INTRODUCING the first book review to score the highest ranking on my own personal ranking system (see my post ‘Don’t Attack the Sundae’ for the inspiration for my ranking system). That’s right! This book gets the Mithril Armor Rating (5 out of 5 starts). I love this book. Seriously, it’s a fun read.

This book is exquisitely fantastic.  The story is a perfectly presented and intensely gratifying new take on the vampire mythos.  I dare to say it is on par with some of the greatest household names in both urban fantasy and paranormal romance.  

At first blush, it seemed a very well written thriller.  Then, a shocking twist occurs, revealing a preternatural species leaping forward in an elegant craft of both spirits rooted in indigenous people’s mythology and melded with the world of Bram Stoker. 

The novel starts with the nightmare of most teenagers, moving away from everything Donja’s ever known.  Meanwhile, women in her new hometown go missing, only to be found brutally slain.  On a bonding trip with her new sister Makayla, it is revealed all is not what it appears to be in the Big Soo nightlife.  Lives are changed as old family secrets reveal there is more to Donja’s bloodline than DNA, and happily ever after is on the horizon if they can outwit and defeat a malevolent murderer. 

The undercurrents of family surviving and rebuilding through extreme loss is heartwarming.  The cosmic theme of good verses evil and justice against injustice are front and present throughout the novel.  

To naysayers of the romance between the seventeen/eighteen year old and centuries old Iridescent (vampire) I say this: It is FICTION and who among you at eighteen wouldn’t have jumped at the chance of immortal love?  The romance is presented in a tasteful yet heated way, and I especially liked the mother’s initial displeasure with the relationship which gave the narrative a very relatable realism in an other wise urban fantasy setting. 

I have only a small criticism.  The first half of the book is slow and builds like a good stock.  Once the main character meets her love interest, the story is at a roaring boil which the story maintains until the very end.  I would’ve liked to see the novel as a whole either be substantially longer to allow for a better view of events in the second half of the novel or perhaps even presented in three separate novels.  It’s a small matter of pacing in an otherwise amazing read.  

Ultimately, dynamic characters create a passionate guilty pleasure read where love reigns supreme.  Simply put, this is the kind of book I love to read and you should definitely pick it up. 

[Please note, in exchange for a free copy of the novel, I agreed to provide a HONEST review.]