What do you think?
Rate this book
Maggie's Grove #1
Blood of the Maple
A seduction-gone-wrong leaves vampire Parker Hollis with a new vegetarian lifestyle and on the run from a vengeful witch. Moving to small-town Maggie's Grove, Parker meets a redheaded dryad with green, leafy blood that draws him in a way he hasn't experienced in decades. His new neighbor smells divine, and it isn't long before craving gives in to need.In a unique community of supernaturals, tree-loving outcast Amara Schwedler has never quite fit in. She's scarred by a traumatic incident and feared by the local townsfolk. She's convinced Parker will look elsewhere for a mate once he discovers she's not one of the O-positive set, and can't believe it when Parker finds her irresistible.When the witch who's been plaguing Parker's life discovers the newfound attraction between Parker and Amara, she takes out her anger on the town. Can the supernaturals of Maggie's Grove accept Amara and band together in time to withstand the assaults of the enraged witch?78,000 words
210 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 11, 2011
36 people are currently reading
1233 people want to read
About the author
Dana Marie Bell
56 books1,938 followersDana Marie Bell wrote her first short story when she was thirteen years old. She attended the High School for Creative and Performing Arts for creative writing, where freedom of expression was the order of the day. When her parents moved out of the city and placed her in a Catholic high school for her senior year she tried desperately to get away, but the nuns held fast, and she graduated with honors despite herself.
Dana has lived primarily in the Northeast (Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, to be precise), with a brief stint on the US Virgin Island of St. Croix. She lives with her soul-mate and husband Dusty, their two maniacal children, an evil ice-cream stealing cat and a bull terrier that thinks it’s a Pekinese.
You can learn more about Dana at:
http://www.danamariebell.com
http://danamariebell.blogspot.com
Dana has lived primarily in the Northeast (Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, to be precise), with a brief stint on the US Virgin Island of St. Croix. She lives with her soul-mate and husband Dusty, their two maniacal children, an evil ice-cream stealing cat and a bull terrier that thinks it’s a Pekinese.
You can learn more about Dana at:
http://www.danamariebell.com
http://danamariebell.blogspot.com
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 114 reviews
June 18, 2011
Man is turned into vampire.
Vampire lives with a witch for a roommate.
Vampire has a booty call with another witch (not the roommate).
Witch is obsessed with being more than just a booty call.
Witch curses Vampire. Vampire must now drink from the blood of plants instead of humans.
Roommate dies (no this really isn’t a spoiler, it happens early and is necessary for the rest of the book).
Vampire still can talk to roommate who is now a ghost.
Ghost aka former roommate tells vampire he must move to Maggie’s Grove.
Maggie’s Grove is full of supernaturals. Very convenient for the rest of the story.
Vampire moves next to a dryad.
Dryad is an outcast. We never learn why.
Dryad and Vamp boy fall in love almost instantly.
Maggie Grove’s welcoming committee sends a Renfield (a vamp assistant) who happens to also see and feel ghosts. Again, very convenient since he falls almost instantly in love with Vampire’s ghost.
Bad witch is not happy.
*********POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW*****************************
Bad witch does bad things to Maggie’s Grove supernaturals. Why bad witch is so much stronger than all the other supernaturals is not explained.
Pissed off supernaturals blame Dryad neighbor aka Vamp’s mate/wife. We don’t know why.
Vamp is not happy. Goes all caveman (as if being vampire is not badass enough). He declares his love for his ready-made mate to all the supernaturals.
Dryad is one with the trees.
Dryad & vamp have a big battle with witch.
Everyone lives happily ever after.
I’m exhausted.
The END.
Vampire lives with a witch for a roommate.
Vampire has a booty call with another witch (not the roommate).
Witch is obsessed with being more than just a booty call.
Witch curses Vampire. Vampire must now drink from the blood of plants instead of humans.
Roommate dies (no this really isn’t a spoiler, it happens early and is necessary for the rest of the book).
Vampire still can talk to roommate who is now a ghost.
Ghost aka former roommate tells vampire he must move to Maggie’s Grove.
Maggie’s Grove is full of supernaturals. Very convenient for the rest of the story.
Vampire moves next to a dryad.
Dryad is an outcast. We never learn why.
Dryad and Vamp boy fall in love almost instantly.
Maggie Grove’s welcoming committee sends a Renfield (a vamp assistant) who happens to also see and feel ghosts. Again, very convenient since he falls almost instantly in love with Vampire’s ghost.
Bad witch is not happy.
*********POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW*****************************
Bad witch does bad things to Maggie’s Grove supernaturals. Why bad witch is so much stronger than all the other supernaturals is not explained.
Pissed off supernaturals blame Dryad neighbor aka Vamp’s mate/wife. We don’t know why.
Vamp is not happy. Goes all caveman (as if being vampire is not badass enough). He declares his love for his ready-made mate to all the supernaturals.
Dryad is one with the trees.
Dryad & vamp have a big battle with witch.
Everyone lives happily ever after.
I’m exhausted.
The END.
June 14, 2011
Beach books seem to be coming at me from all sides. Blood of the Maple is one of them. It’s a perfect book to read while sunbathing.
I had many, many problems with it but I’ll be kind enough not to list all of them.
First of all, I didn’t believe it's possible for a book to have too much paranormal, but apparently it is. I don’t think there’s anything that hasn’t been thrown into the mix. Dryads, vampires, were-this and were-that, witches, Renfields, ghosts, human sensitives and god only knows what else, all living in this small town and getting along just fine – which brings me to my second problem: a single witch succeeded in terrorizing them all for months!
I hated the instalove, insta-marriage, insta-mating for life part. They mated on their second date and never even considered that they made a mistake. Same goes for the other couple, Brian and Greg. That’s one of the things I hate about PNR in general, but it was even worse than usual here.
Parker’s machocrap attitude was hilarious when it really wasn’t supposed to be. I never saw him as a dangerous, strong guy. I think that’s where the author truly failed: he didn’t seem real at all. She wanted him to be too many things at once and I just didn’t buy it. So when he delivered this speech:
He pitched his voice so that it could be heard clear across the town, using his vampiric powers to whisper into every home, every dark alley, every corner of Maggie’s Grove. “Know this. Amara is mine. Mine to protect. My sotiei. Anyone who even looks at her wrong will deal with me, and I will not be compassionate. I will make you pay in ways you never dreamed. (…) You won’t be able to hide from me. I will find you in your deepest nightmares. I am your worst fear. And when I finally collect the debt owed, before you die, you’ll know exactly how Amara has felt all these years. You will know what it is to be a true freak. Do we understand each other?
…the book was pretty much over for me.
And last, but not least, call me old-fashioned but I don’t think it’s cute, attractive or even funny when a woman behaves like a caveman. I’m all for strong, independent women, but there’s a line you just don’t cross. The last scene (oh, come on, it’s not even a spoiler, we all know there’s a HEA) when Amara throws Parker over her shoulder and carries him home almost made me cry in frustration. There’s a natural order of things, and guess what? That’s not it!!!
Read this book when you're tired and just want to relax, when you're at the beach, or both. Otherwise, don't bother.
I had many, many problems with it but I’ll be kind enough not to list all of them.
First of all, I didn’t believe it's possible for a book to have too much paranormal, but apparently it is. I don’t think there’s anything that hasn’t been thrown into the mix. Dryads, vampires, were-this and were-that, witches, Renfields, ghosts, human sensitives and god only knows what else, all living in this small town and getting along just fine – which brings me to my second problem: a single witch succeeded in terrorizing them all for months!
I hated the instalove, insta-marriage, insta-mating for life part. They mated on their second date and never even considered that they made a mistake. Same goes for the other couple, Brian and Greg. That’s one of the things I hate about PNR in general, but it was even worse than usual here.
Parker’s macho
He pitched his voice so that it could be heard clear across the town, using his vampiric powers to whisper into every home, every dark alley, every corner of Maggie’s Grove. “Know this. Amara is mine. Mine to protect. My sotiei. Anyone who even looks at her wrong will deal with me, and I will not be compassionate. I will make you pay in ways you never dreamed. (…) You won’t be able to hide from me. I will find you in your deepest nightmares. I am your worst fear. And when I finally collect the debt owed, before you die, you’ll know exactly how Amara has felt all these years. You will know what it is to be a true freak. Do we understand each other?
…the book was pretty much over for me.
And last, but not least, call me old-fashioned but I don’t think it’s cute, attractive or even funny when a woman behaves like a caveman. I’m all for strong, independent women, but there’s a line you just don’t cross. The last scene (oh, come on, it’s not even a spoiler, we all know there’s a HEA) when Amara throws Parker over her shoulder and carries him home almost made me cry in frustration. There’s a natural order of things, and guess what? That’s not it!!!
Read this book when you're tired and just want to relax, when you're at the beach, or both. Otherwise, don't bother.
May 27, 2011
Rating: 3.5
Quick Take:
This book features a wonderfully amusing and addictive cast of characters, forming a solid basis for future installments. Despite the second half featuring a few laggy scenes and somewhat uneven dialogue, the story as a whole is solid and worth a visit.
Review:
First off, props go to whoever thought up the book’s title. It gives an idea of what the story might involve (namely, blood and plant life), but also perplexes and intrigues—after all, what in tarnation does blood have to do with trees? ^_^
This work by author Dana Marie Bell is fun and entertaining, focusing on the small supernatural community of Maggie’s Grove. It begins with the introduction of cursed vampire Dr. Parker Hollis, who has just moved into town to start a new (undead) life. Following the vamp is engaging, as he possesses a witty yet adorably geeky sense of humor. His interactions with others are the basis for a lot of the laughs and strong moments of the story.
Likewise, the supporting characters populating the town are lively and amusing (as well as deliciously infuriating at times). Unsurprisingly, the author makes as much use of the townspeople as possible, crafting what is essentially a love story and revenge tale into an ensemble piece of sorts. I would suggest keeping notes (either mental or physical) about the characters introduced. There are quite a few of them, many of whom recur in both name and person.
The plotting and pacing of the book was not as endearing, however. I found the first half of the tale to be very easy to engage, compelling through scenes both cheerful and solemn. But the second half seemed a bit uneven at times, punctuated by scenes that dragged and moments of somewhat disparate dialogue.
Even so, the pacing scheme did sometimes work nicely. I found that, in certain situations, the abrupt change in characters’ focus lent a sense of reality. After all, real life isn’t one clear-cut, uninterrupted vignette after another.
Blood of the Maple is intended to be the first in a set of books focusing on Maggie’s Grove. The story set up some clear dilemmas to be solved in future installments, and I’m happy to say that they all seem quite intriguing.
Quick Take:
This book features a wonderfully amusing and addictive cast of characters, forming a solid basis for future installments. Despite the second half featuring a few laggy scenes and somewhat uneven dialogue, the story as a whole is solid and worth a visit.
Review:
First off, props go to whoever thought up the book’s title. It gives an idea of what the story might involve (namely, blood and plant life), but also perplexes and intrigues—after all, what in tarnation does blood have to do with trees? ^_^
This work by author Dana Marie Bell is fun and entertaining, focusing on the small supernatural community of Maggie’s Grove. It begins with the introduction of cursed vampire Dr. Parker Hollis, who has just moved into town to start a new (undead) life. Following the vamp is engaging, as he possesses a witty yet adorably geeky sense of humor. His interactions with others are the basis for a lot of the laughs and strong moments of the story.
Likewise, the supporting characters populating the town are lively and amusing (as well as deliciously infuriating at times). Unsurprisingly, the author makes as much use of the townspeople as possible, crafting what is essentially a love story and revenge tale into an ensemble piece of sorts. I would suggest keeping notes (either mental or physical) about the characters introduced. There are quite a few of them, many of whom recur in both name and person.
The plotting and pacing of the book was not as endearing, however. I found the first half of the tale to be very easy to engage, compelling through scenes both cheerful and solemn. But the second half seemed a bit uneven at times, punctuated by scenes that dragged and moments of somewhat disparate dialogue.
Even so, the pacing scheme did sometimes work nicely. I found that, in certain situations, the abrupt change in characters’ focus lent a sense of reality. After all, real life isn’t one clear-cut, uninterrupted vignette after another.
Blood of the Maple is intended to be the first in a set of books focusing on Maggie’s Grove. The story set up some clear dilemmas to be solved in future installments, and I’m happy to say that they all seem quite intriguing.
June 2, 2011
Okay.... WOW!! Just WOW!! Dana Marie Bell hits this one out of the park! I loved Blood of the Maple! Ms. Bell puts a spin on the paranormal genre that is so original, comedic, and emotionally moving. She is, without a doubt, one of my auto-buy authors.
This book is a zany, delightful, yet moving story with a cast of colorful characters. The main story-line narrates a relationship between Parker Hollis and Amara Schweller. He is not your run of the mill male vampire. He is a vegetarian vampire who was cursed into such a state by a clingy ex-girlfriend named Terri who is a witch that has tormented him for years.
After a major life change, Parker and his best friend, Greg who is a ghost move to a town called Maggie’s Grove where different kinds of supernatural beings live in relative peace. Parker moves in next to Amara who is a reclusive dryad with few friends and is considered an outcast. As soon as Parker meets Amara, he is attracted to her unlike anyone he has ever met.
Parker learns he is able ingest her blood since, basically, she is green and leafy. Knowing he can have a meaningful relationship with Amara, he claims her as his own. The partnering of these two supernaturals is delicious (no pun intended) and titillating because they are so good together inside the bedroom and outside of it. They fight together to thwart the evil machinations of Terri’s jealousy and her need to claim Parker as her own. In fact, the actions which Terri is willing to take to have Parker to herself threatens the entire town.
Dana Marie Bell’s amazing writing ability allows us to delve into a unique world that the reader will not want to leave when the story has ended. Fortunately, Ms. Bell has left plenty of fodder to create more delightfully fascinating stories about the community of Maggie’s Grove and I truly hope she does entertain us with more narratives of this enchanting supernatural community.
Don’t miss out on this read! My summary of Blood of the Maple does not do justice to the story. There is SO much more to this story than what I was able to relate in my review. You need to devour this wonderful tale for yourself. I have a strong feeling that you will not regret submersing yourself into this original and brilliant world the author has created for us to escape into.
Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections!!
This book is a zany, delightful, yet moving story with a cast of colorful characters. The main story-line narrates a relationship between Parker Hollis and Amara Schweller. He is not your run of the mill male vampire. He is a vegetarian vampire who was cursed into such a state by a clingy ex-girlfriend named Terri who is a witch that has tormented him for years.
After a major life change, Parker and his best friend, Greg who is a ghost move to a town called Maggie’s Grove where different kinds of supernatural beings live in relative peace. Parker moves in next to Amara who is a reclusive dryad with few friends and is considered an outcast. As soon as Parker meets Amara, he is attracted to her unlike anyone he has ever met.
Parker learns he is able ingest her blood since, basically, she is green and leafy. Knowing he can have a meaningful relationship with Amara, he claims her as his own. The partnering of these two supernaturals is delicious (no pun intended) and titillating because they are so good together inside the bedroom and outside of it. They fight together to thwart the evil machinations of Terri’s jealousy and her need to claim Parker as her own. In fact, the actions which Terri is willing to take to have Parker to herself threatens the entire town.
Dana Marie Bell’s amazing writing ability allows us to delve into a unique world that the reader will not want to leave when the story has ended. Fortunately, Ms. Bell has left plenty of fodder to create more delightfully fascinating stories about the community of Maggie’s Grove and I truly hope she does entertain us with more narratives of this enchanting supernatural community.
Don’t miss out on this read! My summary of Blood of the Maple does not do justice to the story. There is SO much more to this story than what I was able to relate in my review. You need to devour this wonderful tale for yourself. I have a strong feeling that you will not regret submersing yourself into this original and brilliant world the author has created for us to escape into.
Happy Reading from Bona Fide Reflections!!
May 8, 2011
Blood of the Maple is the start of a new erotic paranormal romance series by one of my go-to authors, for when I want something fun and refreshing, a mini-break from my usual serious reads. This book fit perfectly and surprisingly was a bit longer compared to similar books in the genre. Since it is available only as an ebook, I am not sure of the page count but I would estimate around 300 pages, a bit of a difference from the nearly standard novella length being published in this genre.
The only thing I had difficulty with when reading was keeping all of the different character names straight in my head. I kept getting people confused. I realize this is the start of a series and a certain amount of world building is necessary. In erotic PNR series reads, that world building tends to center around character introductions for furture books. I am fairly sure that the name inundation will be lessened in the next book as there were at least three couples paired off in this one.
I really liked both of the main characters. Bell has found the balance I prefer, with both of the characters being strong individuals. Amara is no wishy-washy famle and Parker is comfortable with a confident woman as well as assure of himself enough to not feel weaker. Yet he had no problem asserting himself either. The love scenes were a bit of fun, quite sexy and definitely worthy of my erotic shelf. Both Amara and Parker were a wonderful match.
The setting was also original and I am excited to see what happens in the next book. Of course, this book ends with a HEA so I am mostly wondering who will be the focus of the next book. Personally, I am hoping for the fire elemental to get her HEA.
The only thing I had difficulty with when reading was keeping all of the different character names straight in my head. I kept getting people confused. I realize this is the start of a series and a certain amount of world building is necessary. In erotic PNR series reads, that world building tends to center around character introductions for furture books. I am fairly sure that the name inundation will be lessened in the next book as there were at least three couples paired off in this one.
I really liked both of the main characters. Bell has found the balance I prefer, with both of the characters being strong individuals. Amara is no wishy-washy famle and Parker is comfortable with a confident woman as well as assure of himself enough to not feel weaker. Yet he had no problem asserting himself either. The love scenes were a bit of fun, quite sexy and definitely worthy of my erotic shelf. Both Amara and Parker were a wonderful match.
The setting was also original and I am excited to see what happens in the next book. Of course, this book ends with a HEA so I am mostly wondering who will be the focus of the next book. Personally, I am hoping for the fire elemental to get her HEA.
November 15, 2015
Alright so I had totally written a review, and it somehow got deleted, so in place of missing review you’re going to get this half-assed one because I really didn’t care for this book. I’d give it 2.5 stars… and I debated a while on whether it was worth rounding up. I decided against that obviously.
I had really been looking forward to this book, I thought it was going to be A LOT better than it ended up being. The story was extremely fast paced, set in this ‘Steford’ type society, just with supernaturals, including a vampire, Parker, cursed to be a vegetarian. Go figure he finds a dryad, Amara, that solves that exact problem. Anyways, the crazy ex-girlfriend that put the curse on Parker is still trying to come after him and cause problems, and that’s the story in a nutshell. Like I said, half-assed. Sorry.
The relationship between Parker and Amara was a bit irritating… I have read plenty of novels where the characters fall madly in love almost immediately, but these two were marriedby date number two. Not only that, but there was no real connection between the two other than the fact that Parker wanted to suck her dry. It reminded me a lot of the relationship between Diana and Matthew in A Discovery of Witches , but not in the best way.
Unfortunately I don’t think this is a series that I will be continuing.
April 13, 2011
This was a one day read, I could not put it down! I thought Dana Marie Bell's Grey Court series was my favorite but this book changed that! I loved Blood of the Maple. The characters were so unique and fun, a vegetarian vampire, a creepy stalker witch turned plant, a dryad thats more than a dryad, a witch turned ghost, I could go on and on. I really loved the sense of humor behind the characters and the book, that under tone of sarcasm made me keep reading just to see what would pop out of their mouths next!
My favorite quote (that made me laugh out loud at work and have to come up with a quick excuse why) - "Your giving me the choice? I thought macho men made all the safety decisions when it came to the womenfolk. You know, grunt, grunt. Get in house Wo-man. Followed by the inevitable beating of hairy chests."
My favorite quote (that made me laugh out loud at work and have to come up with a quick excuse why) - "Your giving me the choice? I thought macho men made all the safety decisions when it came to the womenfolk. You know, grunt, grunt. Get in house Wo-man. Followed by the inevitable beating of hairy chests."
March 3, 2021
I really like this author's shifter books, but never got around to reading this series. I liked this one, but not as much as the shifter books. I really like the town of Maggie's Grove, loved how supernatural people of any kind are able to live out in the open and go about business normal like. Some of the towns people were funny, lots of weird relationships going on that weren't explained.
Parker was odd, as a vegetarian vampire, you should expect that. I did think it weird that he had never heard of the town and only showed up as a death bed promise to his friend. And Greg...much could be said about him. He often had me laughing and I liked how he went after what he wanted. I wasn't sure about Amara at first, but she quickly grew on me and I found myself pissed on her behalf at how she was treated by everyone. I loved that Parker was on her side from the start and how through out the book he was able to get others in town to see her different.
The trouble that followed Parker was a bit bonkers! It was crazy how even the town working as a whole had a hard time stopping things.
Parker was odd, as a vegetarian vampire, you should expect that. I did think it weird that he had never heard of the town and only showed up as a death bed promise to his friend. And Greg...much could be said about him. He often had me laughing and I liked how he went after what he wanted. I wasn't sure about Amara at first, but she quickly grew on me and I found myself pissed on her behalf at how she was treated by everyone. I loved that Parker was on her side from the start and how through out the book he was able to get others in town to see her different.
The trouble that followed Parker was a bit bonkers! It was crazy how even the town working as a whole had a hard time stopping things.
March 11, 2019
3.5 stars
Light, fun, quick, a bit silly, and completely over-the-top.
Light, fun, quick, a bit silly, and completely over-the-top.
August 25, 2011
A Lively and Sexy Romp
Vampire Parker Hollis took full advantage of the free love and hippie lifestyle of the sixties...right up until he ignored a friend's warning and dallied with someone he would long regret ever meeting. Sure, he learned a valuable life lesson: hell hath no fury like a witch scorned, but he paid dearly for that lesson. Determined to be Parker's blood wife, the batshit crazy witch captures the vampire, then casts a dark spell that will change Parker...and his existence...forever.
That's how Parker Hollis becomes the world's first vegetarian vampire.
Decades later, the deathbed vision Parker's best friend Greg has moments before his passing prompts Parker to move to a town called Maggie's Grove. What he and Greg's ghost find astounds them, a town dedicated to the various supernatural races. It isn't long before Parker meets his neighbor, a dryad and for some inexplicable - and inexcusable reason, the town outcast, Amara Schwedler. Her scent makes him yearn for a taste and her heart calls to his.
Amara's used to the petty hurts from being ostracized her whole life. She knows she's different. Heck, even other dryads avoid her - and that's the cruelest hurt of all. Still, she lives her life and she has a few select friends, even a job with a boss who understands her need to occasionally commune with her tree. Still, when Parker moves in next door, Amara is captivated by him...if a little perplexed by his diet, and his easy acceptance of her is a balm to her soul that puts hope in her heart.
When psycho witch sweeps into town smelling of putrification and decay, intent on destroying anything standing in the way between herself and Parker, Amara considers her nothing more than a weed in need of pruning. A pervasive weed with an evil streak. When she messes up Amara's garden, then targets innocent townspeople, Amara gets very, very angry. And when Amara is angry, she's very, very scary. The witch may be almost impossible to kill but Amara is something else altogether, and she and Parker have every intention of finally plucking that damned weed and ending her reign of terror. The trick is going to be making sure they don't get mulched in the process.
Without a doubt, Bell's new series debut definitely offers something new to vampire fiction. Its first vegetarian vampire botanist. Poor, cursed Parker, with his dietary restrictions, ghostly best friend, town-appointed Renfield...who keeps getting it on with his gay ghost - all over Parker's furniture, and, of course, the homicidal and seriously messed up witch who wants to be Parker's one and only chew toy. I'd feel really bad for him...if I wasn't having such a darned good time chuckling at his plight.
Actually, I just had a darned good time with the whole book. It had its serious, threatening moments, but the majority of the focus stayed towards the more comedic and sexier end of the spectrum. And the sexier end, in traditional Bell style, was quite yummy.
Amara was a pleasant surprise. I wasn't sure I was going to like her, worried she'd be a bit too naive for my tastes given her social seclusion. As it turns out, she totally kicked butt - even more so than Parker did, and had a dry but sharp-witted sense of humor I enjoyed. She was a definite force of nature, and I very much liked how she fit with Parker. Other characters, secondary and ancillary, were plentiful and delightfully quirky, as is also typical of Bell, and they provided a nice preview of future main characters for the series.
I wish the plot of the book had developed a little differently, with Amara and Parker's relationship evolving at a more gradual pace than it did. I thought the weedy witch of the west could've been introduced to the town a little farther along into the story, allowing for more time for all the characters and interpersonal relationships - especially but not exclusively the romantic one - to develop a little more thoroughly. And I would've liked Parker to have been a bit more successful in his endeavors. Seems he was getting his butt kicked - or cursed - fairly often throughout the book.
Still, for a light and humorous paranormal romance dripping with sizzling sexuality, Blood of the Maple was a fun read and fairly classic example of the type and quality of funny, sexy fiction by Bell. I plan on continuing the series, as there was quite a lot of interesting and original mythos and world building here. I'm looking forward to seeing where Bell takes it all. I just hope we won't have to wait too long to get back to Maggie's Grove and its quirky coterie.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
Vampire Parker Hollis took full advantage of the free love and hippie lifestyle of the sixties...right up until he ignored a friend's warning and dallied with someone he would long regret ever meeting. Sure, he learned a valuable life lesson: hell hath no fury like a witch scorned, but he paid dearly for that lesson. Determined to be Parker's blood wife, the batshit crazy witch captures the vampire, then casts a dark spell that will change Parker...and his existence...forever.
That's how Parker Hollis becomes the world's first vegetarian vampire.
Decades later, the deathbed vision Parker's best friend Greg has moments before his passing prompts Parker to move to a town called Maggie's Grove. What he and Greg's ghost find astounds them, a town dedicated to the various supernatural races. It isn't long before Parker meets his neighbor, a dryad and for some inexplicable - and inexcusable reason, the town outcast, Amara Schwedler. Her scent makes him yearn for a taste and her heart calls to his.
Amara's used to the petty hurts from being ostracized her whole life. She knows she's different. Heck, even other dryads avoid her - and that's the cruelest hurt of all. Still, she lives her life and she has a few select friends, even a job with a boss who understands her need to occasionally commune with her tree. Still, when Parker moves in next door, Amara is captivated by him...if a little perplexed by his diet, and his easy acceptance of her is a balm to her soul that puts hope in her heart.
When psycho witch sweeps into town smelling of putrification and decay, intent on destroying anything standing in the way between herself and Parker, Amara considers her nothing more than a weed in need of pruning. A pervasive weed with an evil streak. When she messes up Amara's garden, then targets innocent townspeople, Amara gets very, very angry. And when Amara is angry, she's very, very scary. The witch may be almost impossible to kill but Amara is something else altogether, and she and Parker have every intention of finally plucking that damned weed and ending her reign of terror. The trick is going to be making sure they don't get mulched in the process.
Without a doubt, Bell's new series debut definitely offers something new to vampire fiction. Its first vegetarian vampire botanist. Poor, cursed Parker, with his dietary restrictions, ghostly best friend, town-appointed Renfield...who keeps getting it on with his gay ghost - all over Parker's furniture, and, of course, the homicidal and seriously messed up witch who wants to be Parker's one and only chew toy. I'd feel really bad for him...if I wasn't having such a darned good time chuckling at his plight.
Actually, I just had a darned good time with the whole book. It had its serious, threatening moments, but the majority of the focus stayed towards the more comedic and sexier end of the spectrum. And the sexier end, in traditional Bell style, was quite yummy.
Amara was a pleasant surprise. I wasn't sure I was going to like her, worried she'd be a bit too naive for my tastes given her social seclusion. As it turns out, she totally kicked butt - even more so than Parker did, and had a dry but sharp-witted sense of humor I enjoyed. She was a definite force of nature, and I very much liked how she fit with Parker. Other characters, secondary and ancillary, were plentiful and delightfully quirky, as is also typical of Bell, and they provided a nice preview of future main characters for the series.
I wish the plot of the book had developed a little differently, with Amara and Parker's relationship evolving at a more gradual pace than it did. I thought the weedy witch of the west could've been introduced to the town a little farther along into the story, allowing for more time for all the characters and interpersonal relationships - especially but not exclusively the romantic one - to develop a little more thoroughly. And I would've liked Parker to have been a bit more successful in his endeavors. Seems he was getting his butt kicked - or cursed - fairly often throughout the book.
Still, for a light and humorous paranormal romance dripping with sizzling sexuality, Blood of the Maple was a fun read and fairly classic example of the type and quality of funny, sexy fiction by Bell. I plan on continuing the series, as there was quite a lot of interesting and original mythos and world building here. I'm looking forward to seeing where Bell takes it all. I just hope we won't have to wait too long to get back to Maggie's Grove and its quirky coterie.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
April 17, 2011
Parker Hollis has made plenty of mistakes in his undead life . . . the worst of which was getting caught with his fangs down. Parker cheated on his one-night-stand, which is never a good idea when the woman happens to be a neurotic, jealous and utterly bonkers witch called Terri. Terri cursed vampiric Parker to become vegetarian – not only was Parker put-off by all blood (except Terri’s) but he could only eat green, leafy juices. Literally, a vampire who can only eat green.
It has been a few years since Parker’s god-awful curse, and since then he has controlled his hunger with the help of his best friend and witch, Greg. Apart from an unfortunate incident with a cactus, Parker has his hunger under control and even become a botanist.
But when Greg dies Parker needs a change of scenery, and so he heads to Maggie’s Grove. It’s a beautiful little town with friendly neighbours and white picket fences. The town is so accommodating, in fact, that the Mayor supplies Parker with his very own Renfield . . . because Maggie’s Grove is no ordinary town. It’s a safe-haven for supernaturals, a place where Parker and the recently ghostly Greg can feel right at home.
And Parker’s neighbour is a nice little perk. Parker finds himself living next door to a mysterious and gorgeous dryad, called Amara Schwedler. She has cascading red hair, smells like a green dream and Parker is thrilled to have found his vampire wife and single sotiei in Amara.
Now it’s just a matter of keeping crazy Terri away from his wife and convincing the townsfolk that Amara isn’t the one behind a recent slew of greenery-related deaths.
‘Blood of the Maple’ is a new stand-alone paranormal erotica novel from Dana Marie Bell.
I really enjoyed the start of this book. Bell has written an utterly invigorating spin on the old vampire love story. Vegetarian vampires have been explored before (with the help of synthetic blood, True Blood) – but Bell has made Parker literally green. Only able to drink green, leafy fluids – it’s a hilarious concept, made all the funnier by the promiscuous circumstances that landed Parker with the curse.
Amara is an equally refreshing and interesting paranormal character. Dryads are a pretty under-explored mythological character. Bell has written quite a back-story for Amara, starting with her ‘birth’ into the world via a maple tree. From that moment on Amara is ostracized by the other dryads, for choosing humanity, while also sneered at by Maggie’s Grove locals for her strange dryad ways.
Both Parker and Amara are unusual and titillating paranormal characters.
She swallowed hard. “I should warn you. I'm slightly more than a dryad.”
He nodded. “And I'm a freak among monsters.”
And obviously there is a real connection between these two – what with Parker only being able to drink green, and Amara being the embodiment of greenery. My problem with the coupling was that it came too quickly and too easily. Parker lays eyes on Amara and only a few chapters later he’s declaring her his single sotiei (after the story about how his promiscuity landed him with a vegetarian curse). True, the psychotic Terri poses a threat to their romance, but for the most part their coupling is smooth sailing. I would have liked a little more friction to keep things heated and simmering.
Regardless of the overly-easy romance, Parker and Amara have some great exchanges that had me chuckling plenty;
“I want you to know something first.”
“What?”
“When I told you I'm not a normal dryad, I meant it.”
“You’re a Republican?” he gasped.
She rolled her eyes and bopped him on the head.
“No. I'm rarer than a dryad Republican.”
Even if I wasn’t overly thrilled by the main romance, I loved the secondary story of Greg and Brian. Greg is Parker’s best friend and witch, recently dead and turned haunting ghost. Brian is Parker’s Maggie’s Grove provided Renfield, a sort of all-purpose servant. Even though Greg is dead and a ghostly apparition, he and Brian embark on a screwy/sweet M/M romance. It’s just lucky that Brian is a physical medium – able to feel ghosts as well as see and hear them. These two were so adorable; I loved them even more than Parker/Amara!
‘Blood of the Maple’ is an interesting new paranormal erotic novel from Dana Marie Bell. The main romance between a dryad and a vegetarian vamp was a little rushed and convenient. But Bell saves the steamy by including a fantastic spinning romance between a ghost and a physical medium. I didn’t love this novel, but I liked it enough to pick through Bell’s backlist.
It has been a few years since Parker’s god-awful curse, and since then he has controlled his hunger with the help of his best friend and witch, Greg. Apart from an unfortunate incident with a cactus, Parker has his hunger under control and even become a botanist.
But when Greg dies Parker needs a change of scenery, and so he heads to Maggie’s Grove. It’s a beautiful little town with friendly neighbours and white picket fences. The town is so accommodating, in fact, that the Mayor supplies Parker with his very own Renfield . . . because Maggie’s Grove is no ordinary town. It’s a safe-haven for supernaturals, a place where Parker and the recently ghostly Greg can feel right at home.
And Parker’s neighbour is a nice little perk. Parker finds himself living next door to a mysterious and gorgeous dryad, called Amara Schwedler. She has cascading red hair, smells like a green dream and Parker is thrilled to have found his vampire wife and single sotiei in Amara.
Now it’s just a matter of keeping crazy Terri away from his wife and convincing the townsfolk that Amara isn’t the one behind a recent slew of greenery-related deaths.
‘Blood of the Maple’ is a new stand-alone paranormal erotica novel from Dana Marie Bell.
I really enjoyed the start of this book. Bell has written an utterly invigorating spin on the old vampire love story. Vegetarian vampires have been explored before (with the help of synthetic blood, True Blood) – but Bell has made Parker literally green. Only able to drink green, leafy fluids – it’s a hilarious concept, made all the funnier by the promiscuous circumstances that landed Parker with the curse.
Amara is an equally refreshing and interesting paranormal character. Dryads are a pretty under-explored mythological character. Bell has written quite a back-story for Amara, starting with her ‘birth’ into the world via a maple tree. From that moment on Amara is ostracized by the other dryads, for choosing humanity, while also sneered at by Maggie’s Grove locals for her strange dryad ways.
Both Parker and Amara are unusual and titillating paranormal characters.
She swallowed hard. “I should warn you. I'm slightly more than a dryad.”
He nodded. “And I'm a freak among monsters.”
And obviously there is a real connection between these two – what with Parker only being able to drink green, and Amara being the embodiment of greenery. My problem with the coupling was that it came too quickly and too easily. Parker lays eyes on Amara and only a few chapters later he’s declaring her his single sotiei (after the story about how his promiscuity landed him with a vegetarian curse). True, the psychotic Terri poses a threat to their romance, but for the most part their coupling is smooth sailing. I would have liked a little more friction to keep things heated and simmering.
Regardless of the overly-easy romance, Parker and Amara have some great exchanges that had me chuckling plenty;
“I want you to know something first.”
“What?”
“When I told you I'm not a normal dryad, I meant it.”
“You’re a Republican?” he gasped.
She rolled her eyes and bopped him on the head.
“No. I'm rarer than a dryad Republican.”
Even if I wasn’t overly thrilled by the main romance, I loved the secondary story of Greg and Brian. Greg is Parker’s best friend and witch, recently dead and turned haunting ghost. Brian is Parker’s Maggie’s Grove provided Renfield, a sort of all-purpose servant. Even though Greg is dead and a ghostly apparition, he and Brian embark on a screwy/sweet M/M romance. It’s just lucky that Brian is a physical medium – able to feel ghosts as well as see and hear them. These two were so adorable; I loved them even more than Parker/Amara!
‘Blood of the Maple’ is an interesting new paranormal erotic novel from Dana Marie Bell. The main romance between a dryad and a vegetarian vamp was a little rushed and convenient. But Bell saves the steamy by including a fantastic spinning romance between a ghost and a physical medium. I didn’t love this novel, but I liked it enough to pick through Bell’s backlist.
May 24, 2011
http://www.rantingdragon.com/blood-of...
Blood of the Maple is a contemporary romantic fantasy by Dana Marie Bell. Though it works perfectly well as a standalone, it marks the beginning of a new series called Maggie’s Grove. After sexy vamp Parker Hollis unintentionally attracts a psychotic witch admirer, he’s cursed to drink only “green, leafy blood” for the rest of his unnatural life – but unfortunately he just can’t bring himself to kill the witch in order to break the curse. When Parker’s best friend dies (to return later as a ghost), Parker moves to Maggie’s Grove, and its small, magical community is actually quirky enough to accept him. There Parker also finds Amara, a redheaded, inexplicably unpopular dryad whose tree-like blood drives vegetarian Parker wild. Unfortunately, Parker’s witchy stalker is not so pleased with Parker’s newfound love, which leads to a final showdown involving the whole town and several thousand angry plants.
Lots and lots and lots of sex
Uncomfortable with explicit sex in your novels? Drop this book and run. Now. Don’t even bother finishing this review.
But if you love your novels steamier than a sauna full of playboys, then this one is for you. Blood of the Maple is unexpectedly and deliciously erotic. It treads a fine, often wavering line between sexy and straight-up erotica. There’s oral, there’s vaginal, and there is certainly some backdoor lovin’ between our two hetero protagonists. There is even some secondary man-on-man love (or, more accurately, man-on-ghost)–but that’s just pennies compared to what Parker and Amara get up to. Like I said, if you love your fiction hot and heavy, Blood of the Maple delivers, and how! Just know what you’re getting into; this novel relies far more on sex than on plot or the fantastic to deliver its thrills.
Surprisingly hilarious
Apart from the sex–which, really, you can get from any good fanfic–Blood of the Maple is fun because its characters are so darn hilarious. There are pop culture references and one-liners aplenty, and the zany banter between Parker and his ghostly best friend Greg had me laughing out loud more than once. The prologue, while perhaps necessary to understand the novel’s context, was a little too… earthy, shall we say, for my own taste. But toilet humor remains popular and you may find Parker’s situation perfectly hilarious.
And, of course, you just can’t get away from how altogether ridiculous the plot behind Blood of the Maple really is. An obsessive stalker witch who controls plant weeds? A vegetarian vampire turned on by a tree dryad? A ghost having sex with a psychic? It’s crazy, it’s completely over-the-top, and if you can take off your serious hat for a second, you’ll roll with the chaos and love it.
Characters need more development
Although a fun read, Blood of the Maple still has its problems (though if you’re only reading it for the sex, you’ll be a-okay). For me, the main problem was that Parker and Amara hardly take the time to say “hello” before they fall head over heels in love and in bed. This is explained away by some new and convenient vampiric lore–auto-soulmates for vampires, essentially–but it makes for a bit of a shock to anyone expecting the main romantic relationship to face realistic conflicts and develop at a reasonable pace.
Furthermore, the secondary characters, while funny, feel like sketches rather than completed personalities. The cast is large for such a short book (short by fantasy standards, anyway), and seemingly every single character, no matter how minor, faces his or her own romantic dilemma. This leads to an overwhelming number of subplots which fail to resolve or even be significantly explored by the end of the book. Of course, these subplots are likely establishing directions for the series’ future–but in Blood of the Maple, the first book of the Maggie’s Grove series, there are just too many problems and not enough text to make the reader care about all of them.
Why should you read this book?
Blood of the Maple offers great sex scenes and a lot of laughs. It’s a sexy contemporary fantasy that doesn’t aspire to great literature at all; instead, it’s light, fun, ridiculous, and easy to read. It may lack depth, but that’s not the point. So long as you know what you’re getting into ahead of time, you’ll have fun meeting the wacky citizens of Maggie’s Grove and their many romantic combinations.
Blood of the Maple is a contemporary romantic fantasy by Dana Marie Bell. Though it works perfectly well as a standalone, it marks the beginning of a new series called Maggie’s Grove. After sexy vamp Parker Hollis unintentionally attracts a psychotic witch admirer, he’s cursed to drink only “green, leafy blood” for the rest of his unnatural life – but unfortunately he just can’t bring himself to kill the witch in order to break the curse. When Parker’s best friend dies (to return later as a ghost), Parker moves to Maggie’s Grove, and its small, magical community is actually quirky enough to accept him. There Parker also finds Amara, a redheaded, inexplicably unpopular dryad whose tree-like blood drives vegetarian Parker wild. Unfortunately, Parker’s witchy stalker is not so pleased with Parker’s newfound love, which leads to a final showdown involving the whole town and several thousand angry plants.
Lots and lots and lots of sex
Uncomfortable with explicit sex in your novels? Drop this book and run. Now. Don’t even bother finishing this review.
But if you love your novels steamier than a sauna full of playboys, then this one is for you. Blood of the Maple is unexpectedly and deliciously erotic. It treads a fine, often wavering line between sexy and straight-up erotica. There’s oral, there’s vaginal, and there is certainly some backdoor lovin’ between our two hetero protagonists. There is even some secondary man-on-man love (or, more accurately, man-on-ghost)–but that’s just pennies compared to what Parker and Amara get up to. Like I said, if you love your fiction hot and heavy, Blood of the Maple delivers, and how! Just know what you’re getting into; this novel relies far more on sex than on plot or the fantastic to deliver its thrills.
Surprisingly hilarious
Apart from the sex–which, really, you can get from any good fanfic–Blood of the Maple is fun because its characters are so darn hilarious. There are pop culture references and one-liners aplenty, and the zany banter between Parker and his ghostly best friend Greg had me laughing out loud more than once. The prologue, while perhaps necessary to understand the novel’s context, was a little too… earthy, shall we say, for my own taste. But toilet humor remains popular and you may find Parker’s situation perfectly hilarious.
And, of course, you just can’t get away from how altogether ridiculous the plot behind Blood of the Maple really is. An obsessive stalker witch who controls plant weeds? A vegetarian vampire turned on by a tree dryad? A ghost having sex with a psychic? It’s crazy, it’s completely over-the-top, and if you can take off your serious hat for a second, you’ll roll with the chaos and love it.
Characters need more development
Although a fun read, Blood of the Maple still has its problems (though if you’re only reading it for the sex, you’ll be a-okay). For me, the main problem was that Parker and Amara hardly take the time to say “hello” before they fall head over heels in love and in bed. This is explained away by some new and convenient vampiric lore–auto-soulmates for vampires, essentially–but it makes for a bit of a shock to anyone expecting the main romantic relationship to face realistic conflicts and develop at a reasonable pace.
Furthermore, the secondary characters, while funny, feel like sketches rather than completed personalities. The cast is large for such a short book (short by fantasy standards, anyway), and seemingly every single character, no matter how minor, faces his or her own romantic dilemma. This leads to an overwhelming number of subplots which fail to resolve or even be significantly explored by the end of the book. Of course, these subplots are likely establishing directions for the series’ future–but in Blood of the Maple, the first book of the Maggie’s Grove series, there are just too many problems and not enough text to make the reader care about all of them.
Why should you read this book?
Blood of the Maple offers great sex scenes and a lot of laughs. It’s a sexy contemporary fantasy that doesn’t aspire to great literature at all; instead, it’s light, fun, ridiculous, and easy to read. It may lack depth, but that’s not the point. So long as you know what you’re getting into ahead of time, you’ll have fun meeting the wacky citizens of Maggie’s Grove and their many romantic combinations.
April 25, 2011
A Whipped Cream 'BEST BOOK'!!
The title of this book was a puzzle to me, at least until I met the main characters in the book. Then Blood of the Maple made perfect sense.
The Sixties: a time for peace, laughter and freedom. A wide-open feast for vampire Parker Hollis, until he runs afoul of Terri, a powerful and possessive witch who wants Parker all to herself. When she catches him with another woman, she curses him to a life of drinking only plant blood, making him the only known vegetarian vampire.
Parker runs as far from Terri as he can, and with the help of his witch friend Greg, learns to create the plant drinks he needs to survive, while avoiding Terri for the next fifty years. When Greg dies of cancer, he stays with Parker in spirit form, and they move to Maggie’s Grove, where, unbeknownst to them, the whole town is filled with supernatural beings.
As they settle in, they learn about the town, and Parker is assigned a ‘Renfield’, a protector of vampires during daylight hours. When Parker meets his new neighbor, Amara, he is drawn to her like no one before. But Amara believes him to be a normal vampire, and expects him to turn from her as others have, because she is far from normal. Amara is a hamadryad, the only known one, but even she doesn’t know this about herself, only that she is different.
Once Parker realizes he can have a relationship and life with Amara, he claims her for himself. Can Amara and Parker find the happiness together that they deserve? When Terri targets the whole town to get Parker, can they mount a successful defense and defeat Terri once and for all? And what are the odds that a gay ghost will meet the only ‘physical psychic’ in the town, and be able to have a relationship too?
Dana Marie Bell has created a new and intriguing community, filled with delightful and fascinating characters, danger, romance and humor. The trip through time, from the Sixties when Parker becomes cursed, to the Eighties when he discovers his calling to present day, having lost the physical presence of best friend Greg, is a delight. I enjoyed the conversations between Parker and Greg in modern time, when Greg is a ghost, as they are filled with humor and the obvious caring these two had.
Parker Hollis is strong, handsome and ready to get on with his life. He never expected to meet a woman he could love. He also doesn’t want to cause any more deaths by Terri’s hand. He has kept on the move, but finally, something draws him to Maggie’s Grove, Maryland, and the house on Ghost Haven Lane. I found Parker to be wonderfully loyal, and the pain he went through as he watched his best friend Greg slowly fade from cancer is well portrayed. I enjoyed the sarcastic banter between them, even though Greg is now a ghost.
Amara is a hamadryad, and a fantastic match for Parker. She is the strongest character in this book. I loved watching her discover love for the first time, and learning to care and be cared for by Parker. In many ways, Amara is an innocent, but there is a strength and passion in her, just waiting for the right trigger. That trigger turns out to be Parker, and I loved the heat that grew between them.
The secondary characters are wonderful, and I sincerely hope Ms. Bell continues with more in this world. Brian, the ‘Renfield’, is a delight, and proves to be Greg’s mate in all ways. There are weres, witches, elementals and many other supernatural beings in Maggie’s Grove, and each has a part to play in this book.
There are several episodes of peril, when Terri tries to get back at Parker and Amara, and I love the ways they handled her each time. And when Parker and Amara finally get together, the sex between them goes way beyond scorching. There are many humorous scenes here as well, and I will never forget the image brought to mind of a half naked Brian bent over the couch arm with his ghostly, and invisible, mate Greg.
There are several happy ever afters here, and one thread left open, so I am hoping for a solution in another book in the future. This one was a ‘can’t put it down’ book and I give it the highest of recommendations.
originally posted at http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/201...
The title of this book was a puzzle to me, at least until I met the main characters in the book. Then Blood of the Maple made perfect sense.
The Sixties: a time for peace, laughter and freedom. A wide-open feast for vampire Parker Hollis, until he runs afoul of Terri, a powerful and possessive witch who wants Parker all to herself. When she catches him with another woman, she curses him to a life of drinking only plant blood, making him the only known vegetarian vampire.
Parker runs as far from Terri as he can, and with the help of his witch friend Greg, learns to create the plant drinks he needs to survive, while avoiding Terri for the next fifty years. When Greg dies of cancer, he stays with Parker in spirit form, and they move to Maggie’s Grove, where, unbeknownst to them, the whole town is filled with supernatural beings.
As they settle in, they learn about the town, and Parker is assigned a ‘Renfield’, a protector of vampires during daylight hours. When Parker meets his new neighbor, Amara, he is drawn to her like no one before. But Amara believes him to be a normal vampire, and expects him to turn from her as others have, because she is far from normal. Amara is a hamadryad, the only known one, but even she doesn’t know this about herself, only that she is different.
Once Parker realizes he can have a relationship and life with Amara, he claims her for himself. Can Amara and Parker find the happiness together that they deserve? When Terri targets the whole town to get Parker, can they mount a successful defense and defeat Terri once and for all? And what are the odds that a gay ghost will meet the only ‘physical psychic’ in the town, and be able to have a relationship too?
Dana Marie Bell has created a new and intriguing community, filled with delightful and fascinating characters, danger, romance and humor. The trip through time, from the Sixties when Parker becomes cursed, to the Eighties when he discovers his calling to present day, having lost the physical presence of best friend Greg, is a delight. I enjoyed the conversations between Parker and Greg in modern time, when Greg is a ghost, as they are filled with humor and the obvious caring these two had.
Parker Hollis is strong, handsome and ready to get on with his life. He never expected to meet a woman he could love. He also doesn’t want to cause any more deaths by Terri’s hand. He has kept on the move, but finally, something draws him to Maggie’s Grove, Maryland, and the house on Ghost Haven Lane. I found Parker to be wonderfully loyal, and the pain he went through as he watched his best friend Greg slowly fade from cancer is well portrayed. I enjoyed the sarcastic banter between them, even though Greg is now a ghost.
Amara is a hamadryad, and a fantastic match for Parker. She is the strongest character in this book. I loved watching her discover love for the first time, and learning to care and be cared for by Parker. In many ways, Amara is an innocent, but there is a strength and passion in her, just waiting for the right trigger. That trigger turns out to be Parker, and I loved the heat that grew between them.
The secondary characters are wonderful, and I sincerely hope Ms. Bell continues with more in this world. Brian, the ‘Renfield’, is a delight, and proves to be Greg’s mate in all ways. There are weres, witches, elementals and many other supernatural beings in Maggie’s Grove, and each has a part to play in this book.
There are several episodes of peril, when Terri tries to get back at Parker and Amara, and I love the ways they handled her each time. And when Parker and Amara finally get together, the sex between them goes way beyond scorching. There are many humorous scenes here as well, and I will never forget the image brought to mind of a half naked Brian bent over the couch arm with his ghostly, and invisible, mate Greg.
There are several happy ever afters here, and one thread left open, so I am hoping for a solution in another book in the future. This one was a ‘can’t put it down’ book and I give it the highest of recommendations.
originally posted at http://whippedcream2.blogspot.com/201...
April 5, 2011
Favorite Lines: “It was like she’d handed him Christmas, his birthday and an all-you-can-eat porn star rolled into one. From the way he swallowed, he might have started drooling.” (p. 50)
Ok, the prologue almost made me regret my decision to read Blood of the Maple. While it was needed for the reader to completely understand the both the hero and heroine’s problems, it made me think the book was going to silly fluff. I’m pleased to say by the end of chapter one, I had discarded that thought and continued to read a very different, but extremely exciting story.
Blood of the Maple is book one in Dana Marie Bell’s Maggie’s Grove series. Maggie’s Grove is a predominately paranormal community in Maryland. Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, witches and dryads are only a few of the creatures living in Maggies Grove. The town caters to every abnormal living in the community except Amara. For an unknown reason she is shunned by most of the people in town. When Parker arrives the town welcomes him which shows it is capable of accepting those who are different, but their disdain for Amara is a puzzle.
I liked Amara from the get-go. She is a refreshing and mysterious character. We know that others fear her, but not why. My need to find out why she was treated like an outcast helped keep my flipping the pages of this ebook, but the romance was a solid second. Amara needed someone to love her and Parker had enough quirks of his own to make him worthy of her. I wanted her to find a happily ever after and that was possible with Parker.
The secondary characters almost stole the story. From the mayor to the mystic, to Parker’s best friend who happened to be a ghost and the ghost’s lover, Blood of the Maple is infused with people I’d love to know more about. I want to know their secrets and desires. I learned enough about them to want them to find love and HEAs.
One reason why you should read Blood of the Maple: The sex scenes involving a ghost. It’s a M/M relationship, so avoid this book if you dislike books which mention homosexuality.
I’m glad I read this book and would recommend others check it out. The story is 210 pages of steamy sex, funny innuendos and action. (This doesn’t include the 8 pages which included the cover, letter to the reader, dedication and acknowledgements.)
Scooper Speaks
Ok, the prologue almost made me regret my decision to read Blood of the Maple. While it was needed for the reader to completely understand the both the hero and heroine’s problems, it made me think the book was going to silly fluff. I’m pleased to say by the end of chapter one, I had discarded that thought and continued to read a very different, but extremely exciting story.
Blood of the Maple is book one in Dana Marie Bell’s Maggie’s Grove series. Maggie’s Grove is a predominately paranormal community in Maryland. Vampires, werewolves, ghosts, witches and dryads are only a few of the creatures living in Maggies Grove. The town caters to every abnormal living in the community except Amara. For an unknown reason she is shunned by most of the people in town. When Parker arrives the town welcomes him which shows it is capable of accepting those who are different, but their disdain for Amara is a puzzle.
I liked Amara from the get-go. She is a refreshing and mysterious character. We know that others fear her, but not why. My need to find out why she was treated like an outcast helped keep my flipping the pages of this ebook, but the romance was a solid second. Amara needed someone to love her and Parker had enough quirks of his own to make him worthy of her. I wanted her to find a happily ever after and that was possible with Parker.
The secondary characters almost stole the story. From the mayor to the mystic, to Parker’s best friend who happened to be a ghost and the ghost’s lover, Blood of the Maple is infused with people I’d love to know more about. I want to know their secrets and desires. I learned enough about them to want them to find love and HEAs.
One reason why you should read Blood of the Maple: The sex scenes involving a ghost. It’s a M/M relationship, so avoid this book if you dislike books which mention homosexuality.
I’m glad I read this book and would recommend others check it out. The story is 210 pages of steamy sex, funny innuendos and action. (This doesn’t include the 8 pages which included the cover, letter to the reader, dedication and acknowledgements.)
Scooper Speaks
February 6, 2012
4.5 Stars - Bell has a sick and twisted mind... and I'm loving every minute!!
Parker is an weirdo amongst the weird and Amara is an outcast in a city full of supernaturals. A vegetarian vampire, Parker moves to Maggie's Grove after his best friend dies of cancer. Greg is still with him as a ghost but Parker wants a fresh start, what he finds is a town full of supernaturals and a the only woman who's blood was made for his unique diet. Amara has been the outcast in Maggie's Grove for her whole life but when Parker sets his sights on her everything changes and they will have to face an enemy that threatens to take the whole town down with her.
I REALLY loved this story, it was very different and incredibly funny. Bell creates a world of the supernatural where even a vegetarian vampire can get some ice cream on a date and a man could have a full on sexual relationship with a ghost. The characters were well written (as always) and I fell in love with Parker, Amara, Greg and Brain. There were so many great jokes in this book that had me laughing out loud and once I managed to stop laughing Bell would just create a new situation or introduce a new character that had me laughing all over again.
This book was action packed with Amara being a great kick ass heroin. She's small and petite, almost fragile but she can throw her man over her shoulder and carry him off or fight off an entire pack of angry werewolves. The relationship and romance between Amara and Parker was amazing and I loved the idea behind all the supernatural creatures.
All in all this was a fun, enjoyable read full of laughs, action and HOT sex. I loved every minute and can't wait for the next one in the series.
Parker is an weirdo amongst the weird and Amara is an outcast in a city full of supernaturals. A vegetarian vampire, Parker moves to Maggie's Grove after his best friend dies of cancer. Greg is still with him as a ghost but Parker wants a fresh start, what he finds is a town full of supernaturals and a the only woman who's blood was made for his unique diet. Amara has been the outcast in Maggie's Grove for her whole life but when Parker sets his sights on her everything changes and they will have to face an enemy that threatens to take the whole town down with her.
I REALLY loved this story, it was very different and incredibly funny. Bell creates a world of the supernatural where even a vegetarian vampire can get some ice cream on a date and a man could have a full on sexual relationship with a ghost. The characters were well written (as always) and I fell in love with Parker, Amara, Greg and Brain. There were so many great jokes in this book that had me laughing out loud and once I managed to stop laughing Bell would just create a new situation or introduce a new character that had me laughing all over again.
This book was action packed with Amara being a great kick ass heroin. She's small and petite, almost fragile but she can throw her man over her shoulder and carry him off or fight off an entire pack of angry werewolves. The relationship and romance between Amara and Parker was amazing and I loved the idea behind all the supernatural creatures.
All in all this was a fun, enjoyable read full of laughs, action and HOT sex. I loved every minute and can't wait for the next one in the series.
April 18, 2011
How to explain this book.....Wow...There really isn't a bunch of word that come to mind. I really didn't want to put it down. This book combines everything into one. You have your Vampire who is curse but a witch to only drink "Leafy Blood", you have your love sick witch turned into god knows what searching for her lost Vamp. Then of course you have your sweet love interest Amara....Ahhhhhh....a bit naive, but one hell of a woman....LOL
Not to mention the werewolves, the driads , and all the other "creatures" that live in that wonderful town of Maggie's Grove....No wonder Parker's Best friend the now Ghost said to move there!
What I can say from this book is every single page of this book is full of action! From the get go, this story has you and doesn't let you down. Further more it eludes to a future book, which in would be awesome.
I enjoyed many parts of the book my favorite had to be the roses doing the macarena, I could just picture a bunch of rose bushes up and dancing in my head...LOL
Or when Parker was left talking to the tree alone...that was a cute moment as well.
Totally an amazing job done by this author. The Characters are well thought out, the scenes are wonderful and the story is brilliant.
Not to mention the werewolves, the driads , and all the other "creatures" that live in that wonderful town of Maggie's Grove....No wonder Parker's Best friend the now Ghost said to move there!
What I can say from this book is every single page of this book is full of action! From the get go, this story has you and doesn't let you down. Further more it eludes to a future book, which in would be awesome.
I enjoyed many parts of the book my favorite had to be the roses doing the macarena, I could just picture a bunch of rose bushes up and dancing in my head...LOL
Or when Parker was left talking to the tree alone...that was a cute moment as well.
Totally an amazing job done by this author. The Characters are well thought out, the scenes are wonderful and the story is brilliant.
May 30, 2011
For someone who supposedly doesn't read PNR, I seem to be reading a lot of it lately.
The thing is, after finishing Feed, I needed a dose of what Vinaya calls fluff-fluffy-fluffest, something where you don't have to worry about what could happen to the characters because you already know everyone will get their HEA.
Luckily, Alisha's review of this book popped in my feed and I thought "why not?" So, a couple of hours later, here we are, almost ready to read tougher books again.
I have to admit, though, that I had a lot more fun than what I was expecting. There are many characters in this town and most of them got their chance to shine a bit. Even being super "fluffy," they still managed to come across as very different people and I never had the feeling that they were just cardboard cutouts put there to fill a space, like it's often the case with these kind of books.
As brain candy goes, one can do a lot worse than this.
The thing is, after finishing Feed, I needed a dose of what Vinaya calls fluff-fluffy-fluffest, something where you don't have to worry about what could happen to the characters because you already know everyone will get their HEA.
Luckily, Alisha's review of this book popped in my feed and I thought "why not?" So, a couple of hours later, here we are, almost ready to read tougher books again.
I have to admit, though, that I had a lot more fun than what I was expecting. There are many characters in this town and most of them got their chance to shine a bit. Even being super "fluffy," they still managed to come across as very different people and I never had the feeling that they were just cardboard cutouts put there to fill a space, like it's often the case with these kind of books.
As brain candy goes, one can do a lot worse than this.
Read
August 24, 2011I'm not going to rate this, since I'm obviously a bit biased about books from this publisher ;) but I have always loved Dana Marie Bell's books, ever since I pulled her first from the slush pile, and that hasn't changed in all these books, even after I'm no longer her editor and even books published with other publishers. She's just a very talented writer and I love her voice! I read this while I was traveling overseas and it was a fantastic travel book to read. Love the world and I definitely hope to see more from her in this series for my own entertainment, if nothing else!
September 22, 2017
I rented this ebook from my local library branch because it had an interesting premise. A vampire is cursed by a fatal obsession type witch who seeks to bind him to her whether he likes it or not. In doing so, she has made it where he can only drink the blood of plants, as she is called a weed in the book. Parker has spent years fleeing Terri's wrath and obsession, but she always manages to catch up to him. Then he finds his true soulmate in Maggie's Grove, a town of nothing but supernaturals. Amara is a dryad, and he finds her irresistible both as a meal and as a woman.
I enjoyed this novel quite a bit, but I am only giving it a three out of five. When I rented it from the library, it didn't mention that it was an erotic piece. Of course, that didn't deter me, as I do not mind reading sex scenes. I thought I could handle it, but I couldn't take the erotic parts seriously because of how ridiculously they were written. I couldn't find it sexy. It was just crude and in overabundance. There must have been at least three separate anal sex scenes, because Amara apparently loves anal.
Sex scenes aside, I did enjoy the story immensely. It was a unique take on a vampire, making him vegetarian, and I thought that his attraction to Amara because of her being a dryad was clever. I enjoyed all of the characters, and I was happy that there were gay characters as well. Parker's best friend Greg is actually gay, and their interactions felt so natural and amusing. It was refreshing.
Would I recommend this book to other people? It would depend on their tastes in books. For those who love romance and fantasy, and don't mind trashy love scenes, sure. To someone that is more reserved in their reading habits, definitely no.
TL;DR: Good fantasy. Good romance. Hilarious sex scenes. 3/5, would probably read again.
I enjoyed this novel quite a bit, but I am only giving it a three out of five. When I rented it from the library, it didn't mention that it was an erotic piece. Of course, that didn't deter me, as I do not mind reading sex scenes. I thought I could handle it, but I couldn't take the erotic parts seriously because of how ridiculously they were written. I couldn't find it sexy. It was just crude and in overabundance. There must have been at least three separate anal sex scenes, because Amara apparently loves anal.
Sex scenes aside, I did enjoy the story immensely. It was a unique take on a vampire, making him vegetarian, and I thought that his attraction to Amara because of her being a dryad was clever. I enjoyed all of the characters, and I was happy that there were gay characters as well. Parker's best friend Greg is actually gay, and their interactions felt so natural and amusing. It was refreshing.
Would I recommend this book to other people? It would depend on their tastes in books. For those who love romance and fantasy, and don't mind trashy love scenes, sure. To someone that is more reserved in their reading habits, definitely no.
TL;DR: Good fantasy. Good romance. Hilarious sex scenes. 3/5, would probably read again.
March 20, 2018
An ok story...the narrator didn't differentiate voices well, and I could hardly ever tell a male from a female. Way more sex than I was expecting, too. I don't shy away from sex in a story but it seemed over the top in this one.
July 27, 2018
Fun silly pick-me-up read that feels a little fanfiction. A nice break from my more serious books :)
First time reading a book centered around a dryad. Although it felt like there were too many dryads at the end. Interesting and entertaining story lore overall. I haven't read a paranormal story in a long time.
First time reading a book centered around a dryad. Although it felt like there were too many dryads at the end. Interesting and entertaining story lore overall. I haven't read a paranormal story in a long time.
October 5, 2021
This book had me laughing out loud and enjoying the romance. The town of Maggie’s Grove is a unique place and it’s inhabitants are all unique and quirky. Ms. Bell had written a fun story that allows the reader to escape into a good happy ending. I loved this book and the whole series. Thank
March 5, 2017
Parker a vampire has been cursed by a witch to only drink green blood in other words he is the the vegetarian vampire, the witch is out to get him can he get rid of her for good.
October 26, 2017
Good start to another kickass series by Dana Marie Bell.
April 20, 2018
DNF at 41%. This is basically Halloweentown fan fiction. I couldn’t keep reading. The author’s voice was incredibly annoying to me, but I could imagine a Shelly Laurenston fan liking it.
December 29, 2018
yowza!
April 26, 2019
I listened to the audiobook.
July 26, 2019
Good characters... a bit over the top.
September 21, 2012
Blood of the Maple – Maggie’s Grove Book 1 came out a while ago and this is the second time I have read it – it is that good and deserves to be read! Ms. Bell is a favourite author of mine – hence the second reading. She writes a variety of books – I love her Halle Puma’s and Shifters. Her Gray Court series is developing into a completely enthralling series that goes from good to better with each installment and now we have Blood of the Maple.
In Blood of the Maple, she is starting another series and this one is really fun and definitely interesting. Parker Hollis is a vampire who has a bad run-in with a witch who curses him. Now you might think that a vamp would shrug off the curse, but it isn’t any old curse. This witch who still harasses him cursed him to drink plant blood. He cannot drink human blood and any time he gets even remotely close to a female, well, suffice it to say it is as if Terri has a radar or GPS attached in some way to Parker – she turns up like a bad penny – ready to wreak havoc. How can one of the undead survive on plant blood?
What also makes this story interesting is the stages in time that take us to the present – we get to see the characters as they started out and as they develop. Parker is helped out by his friend Greg, who happens to be gay and a witch to boot. He is a great friend to Parker and if he hadn’t helped Parker, he would have died with certainty from the curse. Unfortunately Greg has cancer and in his last wish he is looking out for Parker. He gives him instructions to go to Maggie’s Grove and buy a house and have little vamplings! When Greg dies he sticks around as a ghost for his friend - how dedicated is that? Greg didn’t want to be turned if you are wondering why Parker didn’t save his best friend. He was a witch and if he became a vamp he would have lost his connection forever with what had made him the witch he was!
So Parker moves to Maggie’s Grove and finds a red headed dryad called Amara Schwendler. There is something about Amara that calls to him. She recognizes him for what he is and he finds her tantalizingly attractive, but there is something else about her. Amara is special – slightly more than a dryad as she puts it, but she feels that she doesn’t fit in, and as a dryad, how could she and Parker ever have a relationship? Here is where the title and the book cover actually begin to make some more sense, but I am not going to give it away!
Parker’s welcome to Maggie’s Grove is quite a hoot – he gets his own Renfield to look after his needs and discovers a great deal more about Maggie’s Grove that he didn’t know – ever tasted plant based ice cream? Once Parker realizes he can have a relationship and life with Amara – because she is a dryad he claims her for himself. Can Amara and Parker – who are strange outcasts on their own, but a perfect fit together find the happiness together that they deserve? What will happen when Terri targets the whole town to get Parker? Can the residents of Maggie’s Grove all work together and overcome fear and distrust of each other and mount a successful defense and defeat Terri once and for all? She does have a nasty habit of coming back! To top it off, what are the odds that a gay ghost will meet the only ‘physical psychic’/Renfield in the town, and be able to have a relationship too – his own HEA?
I loved Parker – when he discovers what Amara really means to him, his relationship with his best friend Greg and his acceptance of those in Maggie’s Grove. He is strong and resilient and he doesn’t want anyone else to get hurt by the evil witch who cursed him.
Amara is really an innocent – a part of the world and of Maggie’s Grove, yet apart from it in so many ways –ways that are certainly not of her choosing. This has been hurtful to her and she deals with it developing a strength of character and yet also retains a compassion for others, regardless of how they have treated her! She loves her vamp and she is strong enough to take all that he can dish out. The sex between these two is scorchingly hot. Parker is a bit of a dominant as you would expect for an alpha vamp but Amara is able to take all that he gives. The scenes with Brian and Greg are also hilarious and the dialogue – it will have you laughing your head off.
The secondary characters also help to make this book so much more interesting. There are so many different couple combinations and there are lots of intriguing characters and hints that I for one am waiting with bated breath for the next part in this series! If you like a supernatural world with well written characters, great dialogue, tension, danger and hot lovemaking, then you need look no further than Blood of the Maple!
Reviewed for Manic Readers at http://www.manicreaders.com/index.cfm...
In Blood of the Maple, she is starting another series and this one is really fun and definitely interesting. Parker Hollis is a vampire who has a bad run-in with a witch who curses him. Now you might think that a vamp would shrug off the curse, but it isn’t any old curse. This witch who still harasses him cursed him to drink plant blood. He cannot drink human blood and any time he gets even remotely close to a female, well, suffice it to say it is as if Terri has a radar or GPS attached in some way to Parker – she turns up like a bad penny – ready to wreak havoc. How can one of the undead survive on plant blood?
What also makes this story interesting is the stages in time that take us to the present – we get to see the characters as they started out and as they develop. Parker is helped out by his friend Greg, who happens to be gay and a witch to boot. He is a great friend to Parker and if he hadn’t helped Parker, he would have died with certainty from the curse. Unfortunately Greg has cancer and in his last wish he is looking out for Parker. He gives him instructions to go to Maggie’s Grove and buy a house and have little vamplings! When Greg dies he sticks around as a ghost for his friend - how dedicated is that? Greg didn’t want to be turned if you are wondering why Parker didn’t save his best friend. He was a witch and if he became a vamp he would have lost his connection forever with what had made him the witch he was!
So Parker moves to Maggie’s Grove and finds a red headed dryad called Amara Schwendler. There is something about Amara that calls to him. She recognizes him for what he is and he finds her tantalizingly attractive, but there is something else about her. Amara is special – slightly more than a dryad as she puts it, but she feels that she doesn’t fit in, and as a dryad, how could she and Parker ever have a relationship? Here is where the title and the book cover actually begin to make some more sense, but I am not going to give it away!
Parker’s welcome to Maggie’s Grove is quite a hoot – he gets his own Renfield to look after his needs and discovers a great deal more about Maggie’s Grove that he didn’t know – ever tasted plant based ice cream? Once Parker realizes he can have a relationship and life with Amara – because she is a dryad he claims her for himself. Can Amara and Parker – who are strange outcasts on their own, but a perfect fit together find the happiness together that they deserve? What will happen when Terri targets the whole town to get Parker? Can the residents of Maggie’s Grove all work together and overcome fear and distrust of each other and mount a successful defense and defeat Terri once and for all? She does have a nasty habit of coming back! To top it off, what are the odds that a gay ghost will meet the only ‘physical psychic’/Renfield in the town, and be able to have a relationship too – his own HEA?
I loved Parker – when he discovers what Amara really means to him, his relationship with his best friend Greg and his acceptance of those in Maggie’s Grove. He is strong and resilient and he doesn’t want anyone else to get hurt by the evil witch who cursed him.
Amara is really an innocent – a part of the world and of Maggie’s Grove, yet apart from it in so many ways –ways that are certainly not of her choosing. This has been hurtful to her and she deals with it developing a strength of character and yet also retains a compassion for others, regardless of how they have treated her! She loves her vamp and she is strong enough to take all that he can dish out. The sex between these two is scorchingly hot. Parker is a bit of a dominant as you would expect for an alpha vamp but Amara is able to take all that he gives. The scenes with Brian and Greg are also hilarious and the dialogue – it will have you laughing your head off.
The secondary characters also help to make this book so much more interesting. There are so many different couple combinations and there are lots of intriguing characters and hints that I for one am waiting with bated breath for the next part in this series! If you like a supernatural world with well written characters, great dialogue, tension, danger and hot lovemaking, then you need look no further than Blood of the Maple!
Reviewed for Manic Readers at http://www.manicreaders.com/index.cfm...
April 20, 2011
Parker Hollis is a big slut. A smooth, good-looking Vampire, he thinks nothing of loving, feeding and then leaving, females across the world. As with most slutty men in Romance novels, karma does, eventually, turn around and bite him on the ass. In this case Karma comes in the form of a very powerful witch. Terri is a dark witch who adores Parker. When she catches him “with his fangs down” feeding from another woman, she takes great exception to the fact that she isn’t his only food source. She puts him under a curse, which means that she will be the only person he can drink blood from, and that the rest of the food should come only from plants. Flash forward to years later and Parker is living with as a full Vegetarian Vampire, with an unwanted Masters in Botany, and a ghostly companion. Before his premature death, his ghostly companion, Greg, had made him promise that he would move to the little town of Maggie’s Grove and “have little Vampires”. Maggie’s Grove is a weird little place that is built for Supernatural beings. They have Vampires, Witches, werewolves and Dryads amongst other things. Parker is even assigned his own Renfield (I loved this Dracula reference....:D). Maggie's Grove also comes with Amara, his fascinating neighbour. Amara is a Dryad, which means that she is a nymph that has an affinity for plants. The rest of the town shun her because she is weird even by their standards, but she has nowhere else to go. Parker and Amara find themselves drawn towards each other and find that she is his “blood wife” (the one woman that can sustain Parker forever) However, what about the pesky little curse? Moreover, what will psycho witch Terry do to them once she finds out?
This book was funny. It isn’t clever funny, or sarcastically funny but very silly. To be honest that’s one of the reasons that I kept reading. It reminded me of a PNR crossed with early Janet Evanovich and, I’m hoping, that this isn’t just a standalone book! The concept of a Vegetarian vampire isn’t new, but the concept of a vampire that can only eat plant blood is fantastically crazy. I howled with laughter at an account of a time where Parker tried to eat the “blood” of a cactus ...the science teacher in me could have told him that wasn’t a great plan! The relationship he has with Greg, his witch, is lovely to read and I’m so glad that it continued after his death as I always enjoy a good Bromance. As much as I enjoyed reading about Parker, It took me a while to get into the character of Amara. It was absolutely atrocious how the how the towns peopletreated her and I enjoyed Miss Bells attempts to prove that, even in a community of “freaks”, it is human nature to pick on the freak of the bunch! What annoyed me slightly about Amara were the contradictions within her character. She was isolated for all her life and the story kept mentioning how she had problems with men and had very little romanctic/sexual experience. Then about half way through the book, when she and Parker finally started to have sex, she turned into a connoisseur of Kink. She knew all the tricks, knew what she liked and, even stranger, she constantly wanted anal sex because she loved it so much. It just didn’t sit well with her character I had pictured in my head and it made me a little less invested in their story. When Parker and Amara finally get it together (which they obviously do...she is part plant!) it is smoking. They pretty much have sex everywhere, every which way and often! There were bits that made my palms a little sweaty and bits that made me blush....definitely five stars for the smut :D
The side characters were fun. I really enjoyed the burgeoning relationship with Greg the Ghost and Brian, the Renfield. Brain is not only Parkers Renfield (which is basically a Vampire’s fetcher/carrier during the daylight hours) but also a physical psychic. This means he can feel/touch ghosts....this led to some INTERESTING love scenes between the two and some stupid questions on my part (can a ghost orgasm?) To be honest one of the reasons I hope this isn’t a standalone book is because I would like to see how they work out their relationships with its obvious limitations! I also liked the Mayors character and felt his HEA was completely rushed and unsatisfying...there were too many loves stories going in one book to make me happy with every romances progression and conclusion!
Overall, a very funny, light read with some amazing characters that deserves to have their own stories written. I haven’t gone into the whole twist at the end, with some interesting developments in Amara's true heritage, and the final battle between Parker and Terri because it’s too damn fun to give you any hints! A surprising find with an awesome cover...well worth a read!
This book was funny. It isn’t clever funny, or sarcastically funny but very silly. To be honest that’s one of the reasons that I kept reading. It reminded me of a PNR crossed with early Janet Evanovich and, I’m hoping, that this isn’t just a standalone book! The concept of a Vegetarian vampire isn’t new, but the concept of a vampire that can only eat plant blood is fantastically crazy. I howled with laughter at an account of a time where Parker tried to eat the “blood” of a cactus ...the science teacher in me could have told him that wasn’t a great plan! The relationship he has with Greg, his witch, is lovely to read and I’m so glad that it continued after his death as I always enjoy a good Bromance. As much as I enjoyed reading about Parker, It took me a while to get into the character of Amara. It was absolutely atrocious how the how the towns peopletreated her and I enjoyed Miss Bells attempts to prove that, even in a community of “freaks”, it is human nature to pick on the freak of the bunch! What annoyed me slightly about Amara were the contradictions within her character. She was isolated for all her life and the story kept mentioning how she had problems with men and had very little romanctic/sexual experience. Then about half way through the book, when she and Parker finally started to have sex, she turned into a connoisseur of Kink. She knew all the tricks, knew what she liked and, even stranger, she constantly wanted anal sex because she loved it so much. It just didn’t sit well with her character I had pictured in my head and it made me a little less invested in their story. When Parker and Amara finally get it together (which they obviously do...she is part plant!) it is smoking. They pretty much have sex everywhere, every which way and often! There were bits that made my palms a little sweaty and bits that made me blush....definitely five stars for the smut :D
The side characters were fun. I really enjoyed the burgeoning relationship with Greg the Ghost and Brian, the Renfield. Brain is not only Parkers Renfield (which is basically a Vampire’s fetcher/carrier during the daylight hours) but also a physical psychic. This means he can feel/touch ghosts....this led to some INTERESTING love scenes between the two and some stupid questions on my part (can a ghost orgasm?) To be honest one of the reasons I hope this isn’t a standalone book is because I would like to see how they work out their relationships with its obvious limitations! I also liked the Mayors character and felt his HEA was completely rushed and unsatisfying...there were too many loves stories going in one book to make me happy with every romances progression and conclusion!
Overall, a very funny, light read with some amazing characters that deserves to have their own stories written. I haven’t gone into the whole twist at the end, with some interesting developments in Amara's true heritage, and the final battle between Parker and Terri because it’s too damn fun to give you any hints! A surprising find with an awesome cover...well worth a read!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 114 reviews