Firstly, I have to congratulate the author for writing a decent vampire book without a single sex scene. It may sound odd for me to say that. And I myself usually prefer my vampires to be slaves to their lust for flesh as well as blood. But in this book it worked without this.
Also there isn’t the usual explicit gore. There is still plenty of blood but it’s not done in the overly dramatic fashion of a bloodbath.
So, this is a far more subtle kind of vampire story, with an emphasis on story.
However, it is not without its flaws.
There were a few things which just didn’t sit right with me. Such as the length of time Sebastian had with his mother, the entirity of which was spent with him acting like a petulant teenager. I would have loved some more story development here.
I also didn’t like the wolves. They felt stilted, and their ritual was very odd. And perhaps we just didn’t see them enough? Someone else pointed out the feel of a nod at Twilight here, and I agree. It’s not fan fiction, and not copying. But it felt they were there for effect rather than with purpose.
I wasn’t convinced on Hanna’s sudden take over of the narration. Sebastian had taken this role for most of the book, then she suddenly pipes up. I understand the reasoning and did get used to it, but it just felt a bit jarring.
Also, this book could perhaps do with another edit? It’s mainly written well, but there’s one too many errors which did start to annoy me (I appreciate this is easily done though, and maybe most readers will be happy to overlook them).
I really liked the way the juxtaposition of good and evil; the way the pencil lines were drawn then smudged to hell. What is good, what is bad? Good questions posed effectively.
I also enjoyed Hanna’s development, but I don’t want to say too much about that for fear of spoilers.
On the whole I enjoyed this book, and was torn between 3 & 4 stars.
I awarded 4 on the basis that by the end I had become gripped and had to keep reading. And I really want to read the sequel when it comes out.
Will vampire genre readers like it? I think so, as long as they open their minds to a slightly different way of portrayal.
It’s a definite must read for romance readers though; there’s a beautiful love story in here.
After the initial rough patch though, everything changes. Over the course of a couple of chapters, the writing improves and a gripping plot begins to emerge. This is not a genre that I have read a great deal of, but the impression I get from this novel is that the author is a talented storyteller who has learned the craft of writing as she went.
I can’t say the author’s writing is perfect, as it would benefit from a good looking over by an editor. I was tempted to dock this book a point or two, but that wouldn’t be doing this superb novel justice. I’ve only read a couple of Anne Rice’s books, but I would rate this story higher than either of them.
I’m glad that I stuck with this story past the initial few chapters and the ending left me wanting more. Now the author is in her stride, I am confident that her next book will be of an even higher standard and I daresay she will continue to improve further with each instalment.
The book delves into the psyche of Sebastian, how he copes with being made vampire by his mother, and then goes off the rails when she is murdered by humans. His blood lust fades when he discovered the baby daughter of his most recent victim. Her vulnerability and innocence causes him to spare her life and he sets her up with foster parents.
A love story develops between the two as she matures, and just for fun there are wolves involved. \all in all, worth a read.
A final word that’s slightly off-topic to the book. Take a moment to read Ms. Johnson’s profile. This is an author who dearly loves her craft, and for burgeoning authors…read her advice about how to write a novel. These are hard-won pearls of wisdom. I looked for other works, but I believe this is Ms. Johnson’s debut work (unless there are other pen names). I sincerely hope she’ll produce more books because Amazon needs high-quality novels like this to shine against the sea of dreck that seems to be on the rise.
Great job, Ms. Johnson. I thoroughly enjoyed your work, and I look forward to reading more of it!
We move to the canter, the middle section of the book introduces us to Hanna, although mostly still written from Sebastians point of view we watch voyeruistially at time as a young girl blossoms to woman hood, We learn Anna more through the eyes of Sebastian so do not get quite the depth of character we get from him, so she remains mysterious, etheral. The (probably) straight A student that all the guys dream of getting with but shes not interested. Is she fridgid? or is she saving herself for somebody.
Our characters meet, the book goes up a gear and the author kicks the narative into a canter, we learn through a series of revelations some of the missing pieces of Hanna’s life and through her narrative something of her inner thoughts.
Ok the voyeur wants them to get it on, the sexual tension between them is electric, its gonna happen you can feel it but something is holding them back…….
A good read that needs to be invested in, A book to read large chunks of, perhaps by a pool or wrapped up warm on a dark moonlit evening. Unfortunatly due to my own circumstances I was forced to read this piecemeal which perhaps skewered my thoughts certainly in regards to the front end of the book.
Without spoiling the ending, I assume a sequal is in the offing, If so its one I will be saving for a holiday.
I really love this book, and I will recommend it to anyone that wants a brilliant Vampire Novel. I know it’s YA but really it’s for anyone who loves a beautiful well-paced story. I literally couldn’t drop the book. I just love how Sebastian loves Hanna, at first I wasn’t sure about the transition of his love from “Father figure” to lover but it’s just brilliant. It’s got everything in it, blood, war, love, secrets, unrequited love and the best of all, a heroine that is not a wimp. Sebastian is such a great read , get it now..
An excellent read 26 Jan. 2015
I will not give away the end but I will say that this sweet and romantic story will leave you wanting to read more of the author’s work!