In Regency London all is not it seems. Vampires live among humans, hiding their secret powers from their hosts in shadows.
Unbeknownst to Lady Sybil Lofstrom she is descended from a race of Fae who got caught in the middle of the Wars of the Races and were exterminated by all sides. Fearing she is losing her mind, she tells no one about the creatures of the night only she sees. Until one of them draws her into his Vampire world with his kisses. The Vampire King’s Shadow Blade, Anton Count Grazki cannot believe there is a human woman, one he finds irresistible to his lonely heart, who can see through the vampire cloak of shadows. Her unique ability means her death unless he can find some way to keep her safe.
Book 5 in the A Most Peculiar Season series, Lady Sybil’s Vampire features a spinster turned chaperone with a unique gift and a complex world of Eastern European royalty/vampires. So no, it still doesn’t answer my lingering questions about vampire lovers and yes, I am not an avid reader of paranormal romance…but I decided ’tis the Season for something a bit darker and gave it a whirl.
Its a shortie…a bit longer than the average novella, but about 100 pages less than the average novel, so it took me about two hours to breeze through. In some ways, the length created some gaps for me–I would have loved more backstory on the heroine, and I probably could have had a bit more build up to their romance—but in other ways it made the book click along. One of the things that makes me a bit bonkers is when the story becomes more tell than show. This novel dove almost immediately in to the action with little time for exposition passages.
Lethbridge has a huge stable of Reg Roms, so she is no slouch in the set up. However, towards the middle and the end of the book when things focus more on the paranormal element, it could be set anywhere/any time. That’s more of an observation than a criticism, but I could see how that could be a positve or negative for some readers.
The H/h are the typical dark and brooding vampire with a haunted past and the feisty yet innocent (with a twist—she is magical) heroine. There is a respectable amount of the will he/will he not bite her tension and drama, and if that is how you get your kicks you will certainly enjoy. I think both the H/h, given the abbreviated backstory, are likeable and appeal to paranormal fans as familiar with a twist.
3.5 out of 6 A quick read with a lot of action, some sexy scenes, and a magical take on the Regency.
| Content Rating/Heat Index | |
|---|---|
| Mature Content |   |
| Intrigue, murder etc | |
| Intimacy | |
| A couple of love scenes. | |
| Violence | |
| Fight scenes, murderous villians, lots of biting | |
| Overall |  |
|---|---|
| Adult subject matter and intimate scenes. Probably most enjoyable for mature audiences. | |
*A review copy was provided by the author. No other compensation was provided.
