How a Vampire Falls

Apex: Bloodbound #1

by Charlotte Vane

Leslie Snow is fairly stunned when a vampire she doesn’t recognize saunters up to her booth at the town art fair, claiming they should date. As one of only three vampires living in Harmony Ridge, Tennessee, Leslie is happily single. She’s never given much thought to the matchmaking test she took in college—or to Ryker, the young man it deemed her perfect match. Now he’s here, asking her out?

With the betrayal of a toxic ex in his past, Ryker Maddox is determined to make better choices this time around. He reminds Leslie of the matchmaking test’s if the members of a matched pair are not romantically attached by the time they’re thirty, they should trust the test results and give a relationship with each other a chance.

Intrigued by his boldness, Leslie lets him take her to dinner. Ryker makes her feel seen, not only as a woman and an artist, but also as a vampire—something she’s never experienced before. Soon she wonders if there might have been something to that test after all.

From their first date, Ryker is drawn to Leslie. Her contentment both challenges and quiets his striving heart. Soon she has him believing he might truly be worth more than the sum of his achievements.

Her life is in Tennessee. His is in Virginia. Yet distance isn’t the only obstacle threatening to keep them apart.

The more time Ryker and Leslie spend together, the more they realize just how different two vampires can be. He’s never spent more than a few hours in a small town; she’s never lived anywhere else. He has lived his whole life immersed in vampire culture; her knowledge about their kind has always been limited to what her mysteriously reluctant parents—the only other vampires in Harmony Ridge—were willing to share. If love can bridge all differences, Ryker and Leslie need an extra strong bridge…especially when his ex shows up wielding threats.

Genres: Fantasy

286 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 4, 2025

About the author

Charlotte Vane writes the sort of romance she wants to read. Her Apex series features a closed bedroom door, found family, wolves, and vampires. She lives in the South and daily savors the weather (yes, even the humidity). She enjoys time in nature, acoustic music, and most desserts.

Reviews

[The Swoony Awards]

This book has been nominated for a 2025 Swoony Award, to vote for it click here: Swoony Awards.

[AndieRae · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading the Apex: Moonbound series, I was so excited for this book to come out! Not disappointed in the least! I can always use a clean vampire romance. (Side note, there are more kisses in this book than the typical moonbound book, but they are all clean/ mentions of kisses) A perfectly clean, genius vampire romance! So glad Charlotte shares her work with us! 🩵

Also, I absolutely adore the pun in the title—read it and weep, my dears.

[Mileruichi]

it really is just an okay read. Definitely not as good as her previous series, but we'll see how the others go.
Main problem I have is there's no conflict either internal or external.
and the romance just felt convenient and kind of out nowhere between these two.
I can't buy the fast burn in this one. there's something lacking to make it believable.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was sweet, and kind of bland. It’s an introduction to the vampire half of the “Apex” equation in Vane’s urban (or rural) fantasy world that posits wolves and vampires are the apex species. Up until now, all the books have featured male wolves and their human mates. This book introduces us to the vampire world, where vampires come in both sexes equally, and are more likely to live intermingled with the humans. The wolves interacted with humans, but all lived on pack lands, keeping more to themselves. Leslie lives with her parents and otherwise completely with humans in a very small town in a very rural area. Ryker lives in a much bigger city type area, presumably with more humans, but since there are also a lot more vampires, his life seems significantly more segregated from humans and gives a better picture of what the vampire culture is like. And I found all the vampire stuff interesting. Leslie and Ryker are sweet together. The story is very low angst and I enjoyed catching up with the world.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this book! 4.5 stars!

There was more tension than I expected, but the author handled it well.

I adore the main characters and their love story.

Learning more about vampires/vampire lore was so interesting.

I also enjoyed getting to meet many new characters, and I hope some of them show up in future books!

The character development felt natural and unrushed.

SLIGHT SPOILERS...
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There is, of course, a happily ever after.
Also, some of our favorite characters from the Moonbound series (namely wolves & mates) have cameos in this book!

[kaitlyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun start!

I really enjoyed the APEX: Moonbound series so I figured I would like this APEX: Bloodbound book one How a Vampire Falls. I was right, this was a fun book. I liked the change in lore for vampires and I really enjoyed the connection that Leslie and Ryker have. It was also fun to have a little cameo from wolves, and I hope each of Rykers friends will get their own story!

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you loved her moonbound series like I did then this will be a perfect read! The characters are fun and dynamic and there’s always a little danger to keep things interesting! A few mysteries were fun to solve as well! It’ll be hard to put down!

[Emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

It doesn’t hit the spot like the Moonbound books did. BUT it’s still very cute and I liked her choices of vampire dynamics.

Cry count: 0 times.