Contagious Reads

5 stars...try like...One Million Stars. This book has everything I want and more in vampire books. I don't mind new age vampire novels with their lovey feely vampires that sparkle and have sweet dogs. I don't absolutely love them either. I may like the romance of the the story but for the most part I find vampires like that kinda meh. I have never had a problem finding anything Rhiannon does as meh. Ever. If I am going to lose myself in a vampire book I WANT my vampires to be horrifying. I want them bloody. I want them slightly mad with blood lust and power. I want them to sexual predators....wait that came out wrong. I want the to be sexy, and dark, and beautiful but most of all I want them deadly and covered in blood. Vampires shouldn't be you prom date. They should be haunting you and conspiring to slaughter your school at prom. (Hello shout out to Buffy the Vampire Slayer the movie, and TV show). They should be stealing virgins and scarficing them, unleashing the swamp monster, and wolf man all whilst looking for the amulet to free the forces of hell. Frankenstein should be your friend. (shout out the Monster Squad). You get my point. I grew up in the day and age where vampires were MONSTERS! Thank you Rhiannon Frater for giving me those monsters.
Now to talk about this particular book...LOL that's what you thought I was doing? Well I was. But not specifically.
To me this book has two parts to it. The first part is the betrayal, the changing, and the aftermath. The second part is the discovery of self, love and power. These are my distinctions not Rhiannon's.
The first part of this book is dark. Very dark. The mood matches Vlad's castle, Glynis matches Vlad's castle. It is gothic horror at it's best. Vlad is an evil dickhead. He is gross and disgusting and I hate him as much as Glynis does. The light at the end of the tunnel. Well Glynis's relationship with the sister brides. I love the relationship she has with them. They very much save her from being destroyed by Vlad. They also remind Glynis of what she doesn't want to become. Seeing their devotion to Vlad allows her to keep her soul. It disgusts her so much that she is able to maintain her independence.
The second book is much lighter. Even though Glynis clearly cannot go into the sun light I picture their time in Buda as being sunny. Glynis is much happier out the castle's gloom. She has freedom. The light well I won't tell you. But it is yummy.
The last 30% of this book. Oh wow, was everything thrown up in the air. I loved the way the pieces landed. It was wonderful. I never grew to love Vlad and neither did Glynis (thank goodness) but I did enjoy his monsterhood. It was refreshing. Glynis spent as much time covered in blood in the book as she did in gowns. Swoon. I love that!! Thank you Miss Frater for the monsters!