Blooded by Shei DarksbaneMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
There was one specific thing I noticed while looking over other people's reviews while reading this series: this isn't a 100% type observation, but many did not like the vampire member of the love triangle (Amorie or whatever her name is/was). Me? I did not dislike her and found her an 'okay' character, for the most part. That is until I read this book here.
Seems the dynamic changed on me between books 1-2, that short story, and this book here. And more than just the authors taking longer to write the book than expected. No, the dynamic itself changed - the non-main character werewolf part of the triad was not even in this book, though mentioned a few times and . . . is no longer described as a potential girlfriend type, but more as someone they have taken into their own kind of sub-pack/protection circle. And the 3 way relationship was described differently than before. I do not exactly recall how it was described before, nor can I accurately recreate the words here and now - something along the way of 'I'm in a monogamous relationship with the vampire, but we both know she can't have just relationship, so . . . . there's also this other werewolf woman, though she has nothing romantically to do with the vampire'. And the way the two characters in this 'love-triad' who actually appear in the book were described somewhat differently than before. Amorie (I really should get her name sometime so I stop getting it wrong) is a condescending woman who apparently has all the 'power' in this relationship; while Dakota was described as being a lot more wishy-washy (and to a certain extent, dumber than I recalled her). Not exactly sure what happened there.
So - this is the third book in a series that leads from one book to the next so . . . obviously don't read this book first, though I mainly just brought this up to note: remember how Dakota was 'Awakened' by a lunatic burglar who was doing some insane ritual that Dakota got in the way of? And ended up 'getting' the 'gift', or however to word that, that the insane lunatic wizard was doing the ritual to get? That hellfire thingie? Well, this book comes full circle - in this book here Dakota goes to the demon who gave out that hellfire thingie and basically asked if that demon was cool with Dakota having the power. Then Dakota, and her vampire lover, get tasked with a quest - failure leads to both of their deaths (I don't mean that the task is inherently deadly, I mean that the demon will kill them if they fail). Going along on this quest is that demon's 'pet' lover boy thingie. Who, in a way, is creepy on a whole other level. But whatever.
So, Amorie investigates while continuously pushing Dakota into the background (it's better this way!), but since this is a solely point of view from Dakota's POV, and Dakota isn't actually always there while A investigates, Dakota has to find out some other stuff to do (which leads to her and that demon pet attempting to break into her own girlfriend's bar, by accident, but let's not get ahead of ourselves here). See, condescending A.
Story takes place in Memphis and . . . um . . . wherever the hell the series originally started (Knoxville? Nashville? Vampireville? I don't recall, some Tennessee place). Involves death defying stuff. And investigations. Oh, and there was some graphic stuff along the way. I think. I kind of read a bunch of stuff at the same time while traveling on trains, so some of it bleed together - like whether or not graphic stuff actually occurred in this one. Though I believe it did. I suddenly find myself in the odd position of not liking anyone in this series, and while I'm not bored with it (it was an interesting enough story), I'm still not sure I'll actually continue reading this series (if another book actually appears).
Rating: 2.88
May 1 2017
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