Hi there,
I'm back with another review. Now that I have more time to read, (every day 2 hours of travelling by train), I also have more to share with you.
Perhaps you don't know this yet, but I really like to read work by debut authors. So every now and then, I search that Kensington site for Zebra Debuts. Trust me, that way I have found a lot of good books already.
Plus that price is also very handy for such a poor student as myself ;-)
Long live the discount!
Well, what do I have for you guys now? It's a book by
Sara Reinke. Not her debut, I understand, but it is with Zebra.
This is the back blurb:
When Brandon Noble and Angelina Jones first met, he was an awkward teenager harboring a crush on his tutor's sister. Five years later, Angelina is a streetwise cop who's sure she's seen it all, until Brandon comes back into her life - lean, handsome, possessing a strange, powerful allure... and a terrifying secret.Brandon is one of the Brethren, an ancient clan of ruthless vampires. Like other Brethren families, the Nobles have accumulated great wealth and prestige, never marrying outside of their kin, never leaving the isolated Kentucky farmlands where they live, undetected, among their prey.
Horrified by his birthright, Brandon shunned the ritual of the first kill, earning the Brethren's lasting wrath. But the exhilarating passion he and Angelina share rouses the primitive impulses he has so hard tried to deny. And even if Brandon can protect Angelina from his enemies, can he save her from his own dark thirst?Like many of you, who read paranormal romance, know, there is always such a stereotyping thing going on in those novels. The heroes are strong alpha males, the heroines totally beautiful women, and so on, blablablah,... You know the drill.
Well, not so in this book, hooray!!!
First of all, the hero, Brandon, is deaf, mute, 21, a virgin, and has little self-confidence, a low self-esteem. And that's totally yum, by the way!
The heroine, (Ange)Lina, is a cop, 26, black and super cool. I want to be like her when I grow up! She can kick some ass! *worshipping*
Brandon is a vampire. As a kid, he was attacked by burglars which costed him his hearing and his voice. But he lived, although he was almost slashed to pieces. Yeah, there's a lot of violence going on in this book.
Anywho, for this, he is considered weak by his family. His grandfather and Brandon's brother, Caine, are the two biggest assholes in this story. Stupid fuckfaces!
They treat him like shit, so it's no wonder Brandon wants to escape them. They want to force him into the Bloodletting. A ritual where a young vampire has to make his first kill. Brandon doesn't want this, so he flees from Kentucky to the city.
That's where he meets Lina again...
I don't want to spoil too much of this story. You have to read it for yourselves. But I do want to share my favorite passage with you guys. The one where Brandon kisses Lina for the first time. Totally hot, *swoon*, untill...
Lina didn't give him the chance. She caught his hand against her breast, folding her fingers about his, and then bright, excruciating pain seared up toward his shoulder and neck as she craned his wrist at a sudden, unnatural angle. He gasped sharply for breath as she hyperextended his arm, and he crumpled to his knees, helpless and immobilized."What the hell was that?" she demanded, hooking her free hand beneath his chin and jerking his face up to look at her. She looked wide-eyed and stricken, as stunned by his impulsive advance as he was. " What's wrong with you? Why the hell did you do that?"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! he signed, drawing his fist in quick, frantic circles above his heart. He grimaced as she momentarily flexed her grasp against him all the more, and then she stepped back, letting him go. Brandon drew his aching wrist against his belly and stumbled to his feet, trying to catch his breath.Don't you ever do that again! Lina signed at him furiously. Who do you think you are? If you ever do that again, I'll break your goddamn arm! Do you understand?God, I love this heroine! She's great.... so super fantastic great! Where else have you ever read about a heroine so totally cool?
Abouth what I understand, there are more books to come in these series. This is only the first book! I'm so blessed, he he he :-D
I think the second book will continue right where this one ended, or so I hope, since this ending was a bit open. I also hope we will see Brandon and Lina back in book two, because I want to read more about them, and about the great escape. I hope they'll make it!
(By the way, this would be a great movie!)
Hooray for Sara Reinke! I'm hooked!
-xxx-
Andi
P.S: I totally screwed up my copy of the book. Because of stupid me, the book got wet and looks like shit now. So when I'm placing my next order, I'll order a new one. See, that's how much I like this book!