The Darkness Bites Back

The Shadows Have Teeth #1

by Laura R. Samotin, Ben Alderson

Centuries ago, Tobias Osian had his mortality stolen from him when he was unwillingly turned into a vampire. Ever since, he’s been consumed by the need for revenge against the monster who took his humanity - Vladimir Damianos, the head of Britain’s most powerful vampire clan.

Now, Tobias is finally ready to enact his plan for vengeance, using Vladimir’s son Alexander to infiltrate the family and bring down the entire clan. But what he doesn’t expect is that Alexander has rebelled against his bloodthirsty father by protecting mortals instead of hunting them. When the two meet, Alexander is instantly enamoured with Tobias. And as a string of attacks rocks the city of Oxford, Alexander proves himself committed to protecting Tobias, not knowing that Tobias is just as much of a monster as he is.

With his attraction to Alexander growing, Tobias must decide what means more to him: vengeance, or a love growing from the most tragic of places.

Perfect for fans of Interview With the Vampire and Saltburn, this high-heat paranormal romance brings together blood and lust in an intoxicating combination.

Genres: Fantasy, Vampires, Romance, Adult, Paranormal, LGBT, Dark Academia

400 pages, Paperback

Expected publication September 29, 2026

About the author

LAURA R. SAMOTIN and her spouse live with two enormously large felines. When she’s not pursuing her academic research on military tactics, power politics, and leadership, she relishes her role as a full-time cat servant.

Reviews

[Ben Alderson]

The news is OUT.
It isn't every day you get to write a book with your best-friend. This time last year, me and Laura had an idea for a Gay Romeo and Juliet retelling set in modern day Oxford, about vengeful vampires. One made, one born. This is an enemies to lovers (and i mean ENEMIES), dark academia vibes where one is an Oxford professor, and the other is pretending to be a Librarian, but also super SUPER smutty!

It is out 2026, and we can't wait to share more news!
Add to your Want-To-Read lists now <3

[Gaby | read.onrepeat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revenge is hard when the enemy’s son is boyfriend shaped

This was delicious! Gime me vampires and family drama and I’ll be in the first row. But also, look at this cover!

Ok so, Tobias is a vampire who has spent half a century plotting vengeance and then got distracted by a pretty man.
It is a little dark, but it managed to be romantic and sweet as well. Oh, and hot 👌🏼

If “Romeo and Juliet vibes but with gay vampires” doesn’t convince you to read this, then nothing I say will.
One thing I must add, though: Alexander spent the entire book being catastrophically down bad for our homeboy Tobias and, understandable, I can relate.

“How strange, that so much love could spring from such deep hate.”

Your honor, please consider:
- graveyard spice
- picking him up bridal style
- “I’d burn the world down for him” energy
- Oxford setting

**Thank you NetGalley and AgryRobot for the ARC. All opinions are my own.



———
Pre-read
1. Vampires, because I never recovered from my Twilight era (sorry, I was a teen and didn’t know better)
2. LOOK AT THAT COVER OMG SO GOOD
3. Gay Romeo & Juliet retelling 👌🏼

Need I say more?

NetGalley ARC

[Rachel Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

If someone can 1 star a book sign unseen, then someone can 5 star it. JFC.

[Jamie Feuerman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am disappointed to say this was 2.5 stars.

I was excited to read this book ever since I read The Sins on Their bones almost a year ago, and I’m so sad to say that it came nowhere close to my expectations.

I spent the whole book waiting for an explanation about why Tobias waited hundreds of years to take his revenge on Vladimir and it was never given. Of all of the nonsensical parts about the romance, characters, and plot, I think that was the most egregious. The ending was completely nonsensical as well and seriously bothered me, but no major spoilers since this is an ARC.

I’m being told that Tobias has this clever, long term revenge plan that he’s been working on for hundreds of years. But what I’m actually seeing happen is him becoming infatuated with Alexander and making a bunch of decisions that fly in the face of that. There were definitely ways the authors could’ve shown him taking advantage of Alexander while still falling in love with him, but it felt like the revenge plan was falling into his lap. For example, there are two instances in the first half of the book where Alexander is looking for the scent of the murderer vampire after just spending time with Tobias, and thinks his sense of smell just happens to still clouded with Tobias’s scent and therefore does not realize Tobias is behind the murder. It would’ve been a much better way to show Tobias is a cunning character hellbent in revenge if he knew Alexander was about to go to the crime scenes and purposely started seducing him right before, rather than Tobias being the one hopelessly being seduced by Alexander right before Alexander happened to go investigate.

This has insane levels of insta-love. Alexander went from “mortals are just my playthings and not worthy of my regard” to “I’m in love with a (man who as of now I believe to be) mortal and would give up my entire family for him” (yes the word love was used) in TWO. WEEKS. Tobias also went from “I have been dedicated to avenging my families’ deaths for centuries and Alexander is a pawn in my plan” to “let me throw it all away for a man” in TWO. GODDAMN. WEEKS. Do not piss me off.

Maria was a much better character than both Tobias and Alexander. Those two were absolute idiots about each other and in general. Just completely oblivious and not good at making plans at all. Maria was so much more interesting to read about every time she appeared and actually knew how to get the job done. Tobias and Alexander deserved each other and Maria deserved way better.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

[Kay✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received and ARC from the publisher and all reviews are my own!!

I absolutely DEVOURED this story!!! I have read a lot of MM romances but I don’t think any of them have been vampire ones and this was my first!! I throughly enjoyed it!!! This was written by two different authors but I couldn’t even tell you who wrote what because of how seamlessly it was written. The writing was amazing I felt like I was at Oxford myself with all of the details thrown in. This is an insta lust/love situation and I find myself not generally going toward those kinds of books HOWEVER this one was very well written and done!!! I think it changed my mind a bit on revisiting that trope!! I just wanted to give Tobias a hug during this whole book I felt so bad for him and what his family went through!!! I also wanted to unalive Alexander’s own father FOR HIM!!!!!! I couldn’t STAND that vampire omg!!!! Also I didn’t think I would like his sister but she grew on me and I was very proud of her in the end!!! If you love romance and steamy reads you are going to LOVE The Darkness Bites Back!!! The authors ALMOST GAVE ME A HEART ATTACK with that ending as well!!! I was STRESSED but overall I throughly enjoyed reading this and I will absolutely be picking up more books by Ben and Laura!!

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Darkness Bites back is a queer Romeo and Juliet retelling, vampire style, that puts a fresh, interesting spin on the well-known play.

Our main characters are Tobias and Alexander, both vampires. Tobias has a grudge against Alexander’s father, the head of the Damianos clan. He’s been plotting to use Alexander to exact his vengeance for hundreds of years.

Both Tobias and Alexander are well written. I had a good mental picture of both of them, they are well described without being too detailed. I could visualize Tobias in his jeans and doc martens, and Alexander in his suits. With the dual POV, we get to know both characters quite well.

The supporting cast are not so well developed. The two female characters in the book, Tobias’ coworker Kate and Alexander’s sister Maria, are very interesting, but do not have enough page time for us to learn much about them, or care about their part in the story or their outcomes. Unfortunately the big baddie of the story, Vladimir, came off as cartoon-villianish. I never really had the sense of dread I should have experienced reading this story.

I’ve seen this book described as enemies to lovers, and I guess that’s true in theory, but the enemy part is mostly off page, in the 500 years leading up to the story. There is insta-lust to insta-love very quickly, which fits with a Romeo and Juliet retelling. Just don’t expect too much dramatic buildup in the relationship.

Which leads me to a probably controversial opinion - I think this book would have been better from Tobias’ POV only. There would be much more tension between the two MCs if we didn’t know Alexander’s thoughts and motivations. I never felt that Tobias was truly in any danger, because I knew more than he did. This also caused some repetition that didn’t help with the flow of the story.

Overall, I love the concept of this book. There were a few things that let me down, but I had a very enjoyable time reading.

Thank you to NetGalley and Angry Robot for providing the ARC of this book. This review is my honest and voluntary opinion.

[Maé · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me this arc.

I knew, when I saw this gorgeous cover, that this book would be perfect for me. I love horror stories that mix with romance, so I knew gay vampires seeking revenge would be everything. This book is told from two POVs: one is Tobias, a turned vampire that has been planning to get revenge from the vampire lord that made him. The other POV is Alexander’s, said vampire son, who Tobias will seduce in order to get to his father’s palace and be able to kill him. Of course, the feelings they caught for each other weren’t a part of that plan?

“You care for me even though I’m a monster?” The question came out rough, desperate.
“We’re all monsters here, love.” Tobias sighed. “Some of us are just more obvious about that than others.”

Honestly, the plot was very entertaining. I liked how high the stakes were from the get-go, especially with how more and more horrifying it became once the two of them starting falling with each other. We know that this story can only end with heartache, because the only way Tobias can get the revenge he needs for his peace of mind would mean also killing Alexander. The fast pacing truly helped in setting up this effect of an hourglass, each piece of sand more precious than the previous one, as the two were slowly running out of time together.

Sadly, there were a lot of plot holes. First of all, Tobias kept telling about this grand plan he’s been making for hundreds of years—actually putting it into place 100 years ago. Yet, his only step in this plan is “get close to Alexander”, and then do absolutely nothing else. It felt a bit lacking of actual devotion to his revenge. It didn’t help that the romance was very much insta-love, so everything felt too easy in order to accomodate the plot instead of the author actually setting up important plot points.

Something that would have made the book A THOUSAND TIMES better was if we didn’t have Tobias’s POV at all. From Alexander’s eyes, I kept thinking that Tobias hid his game well, and I wanted to be surprised just as much as Alexander. It would have been so interesting to slowly pick up the hints of Tobias’ lack of humanity, and then that he was the serial killer and that it was all a plan to get closer to Alexander. The reveal would have actually been devastating. Instead, since it’s set up in the very first pages, it just felt like I was waiting for the endgame to unravel, and I kept thinking I wished I didn’t know that much.

The worldbuilding felt very lacking. The vampire lore wasn’t explained at all, and every fact about it felt too easy. For example, vampires aren’t alive (just like our actual lore), but they have blood pumping in their veins from drinking from mortals—hence Tobias actually having a heartbeat and Alexander being easily fooled. So tell me why, even after not feeding for several days, Alexander didn’t notice that Tobias’ “blood” wasn’t pumping as strong as it should have been? Honestly, it bugged me for the entire book, and I wished more care was given to the actual power system.

Alexander dipped in close, kissing Tobias differently than before. He had always been soft, but this was easy and natural, like breathing, like Tobias was deserving. And maybe he would have been, if he weren’t a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

Tobias could have been a really interesting character—if we didn’t know that much about him. In the beginning, he felt very cunning and intelligent, but it honestly faded away the more I read. It felt like he was just letting things happen. For example, after a few centuries of thinking about this grand plan, he didn’t think once that the victims he left on the bring of consciousness could eventually turn to vampires ? I honestly convinced myself someone else was involved because he couldn’t be That dumb. Once again, the story would have benefited immensely if we didn’t have his point of view: the meek human would have turned out to be a very cunning vampire who happened to fall in love when he shouldn’t have—instead of a smart vampire turning really dumb because he developed a crush.

Alexander is a character I easily fell in love with. I did think he had a bit of switch-up in his personality in the beginning (from “humans are playthings to me” to “I’m irrevocably in love with this man and would kill for him” WAY TOO FAST). But, during the rest of the novel, he proved to be no more than a traumatised man, who only wanted to get out of his father’s joug. He was ready to do anything for Tobias.

As he brought his lips to Tobias’s, he whispered a single word. “Home.”
Tobias smiled against Alexander’s mouth, releasing a sigh he felt he’d been holding for hundreds of years. “Home,” he agreed.

The romance itself felt too instantaneous in the beginning for me. I wish the authors had taken more time to explain why Alexander crushed so hard on Tobias so fast (especially since he seemed so much like every other human he dated), or how Tobias so easily forgot the plan he set up. But, after their feelings for each other were set, their romance actually had me invested. They truly loved each other through it, and each declaration was cemented by the absolute despair of the situation. It was genuinely beautiful how much they worked for their relationship.

Overall, it was a really entertaining read, and the intensity of the plot and the tragic romance really made it a page-turner. Sadly, it does have flaws I can’t really look past. It had a lot of potential, and only some of it was truly achieved. Though I will say my interest is still peeked, and I will be looking out for the authors’ other releases.

[izzy ˚₊‧ · Rating 4 out of 5]

**thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC! 💓**

3.75⭐️

the tagline for this book is a queer vampire romeo and juliet retelling, so of course i requested it. the retelling aspect is quite loose, though the story does follow a few of the classic shakespearean plot points which make for a lot of suspense and anticipation when reading the book

this was really fast-paced, and i basically read it in two sittings. the writing is really easy to read, and there’s a lot of action which kept me hooked. i did think that the pacing was a bit off, as the third act conflict felt a bit rushed and so did the ending. i didn’t love the ending, but it was a nice conclusion for the story!

tobias and alexander gave everything they needed to give: sassy, queer vampires who work at oxford university. their banter was great, and it was very entertaining to read about them and their relationship. the romance was pretty insta-love/lust, but that comes with the nature of a romeo and juliet retelling, and the fact that this book was/felt pretty short.

overall, i really liked this and was thoroughly entertained the whole way through. i would have liked a bit more exploration into the vampires and their lore, as well as the side characters, but the main characters were fun to read about and had well-developed motivations that kept the story going!

[Beth Cattell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book! I was lucky enough to recieve an ARC of this and I can honestly say it was the best I have read in a while.
I loved the relationship dynamic between Alexander and Tobias, both of their characters were likeable the whole way through. I loved the concept of the whole book it felt very original. I liked that there wasn't much smut as i think this helped to feel the characters togther more.
I think that the side characters were written well but they didn't get in the way of the story between the main MMC's.
I did feel that the ending was a little rushed and the last couple chapters could have been lengthened so that it built a bit more suspense.

[Jojobean_reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who doesn't want a gay vampire story, with undertones of revenge & secrets?

This story gave me Romeo & Juliet vibes and also left me with some unanswered questions. Which leaves me to hope that there is going to be another book.

I absolutely did not expect the book to end the way it did but I knew I'd enjoy it. Thank you Netgalley for the earc

[Melody Keeton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quest for revenge leads to romance. But can this bookish vampire have his vengeance when doing so will cost everything he’s found?

I ended up having a really fun time with this book, and it was such a quick read.

[Selma · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately, I am very sad to only give 2,5 stars to this book. The storyline had so much potential and I am truly sure the blurb would appeal to a lot of readers: gay vampiric romance, enemies to lovers and a dark academia setting (and the cover is absolutely gorgeous). However, this books wasn’t for me. It may be because I wasn’t the right reader and that romance isn’t my favourite genre but I absolutely loved Ben Alderson’s previous novel (The Haunting of William Thorn); hence why I gave it a go.

The whole story is unraveling way too quickly. The reader doesn’t have the time to get attached to the characters and we truly don’t understand how the two characters get together. It doesn’t really feel as ready an enemies to lovers, as they were no truly « enemy » part in the book. The two main characters get together super quickly. A lot of small details (that are major for the story) are being left aside or rushed, such as the development of Maria’s character, Tobias’s backstory or the ending of the book.

I probably wasn’t the right reader, so if you love gay vampiric romance, you might like to give it a try!

Thank you for the ARC!

[Ari · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley, the authors and the publishing house for providing me with an eARC!

This one... I don't know where to start. I was really looking forward to this and didn't get what was promised. Unfortunately, this won't be a very favourable review and I'm sorry in advance that there is not much positive I have to say.

The characters:
First of all, I enjoyed the introductions of our main characters, the opening of the book is enticing and pulls you right into the story. Tobias is an interesting character and I immediately wanted to get to know him better. The glimpses to his origin story were so good, his plan for revenge made me want to see him succeed.
Alexander is introduced while teaching one of his classes and the way he reminisces about the philosopher they’re discussing – whom he also had an affair with – is delicious. Period. The description of them lying in bed and him being used as a table by his lover made me feel things, this book was off to a good start. I needed more of THAT.
Here is where my praise ends for their depictions because the rest of it struck me as unimaginative. Alexander is from ancient Vampire Nobility, THE family, to be exact. There is the unsabstantial cartoonish villain father and the aloof sister. The members are described as people who are only out for their own gain and will back-stab you the moment they get the chance for it. I would have loved to see them more tight-knit, go against the grain because that would have made the following events anmd the consequences of Tobias’s revenge plan much more impactful. Instead, Alexander is singled out, he is the odd one and the black sheep of the family. A human lover, someone who wants to lead a normal life, to blend in. Which is fine but the contrast is so significant that it makes him stand out like a sore thumb which, to me, steered the characterization into GaryStu-territory.
I also need to talk about how often the characters are described to be smart, to the point that other figures mention it to them, too. However, both of them show time and time again that they’re not. There are hints blaringly obvious, served on a silver platter and they are ignored or acted upon with a „Huh, weird coincidence, oh well.“-mindset. I would have liked to see people act on their correct judgement rather than find excuses not to, just to let the plot run longer than necessary. It was frustrating that these moments were used to drive the plot further or to build up tension that thus became hardly believable.

Here are some examples:
Tobias has this plan for revenge for almost 500 years but has never even considered how strong Vladimir is – probably the most powerful vampire in the world - and that he won’t be able to simply drive a stake through his heart. As Mark Lawrence once put it: He is more „ass than assassin“.

Alexander looks up Tobias’s name (who uses his REAL name all the time instead of an alias) on an ancestry site and finds only a single result. Instead of considering that he might be a vampire too, aware that these are real beings (like duh), he reacts with the aforementioned „huh, that is weird but okay, whatever.“-mindset. Dude is not very streetsmart.

Later in the book, Alexander and Tobias drive up to the vampire residence, Rothburn. This mansion is chock full of vampires and determined to protect Tobias with his life, Alexander makes the educated decision to lock his lover into his room, which is protected by a WOODEN DOOR.

Most side characters don’t even get the slightest hint of a personality, let alone a name to begin with. They’re a means to an end, a simple plot device in a world that consists of mainly four characters.



The story:
Overall I really liked the idea of a lone vampire trying to get revenge for his turning but falling in love with his perpetrator's son. Nothing new but definitely enticing. Main trope for this book is "enemies to lovers" and it is described as a modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet. And this book is neither. Now, I am no expert on Shakespearean stories and I have never read the aforementioned, I will be that honest, but I couldn't even recognize the most obvious points of it in this story everyone at least has heard of. Family feuds, secret love and pining, tragic misunderstandings. I read „Teach the torches to burn“ this year, another R&J retelling which ticked all the boxes and has since become my blueprint for them. Also, I would only call it "EtL lite", firstly because only one of them knows that they're at enmity and second because another trope is "insta love" which, in my humble opinion, cancels out the other. In fact the romance is progressing SO fast it made me feel genuinely uncomfortable, I am not talking about being interested in each other but flat out falling in love in like four days and committing to each other for life. Although I appreciate it for what it initially was for, Tobias getting close and worming his way into the Damianos family to act on his revenge plans, it became too serious way too fast.

That being said, let me stray from this for a moment to concentrate on the overall plot. I will go into further detail later.
In order not to spoil too much of it I will only try to scratch surface level and offer some thoughts on it but be aware that I have to reveal some details.
The story opens with Tobias having a „meal“ in a side alley. Instead of killing him, he leaves him vulnerable in the open and calls an ambulance. COOL, genuinely. We love a non-murderous and self-sufficient king. Because this is not his first victim, this later sets off a slight panic in Oxford, a serial-attacker at large, in my opinion a solid backdrop for the story.
Tobias applies for a job at Oxford university, specifically in the Library to get closer to Alexander, who is a professor for philosophy there. They meet and are immediately head over heels for each other, as mentioned before, from here on out the romance progresses super fast, which affects some aspects of the story like Alexander’s investigation into these attacks. There is a constant impending danger but the only character worthy of protection seems to be Tobias. The consequence is that further down the road another character dies and here I got quite angry with the story because that situation was absolutely preventable but not surprising as the main characters fail to think coherently and logically when it comes to anyone but each other. Nobody took care to hold up the fact that "there's a killer out there, no one should go out alone" and no one even remotely spared a thought to maybe call an Uber or a cab. Of course that person is dead in the morning. It's one of these awfully convenient plot points and it is infuriating. I as the reader expect to be regarded smarter than that.
There are too many concidences or sheer luck involved and it is one of the cheapest ways to push a story. A lot of plot points seem oddly convenient and I suspect that these are either not researched too well or that they are flat out wrong to fit the author’s plans. To make myself clear as to what I mean I will have to spoil the specific part I am thinking of:
I’m thinking of the morgue scene here and how the coroner tells them that the victim’s bodies are often held for longer periods of time instead of being given back to their families so they can have a proper burial. I would wager that there would be samples taken and stored for further investigation instead on what was decided on in the book. However, this is JUST a hunch and should be taken with a pinch of salt!
(This is ca. half the plot, I want to give the book a chance and not spoil ALL of it, although I sprinkled some of my thoughts on it through-out this review.)

What I will praise are some of the plot twists. Specifically how Tobias lost his family and what happens to his victims from the beginning of the book down the line. Specifically, how the relationship to them changes, as well as how the villain is defeated. These I found enjoyment in and were clever, I would have wanted more of that.

The romance and spice:
Where do I begin with this. I made my discontent with how fast this is progressing inherently clear. What I want to discuss in this section is everything else that comes with it.
It is one thing to be interested in someone but it is another one to look up someone and snoop in their lives. I hated how Alexander tries to look up Tobias’s past against his wishes and in secret instead of communicating and gracing him with the time he needs to be ready to speak about it. During their wine and dine Tobias drew the line and made it clear that he can’t talk about what has happened yet and I can’t condone Alexander’s behaviour, it’s intrusive and it made me dislike him a lot. I found it worse enough how he keeps being depicted as that stud and sex god, how everything revolves around physical intimacy and how every conversation is spun into a joke about “HAHA SEGGS u get it?“
Which brings me to the first spice scene, which takes place in a public space and is not thought through. There is only raw desire that expresses itself as “no foreplay, no lube, no protection, no consequences“. It read very amateurish, like someone who has never read up on the topic of gay sex wrote this. Please people, 👏🏻 use 👏🏻 protection 👏🏻 and 👏🏻 lube 👏🏻. The Second sex scene is significantly better, although pretty vanilla. I would have liked for more emotion, more of the character's inner world. Instead, it was more of a checklist of how intimacy between men works.

Their "Infatuation" or more like obsession is unbearable, all of a sudden being into each other is both men's whole personality, especially Alexander’s. There is an obvious power imbalance at play that is depicted as romantic, with often leaving no choice to Tobias on how to act and how he is HIS to possess and own. THIS genuinely made me uncomfortable and I wonder when the trend will end to regard toxic relationships and mindsets as the pinnacle in romance. There is often no tenderness but most of the time feelings go full force, it’s my way or highway so that there is no room to breathe and just be. It culminates in an ending that makes me feel sad for both of them, barely knowing each other for about ten days, they swear their loyalty and love to each other ‘till the end of time, all the while being bound to each other by a blood pact.
Instead of a HEA I would have loved to see an ending that was worthy of a Romeo and Juliet retelling, think The Song of Achilles or at least an ending that was reminiscent of the source material.


The errors:
Throughout the book I found multiple continuity errors, as the book is not out yet I would like for this bit to act as a pointer for the authors and editor. As I am only human I am not free of error myself but I tried to make sure to confirm these to the best of my ability.
1. In the beginning of the book Tobias mentions how a vampire can only be killed with a stake, which is why he owns one with Vladimir’s name on it. Later in the book Alexander kills a fellow Vampire of his family with a poker through their heart.
2. At one point in one of Tobias’s chapters it is said that he was turned 500 years ago. With the modern setting I guess that the book is taking place somewhere in 2016-2026. However, Tobias was turned into a vampire in 1576. This is either a misspelling(?) or a calculation error.
3. At the end of the novel Alexander does not die with all the other family members because he has drunk from Tobias’s blood and the other way around. During their third intimate scene Alexander drinks from Tobias, so I could confirm this. However the only clue I could find for Tobias’s part was that he drank some blood from Maria, when she saved him from the torture chamber. If this suffices for a blood pact to form it is not well enough explained but in my eyes it doesn’t make sense and shouldn’t work this way. We know that blood relative’s share a significant amount of DNA resemblance but that doesn’t make it the SAME. It makes the ending fall apart and should definitely be reworked.

This was my first Ben Alderson book and although it was a disappointment for me I can only hope that his other books make me fall in love with his writing.

Thank you again for letting me read the novel and offer my honest opinion and thoughts.

[Kai · Rating 2 out of 5]

The concept for the book is good. Vampire guy pretending to be human and seducing a different vampire to try and kill yet another vampire for a 500 year old revenge plot was an interesting premise that if nothing else held my attention long enough to lead me to a disappointing ending. That and the sex were good.
But the rest of it....
My first and biggest problem is that it did not feel like these guys had any chemistry. It felt like I was supposed to believe these guys were in love because they're hot and in the same room with each other sometimes, which just did not work for me. Then so much of the plot relies on me thinking these two care about each other that the last like half of the book is just infuriating to read.
I also think it wanted me to think Alexander's possessiveness was hot when it wasn't. At first I thought we were going to do something thematically with how he's treating Tobias like an object and constantly trying to mind control him "for his own good" all the time but nope. Did nothing with that.
And then the women in the story. Both Kate and Maria exist to die so the men in the story can lose someone. Maria specifically had so much potential. We set up our characters learning that the only reason she isn't running things is because their dad is misogynistic and that Alexander doesn't want to run the family, so you'd think "oh, we're gonna solve this problem where she can be in charge and we take out the evil guy" but no! She puts so much effort and planning into keeping our two main characters safe and then gets to just die while Alexander survives his only-here-for-a-plot-twist suicide attempt using plot armor that only vaguely got alluded to for one paragraph.
Overall I wasn't happy with this. The story felt weak, the romance wasn't believable, and it felt like we were strategically avoiding having literally any theme throughout the work.
(I received a free copy for review)

[Mireya · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and Angry Robot for the ARC copy of this book! This has not affected my review at all, which are my own thoughts.

Tobias Osian, turned against his will into a vampire, has spent centuries brewing his revenge against that monster: Vladimir Damianos. He's finally ready, and for his plan to succeed, he's going to use the second most important vampire in that family, Vladimir's son: Alexander. Yet, he doesn't expects Alexander to be a rebel, to go against everything his bloodthirsty father stands for, even protecting mortals. When they meet, Alexander is instantly smitten, lusting after Tobias and feeling live never before towards whom he considers a mortal.

Tobias is more than willing to use this to his advantage and plans, yet, the more he learns about Alexander, the more his attraction grows and his desire of vengeance weakens, for if he kills Vladimir, every Damianos vampire will die with him. And Tobias might not be willing to losing more people he loves.

So...this one was a handful for me😅 I'm even a little disappointed because I expected to like this book, not only from the synopses because it hooked me right in. Yet, the more I read, the less I found myself enjoying it. But, let's go in order. I'll start with what I liked and I think was done quite well.

The clear distinction between narrating voices, meaning, that I was never confuse whether a chapter was from Tobias or Alexander, because hey sounded differently enough, with their experiences and life styles defining those voices. And, if we keep talking about these two: their chemistry. Tension up high, flying out the pages and having *me* even root for them and feeling like it was a realistic progression of their type of relationship.

The way the voices and writing-styles of the authors blended so well that it never felt like two different people had written it. Believe me, this is a compliment; there's other books I've read and you could tell that there was two people with VASTLY different ways of writing. People might think different, but I'm of the opinion that styles should blend when two (or more) amazing authors work together. But, that's just me.

I also want to mention the vampire world they've created, how Tobias and Alexander show two very different sides of it: born in it and forced into it. Their colliding opinions and ways of navigating the hunger for blood. Even how they interact with other vampires and with other mortals. They're complex, realistic and, ironically, so human.

As said, this book hooked me in, I wanted to see Tobias succeed in his revenge, I wanted to see Alexander break free and be his own person, and I wanted to know everything about this world. Seems like I'm finally getting into a vampire-era or something, so I'm reading as many vamp-books as possible😅 (might be because I'm writing a short story with them👀). Anyway, I was enjoying it, but, unfortunately, the more I read and the more stuff happened, the more I was side eyeing the book and, almost, regretting reading it.

I don't want to give out spoilers, more over because this book doesn't come out until September, but I still want to complaint. So, I'll give my reasons to not like it as vague as possible.

Firstly, some descriptions: what the f*ck is a "no-nonsense look to someone"🤨🤨 On the other hand, a "non-zero chance of something _happening_", is the same as "a chance (even if low) of that something happening". Sorry for nitpicking here, but it took me out of the reading so hard. The former, I found stupid and (again, ironically) non-sensical; the latter, a waste of words.

This one is far more personal and a very lenient complaint, but I wish we had expend more time at Tobias' job as a librarian, it seemed interesting. I know he had reasons to have that job and it was only an alibi, but still😂

And, last but not least, my major issue and complaint and the one that would surely be a *big* spoiler if I wrote down the specific situations. So, I'll just say that sometimes you can to read vampires finding out love in the most wild places, and leave a book wishing it had treated far better it's women characters.

SPOILERS' SECTION (I'll still keep it as vague as possible):

*There's like three named women characters. One of them suffers as a plot device and to emotionally hurt one of the protagonists and make him finally react and do something about the murders ocurring around the city.
*Another one only appears once, and is not that important.
*The other is kind of the same as the first point; and, I'm pretty sure she could have been saved just like Alexander. In my most honest opinion.

SPOILERS' END

And, this is it, and, unfortunately, I don't think I'm gonna recommend this one. It was fun for the most part, it has a very realistic romance, it is about hope, about freedom, becoming your own person, growing emotionally, family... Yet, there's some stuff I can't (won't) ignore. If someone comes for the vampires, because they're fans of the authors, etc, and love the book, good for y'all, really, I'm never gonna take away from other readers. At the end of the day, this is just my opinion. So, I hope y'all made it to the end, and until the next one ;)

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️

I was so excited to receive an ARC of The Darkness Bites Back courtesy of NetGalley and I practically binge read the whole thing. A queer vampiric story inspired by Romeo and Juliet? Absolutely fantastic.

I really loved the third person POV and thought the writing was genuinely strong throughout. Tobias, our vengeance thirsty boy, has spent 500 years trying to destroy the all powerful vampire clan, the Damianos, after being turned against his will. The reveal that it was actually him who killed his family, and not just Vladimir, added such an extra layer of tragedy and honestly made me feel for him even more. His empathy towards humans, and even his short lived relationship with Kate, really helped ground his character emotionally.

Alexander is exactly the kind of love interest I adore. Possessive, arrogant, charming, and completely obsessed. Normally I hate insta love, but the vampire premise made it work so well here and I absolutely ate it up. Beneath all the arrogance he genuinely wants to help people and uses his privilege to do so, which made his devotion to Tobias even better. Both characters are incredibly lovable despite how dark their pasts are.

I also really loved the academic setting. Tobias being a librarian and Alexander being a professor worked SO well for the dark academia atmosphere and honestly made the romance even more enjoyable for me. I do think there could have been a little more risk involved though, maybe more interaction with students or more tension surrounding their positions, because I think it would have pushed the forbidden romance and Romeo and Juliet vibes even further.

I do wish the whole bait and trap dynamic between them had lasted a little longer because I think it would have built the tension even more and worked really well with Tobias’ trauma and distrust. Honestly though, I just wanted the entire book to be longer. I also felt like Alexander got over the murder of his previous lover a bit too quickly. HOWEVER, I honestly did not mind that much. These are immortal vampires after all, and honestly it kind of works with the possessive vampire traits. I would not have minded these two being just a little bit more inhuman. 😉

My favourite scene was probably the reveal when Alexander drinks from Tobias and sees his past. I thought that whole sequence was genuinely really well written and it explored Tobias’ grief and guilt so effectively. I do think the stalking element could maybe have been introduced a little earlier because it would have added even more bitterness to that reveal, but at the same time I loved how completely gone Alexander already was for him. The fact that he basically already knew he would forgive Tobias anyway was honestly great.

The smut scenes were enjoyable, but definitely shorter and sweeter than I expected. Maybe this is just me being a complete vampire smut enthusiast, but I would have loved more build up and a few scenes that leaned a little less vanilla. Not that fucking in a mausoleum and a lecture theatre is exactly vanilla. A few extra pages there absolutely would not have gone unappreciated.

I also loved the banter and little bits of humour throughout. The Twilight and Fallen mentions? Ate them up. Tobias being a vengeance seeking monster who also enjoys supernatural fiction and smut in his spare time is peak librarian behaviour.

The dark academia atmosphere was also really fun and I honestly could have spent another hundred pages just existing in this world with these characters. I would genuinely love Tobias accidentally creating other vampires to become its own mini arc because I honestly just wanted more story. An epilogue showing our vampire boys living out their Oxford dream life together would also have been amazing.

And THANK YOU for not making this a tragedy. I was genuinely preparing myself to have my heart ripped out during those last few chapters, so I was very relieved by the relatively wholesome ending.

Overall this was such a fun and engaging read. I loved it, I just wanted more. More of these characters, even more tension, more trauma exploration, more possessive vampire insanity, and more smut (sorry, not sorry I am such a slut for vampire fiction!)

[Alli · Rating 2 out of 5]

A small boy, a Welsh village, a family. And the monster who came and stole it all.

Rating: 2.25 ★

Synopsis:
Tobias Orsian still remembers the face that stepped from the dark and robbed him of his mortality many lifetimes ago. Vladimir Damianos, the patriarch of Britain's oldest and most powerful vampire dynasty, and the very face that plagues his nightmares in this endless life. He has spent centuries chasing revenge, and now his chance has finally come.

A string of attacks in Oxford, A new position as a librarian, and finally a direct path to Alexander Damianos, Oxford professor and heir to the very empire Tobias has sworn to destroy. Alexander should be everything he despises. Yet revenge becomes a dangerous thing when it begins to resemble love. Tobias has always known that to kill a monster, he must become one. But finishing what began so many lifetimes ago may mean destroying the one person who looks at him as though he is something other than the monster he believes himself to be. But the nightmares never leave you.

"Oh, please run for me, boy."
But this time, Tobias will not freeze.

My Review:
I was immediately drawn to the blurb when I requested this ARC. I also couldn't help that the beautiful cover of two vampire boyfriends sold me! The premise had so much potential, and while there are definitely some elements that worked for me, there were sadly quite a few that fell flat.

Set in modern day Oxford, the story opens with Tobias orchestrating a series of attacks that put the city on edge and draw the attention of Vladimir himself. He carefully targets victims connected to Alexander, Vladimir's son, in hopes of getting the job and getting close enough to seduce him and infiltrate the clan. It was such a strong opening. Seeing Tobias switch between an innocent librarian and a hardened vampire fueled by revenge was really interesting, and I couldn't wait to see how his revenge plan would unfold!

Unfortunately, a lot of that suspense disappeared once he met Alexander. There was some minor tension between them but the romance leaned heavily to insta love/insta lust for me. Tobias quite literally has spent centuries plotting revenge against Vladimir, and yet his singular focus is quickly pushed aside for someone he barely knows. I struggled to see how a man capable of meticulously planning for generations could lose sight of his goal so easily-

I sadly have similar issues with the romance as well. I understand that they were meant to represent something tender and transformative for one another! A love neither had truly experienced before and someone who saw them as more than just a monster. The chemistry was definitely there, and the spice was enjoyable, but I never felt like I saw enough emotional development to fully buy into their relationship. While I appreciated the vulnerability, secrets, and acceptance they shared near the end, it felt like those deeper moments came too late for me to become fully invested.

The revenge arc and plot to overthrow the dynasty were some of my favorite aspects of the book. Even though they often felt secondary to the romance until the final act, they kept me engaged whenever they took center stage. But that ending felt so rushed to me- There wasn't quite enough buildup, and the resolution felt SOOO convenient given the stakes, ending as soon as the action started. While I liked Maria, most of the side characters were forgettable, and Vladimir himself didn't inspire much fear for me.

There were moments I genuinely enjoyed, and I can absolutely see what the authors was aiming for. The premise is compelling, the atmosphere is intriguing, and there are flashes of suspense that really shine! I think though when putting all the pieces together, it didn't quite fit how I wanted it to. While this wasn't a perfect fit for my tastes, I can definitely see the appeal for others looking for a queer vampire romance retelling of Romeo and Juliet!

[Monoluvver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alright let's philosophize because who if not overly mentally developed vampires gets you to hold lengthy arguments with the flawless listening entity that is the wall.

I feel like every vampire book now has to be a Shakespearean retelling because what else will make it feel ever so macabre, the noir love of a fatalistic story (which does arguably go perfectly with these vampires). And the authors made sure to fit the image of the vampire here into the enigmatic and seductive romanticism that automatically comes with vampirism. Which, pretty goddamn cool. I just wish there was more of that... physical mess that comes with having a blood-sucking lover, you know? I think it is safe to say this is the fiction people come to when in need of some blood play, yeah? I'd assume so. Not much of a mess depicted, but there were some hot moments here and there that I enjoyed, even if they were terribly humane for how blood-sucking they were. And there was joy in Oxford too, they chose the best damn city for this, best setting for that Shakespearean, dark academia vibe, wasn't it?

It was difficult to see these vampires complain about lost morality (well, mostly Tobias, as we know from the premise) when the narrative offers little evidence to support that. If anything, these characters appear stubbornly human in their emotional (and even physical) lives. They are not granted the luxury of an emotional detachment switch like other pieces of media, so where did that morality go, my loves? But I appreciate the lust that comes with this made-up notion, though. Go imagine being immoral, if feeling immoral is what you need.

The premise of these two's dynamic at first was very archetypal, but I feel like the roles might have been reversed, actually. Like Tobias with his extremely good (might be pathological) lying and S class acting, with a dark past and his lil’ dark secret, whilst Alexander bearing the name of the greatest king, with a personality like Dorian Gray and libido like Oscar Wilde. Tell me it doesn’t feel like Tobias is the big bad vampire here, whilst Alexander disrupts the expectations of his character that he is supposed to be. Speaking of which, Alexander is so fucking hot, you guys. Alexander Damianos had me enamored from the first moments I caught him reminiscing about his past in his class whilst starving to bits. This man is just naturally... seductive? (I suppose deliberate seduction does define many classical depictions of vampirism... but he is different, okay?!) Would make anyone hypersexual (me, definitely me) the moment this man is in the room with them; he is the Dorian Gray of vampirism and you know what, that's maybe why I loved him so much from the very beginning. Vampires in general are seen as sexually empowered characters, mostly because of the elegance and the power of seduction that comes with these creatures who regard themselves so highly and have the ability to explore such things for centuries. And Alexander (and consequentially, Tobias) are obviously figures of the past, and evidently desirable beings. It was written very well in that aspect, to emphasize this contrast between the saint and the vampire, between purity and corruption, but with a very dark indie vibe that comes with a Romeo and Juliet retelling. Listen. Unrepressed sexual lust is one of the best things that comes with vampires so hell yeah, I'm glad these freaks of nature found me.

Other than that, the ending was a tad abrupt. Where's the rest of it? Gimme it. There are matters left to attend, so I feel a bit neglected, deprived of these matters. I was actually looking forward to those matters. Agh, what a shame.

[holli chance · Rating 4 out of 5]

y’all… this is a fantastic, solid 4.5 star book. full disclosure, this isn’t my usual type of book (as in dark, vengeance-motivated stories), which is actually why i wanted to read it, branching out and all. it was 100% the right decision, and personally it didn’t feel quite as dark to me as i’d expected, not until the end. the writing is beyond expert, which makes sense because while laura r. samotin was a new name to me, i’d only ever heard good things about ben alderson. they did a fantastic job of making the reader see & feel exactly what/how the characters were—which in my opinion is even more impressive to do in third person than first. i was so busy envisioning all of the scenes that i didn’t even realize right away the reason for that is this book might truly be one of the best examples of “show vs. tell” that i’ve read.

the beginning starts off with one main character making us get a certain, preconceived idea about the other main character, only to meet him and find out something different. there’s a bit of an unexpected twist later that then starts to make the reader, if briefly, question good vs. bad, wrong vs. right, evil vs. not. while the villain is pretty much laid out from the beginning, the level of evil in that character only increases tenfold as the story continues. this is only one part of the fantastic, gradual way the authors built up the tension to the point where i’m pretty sure i was holding my breath through the last, like, 20%. it was so good.

this is also definitely an insta-lust/love story, which is right up my alley, and i enjoyed the majority of the conflict being external rather than between the characters, despite how they both had secrets they were keeping from the other, their respective guilt increasing more and more as the story continued.

my one dislike in this entire book was how tobias’s character didn’t seem consistent. this may have been intentional and i simply didn’t catch on, but it felt as though he talked a big game that he struggled to back up when faced with anxiety or danger. some of that could’ve still been his internal conflict over his feelings for alexander versus the revenge on alexander’s father he’d been working toward for so long and me not being able to discern when he was acting vs. when he was truly afraid or nervous, but either way it didn’t quite add up. that’s really the sole reason this is a 4.5 star read rather than a full 5, but it’s not at all going to stop me from reading more books by these 2 authors—separately or together. i’m hoping the next book in this series follows alexander and tobias’s next adventure, especially since there were a few things that i do think were intentionally unresolved to set up book 2. fingers crossed!

thank you to the authors, publisher, and netgalley for providing a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest, voluntary review.

[fiona ☁️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

🩸 soundtrack 🩸

death in vegas - hands around my throat
creeper - the ballad of spook and mercy
florence + the machine - drink deep
blue foundation - eyes on fire
frank iero - blood infections
frank iero - stitches
salem - draculads
civil twilight - human
bon iver, st. vincent - rosyln
halsey - trouble (stripped)
luvcat - vampire at the beach
stateless - bloodstream (quartet version)

🩸 my thoughts 🩸

i'll never say no to a good old messy vampire romance, but while this one was thoroughly entertaining, it also left me wanting more in a lot of ways. the book follows two vampires - tobias and alexander, against the academic backdrop of oxford. alexander's dad is this ancient evil vampire mafia boss and the one who turned tobias into a vampire, ruining his life in the process. tobias has spent the past 500 years plotting revenge against his maker. his plan: pose as human, seduce alexander, infiltrate his clan, and kill their leader. of course, things get complicated when they start falling for each other..

this book is told in 2 POVs, which is one of the things that kept me from enjoying it more. because we get detailed insight into both mc's thoughts, we know everything about tobias' vengeful plans, so when his true identity is revealed to alexander, it's no surprise to us readers. similarly, while tobias spends the majority of the story thinking alexander is just as evil as his father, we already know he's not (in fact, he's down so bad for tobias so quickly it's actually a bit silly). if the authors had settled on one of the two POVs, i feel like there would've been much more room for tension and moral ambiguity. instead the reader already pretty much knows everyone's agenda right from the start - including the fact that none of the two main characters are as morally gray as i wanted them to be.

there were also quite a few plot holes regarding tobias' plan and the way vampirism works in this world: why exactly did he wait 500 years to execute his revenge when the key step in it seems to be seducing alexander - something he could've already done centuries ago?? how exactly does he get away masquerading as human in front of alexander when vampire senses can easily pick up on human scent/heartbeat etc.??? apparently vampires in this universe can also be born as one of their kind instead of made, but how do they age?? maybe i consume too much vampire media lol, but there were several details like these that made me pause. plus, it would've been nice for the 2 female characters to have a bit more to do than further the plot along for the male leads :')

all that being said, i still had a good time with this! i liked the main characters and their chemistry with each other. also apparently this will be a series?? idk if this will get an actual sequel or if it's gonna be an anthology type deal, but i can see myself picking up the next book either way :)

huge thanks to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. all thoughts are my own.

[Loren · Rating 2 out of 5]

REVIEWS ARE FOR READERS

Spoilers ahead!

Thank you for the ARC!!

I’m not entirely sure where to start with this one. This was my third foray into the work of Ben Alderson, and it might just be my last. In saying that, I have not read anything purely by Laura R. Samotin, so it’s difficult to come to a definitive decision on that.

I’ll start with the characters. I don’t have any strong feelings about them. That’s not a good thing. I /should/ care about the characters. I ended up caring more about Maria than I did Tobias or Alexander. Maria deserved better than what she got.

I found the writing easy to read, but repetitive. For example, the word “chignon” was repeated so often it lost meaning. The same thing happened with other words and phrases too.

Now, I’m down for all kinds of tropes, it I don’t like insta-love. I just don’t. I tried very hard to give this story a pass because it’s a Romeo and Juliet retelling so I expected it to be just as dramatic, but I just couldn’t vibe with it. You’re telling me that Tobias has been working on this plan for hundreds of years, and now he’s willing to just throw it away because of Alexander? Because he now views Alexander as a person? How convenient.

Speaking of Alexander, he really had a habit of being a little toxic. I know that people like to explore things like toxic possessiveness in books because it’s a safe place to do so, but it’s just not my thing. I don’t enjoy it. It gives me the ick. I also had a problem with how infantilised Tobias was, primarily by Alexander. He often referred to Tobias as “boy” among other infantilising behaviours. Not my jam.

The ending felt a little rushed too. Like don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed how it ended, but it definitely felt rushed. We didn’t even get to find out more about the accidental “made” vampires. That would have been cool to know.

Also, I have a problem with how the Big Bad™️ died. Like, this guy is super strong, literally just fed on some strong, younger blood, and Alexander was just able to pull a sneaky and stake him in the back? Nah. I don’t buy it. Vladimir had such a huge build up and then just a nothing death.

2.5 stars. It definitely had some enjoyable parts and scenes, but overall I was just waiting for it to be over.

[Alissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Angry Robot Books for an ARC of this book. What follows is my honest review.
Release date: September 29th

The darkness bites back is written by two authors i have been very keen to try and the premise of this sounded great, plus that cover? I’m invested!

It certainly was an enjoyable, fun read. It’s a good one for vampire fans and enemies to lovers readers. The premise is that Tobias was turned into a vampire by Vladimir, an event which also resulted in the death of his whole family and for centuries he has been biding his time getting stronger and attempting to infiltrate the elite family to get revenge on Vladimir. His latest scheme is to seduce Vlad’s son Alexander and score an invite to Vlad’s big ball. It sounds a little Disney princess when i lay it out like that but it sounded reasonable in the context of the book 😅

That said, you really don’t want to read this book with too critical an eye as it felt like there were some really obvious plot holes and convenient plot developments happening here. For one the seduction was way too easy, which could be fine if Alexander had a craving for love or a history of wearing his heart on his sleeve but the story makes a point to say this has never happened before which seems unbelievable given, you know, the centuries of life.

It’s also borderline ridiculous that it takes Alexander so long to realise that Tobias is the campus predator, let alone a vampire! Honestly if it weren’t for Alexander’s sister - i would assume vampires in this universe are extremely dumb. I also thought the end was a little too convenient but I won’t go into detail on that.

I also thought having Tobias realise that Alexander is different by showing Alexander participating in a soup kitchen was a little cliche.

That said the progression of Tobias’ feelings from acted, to enjoying pleasure but withholding feelings to developing feelings was well done. I also really did enjoy the dynamic of control/abuse between Alexander and his father. The setting was good, the switch from love to betrayal was delicious and interesting and Alexander’s sister is awesome.

So overall it’s a fun vampire read that presents a decent enemies to lovers trope but don’t think too hard about the plot or you’ll notice the holes.

[Charlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was thrilled when I found out that Ben Alderson was penning another vampire character, so I was very pleased to get an ARC on Netgalley. The Darkness Bites back is co-authored with Laura R. Samotin and is the first book in the “Shadows Have Teeth” series.

Tobias is a vampire who was made in a violent and terrifying massacre at the hands of Vladimir Damianos. Tobias has spent centuries plotting his revenge, carving a path to Vladimir so he can kill him and thus destroy every vampire the creature has created.

Tobias has a plan. He will seduce Vladimir’s heir. If he can entwine Alexander Damianos in his web this will give him access to the family mansion and his sworn enemy.

I’m not familiar with Laura Samotin’s writing, but Ben Alderson is one of my favourite authors. This book was just as engaging, spicy and yes… traumatizing as Ben’s other novels. Don’t be mistaken, all of that is good!

The characters are what propels this story. Tobias is driven by revenge, scarred and traumatized by his transition. When his long-planned mission finally comes to fruition however, he wavers slightly. Alexander Damianos isn’t the man his father is, in fact, on the surface he seems quite different.

Alexander may be troubled beneath his slickly, charming exterior but those still waters are deep and complicated. He has his own issues with his family and Vladimir but lacks the strength to take out his own maker.

I loved that there was so much chemistry between the two vampires despite their secrets, and the fact that they should be enemies. Despite himself, Tobias is drawn in by Alexander, amused by him, perhaps even a little enthralled. It’s not how things were supposed to go and Tobias is faced with unexpected possibilities and impossible decisions.

In a way, this book is enemies to lovers even though Alexander doesn’t know that Tobias harbours so much animosity toward him and considers him a foe.

This is a well-written tale, slightly reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet. The characters are all fully developed and interesting. The final chapter leaves open the path forward for the series. I look forward to what the future may hold for Alexander and Tobias.

[Effy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbury your gays and a completely original spin on Romeo and Juliet that will have readers running the whole rollercoaster of emotions.

From the moment that I first heard about this book (roughly 18 months ago but who is counting 🤣), I knew that I was going to absolutely love it. I am certified connoisseur of vampires and absolutely devoured The Actor and His Secret, also by this writing duo. Despite being incredibly excited for this book and the bar being through the roof, this book still managed to absolutely blow all expectations that I had completely out of the water! From the very first line of this book, I was undeniably hooked on this delicious story of cat and mouse with "if enemy, why fuckable shaped?" characters. Both Tobias and Alexander are really intriguing characters who feel very complex as they both has some kind of moral code but it doesn't necessarily look like something that we might align ourselves with.

As someone who has read A LOT of vampire stories, I have seen a lot of variations to vampiric lore but Samotin and Alderson have managed to write something completely new to me but also feels as though it has nods to some more common lore as well as a sprinkling of something fans of the more modern iterations of vampires might recommend. It felt refreshing to feel a little on the back foot not knowing exactly where the obstacles for our vampires would come from and what would be the characters' undoing.

I was additionally pleasantly surprised by the balance that was struck with this book being a vampiric twist on Romeo and Juliet. There was real joy in moments and lines that were clearly little Easter eggs towards the classic story but the similarities really lay in some very specific story beats that were just absolutely delightfully executed. This is a book that very much stands on its own two feet and I just utterly adored it. Also, I definitely appreciate the comp to Saltburn 👀

It was just such a pleasure to read this book and I can't wait to return to it many times in the future 💖

[TAbs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a copy of the arc in exchange for my honest review.

I am sad to say, this book suffered from my own expectations.

When I initially requested this book from Netgalley, it was based on the genre tags (General Fiction (Adult) | LGBTQIAP+ | Sci Fi & Fantasy), the stunning cover feeding my Louis/Lestat obsession, and the synopsis had me hook, line, and sinker with a revenge/love-to-hate-you-hate-to-love-you plot. However…..this did not go as planned.

Quickly, it became apparent that this story had a very modern setting; something that can’t really be gleaned from the synopsis as the only mention of a time and place is Oxford, which is almost over 900 years old. Once I looked up the book on Amazon, it clearly stated contemporary fiction. Guys, I’m on Netgalley right now and it says MODERN Oxford right there so I’m just dumb. While this wouldn’t be a problem for most people, I don’t enjoy contemporary stories so right away I was disengaged; however, I’m a sucker for vampire stories, so I continued. I did not continue for long, and again, I will fully admit this is a ME ISSUE. The two main characters have an instant attraction. While on the surface, I don’t wholly hate this trope as we’ve all been there once or twice, it was pushed a bit far by the instant obsession of Alexander when he had met Tobias all of 4 mins. I know it’s supposed to be a play on the “everyone has always been easy to f*ck, but you’re making it hard so you’re different”, but no. Just no. I was YEARNING. Around the 18% mark the dialogue became very cringey and I chose not to continue.

I take full responsibility for the L on this one. I hope other people love it.

[Kate Laycoax · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ooooh, this was SO up my alley from the moment I saw the cover and description because MM dark academia + paranormal + vampires is basically a combination of all my favorite things in one book. And wow, I think they really nailed it. The prose was genuinely gorgeous and the writing was so vivid and rich with detail that I could picture everything so clearly. This honestly feels like something that could easily become a movie or TV series.

I have never read anything from these authors before, but this book completely wowed me and now I absolutely want to read more from them. The bait and trap dynamic between Tobias and Alexander was fantastic, and the chemistry between them was searing. I loved the cat and mouse tension so much, especially with the whole enemies to lovers Romeo and Juliet vampire retelling aspect. I was honestly nervous this would destroy me emotionally because of the inspiration behind it, so I appreciated that it did not end horribly.

My one real complaint is that I think this would have benefited so much from dual first person POVs instead of third person. I wanted even more access to their thoughts and inner conflict during all the manipulation, longing, and tension between them. Especially with two authors writing it, having one POV for each character could have been incredible. The ending also felt a little abrupt to me, but maybe this is because there will be another book? I would hope so.

But overall, I enjoyed this immensely. Moody, atmospheric, romantic, dangerous, and full of tension in the best way and a really good story but two authors I discovered and will be reading more of!

Thank you to NetGalley, Laura R. Samotin, Ben Alderson, and Angry Robot for the eARC of this book.

[Brenda Stokvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tobias was turned into a vampire against his will centuries ago and he wants to take revenge on the man who turned him. To get close to the dangerous patriarch of the Damianos-family, Tobias has made a plan that involves the patriarch's son Alexander. He has studied Alexander for years and knows exactly what he likes and dislikes and he infiltrates himself into Alexander's life. What he didn't account for is that Alexander is nothing like his bloodthirsty father. Can he kill Alexander's father?
Like in true Romeo and Juliet style, Alexander takes one look at Tobias and falls head over heels. He is convinced Tobias is human though, and that makes him super protective (hot!). The banter, especially from Tobias was fantastic and so fun.
This is a relatively short book, so the pacing was fast and it made for quite the page turner. It also means the focus is mainly on the two characters Tobias and Alexander and maybe I would have liked to learn a little more about Maria or some more worldbuilding. But on the whole, those are minor things because this book is very entertaining. The finale kept me on the edge of my seat, I needed to find out how this story would end.
What I kept wondering though, if Tobias was following Alexander for years to prepare for his revenge. How come he never noticed how different Alexander is from his father? That seems like a bit of a plothole perhaps.
There is quite a bit of spice in this book, so if that is not your thing, be warned. I enjoyed it though, it felt very real. Although I might not do what they did in that graveyard 👀
The Darkness Bites Back gave me the vampire-fix I was craving! Delicious, sexy, drama, seductive, dangerous, it has it all. So definitely recommend this to those who enjoy vampire and queer novels with a dark edge.

[Gill MacLean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Romeo and Juliet, but set in modern Oxford with queer vampires!

Tobias Osian wants revenge. He’s been waiting nearly five hundred years to strike back against Vladimir Damianos, the man responsible for the deaths of his family and for turning him into a bloodsucking vampire. And with a new job at the Oxford library, he’s finally got his in: through Alexander Damianos, Oxford professor and Vladimir’s eldest son. But Tobias isn’t expecting chemistry between the two vampires, and things only get more complicated when a string of attacks start popping up around the city. Now Tobias is forced to choose what’s more important: love or vengeance?

I absolutely devoured this story and finished it in two sittings. It starts strong and doesn’t slow until the final pages. There’s lots of action, lots of yearning, and a ton of family drama. The prose is lovely, and there’s so many achingly beautiful quotes throughout.

Tobias and Alexander are such well-written characters. Both are complex, multilayered, and have satisfying growth throughout the book. Alexander is the absolute king of pining. I’m not usually a fan of insta-love, but it definitely worked considering this is a Romeo and Juliet retelling. There are a few spicy scenes, not so many that they interfered with the plot, honestly I wouldn’t have minded a little more.

I loved the dark academic setting and thought it fit the story so perfectly. Professor Alexander and librarian Tobias was a great way to capture the vibe without forcing it on the reader. This book is going to be such a good read for fall.

Thank you to Angry Robot and NetGalley for providing me a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

[Keturah Sergeant · Rating 4 out of 5]

An engaging, dark tale of manslaughter, obsession and revenge. A 500 year old vampire, finally reaching the point in his extensive revenge plan in which he infiltrates the family of his unwanted, disgusting sire, taking out competition for an administrative position at Oxford university to connect to the son of said sire. An Oxford professor, under his father's thumb but morally distant from him, is the perfect target, queer and horny and sympathetic to humanity. Their relationship is quick to develop, real feelings form fast, obsession taking root... However, it is completely built on secrets and lies. The son is charged with solving the vampire attacks his new 'human' librarian boyfriend is responsible for, his sister slowly getting to the root of the entire plot.

The ending is a dramatic, Romeo and Juliet style sacrifice, following an unravelling of everything, a gathering of vampires, the truth coming out, and a bond formed. It is engaging, dark and violent in the best way. The only faults in this book? The MCs plan took 500 years to form, stalking the son, spying on properties, yet he seems incredibly unprepared, he engraves his victims name on the stake he keeps in his house, his intel is wholly lacking, none of the confrontations go well? 500 years??? For plan seduce son, get invited to house and stab the dad ending the entire family line? Incredibly flawed... But still a fun read. Might have made more sense if he was a younger vampire...?

An enjoyable, fast-paced, action-packed story, with a satisfying end and engaging romance.

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you Angry Robot for the ARC!

If Laura and/or Ben write it, I'm going to read it.

And I'm going to love it, because I sure do love reading their broken little characters.

This was shockingly less dark than both of them usually write, which was really surprising--but it worked really well for the story being told.

Both Tobias and Alexander are broken due to the actions of one man--Alexander's dad. And they both want revenge in their own way. The twist? Neither of them knows the other feels that way, and Alexander has no idea Tobias plans to use him to get what he wants. But, you know, everyone is hot and horny so things don't exactly go according to plan.

This was a fast burn romance, so if you're looking for some long drawn out yearning BEFORE the spice kicks in, look elsewhere. But let me tell you, the yearning is still there, and it's on both sides. Dracula's obsession with Lucy looks like child's play compared to what's going on here.

This story was so fun and absolutely insane, and the way it ends has me laughing so hard because what do you mean we're just not going to acknowledge [redacted for spoilers]?? But honestly, I loved that and think it was a really fitting end for two people who fought the world to finally be free to live the life they wanted.

If you're wanting to read anything by Ben and Laura (or just want a fun, unhinged, vampire standalone), this is a GREAT book to read. Arguably my favorite book of both of them and exactly what I was wanting it to be.