Sire

The Vampires of St. Troy #1

by Thomas Galvin

It's Caitlin's first night in St. Troy. Her first night at college. Her first night away from home.

There are two great girls in her suite, and two cute guys across the hall.

And two vampires fighting over her.

Now she's all alone, locked up in an empty room in a monster's mansion. And there are screams coming from outside the door ...

Sire is Thomas Galvin's hit debut novel, the first book in the new Vampires of St. Troy series, which blends horror, action and romance into a bloody tale that will have you turning pages until the sun comes up.

Genres: Vampires, Fantasy, Paranormal, Young Adult, Romance, Paranormal Romance, M F Romance

267 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Thomas Galvin is many things: an attention whore, an arrogant jerk, a jaded cynic. But he's also an author who spends far too much time thinking about vampires and the teenage girls that love them.

He may also be a were-corgi-pire. No one is really sure, but the way he avoids the subject makes us think he's hiding something.

Thomas lives in the desolate middle of New York, along with The Lady of the Manor and their two cats, Mirjen and Pixel.

For more of his writing, including his infamous Vampire Diaries recaps, visit his blog, Thomas-Galvin.com.

Reviews

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit that I've grown a bit burned out on vampire books as of late, what with the recent flood of them on the market. But I'm glad to say that I was pleasantly surprised by Sire. The main female character is smart and non-annoying (YAY FINALLY!). The same goes for the other characters. I found myself rooting for secondary characters as much as the main guys. Galvin brought his wit and humor to the story and made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion. Another thing I really enjoyed were the "bad guys". They were clever and at times comedic in their sinister ways.

I gave 4 stars because this is his first novel and I think he has some room to grow with the next book (which I'm super excited about since I love a good book series.)

If you want a break from ridiculous, helpless female characters and shallow, one dimensional villains but still need your vampy fix... check this one out.

[Maddison Dru · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four stars is generous. I would say 3.5 ish. It wasn't bad. It wasn't fantastic.

What I liked:
•The fast pace. You didn't have time to get bored with it.
•This is really an extension of bullet point number one, but it was definitely a page turner. I couldn't put it down. I wanted to see what happened next. How they were going to get out of this problem. And so on.
•I was genuinely on the edge of my seat for some of the scenes.
•Some of the fight descriptions made me cringe at the gore. Yes, this is a good thing.
•There were a few parts where I legit laughed out loud. Some of the lines were extremely witty and I truly appreciated that.

What I didn't:
•I wasn't really invested in any of the characters. We got to be in nearly every person's head at some point, and yet I didn't feel like I knew any of them by the conclusion. There was very little in the personality department, and I could have used a smidge less action to be filled with more character development.
•I really didn't enjoy the whole switching point of views because it was more convenient. It just seems like cheating to me. And I honestly think that's why I felt so disconnected with the characters. I never got to spend enough time with any of them. Not even the main character. I wish he would have picked one, two at most, point of views and stuck with it.
•I feel like there was more action than actual plot. Which honestly, is just personal taste. Some people like that. It's why action movies are popular. It's just not my thing. And this is my review. So there. Haha.

In conclusion, I liked it well enough. I didn't love it by any means. But if he writes another one, I'll more than likely check it out in anticipation of more character development.

[tif · Rating 5 out of 5]

In case you didn't know already, I am a fan of the TV show The Vampire Diaries. It’s something that I have in common with the author of Sire, Thomas Galvin. I discovered his hilarious recaps early in the 2nd season of TVD and have been reading them weekly since. So when I heard that he was writing a book series about vampires, it shot to the top of my must-read list. I loved Sire nearly from start to finish. Since I read his recaps of supernatural/paranormal shows like The Vampire Diaries, True Blood, and Teen Wolf regularly, it was interesting for me to see the best elements of popular portrayals of vampires and the like combined in his debut novel. One thing I especially loved was the fact that while Caitlin is the main character, and the girl that falls for the vampire, her friends are not left out of the knowledge, and are not excluded from the action. She doesn’t sneak off to go see him, leaving her friends none the wiser. When it comes to the “big bad”, her friends are actively involved. Speaking of “big bad”, for me Sire evoked a “Scooby gang” feeling reminiscent of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which I loved. By mentioning all these well-known vampire TV shows, I am in no way saying that Sire is a rip off of all the shows combined, but rather a new and unique story in the same style of team friendships and sarcastic humor yet serious butt-kicking. I cannot wait for the next book in the Vampires of St. Troy series!

[Booknut 101 · Rating 3 out of 5]

We have one big, bad girl vampire who wants to feed on pretty teenagers and has a serious 'petty girlfriend' complex about guys who aren't her boyfriend. A.k.a "Mine, mine, mine, mine...MINE!"



A vampire who falls in love with a human girl and they have alot of these moments:



Plus, of course, the human girl has her little group of besties. She's all "Hey, my new boyfriend of 24 hours is a freaking vampire!" And they're all like..."Girl, say whaaaaaaaaaaaaat?!"



A love story like no other (well, kinda) with hot vamps, evil vs good and a whole lot of college students who really need to watch a few horror movies. Seriously. Rule #1 is like, don't answer the door and when the lights start flickering...STAY WHERE YOU ARE!

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I follow the the author,Thomas Galvin, Twitter and LOVE his Vampire Diaries recaps. I had been trying to get the book on my BN Nook for about 2 weeks and it wouldn't work. I tweeted to the author, Thomas Galvin, to let him know that I couldn't get the book and was bummed. Not even an hour later, he emailed me and sent me the book, free of charge! I was stoked. I started reading the book about 2 minutes after he sent it and was instantly hooked! Finished it in just a couple of days. It has my 3 favorite things: vampires, love triangles, and action! I would recommend it to fans of the Morganville Vampires as some of the mythology is similar but it is DEFINITELY a totally different story than that series. I highly recommend it. All the points ever to Thomas Galvin. He is a fan of the genre and I think that helps. He really made a story that I wanted to read and enjoyed reading. Can't wait for the 2nd book, Scion, to come out!

[Taryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back around Season 2 of The Vampire Diaries, I discovered Thomas Galvin's hilarious recaps. So of course when he announced that he was writing a book I wanted to read it.

Sire is a fun book that reads a lot like a television show, reminding me of The Vampire Diaries, The Originals, The Secret Circle, basically all those CW shows about the supernatural that move at a breakneck pace. Some things about it worked (no huge blocks of text about boring things!) and some didn't (tons of scene changes in a single chapter after only a few paragraphs from one POV).

The characters are numerous and we get to be in everyone's head at some point, but they didn't feel fleshed out enough. It was nice that they weren't all dumb as rocks: choosing the obvious escape route/fighting back against their attackers/running from the bad things/etc that a lot of us are always screaming at the characters on our television screen to do because it's so obvious. They're also all at risk of suffering from an unfortunate case of death, no plot armour here! Descriptions of the characters are given right out of the gate when they're first introduced in a small paragraph of exposition. I'm fifty-fifty about this because it's nice when we're given a physical description immediately so we know what they look like, but it doesn't flow naturally in the narrative and feels somewhat awkward. Either way, it didn't deter me from enjoying the story.

The story is pretty basic, yet it is engaging. Caitlyn, our heroine, is going to St. Troy University, makes friends with her roommates, goes out clubbing and finds herself smack dab in the middle of a love triangle with two vampires. Although I have to wonder, is it really a love triangle? Caitlyn has no real interest in Liam (and why would she, guy is a major asshole) and he just wants her as a plaything. *shrugs* I dunno, I can't keep those pesky love triangle rules straight. Anyway, from there things start to move like a speeding locomotive, crazy stuff happening one after another, usually with lots of blood and dead bodies.

Michael and Caitlyn... meh, they're okay. They suffer from insta-love, as many Young Adult couples do, although in this case I think it may be from how fast this book moves (Stefan and Elena declaring their love in episode four of The Vampire Diaries, anyone?). Caitlyn isn't some weepy, pathetic heroine, although a lot of the time she can't do anything against vampires because she's a human, but give the girl points for trying! Michael isn't an emo mess either, although his 'vegetarian diet' of animal blood only kept reminding me of Stefan, who was a bland, boring emo hero. I did like that it was pointed out that Michael had only been training with his weapons for eight months, so he was really novice with them but he could still kill werewolves. (Werewolves are basically mooks in this book, all wearing red shirts and dying in every scene.)

Speaking of the fight scenes, wow did they drag for me. I found myself skimming closer to the end because they were so long. I would have enjoyed shorter fight scenes in favour of giving the characters more development, but I'm also not someone who needs to read OMG ACTION all the time.

Small pondering: can anyone use magic, or did Evan just luck out when he was the one that tried to use it because he's a mage? It's not really clear. Evan does say it looks like anyone can use magic, but later Angelica says she never sees mages anymore, which sounds like it's a genetic thing (either that or the twenty first century doesn't know about magic the same way they don't know about vampires. *shrug*).

I only really have two things that bugged me overall. First, Michael's back story. It is repeated, in its full glory, twice in the book: once to Caitlyn, once to her friends. Reading it the second time felt redundant. I think a simple "Michael launched into his story, which Caitlyn had heard before" would have sufficed the second time and then the addition of how they fought Liam (which wasn't explained in detail when he talked to Caitlyn) could have been put in. While we're on it, why exactly was Michael sentenced to death for trying to kill Liam? As I understood it, the rules laid out by Angelica are to keep the vampires in line since they ignore human rules. At the time Michael is still a human, so why is he being punished with vampire law? I know, there had to be some explanation as to why Michael was turned and Thomas probably wanted it tied into the failed assassination of Liam, but... I don't know, it didn't ring true for me.

Second, how did the random vampire at Indigo know all about Angelica’s plans for Michael and where Caitlyn was being held? Did she hand out flyers? I assume she would have told her Scions, but one is dead and the other one is being held in the dungeon so... huh? Yes, Alexis and Garret needed to know where to go to move the plot along, hence why random vampire who didn't even have a name knew about it. Another irritation is that the vampire caved into their torture and spilled his guts way too easily.

The story ends on a cliffhanger (NOOOOOOOO), to be continued in Scion. I'm looking forward to it!

[Lady Entropy · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[Ellie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first thing that came to mind while reading this book was that it was like reading a television show. Very exciting, fast paced, and dramatic. However some elements did not translate well.

It's Caitlin's freshman year of college and we meet her as she's being dropped off at campus (by a taxi) and meeting her roommates for the first time. The first thing that reminded me of a tv show was that there are virtually no adults in this book. No parents, no professors, just a group of attractive 18-19 yo's. (And assorted paranormals) One of the things that I thought this book struggled with was desriptions. As the book went on and there weren't as many new characters to introduce this became less of an issue for me but at the beginning it felt clunky and took me out of the story.

Descriptions such as:

She [Caitlin's roommate] was about five foot one, and light as a feather. Her skin was just a beautiful mocha, and her hair hung down her back in tight little ringlets. She was wearing dark blue skinny jeans with a loose white top and a collection of gold bracelets.

and

A girl [another roommate] was standing behind the counter, putting some boxes into the cupboards. Her brown hair was pulled back into a pony tail, and her eyes were hidden behind a pair of thick-rimmed glasses. She was wearing a simple, floral-patterned top.

Then I got hung up on this description of the main character, Caitlin:

"Wow ... you're beautiful."
"Thanks, Bethany," Caitlin said, laughing. She wasn't arrogant about it, but she knew that Bethany was right. She wasn't tall, about five two, but most guys didn't like really tall girls anyway. She was lean without being bony, and her legs were strong from all of the running she did. Her hair was a thick cascade of brown and gold curls that fell almost to her waist, and her eyes were brilliant and green. She was wearing a pair of jean shorts and a black top that accented her substantial curves. She took care of herself, sure, but Caitlin knew that she had been born pretty, and she was grateful.

First of all, I'm all for characters to be self aware but I this sounded pretty stuck up to me. Also, this sets up the Mary Sue syndrome we're going to see for the rest of the book. :/

Once we've been introduced, Caitlin and most of her roommates and the boys they have (naturally) met decide that the best way to celebrate the first day of college life is to go clubbing. Once there Caitlin catches the eye of... Liam.

An absolute giant of a man was moving through the crowd. He was nearly seven feet tall, with brownish-red hair that reached to his stubble-covered chin. His shirt, a tight knit thing the color of midnight, was positively struggling to contain the muscles that bunched and coiled as he moved, and he wore a pair of black leather pants. He looked down at the people huddled around the door like a king looking at his subjects, and smiled beneficently. The crowd surged toward him, like gravity was pulling them forward, but no one actually touched him.

But don't worry gentle readers, Caitlin wouldn't be a real Mary Sue unless she also caught the eye of... Michael.

He was beautiful. Tall, more than six feet, lean and muscular. Like he was a swimmer, or a dancer. He was dressed in a tight black shirt and jeans that must have cost a hundred dollars. His hair was dark brown, streaked with golden highlights, and wild. His jaw was strong, and his cheekbones were like razors. But it was his eyes ... God, his eyes. They were a piercing blue, as deep and clear as the ocean, and they caught the light like gemstones.

Fortunately, although both are instantly attracted to Caitlin it doesn't turn into a love triangle. Caitlin makes an immediate choice between them which I did find refreshing. Unfortunately it never develops between instalust and so I had trouble connecting emotionally as the story went on.

From here the plot takes on a breakneck pace. Caitlin and her friends are repeatedly endangered and come up with elaborate plans to defeat the Big Bad. We are quickly introduced to the paranormal faction in town and although the politics are never discussed in depth we understand that they are the controlling force in town and have powerful ties to Liam and MIchael.

One thing that was interesting in a YA (I might classify this as New Adult) was that there were quite a few character casualties. I never felt like anyone was 100% safe which definitely kept me reading.

The final showdown delivers on the pacing and paranormal conflicts while setting up for a sequel.

Overall a fun novel that I wished had a little more depth and character development.

[Jamal Park · Rating 4 out of 5]

I couldn’t stop reading Sire if I tried. I went to work with the thought process being, “I’m going to finish that damn book tonight.” Wondering what was going to happen next kept me from doing other things and I love when I read a book and that happens! It takes up my whole day and its worth it. I was surprised at how much I loved the action and how easy to follow it was. The characters are very interesting and there were scenes that were just so incredibly well written that displayed the villains as competent and thus even scarier people, that I had to read them 3-4x. I’m not used to villains being so...their dialogue was burning to read because it was true and it was them showing their power without having to get physical, and that made it 10 times as scary. The word sensuous accurately describes the book because it was very sexy without getting explicit. He was descriptive without being pornagraphic and that was just hot.

This book has a lot going for it. Its incredibly funny and self aware. I laughed aloud several times as I felt his clear fandom bleeding through in characters. Seeing a story poke fun of a genre while still stepping the game up was exciting.



As far as criticism, the only thing I didn’t like was how powerless some people felt. There was a sense of hopelessness I couldn’t shake throughout most of the book because the characters didn’t have any options to shake the overwhelmingly powerful antagonist.

All said and down, I am very much looking forward to follow-up installment.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know Thomas Galvin from his blog featuring hilarious recaps of episodes of vampire shows, including two of my favorite shows, Vampire Diaries and True Blood. His sense of humor is also apparent in this book (and the mini-recaps he has been doing for his online Sire Book Club). It is also a treat to see elements in his vampire novel that he has commented on or made fun of in his past recaps. Overall, I found the book to be entertaining. I like the cold open of the book, I like the characters, I like the premise of a vampire town that collects pretty humans, I like the conflict, I like the derisive remarks about Twilight that pepper the dialogue. One of the only things I didn't like about the book was what a cliffhanger it ended on. But that just leaves me waiting, rather impatiently, wanting for more.

[T.Say · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a fast paced nod to popular vamp lore these days. I liked it. I loved that it was set in a college town as opposed to high school or just some random location. Great for a self published book. It basically gave me what I expected. Loved the writing style which was hilarious at times and almost a parody of modern vamp fic. Believe it or not I was shocked by the ending. Glad things weren't predictable.

The only con...so over the "of color" side kick/best friend character with an awful attitude. Yes, Alexis had pro characteristics but she was that same feisty aggressive attitudinal black/ethnic girl we've seen everywhere by now. Women of color are a diverse group. I long for the day when mainstream authors can display that effectively while giving such characters action in the story line.

Otherwise pretty much loved the book. Can't wait until the follow up!

[Mina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sire was definitely so much better then I expected it to be. It's very fast-paced, and such a lovely summer read. characters are likeable, at times shallow though. I hope there will be more character development in the upcoming books, because it's missing some kind of a depth to them, I especially hope we get to know Angelica better. LOVED the humor, little puns and sarcastic comments. And I also loved the way a romantic story wasn't necessairly forced into the story, but just kind of happened along the way.

Overall a very good, refreshing book, everyone should give it a read. Can't wait to read Scion.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered Thomas Galvin because of his hilarious recaps of The Vampire Diaries, so when I heard he wrote a book I was very curious about it. I'm Italian, so usually I don't buy books in english, but I bought this one. I started reading it on Friday night and I finished on Sunday. I simply couldn't stop. Maybe one of the best novels I've ever read, and I read a lot. I don't want to make any spoiler but I can say this: I found myself thinking "OMG, I can't believe it!" at least once. And I'm reading it again, waiting for the second chapter!

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book because I really liked the funny episode recaps the author does for one of my favorite guilty pleasure shows, the Vampire Diaries. I'm also happy to support the career of a North Country author (as a native of the area myself.) I believe this is his first novel, and while the character development could have been a bit better, I definitely enjoyed it—especially the snarky tone and the characters' tendencies to NOT do the stupid things that make you want to scream in frustration—and I'm looking forward to the sequel.

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first began reading Sire I wondered if it was going to be just like The Vampire Diaries, there were some similarities but it was different. The story definitely kept me intrigued and the character development was good. I would give the story a 4, but more editing was necessary. I know the the author explained this at the end. I hope that the book is successful and that there is more editing for the next book. All in all a good read.

[Pepca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sire Sire is pretty much everything I look for in paranormal genre. I loved its action-packed plot, fantastic characters, and just enough romance to make a girl swoon.RECOMMENDATION: Sire is an amazing collage of a little bit of everything paranormal. It is a real page-turner and a must-read for the fans of the genre. 4.5 stars

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very fast paced. I had a hard time putting it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. There wasn't a moment to get bored with the book. You don't expect any of the characters to be safe, which is a refreshing change. This is not a predictible book and that's what I liked best about it. I can't wait to read the sequel!

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was great.

The characters in this story have a very real essence about them. And the action never stops. Not once was i bored having to read through unimportant information.

I'm on the edge of my seat to see what happens next.

[Periwinklepsyche · Rating 5 out of 5]

it's one hell of a good book! damn with its frustrating cliff-hanger! I felt like i'm screaming for more! Sire was one of the best vampire novel that I've ever read! praise for this excellent book! love it! <3

[Genie · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like 3.5, it was good but not great.

[Misty Grove · Rating 2 out of 5]

So disappointed in this. I was so bored by this. I normally expect to suspend belief when reading paranormal books, but at times this was ludicrous.

[Dani · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Loved the fast pace of the book. I read it so fast that now I am waiting for the second book to come out.

[Kagama-the Literaturevixen]

Sounds a bit like the same old thing...but adding just in case.

[Ivanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5, actually.

[Elizabeth Farquharson · Rating 4 out of 5]

great story, couldn't put it down! was really looking forward to reading it and it did not disappoint!

[Bella Marie · Rating 2 out of 5]

one of (unfotunatelly)the most boring books about vampires ever!!! A huge disappointment >(

[Janet Lojingki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just.. Wow.

[Suz]

Tabled series due to cliff hanger ending of first book per Mona Enderli's review.

[Ghostrunner]

as soon as the heroine described herself as " 5 foot 2, but most guys didn't like tall girls anyway..." I was done.