the first place, but he takes it on anyway on his own. Can he take it down or will he become the prey? Author +Collin Fairlie gives the readers a short story that never quite comes out in black and white and tells you exactly what is going on, but only alludes to it, refers to it and gives innuendos.
Hunting the Hunter is a short story, easily read in one sitting, so this is a great plane ride book, or train book, vacation book. You never actually meet any of the family, just Charlie, you just know them from what he tells you and your opinions of them change as you learn more and more about them. Author +Collin Fairlie does a wonderful job of writing a story that you understand what is going on, but at the same time he never actually comes out and says it in black and white, you have to read into what is being said, and that is part of what makes this book so fun. Some of the conversations have double even triple meanings and you will be giggling as you are reading. There is no sex and no graphic violence, so I have no problem recommending this book to teens and older. Definitely a must read.
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Second Nature (Blood at First Sight Series, Book 1)
by Marie Lavender
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Alec is not your ordinary drop-dead handsome man, he is a vampire, and he smells the most amazing blood he has ever met. He is looking for it when he finds it at a festival. Desiree is a young woman with a broken heart and soul. She has been unlucky in love, but she thinks she is ok. Alec has to know more about her, he wants to know her not just have a taste of her blood, which is something he has never done. Desiree is strong than she thinks and her mind is even stronger, she is able to resist the normal Vampire mind thoughts, and Alec knows there is something special about her, but it also puts her in danger. He takes a bold step and kidnaps her, taking her to his house. Second Nature follows Alec and Desiree as she begins to learn about Alec and trust him. Along the way, they find something more than they ever thought possible, but they both know in reality, it can never work, right? A human and a Vampire? Author +Marie Lavender gives us a different look into the Vampire-Human relationships.
Second Nature by author +Marie Lavender is not your typical vampire novel. Alec is a lone vampire, he does not live in a group, or family. Vampires do not mix with humans at all other than to take the amounts of blood they need, but only that much. So when Alec is taken with Desiree this is something he is completely unprepared for and has no idea how to handle. Desiree has no idea vampires exist, but takes the news relatively well. Given her unlucky past with her ex-husband she has a hard time trusting Alec, but he works to win her trust. In reality this is much more a romance novel, it is the story of Alec and Desiree, the fact that they are human and vampire is secondary. Anyone who enjoys a good romance should read this one, it is an emotional read!
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Lost Soul (War of Destiny) Volume 1
by Theresa Van Spankeren
My rating: 4.3 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Julia was not always a Lost Soul, she was once the daughter of a wealthy man about town in a time when daughters were nothing more than property to be bartered off to the highest bidder in marriage. Julia begins the story telling us that she is going to write down her history to hopefully rid herself of her nightmares, and given some of the things she experiences, if all she has are nightmares she is lucky. Julia begins her life naive and thinking that she is worth something, only to be crushed by her father and husband. Luckily someone is watching out for her and she begins her life as a vampire. Author Theresa Van Spankeren gives the vampire community progressive ideals for the time period, the believe women are equal to men and not just property. Throughout her life Julia learns more with the vampires than she ever would have in her worldly life.
Lost Soul (War of Destiny) (Volume 1) begins Julia's story and sets the stage for a saga to be set forth in the vampire community. There is a war brewing, to live among the humans and befriend them or to use them only as food and kill them. Theresa Van Spankeren gives the reader a look into the world throughout different time periods with the history of different vampires, yet at the same time they all are very progressive in their thoughts, or at least the band that Julia belongs to. The reader is easily able to identify with them and feel for them, wanting them to succeed in their endeavors to bring about change and equalities. It is a great read for adults or older more mature teens.
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Hunter's Sword (Team Nightly) Book 2
by Kate Porter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Hunter Blackfoot has moved down from Cherokee, North Carolina and the rest of his Indian heritage and family to join Team Nightly and Chase as part of the uccisore team in Savannah. From day one Hunter and Sheila have been fighting like cats and dogs, and no one on the team knows what to do with them. Carly, the waitress at the Blue Mermaid knows exactly what is going on, but it is not what Sheila wants to hear. When the Team gets intell that Vampire King Gordon is after Chase and Rae's newborn daughter, and possibly Sheila too, they go on the offensive, hoping to stop this guy once and for all, but always seems to be just one step ahead of them. He is also after Hunter's Sword, a family treasure passed down through the generations and bloodline. +Kate Porter once again creates a book that has you feeling like you are a part of Team Nightly.
Hunter's Sword goes into a history of the uccisore bloodline going all the way back to the Knights Templar. It's a wonderful story of heritage that Hunter's Uncle Ben tell's Chandra. In this book, a number of new characters are introduced and Team Nightly almost doubles in size. This fact alone would lead me to believe that author +Kate Porter has plans for at least a couple more books, and I sure hope I'm right! She does such a great job of pulling you into the story that feel you are part of Team Nightly, you root for them in the battles, you want to be there with them, you cry when someone gets hurt. It is just a great book! Best read by adults!
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Chase Nightly, L'Uccisore (Team Nightly)
by Kate Porter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Team Nightly has been hunting vampires for decades. only now it is lead by Chase Nightly, who took over at age seventeen when his father, Toby was killed by the so called Vampire King. Rae Chandler hunts vampires in New York, but when she is targeted and given a message about the Vampire King in Savannah looking for her, she decides it's time to visit family. The first time Chase and Rae meet, sparks fly, and not the good kind, they are at each others throats, but a cautious peace is obtained, and Rae temporarily joins Team Nightly to find the Vampire King. +Kate Porter gives a southern flare to the story with some Italian words, and southern charm and manners. Chase Nightly, L'Uccisore (Team Nightly) deals mostly with Team Nightly although a few other Teams are mentioned.
Chase Nightly, L'Uccisore (Team Nightly) is reported to be the first book in a series about these particular brand of vampire hunters and the vampire king. This book focusing mainly on Team Nightly, but slight mention of a couple of other teams. +Kate Porter takes the popular theme of vampires and the vampire hunter or slayer and merges it with a bloodline trait that is passed down, and ends up with a story more about the hunter team, it's connections to each other and own sense of family than it is about the vampires. This is a nice change of pace from most vampire novels. There is one detailed intimate scene, so it is probably best for adults, possibly young adults, but that would be up to the parents.
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Blood: The Vampire Covenant Series (Book 1)
by Sydney Ledger
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Aveline has grown up a loner and outcast. It has just been her mother and her, her father left when she was young, and she has a terrible disease that leaves her pale, allergic to the sun and in terrible pain at times, only to be cured by drinking animal blood. She hates it, but doctors orders are doctors orders. What Aveline is about to find out is that everything she thought she knew has been a lie, she is really a Dhampir, half Vampire, and that Vampire's really do exist. Blood: The Vampire Covenant Series (Book 1) tells the story as Angel informs Ava of her history and gets her to help him safe the Vampire world, at least that is what he tells her they are doing, and who is she to mistrust this heart-throb. +Sydney Ledger easily mixes that feelings of a lonely teenager, the need to be liked, and the desire to help save the world into this Vampire tale.
Blood is not your typical blood-drinking Vampire tale, in fact there is very little actual blood drinking going on in the story. There is a back history to the Vampires but no clear cut how they originated in the story, but they have been around, and they are here to protect the humans from demons. +Sydney Ledger has made them the good guys, and yet at the same time, she has made them vulnerable to temptation. She also brings the loner and outcast feelings that Ava is dealing with to life and you really feel them and can relate to them. Although there is some mild sexual references and one sexual scene, I would still say that most young adults would be ok reading this book and they would relate to it very well, being in that age range. It is also a great book for adults as well.
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Veil of Midnight
Midnight Breed Novel, Book Five
by Lara Adrian
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Veil of Midnight is the fifth book in the Midnight Breed Series, and as a Vampiers series, I have to say this is the longest and best series I have read. Typically with a Vampire series, I get bored with it after a few books because it is always the same and yet this series has kept me guessing, it has followed different characters each time, but brought back familair loved characters too and kept me wanting to read more.
Veil of Midnight follows Nikolai on a misson that brings him into danger with an older Gen One Breed male and as he witnesses the cruel and inhumane ways of this male, he meets a woman, a Breedmate, who know nothing of the Breed except what little she was exposed to with the older cruel Gen One, and he has the task of explaining that the whole world is not like that and that there is a whole world of Breed out there completely different.
Reneta is a Breedmate, and she has only known the cruelty of the Gen One male that controls her. She wants to escape, but has no idea how, and is not sure what to make of Niko, he is so different than t=what she is used to, but at the same time she feels she can trust him.
Mira is a little girl, also a breedmate, caught up in this whole story, used as a plaything by one male and a pawn by another. The only person who cares for her is Reneta, and she has promised to take care of Mira, now Reneta must look to Niko to keep her promise.
It is a completely different story, yet at the same time, the same major fight is at the root of this story and they same things are going own but in such a different and unquiet way that it feels like a whole new story in a whole new setting.
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The Nightlife: New York
The Nightlife, Book One
by Travis Luedke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
New York is the beginning of a series called The Nightlife by Travis Luedke, which is a vampire novel, but it is sexy.
Aaron is a college aged kid working as a waiter in a local New York restaurant, dealing with the older lady patron that likes to drink too much and grab his ass. After work this night his roommate Kyle calls and asks him to bring home beer, his ex-girlfriend and some of her friends are there and they want to party. Just what Aaron needs, Delia was his first serious girlfriend and she dumped him.
Michelle is drop-dead gorgeous, five foot blonde bombshell. She happens t be walking by the restaurant when Aaron walks out for the night and he is fascinated. He can't believe she even glanced at him, he is so far out of her league, but she does.
Fates conspire and events happen that end up causing Michelle to make the decision to take Aaron home with her and heal him by turning him into a Vampire like her. When Aaron finally awakens four days later he doesn't believe her story at first, finally she gets through to him, and she tells him she will be his master, since she changed him and he will always answer to her.
New York is all about Michelle teaching Aaron to be a vampire, and Michelle learning some things that she didn't know because her former master wasn't a good guy. The two of them developing a relationship. At the same time, getting a little revenge on Delia and rescuing Michelle from two corrupt cops who are hell-bent on taking her down.
It is a great story, lots of romance and sex between Aaron and Michelle, but even more a relationship and true bond forms more than just the master because I turned you stuff. The revenge and rescue was great. It was just a fun and wild read, and something worth the time. Pretty fast read.
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New Beginnings
Others of Edenton, Prequel
by Brandy L. Rivers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Normally alcohol doesn't effect Jess, but when someone brings homemade moonshine to the party, Jess ends up drunk at in bed with her pack Alpha, Gregory. This is the granddaddy of all mistakes! She wakes up and runs to her friend Gabe, she has to leave town and soon. Greg is a jerk, and once she has slept with him he is going to expect it all the time and won't take no for an answer. So Gabe gives her a lead on a bar for sale in Edenton, now she just has to buy it and get the pack alpha there, Slater to give her permission to move.
Slater is the pack alpha in Edenton, his second Liam is an old guy who is walking on shaky ground and the pack knows it, but they don't want to let him go without a good reason. Then there is the newest wolf, Brody, who Slater is good friends with and made an enforcer, which didn't set well with Liam at all. Slater and Brody are ready for Jess, who is not a wolf but a psychic and gets visions of the future to move to Edenton.
Edenton is a town of mostly others, the werewolf pack, some other shifters, a fae sheriff and a vampire. There might be a few humans in town too, but for the most part, it's a great place to be if you are on that other side of the realm. Jess is sure that this will be a great place to start a new beginning, but she is immediately attracted to Slater. She refuses to go there, she has sworn off wolves and alphas even more after the Gregory incident. Now she just wants to run her bar and have a good life.
Liam, and a need to avenge some wrong he feels was done will create havoc and chaos in town and within the pack. Will Jess's visions of this place come true? And what about her relationships with Brody and Slater?
This is a great start to a series on a town filled with others. Love the werewolves, but even more love that there are other people of other talents mixed into the town and they all work together and interact. There is a balance and a friendship that really makes you want to live in a place like Edenton. It sounds like and feels like a real hometown community.
No matter what you preference, shifters, fae, mage's, you will find them in Edenton and in this series and it is a great deal of fun. Each book plays off the other, so I really recommend that you read them in order, but you could go out of order. It just would introduce new people to town without the details if you did.
Others of Edenton
New Beginnings My Review Link
In Too Deep My Review Link
Shadows Fall My Review Link
Shadows of the Past My Review Link
Falling Into Place My Review Link
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The Shayton Chronicles Book 1:
Destiny Sets
by Karen Fainges
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Reviewed for +Readers' Favorite
Here on Earth the stories of vampires are a bit twisted and not so true, but in another parallel dimension there is a world called Shayton that is inhabited by real vampires and they are nothing like the stories. On Shayton the world is in danger of collapsing and the ruling Council is always on the lookout for ways to correct the issues and stave off the collapse. Lisa is the daughter of the king, but she has been banished from Shayton and lives on Earth. Now the council wants her back, and selects a human to bring with her for a purpose, providing a godChild. The Shayton Chronicles Book 1: Destiny Sets follows Lisa as she is brought back and conceives not one but two children and the lives of Lisa and Tony, the children and Shayton that follows their conception and birth. Karen Fainges takes a paranormal or fantasy novel and adds the elements of a family saga to give a new and different novel on the idea of vampires and their coexistence with our world.
The Shayton Chronicles Book 1: Destiny Sets begins what promises to be a unique and fun novel series. Even though it could be called paranormal or fantasy, I think the best genre label for it should be family saga. It follows Lisa and Tony, then their children around through life to the point where they are once again reintroduced to their parents. Talkar is followed as he fights for his place in the world of Shayton, then as he leaves and finds a fulfilling life on Earth with Molly, and later a child with another species. Karen Fainges does a wonderful job of creating a story that you want to follow from the beginning, characters that you relate to and feel for. Although this book spans a great deal of time, it almost feels as it is all happening within moments of each other. This is definitely a good book for adults, highly mature young adults and those loving the idea of a new approach to vampires.
The Shayton Chronicles
Book One - Destiny Sets
Book Two - Tamal's Journeys
Book Three - The Children of Tamal
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