A review by its_tara
Jessica Rules the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
5.0
This was originally a 4.5* review, and can be found here at my blog, Hey, Tara.
At the beginning of the book, Jessica is struggling as the newest Vampire Princess. She can’t speak Romanian, doesn’t know her way around her own castle, and looks meek and helpless besides the powerful figure of her new husband. However, when he is accused of destroying (killing) another Vampire Elder, it’s Jessica who has to test her mettle and try to prove her husband’s innocence.
This is one of those books that could easily have been all post-marital bliss and schmexing (don’t expect that – these books do read as a fairly young YA, but that doesn’t detract from how enjoyable they are, honest!). But that’s not the case at all. In terms of storyline I actually enjoyed this one more, because it’s a departure from the typical Vampire courtship storyline there is a lot of in the genre at the moment.
The storyline of this really grew Jess as a character, changing her from Pennsylvania farm-girl vegan teenager through to Princess Antanasia Dragomir Vladescu (her birth name – she was adopted by the Packwood’s for those who don’t know the series). I have read that this was Beth Fantaskey’s intention with the book, and I very much feel it was accomplished. Lucius doesn’t change too much from the previous book – he’s still sexy vampire leader with clear ambition and a penchant for fair rule.
The addition of Mindy’s POV added a lot to her character, and she changes from being Jess’ somewhat annoying friend through to being a character in her own right, and I ended up really liking her. Likewise, Raniero as a character was brilliant, and it was good to see the clear sides of him, as Vampire Assassin and as chilled-out Surfer.
Basically, I couldn’t complain about the characters in this book, and the new characters really did make the story that much better for me. And the fact that the story was that much more complicated in this one made me think a lot more of Fantaskey’s writing style and skills. Massive thumbs up!
I really did enjoy this book, and I’d recommend it for anyone who read the first book and enjoyed it, or to anyone who likes vampire stories in general. Definitely not one to be read as a standalone though, I don’t think.
One of my only criticisms is that I kind of saw the ending coming miles off, and that’s why it doesn’t get the full 5/5! However, this was a fun and relaxing read, and I’d recommend it!
At the beginning of the book, Jessica is struggling as the newest Vampire Princess. She can’t speak Romanian, doesn’t know her way around her own castle, and looks meek and helpless besides the powerful figure of her new husband. However, when he is accused of destroying (killing) another Vampire Elder, it’s Jessica who has to test her mettle and try to prove her husband’s innocence.
This is one of those books that could easily have been all post-marital bliss and schmexing (don’t expect that – these books do read as a fairly young YA, but that doesn’t detract from how enjoyable they are, honest!). But that’s not the case at all. In terms of storyline I actually enjoyed this one more, because it’s a departure from the typical Vampire courtship storyline there is a lot of in the genre at the moment.
The storyline of this really grew Jess as a character, changing her from Pennsylvania farm-girl vegan teenager through to Princess Antanasia Dragomir Vladescu (her birth name – she was adopted by the Packwood’s for those who don’t know the series). I have read that this was Beth Fantaskey’s intention with the book, and I very much feel it was accomplished. Lucius doesn’t change too much from the previous book – he’s still sexy vampire leader with clear ambition and a penchant for fair rule.
The addition of Mindy’s POV added a lot to her character, and she changes from being Jess’ somewhat annoying friend through to being a character in her own right, and I ended up really liking her. Likewise, Raniero as a character was brilliant, and it was good to see the clear sides of him, as Vampire Assassin and as chilled-out Surfer.
Basically, I couldn’t complain about the characters in this book, and the new characters really did make the story that much better for me. And the fact that the story was that much more complicated in this one made me think a lot more of Fantaskey’s writing style and skills. Massive thumbs up!
I really did enjoy this book, and I’d recommend it for anyone who read the first book and enjoyed it, or to anyone who likes vampire stories in general. Definitely not one to be read as a standalone though, I don’t think.
One of my only criticisms is that I kind of saw the ending coming miles off, and that’s why it doesn’t get the full 5/5! However, this was a fun and relaxing read, and I’d recommend it!