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lynseyisreading's review against another edition
3.0
Bittersweet Blood
For the most part, this book was a hit for me. I enjoyed the plot, the setting (London, whoo!), and the surprises and twists along the way. Mostly I liked the characters and the romance, too, but I felt both could have been better.
The romance between Tara and Christian happened a little too quickly for my liking, and the attraction felt somewhat baseless. It did pick up, though, and they certainly had some nice (and hot) moments together, but I'm not sure it felt like love to me. Lust, perhaps, but not love. I'm always disappointed when the 'L' word is bandied about prematurely in books. If it's used before the reader has really been made to believe it possible, it feels hinky and unauthentic. They sometimes call it 'insta-love' which is a pretty good descriptor, and I felt the slight sting of it here with this book. But that's really my only foible. Well, that and that Christian had a nasty habit of laughing/chuckling at Tara, which was most patronising and annoying.
There was a nice mix of characters, however, and some great scenes and dialogue passages. I was totally surprised at one or two of the plot twists and shocked by yet others. And, again, it was really nice to have it set in the UK for a change. Christian, when he wasn't chuckling at Tara, was a pretty hot Vamp, it has to be said. He'd range from suit-wearing, all business Private Investigator, to jeans and T-shirt clad super hottie. It was enough to turn Tara's head, and maybe mine too. He wasn't too alpha or growly, and he was certainly willing to go the extra mile for Tara.
Tara was quite naive and clueless but with very good reason. She has a lot to learn about the world and herself throughout the book, and I thought she handled all the shocks fairly admirably.
The premise was certainly interesting, too. A girl (Tara) whose childhood has been about as sheltered as Rapunzel's, suddenly finds herself out in the real world after her aunt's death, and is slowly but surely breaking every one of the rules she's lived by for all the 22 years of her life so far. Rules such as: Don't, under any circumstances, drink alcohol. Well, that's kind of a party-pooper, but nothing too tragic. But what about: Never, ever, ever take off your necklace? Now that one's just weird, and begs the question: why not?
Want to find out the answer? Then read this book. Aside from my misgivings about the romance—which may not even bother some people—it was an enjoyable read with a nice mix of characters and is definitely worth taking a chance on.
3 Stars ★★★
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
For the most part, this book was a hit for me. I enjoyed the plot, the setting (London, whoo!), and the surprises and twists along the way. Mostly I liked the characters and the romance, too, but I felt both could have been better.
The romance between Tara and Christian happened a little too quickly for my liking, and the attraction felt somewhat baseless. It did pick up, though, and they certainly had some nice (and hot) moments together, but I'm not sure it felt like love to me. Lust, perhaps, but not love. I'm always disappointed when the 'L' word is bandied about prematurely in books. If it's used before the reader has really been made to believe it possible, it feels hinky and unauthentic. They sometimes call it 'insta-love' which is a pretty good descriptor, and I felt the slight sting of it here with this book. But that's really my only foible. Well, that and that Christian had a nasty habit of laughing/chuckling at Tara, which was most patronising and annoying.
There was a nice mix of characters, however, and some great scenes and dialogue passages. I was totally surprised at one or two of the plot twists and shocked by yet others. And, again, it was really nice to have it set in the UK for a change. Christian, when he wasn't chuckling at Tara, was a pretty hot Vamp, it has to be said. He'd range from suit-wearing, all business Private Investigator, to jeans and T-shirt clad super hottie. It was enough to turn Tara's head, and maybe mine too. He wasn't too alpha or growly, and he was certainly willing to go the extra mile for Tara.
Tara was quite naive and clueless but with very good reason. She has a lot to learn about the world and herself throughout the book, and I thought she handled all the shocks fairly admirably.
The premise was certainly interesting, too. A girl (Tara) whose childhood has been about as sheltered as Rapunzel's, suddenly finds herself out in the real world after her aunt's death, and is slowly but surely breaking every one of the rules she's lived by for all the 22 years of her life so far. Rules such as: Don't, under any circumstances, drink alcohol. Well, that's kind of a party-pooper, but nothing too tragic. But what about: Never, ever, ever take off your necklace? Now that one's just weird, and begs the question: why not?
Want to find out the answer? Then read this book. Aside from my misgivings about the romance—which may not even bother some people—it was an enjoyable read with a nice mix of characters and is definitely worth taking a chance on.
3 Stars ★★★
ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
msmattoon's review against another edition
3.0
Entertaining & easy to read urban fantasy with vampires, fairies and werewolves, if a bit generic. Tara and Dominic made an interesting couple, and I would read more if they were downloadable from my city's library.
authorkmg's review against another edition
4.0
Review from pagetrotter.blogspot.com
3.5 Stars out of 5
ARC received from Netgalley/Entangled Pub.
Ok there really isn't anything wrong with this book. The dialogue is good, the pace is good, the characters are good, the action, secondary characters, love scenes, villain scenes, paranormal aspect and world building? Yeah, they're all good too. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I figured the book out within the first five minutes which is totally fine because I don't need something new and surprising every time I read a book. That would make originality extremely hard on authors, now wouldn't it? I'm just saying that this recipe has been used before and I wasn't wow'd.
That being said, I did enjoy the book. I don't regret reading it or wasting my time. The author is obviously talented because I didn't hate anything about it. If I had to pick a favorite character, I'd go with Piers. He is a teeny bit sociopathic, but you guys know how I love those sociopaths with a strong moral compass that only they follow! (ie-Barrons). He's also super funny, sweet for like a millisecond, and sexy as hell. Yummy British vampire. Now this is a vampire, not that lil punk Edward. Sorry Twihards, I wasn't a fan. Not when I began my paranormal romances with Sherrilyn Kenyon and Christine Feehan. That weak milksop left a lot to be desired when I cut my teeth on such heavy weights. But I digress...yeah so this will be a short review because I don't feel the need to continue on and on about it.
It was a solid paranormal romance. Would I recommend it? Sure would! Will I continue the series? Uh, yes, I have a thing for this sexy vampire Piers.
3.5 Stars out of 5
ARC received from Netgalley/Entangled Pub.
Ok there really isn't anything wrong with this book. The dialogue is good, the pace is good, the characters are good, the action, secondary characters, love scenes, villain scenes, paranormal aspect and world building? Yeah, they're all good too. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I figured the book out within the first five minutes which is totally fine because I don't need something new and surprising every time I read a book. That would make originality extremely hard on authors, now wouldn't it? I'm just saying that this recipe has been used before and I wasn't wow'd.
That being said, I did enjoy the book. I don't regret reading it or wasting my time. The author is obviously talented because I didn't hate anything about it. If I had to pick a favorite character, I'd go with Piers. He is a teeny bit sociopathic, but you guys know how I love those sociopaths with a strong moral compass that only they follow! (ie-Barrons). He's also super funny, sweet for like a millisecond, and sexy as hell. Yummy British vampire. Now this is a vampire, not that lil punk Edward. Sorry Twihards, I wasn't a fan. Not when I began my paranormal romances with Sherrilyn Kenyon and Christine Feehan. That weak milksop left a lot to be desired when I cut my teeth on such heavy weights. But I digress...yeah so this will be a short review because I don't feel the need to continue on and on about it.
It was a solid paranormal romance. Would I recommend it? Sure would! Will I continue the series? Uh, yes, I have a thing for this sexy vampire Piers.
chllybrd's review against another edition
4.0
The cover of BITTERSWEET BLOOD didn't really draw me in but I ended up enjoying it despite that. Tara really has no clue who she is and when she seeks out answers Christian Roth ends up turning her world upside down.
Tara has spent her whole life following weird rules her aunt drilled into her head. Now that her aunt is gone Tara wants nothing more than to be normal and finds herself breaking the rules one by one. Unfortunately she is anything but normal and slowly finds out why. Tara starts off pretty reserved but once she starts opening up she doesn't let anything stand in her way of living how she wants. Christian is the sexy vampire. He was protective and surprisingly understanding most of the time. Tara had no idea he was anything but human when she hired him to look into her past and her aunt. In fact Tara has no idea about anything paranormal in the world. Christian is instantly drawn to Tara while Tara has a little more hesitant about him. The relationship between the two builds slowly but heats up fast. Even though Christian and Tara are the main character focus we still get to learn enough about the supporting characters so that we feel like we really know them too.
BITTERSWEET BLOOD had a really neat world set in London. There are Vampires, Werewolves, Demons, Fae and other types of Shifters. We get to experience both the city as well as the country. The action was nicely displayed and the story had an easy flow to it. I'm hoping book 2 will still be focused on Christian and Tara but I wouldn't be disappointed if one of the other characters was the focus.
Tara has spent her whole life following weird rules her aunt drilled into her head. Now that her aunt is gone Tara wants nothing more than to be normal and finds herself breaking the rules one by one. Unfortunately she is anything but normal and slowly finds out why. Tara starts off pretty reserved but once she starts opening up she doesn't let anything stand in her way of living how she wants. Christian is the sexy vampire. He was protective and surprisingly understanding most of the time. Tara had no idea he was anything but human when she hired him to look into her past and her aunt. In fact Tara has no idea about anything paranormal in the world. Christian is instantly drawn to Tara while Tara has a little more hesitant about him. The relationship between the two builds slowly but heats up fast. Even though Christian and Tara are the main character focus we still get to learn enough about the supporting characters so that we feel like we really know them too.
BITTERSWEET BLOOD had a really neat world set in London. There are Vampires, Werewolves, Demons, Fae and other types of Shifters. We get to experience both the city as well as the country. The action was nicely displayed and the story had an easy flow to it. I'm hoping book 2 will still be focused on Christian and Tara but I wouldn't be disappointed if one of the other characters was the focus.
bodebeabay's review against another edition
4.0
Mystery, intrigue, suspense and romance, all the elements I need for a good read.
There is even a touch of humor.
There were a couple of typo's, but very, very few.
Some repetitiveness, but all in all, a very good story.
I enjoyed it very much.
There is even a touch of humor.
There were a couple of typo's, but very, very few.
Some repetitiveness, but all in all, a very good story.
I enjoyed it very much.
malumbra's review against another edition
1.0
Hoooooo boy. My eyes hurt from all the rolling.
Heroine:TSTL
Hero: wears black leather pants and a black leather duster (is this 1999 and are we still obsessed with Angel?)
Society: literally nothing original or creative (vampires, fae, werewolves, blah blah Order)
Writing: worse than twilight
Sex: soooooooo vanilla except for all the blood but it kinda had the feeling of period sex?
Redeeming qualities: I liked piers.
I am really sad I wasted $1.98 on the other two in the trilogy before reading this one.
Heroine:TSTL
Hero: wears black leather pants and a black leather duster (is this 1999 and are we still obsessed with Angel?)
Society: literally nothing original or creative (vampires, fae, werewolves, blah blah Order)
Writing: worse than twilight
Sex: soooooooo vanilla except for all the blood but it kinda had the feeling of period sex?
Redeeming qualities: I liked piers.
I am really sad I wasted $1.98 on the other two in the trilogy before reading this one.
nadenetotallyaddictedtoreading's review against another edition
4.0
Link to my review will be provided soon.
http://romancing-the-book.com/2013/04/review-bittersweet-blood-by-nina-croft.
http://romancing-the-book.com/2013/04/review-bittersweet-blood-by-nina-croft.
nadenetotallyaddictedtoreading's review
4.0
Link to my review will be provided soon.
http://romancing-the-book.com/2013/04/review-bittersweet-blood-by-nina-croft.
http://romancing-the-book.com/2013/04/review-bittersweet-blood-by-nina-croft.
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