Archive for vampire romance books
Have you ever read a book that hooked you so completely, you immediately started thinking of what the movie would be like? Like, you envisioned who’d be the best hottie to play the lead?
That’s what I felt like as I read Rush of Wings, a book by novelist Adrian Phoenix. Guys, this this book would make an excellent movie. The story takes place in the vampire capital of the world, New Orleans, and with its unique, old world atmosphere it gives the story a classical setting.
The main character, FBI agent Heather Wallace, has come to New Orleans looking for the Cross Country Killer, also known as CCK, who’s a serial killer she’s been tracking for three years. CCK has been killing people all across the United States and Heather is determined to be the one to stop him. She comes to New Orleans when the latest victim is found outside a bar called Club Hell. The club’s owner, Dante, appears to know nothing about the crime, however after Heather interviews him she knows one sure thing: he’s the best looking man she’s ever seen. I kept trying to figure out who would play him in the movie. Yum.
As Heather investigates the murder, she realizes that Dante is not your average good looking guy, but is instead a self-described “nightkind” or born vampire. Heather decides to find out more about Dante and his possible connection to the New Orleans murders. You see she eventually comes to believe that CCK is in New Orleans specifically for Dante; but she doesn’t know why. However she learns that Dante has no memory of his childhood. Although his records describe a very tough life he has no memories of such a life. Dante doesn’t think there’s a connection between he and CCK but Heather knows there must be because each new murder has a unique message in it specifically for Dante.
For Heather, stopping CCK is the most important thing she’s ever done, or so she thought until she met Dante. Is he really a vampire or just crazy? Why can’t he remember his past? Can she resist her attraction to him long enough to stop the evil CCK?
I love it when a book forces me to use my imagination to come up with several possible outcomes. A Rush of Wings did just that. I found myself thinking about the book as I was driving home from work, wondering how things would turn out.
It was a great pleasure reading this book because the author does such a fine job building the suspense and creating a complex world of action and intrigue. Adrian Phoenix is off to a great start with A Rush of Wings, Book #1 in The Maker’s Song series. Urban fantasy book fans are sure to love this one.
Also, check out In the Blood, the next book in the series. Also, the third book in the series Beneath The Skin will be released December 29th.
Looking thorough my pile of unread books for the next “good one”, I was immediately intrigued by the title of the book Red Headed Step Child by Jaye Wells. Since I was getting into the bath, I took it with me and got so into it, my bath turned into a two hour soak because I could not put it down. Great book! The story is fun and full of mythical creatures like fairies, vampires, mages, nymphs, and demons who have all been living on Earth undetected since the Garden of Eden. This book does an excellent job of explaining the origin of vampires and the author makes it easy to see how these creatures could not possibly get along without a few problems.
The main character, Sabine Kane, is a mixed-blood, magical vampire assassin. She was raised by her grandmother after her mother, a vampire, and her father, a mage, fell into a tragic love affair that ends in their deaths. Her grandmother, a cold, hard woman who is the leader of the vampires, has always treated Sabine as an outcast. So Sabine, wanting to fit in, will do anything to please her grandmother – including even killing close friends when ordered.
In Red Headed Step Child Sabine is assigned a mission by her grandmother to infiltrate a cult that is threatening the vampire community. The problem for Sabine is that this assignment is not going to be easy. She learns that the cult leader, the charismatic Clovis Trakiya, is preaching love and harmony between the human and supernatural races.
Sabine’s grandmother demands that she kill Trakiya, and Sabine, not one to question her grandmother’s orders, begins putting a plan into action. This particular job is made more difficult because she must endure a cult initiation ceremony in order to get close to Clovis; this requires letting him feed from her. In Sabine’s world, no self-respecting vampire would ever allow themselves to be forcibly fed from. On top of that, she has to try and get rid of a hairless cat demon that some mystery enemy has sent to kill her!
To add to the mix, she meets a handsome, mysterious mage who wants to show her the unknown universe that comprises the realm of magic. The problem: he’s got a hidden agenda.
This was a thoroughly enjoyable debut novel. With a lot of light humor that draws you in, it gives you non-stop fantasy action and amusing character interactions that keep you reading – I read and read until I finished it in one sitting: proof positive that it’s a great find. I had the distinct impression that the author had a lot of fun writing it. It is definitely a page-turner and if you are looking for an action-packed book that’s a good read and has a distinctive female lead; this is the book for you. And I’m quite pleased to see that there is a sequel coming out titled “The Mage In Black”. I plan to be the first in line to buy it. Jaye Wells has me hooked!
Red-Headed Stepchild can be purchased from online retailers like Amazon and Barnes and Noble.
