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Winter Winds
Dear Author,
Forever young.
Forever beautiful.
Forever outcast.
Forever lonely.
Life as a deaf vampire is hard. It's seen as a flaw.
Being deaf is viewed as a weakness. They're foolish to underestimate me. Like Rudolph, I was never invited to play in any vampire games.
Then one foggy winter’s night, everything changed.
Photo Description:
A young man with impossibly blue eyes stares out at the viewer. It’s the eyes that have it, because this man cannot hear, a disability gained only after he was turned— into a vampire. It’s going to take one hell of a man to bring out the master vampire within.
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
Forever young.
Forever beautiful.
Forever outcast.
Forever lonely.
Life as a deaf vampire is hard. It's seen as a flaw.
Being deaf is viewed as a weakness. They're foolish to underestimate me. Like Rudolph, I was never invited to play in any vampire games.
Then one foggy winter’s night, everything changed.
Photo Description:
A young man with impossibly blue eyes stares out at the viewer. It’s the eyes that have it, because this man cannot hear, a disability gained only after he was turned— into a vampire. It’s going to take one hell of a man to bring out the master vampire within.
This story was written as a part of the M/M Romance Group's "Love Has No Boundaries" event. Group members were asked to write a story prompt inspired by a photo of their choice. Authors of the group selected a photo and prompt that spoke to them and wrote a short story.
138 pages, ebook
First published June 9, 2013
10 people are currently reading
387 people want to read
About the author
Missouri Dalton
45 books78 followersMissouri writes urban fantasy/historical/and paranormal fiction with queer characters and strong personalities. They are a recent transplant to the PNW, finding the rain delightful and the mountain air particularly inspiring.
Missouri currently lives with their wife and several cats, while filling the house with antiques in hopes of acquiring a ghost.
Missouri currently lives with their wife and several cats, while filling the house with antiques in hopes of acquiring a ghost.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
August 3, 2016
Compassionate, hilarious, and occasionally irritating.
Missouri Dalton must have run out of time.
It's the most likely explanation for what turned out to be a fairly perplexing story—beautiful and full of abiding compassion, and then suddenly nonsensical and, in one tragic instance, completely silly.
The ending. The ending was silly.
And the sex was annoying: if it's not important to the story, fine—cool—doesn't have to be a porno all the time, I get it. But then why have, like, eight fade-to-black scenes? Highlighted by a curious fascination with spanking?
In addition, there's the—frankly—ludicrous assertion that a millennial banshee would hesitate to fuck the ever-living shit out of his five-hundred-year-old master-vampire boyfriend for fear of "taking advantage," right after you find out that he—the millennial banshee—is still pissed-off at his manwhore siren ex for cheating on him fifty years ago, even though the ex is:
a) a manwhore,
b) as ancient a creature to walk the earth as he, and
c) a goddamned siren, who loves to fuck men and occasionally eats them afterwards.
But those are just dumb nitpicks, really. My biggest complaint here is pacing.
This story, man... it's got heart. And fascinating themes, and personally relevant ones.
You have yourself an orphan vampire, a former sailor and warrior, of late abandoned by the vampire who made him, to wander about a podunk third-tier metropolitan center like a paranormal Howard Hughes.
Heartbreakingly lonely and horribly unaware of his own worth, he is a tragic and compelling figure, whose transformation into the Master of his "City" (hahaha, just kidding, it's just Boston) makes for an interesting and moving story.
But some parts of that storyline happen too quickly, or off the page, or not at all.
And that stinks, because the first 40 pages of this read like a wonderfully nuanced and sensitive portrait of The Loner, and would that I'd had the chance to read that story all the way through.
Dalton must have run out of time. It's all I can think of.
But:
Man did I love the voice. The beginning is fucking hilarious, with a sneaky and not-so-sneaky joke density that approaches the sublime.
I mean, the dude loves him some squirrels. Instead of humans? To feed on?
Thinks they're "zesty."
Wonderful!
Plus the fun of ancient Gaelic creatures of mythology as deployed in a contemporary setting—with wit and cleverness and Jesus Christ do I want me a couple pookas to play with—is there some sort of website one may go to to solicit...?
No?
Ah, well. I can always revisit them here, along with the scene where our hero sinks into a squirrel "like a can of soda."
I laughed my head off, and maybe you will, too.
***
My comments, specifically about the beautifuland unnervingly segregated city of Boston, have absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with their team having eliminated my team from the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Nothing to do with that at all.
Honest.
Missouri Dalton must have run out of time.
It's the most likely explanation for what turned out to be a fairly perplexing story—beautiful and full of abiding compassion, and then suddenly nonsensical and, in one tragic instance, completely silly.
The ending. The ending was silly.
And the sex was annoying: if it's not important to the story, fine—cool—doesn't have to be a porno all the time, I get it. But then why have, like, eight fade-to-black scenes? Highlighted by a curious fascination with spanking?
In addition, there's the—frankly—ludicrous assertion that a millennial banshee would hesitate to fuck the ever-living shit out of his five-hundred-year-old master-vampire boyfriend for fear of "taking advantage," right after you find out that he—the millennial banshee—is still pissed-off at his manwhore siren ex for cheating on him fifty years ago, even though the ex is:
a) a manwhore,
b) as ancient a creature to walk the earth as he, and
c) a goddamned siren, who loves to fuck men and occasionally eats them afterwards.
But those are just dumb nitpicks, really. My biggest complaint here is pacing.
This story, man... it's got heart. And fascinating themes, and personally relevant ones.
You have yourself an orphan vampire, a former sailor and warrior, of late abandoned by the vampire who made him, to wander about a podunk third-tier metropolitan center like a paranormal Howard Hughes.
Heartbreakingly lonely and horribly unaware of his own worth, he is a tragic and compelling figure, whose transformation into the Master of his "City" (hahaha, just kidding, it's just Boston) makes for an interesting and moving story.
But some parts of that storyline happen too quickly, or off the page, or not at all.
And that stinks, because the first 40 pages of this read like a wonderfully nuanced and sensitive portrait of The Loner, and would that I'd had the chance to read that story all the way through.
Dalton must have run out of time. It's all I can think of.
But:
Man did I love the voice. The beginning is fucking hilarious, with a sneaky and not-so-sneaky joke density that approaches the sublime.
I mean, the dude loves him some squirrels. Instead of humans? To feed on?
Thinks they're "zesty."
Wonderful!
Plus the fun of ancient Gaelic creatures of mythology as deployed in a contemporary setting—with wit and cleverness and Jesus Christ do I want me a couple pookas to play with—is there some sort of website one may go to to solicit...?
No?
Ah, well. I can always revisit them here, along with the scene where our hero sinks into a squirrel "like a can of soda."
I laughed my head off, and maybe you will, too.
***
My comments, specifically about the beautiful
Nothing to do with that at all.
Honest.
June 30, 2013
4.5 stars.
It's free, its excellent and its long. Cillian's an adorable character with a quirky eating habit. Cute, humourous, unusual and lovely. I was quite taken with the vulnerable, lonely Vamp, I liked him a lot. There were a few minor quibbles with the second half of the story, the quick lovey dovey, I'm in love part. Also there was a marked difference about Cillian I cant quite put my finger on it a notable change and feel to the story. Time constraints probably played a part. Nevertheless Cillian was intriguing and special enough to keep me riveted. Recommended.
It's free, its excellent and its long. Cillian's an adorable character with a quirky eating habit. Cute, humourous, unusual and lovely. I was quite taken with the vulnerable, lonely Vamp, I liked him a lot. There were a few minor quibbles with the second half of the story, the quick lovey dovey, I'm in love part. Also there was a marked difference about Cillian I cant quite put my finger on it a notable change and feel to the story. Time constraints probably played a part. Nevertheless Cillian was intriguing and special enough to keep me riveted. Recommended.
June 11, 2013
To be honest if I hadn't seen the great reviews I probably would have bypassed this but I am so glad I didn't. This was a brilliant take on the Vampire tale. Different and fresh. I loved that Missouri introduced other unusual characters from the world of the fae.
Cillian the Vamp of the story is adorable. He starts the story, hiding away because of his disability ( he's deaf ), that has alienated him from his own kind for hundreds of years until he meets the gorgeous Donal, a man with a secret of his own. Watching the two of them together as Donal coaches Cillian to become the vampire he's meant to be is not only delightful but its dryly funny, sexy, exciting, entertaining and just plain enjoyable. Insta- love for me within minutes of starting the story.
I'm not going into the plot because this is so good that I think everyone should dscover its delights for themselves but I hope people who've got a bit sick of the same old, same old Fangy stories don't miss out on this refreshing tale .. Which by the way is a fantastic lengh for a free short story.
I'm downloading this as soon a its available and keeping it and I'll be watching closely for a sequel. Hint hint! Lol. Super writing, great story.
Cillian the Vamp of the story is adorable. He starts the story, hiding away because of his disability ( he's deaf ), that has alienated him from his own kind for hundreds of years until he meets the gorgeous Donal, a man with a secret of his own. Watching the two of them together as Donal coaches Cillian to become the vampire he's meant to be is not only delightful but its dryly funny, sexy, exciting, entertaining and just plain enjoyable. Insta- love for me within minutes of starting the story.
I'm not going into the plot because this is so good that I think everyone should dscover its delights for themselves but I hope people who've got a bit sick of the same old, same old Fangy stories don't miss out on this refreshing tale .. Which by the way is a fantastic lengh for a free short story.
I'm downloading this as soon a its available and keeping it and I'll be watching closely for a sequel. Hint hint! Lol. Super writing, great story.
June 10, 2013
It’s hard to believe this was in amongst the free short stories, free it might be, but it’s in no way a short. This is a full bodied complete story.
I’m not a big Vampire reader, but I found this to be a different take on this theme. I loved the way we saw a few other underworld types, and not just the usual ones like werewolves. Although I admit when I first heard of the Pookas I had a vision of six feet tall white rabbits lol.
Cillian is a wonderful and refreshing character. I loved seeing him go from underdog to Lord and Master, The part with the squirrels was a lovely touch, even if I could of done without the visual of Cillian catching them. I sure would of liked to see Cillian in squirrel form though lol.
Donal was again an unusual creature. My knowledge of dark creatures is pretty limited to the popular stereotypes, so seeing the banshee portrayed like this was a welcome change.
While I enjoyed watching Cillian and Donal grow closer, there was no big romance as such, more a gentle growth of their love that just felt right.
I did find myself questioning one point, but that aside, it was a wonderful climax to this story.
I would love to see this continued for a few more books, not only because I desperately want to see what happens with Zachary, but also because this is a world I want to see more of.
I’m not a big Vampire reader, but I found this to be a different take on this theme. I loved the way we saw a few other underworld types, and not just the usual ones like werewolves. Although I admit when I first heard of the Pookas I had a vision of six feet tall white rabbits lol.
Cillian is a wonderful and refreshing character. I loved seeing him go from underdog to Lord and Master, The part with the squirrels was a lovely touch, even if I could of done without the visual of Cillian catching them. I sure would of liked to see Cillian in squirrel form though lol.
Donal was again an unusual creature. My knowledge of dark creatures is pretty limited to the popular stereotypes, so seeing the banshee portrayed like this was a welcome change.
While I enjoyed watching Cillian and Donal grow closer, there was no big romance as such, more a gentle growth of their love that just felt right.
I did find myself questioning one point, but that aside, it was a wonderful climax to this story.
I would love to see this continued for a few more books, not only because I desperately want to see what happens with Zachary, but also because this is a world I want to see more of.
unfortunately-abandoned
June 19, 2013It's all my fault.
I was a little annoyed with how the narrator, an Irish Black (which is something else entirely than a black Irishman: see comments), deaf vampire (which is awesome!), rambled on and told, told and told everything but showed little. And this type of look at me being all tough and funny writing just never appeals to me:
I like to send him their ashes in a box. Just my little way of saying "thanks for biting me and leaving me for dead, you asshole. Sometimes I sent a note. Last time I sent a photocopy of my ass. I liked photocopiers and I liked to remind Ignacio of what a fine ass I had. I hoped he appreciated it.
Then enter a handsome instalove interest with eyes like burnished bronze framed by dark lashes and hair pale as raw silk, who smells like fresh air and rain and home and I'm outta here.
What it all boils down to is that pulpy PNR apparently really isn't my genre. So I decided it would be better to DNF this one after a few chapters and refrain from rating. I'm sure others will have a great, fun time with Winter Winds though. It's me! :)
I was a little annoyed with how the narrator, an Irish Black (which is something else entirely than a black Irishman: see comments), deaf vampire (which is awesome!), rambled on and told, told and told everything but showed little. And this type of look at me being all tough and funny writing just never appeals to me:
I like to send him their ashes in a box. Just my little way of saying "thanks for biting me and leaving me for dead, you asshole. Sometimes I sent a note. Last time I sent a photocopy of my ass. I liked photocopiers and I liked to remind Ignacio of what a fine ass I had. I hoped he appreciated it.
Then enter a handsome instalove interest with eyes like burnished bronze framed by dark lashes and hair pale as raw silk, who smells like fresh air and rain and home and I'm outta here.
What it all boils down to is that pulpy PNR apparently really isn't my genre. So I decided it would be better to DNF this one after a few chapters and refrain from rating. I'm sure others will have a great, fun time with Winter Winds though. It's me! :)
July 20, 2020
I am pleasantly surprised by this book. It may not be a long story but the characters and story are well developed.
Big nods to Susan65 who came up with the idea of a deaf vampire as the main character. This idea is not only very original but also extremely interesting. And I read with real pleasure about Cillian. Of course, the full merit should be attributed to the author Missouri Dalton who from a cursory outline created a full-dimensional and interesting character of the ancient deaf vampire who lives on the sidelines of the community. And she decided to connect him with another being that we do not see very often in novels and especially in MM romances – a banshee. Donal is as interesting as Cillian.
We also have a pretty good storyline here. Along with the romance of Cillian and Donal, there is also some suspense. An unknown powerful creature is murdering old vampire masters. It soon begins to get interested in Cillian, too. This is an interesting thread and its solution is also not obvious. And of course we have Cillian here who thanks to Donal's help begins to believe in himself. I would prefer that this part was more developed and presented as a gradual, longer process. It seems to me that everything is happening a little too quickly, especially if you consider that Cillian lived in the shadows for centuries.
I will not comment on Cillian's credibility as a deaf person and how he deals with everyday life. I have no experience in this regard. I just think he's an interesting hero of a novella.
I needed this story for some very specific reading challenge and I am very glad that I found such a good story.
Big nods to Susan65 who came up with the idea of a deaf vampire as the main character. This idea is not only very original but also extremely interesting. And I read with real pleasure about Cillian. Of course, the full merit should be attributed to the author Missouri Dalton who from a cursory outline created a full-dimensional and interesting character of the ancient deaf vampire who lives on the sidelines of the community. And she decided to connect him with another being that we do not see very often in novels and especially in MM romances – a banshee. Donal is as interesting as Cillian.
We also have a pretty good storyline here. Along with the romance of Cillian and Donal, there is also some suspense. An unknown powerful creature is murdering old vampire masters. It soon begins to get interested in Cillian, too. This is an interesting thread and its solution is also not obvious. And of course we have Cillian here who thanks to Donal's help begins to believe in himself. I would prefer that this part was more developed and presented as a gradual, longer process. It seems to me that everything is happening a little too quickly, especially if you consider that Cillian lived in the shadows for centuries.
I will not comment on Cillian's credibility as a deaf person and how he deals with everyday life. I have no experience in this regard. I just think he's an interesting hero of a novella.
I needed this story for some very specific reading challenge and I am very glad that I found such a good story.
June 11, 2013
I love any story that involves sexy vampires, so I was very glad when this short one came out. The picture that was associated with this story, absolutely gorgeous - those eyes. I could stare at them all day. I liked the concept of a deaf vampire, it was a different take on the standard paranormal stories and enjoyed how the relationship developed slowly between Donal and Cillian along with Cillian growing into his powers and growing from outcast to master. Of course you realize early on that if it wasn't for Donal, Cillian would never have done that for himself. My only issue with the story was the mystery/conflict and the ultimate conclusion of that. It may have been because this was a short story, but it just seemed to be thrown in and the resolution just seemed rushed and not really believable for me.
All in all, the world that this author created was intriguing and I would hope that maybe we could see more, because there is definitely more that could be told with these characters.
All in all, the world that this author created was intriguing and I would hope that maybe we could see more, because there is definitely more that could be told with these characters.
June 11, 2013
A big thank you to Missouri Dalton for bringing my deaf vampire to life. I have been waiting a long time for Cillian and he was just about perfect! I totally enjoyed myself reading Cillian and Donal's story and have a feeling we may be seeing more of these guys...one can only hope.
Again, thank you Missouri, you were awesome keeping us in the loop during the writing process, keeping to the prompt and staying true to Cillian's photo.
Again, thank you Missouri, you were awesome keeping us in the loop during the writing process, keeping to the prompt and staying true to Cillian's photo.
June 15, 2013
Delightfully unique. Executes humor, emotion, and violence well.
Cillian is charming and lovable and just the tiniest bit kinky.
Donal is amazing and honestly, I"ve never felt about a banshee the way I feel about him. Nice to realign my conceptions of species every once in awhile.
Good story and certainly sets the stage for another story--I hope.
Favorite quote:
“Before you… I had a typewriter and— one night stands.”
“Don’t feel bad, most of my relationships have ended in murder.”"
Cillian is charming and lovable and just the tiniest bit kinky.
Donal is amazing and honestly, I"ve never felt about a banshee the way I feel about him. Nice to realign my conceptions of species every once in awhile.
Good story and certainly sets the stage for another story--I hope.
Favorite quote:
“Before you… I had a typewriter and— one night stands.”
“Don’t feel bad, most of my relationships have ended in murder.”"
June 10, 2013
Wow, I was really engrossed in this story. Though there were vampires, I was fascinated by the inclusion of sirens, banshees, and other elements that gave this such an original and wonderful spin to this well trodden genre. I definitely felt vested in all the characters; particularly Cillian, Donal, and Zack. Well written and thoroughly engaging, I'm looking forward to read more on the Doone family, hoping that Zack will know his worth and come into his own.
January 25, 2023
This is a very creative and unique fantasy romance but unfortunately, the narrative choices in the second half left me bored. In addition, I couldn't overlook the (probably unintentional) continuous mistakes regarding Cillian's deafness. They're not errors that most readers would notice and the author did do a lot of research but just not enough to satisfy my picky self.
I loved the overall premise of this story. I'm not a fan of age gaps and in particular, I hate stories where a 500 year old vampire falls head over heels for a random 25 year old who the vampire has nothing in common with. It makes no sense to me and I love that the author avoided this setup for this story. Cillian is a 500 year old vampire but technically, he's the young one in this 'age gap' romance, since Donal is a 1000 year old banshee. Having them both be very old and both be supernatural creatures meant I was fully on board with their romance. It was also great the author put a lot of thought into Cillian and Donal's ages and how being that old would impact them in the present (which is something I don't always see in supernatural creature romances). For example, the only language Cillian can voice fluently is Old Gaelic because that's the last language he learned prior to being turned (which is when he lost his hearing). He can understand English and he's fluent in ASL but he's not comfortable voicing in English because he knows he has a very thick Irish accent and most people struggle to understand him.
I also love how the author altered the typical Chosen-One trope to make the story more interesting. Cillian is a very old vampire but he suffered from a 're-birth defect' so he lost his hearing during the turning process. Due to the complicated vampire politics at the time, he was ostracized from not only his vampire family but from vampire society overall. He's spent 500 years drifting around as an outsider to both human society and vampire society, entertaining himself by constantly getting university degrees and learning to cope with his lonely existence. Due to being angry at the situation he's also avoided learning more about vampires, which is why he's surprised when Donal points out that many of Cillian's abilities (effortless hypnosis, very fast etc) are signs that he's a very powerful and unique vampire. The way it was set up meant I was rooting for Cillian all along and the discovery that he's one of the most powerful vampires to ever exist was something I cheered for instead of groaning at.
In addition, I liked the way the author handled the worldbuilding. We meet a variety of other supernatural creatures along the way, mostly through Donal's interactions with them because he's always been very involved in the supernatural world. When we're introduced to a new creature, there wasn't a boring info-dump about the creature's appearance, history, abilities etc. This made sense because Donal is familiar with these creatures. But the author does reveal small bits and pieces of information regarding the creatures, as the story requires. This is exactly how I prefer fantasy worldbuilding to be done so I liked that aspect.
The first half of the story was great because it focused on Cillian and Donal getting to know each other as Donal helps Cillian become a Vampire Master. Their flirting was very sweet and I loved how much Donal adored Cillian. Cillian embodied a perfect balance between vulnerable and powerful, naïve and all-knowing which made his character very endearing. I especially loved that he didn't adjust to living the life of a rich Vampire Master right away. He still preferred wandering around without shoes on and snacking on squirrels.
Unfortunately, the second half of the story didn't interest me. Donal and Cillian get together around the halfway mark so all that lovely built up tension between them disappears. Their relationship doesn't go through any conflict so the plot focuses on the mystery regarding the strange-entity-who-is-killing-vampire-masters and Donal and Cillian becoming parents by taking in 3 young vampires whose master Cillian had killed. My problem with the former plotline is that I wasn't in the mood for a supernatural mystery so while it was done well, I personally didn't care. In addition, I couldn't care less about the 3 vamplings. I hated that the focus on them took the focus away from Donal and Cillian but also didn't understand why they were important other than expanding Cillian's vampire family and thus, making him appear more powerful. In particular, the child-like characterization for the youngest vampling made me uncomfortable. The guy was 20-something year old and he'd only been turned recently but he acted like a literal child. He spoke like a child, acted like a child and both Donal and Cillian treated him like he was 5 years old. I get it - the guy is a baby in vampire terms but I couldn't shift my brain into thinking of the guy as a child, nor did I think it made sense.
On a smaller note, I also kept getting distracted by the author's depiction of Cillian's deafness. FYI - I'm going to use lower case for 'deaf' because I got no indication that Cillian identifies as Deaf rather than just being deaf. Anyway, overall the author did do research and there was a strong attempt at depicting Cillian's deafness properly. Unfortunately, I couldn't help but notice the numerous mistakes that kept creeping in, particularly when scenes were very complex and depicting Cillian's deafness properly would have added additional layers of complication. My biggest problem is that the author defaulted to the tired-and-false myth that deaf people primarily use lip reading and that lip reading is a good method of understanding what others are saying. This is untrue and the deaf community continues to work hard to re-educate people about this myth but it keeps popping up because it makes life easier for people who are creating deaf characters. Whenever a scene was slow and didn't involve many characters, the author did make an attempt at showing the various communication methods that Cillian and Donal used, including signing, miming, texting, lip reading and having Cillian voice (which he prefers not to do with others due to his very thick Irish accent). But when there were complex scenes like group conversations, the author defaulted to having everybody voice (their speech was conveyed through straight dialog) and Cillian has no trouble lip reading every single thing that's said. This was completely unrealistic and it meant there was no difference between scenes where Cillian spoke to a group of people versus scenes where Donal spoke to a group of people.
There were also scenes such as when Donal is hugging Cillian from behind and talking to him and Cillian can only see a sideview of Donal's lips right beside his head, yet Cillian has no trouble lip reading every single word of a complex discussion. Then there was Donal learning ASL within just a few weeks. These mistakes weren't terrible but I felt it was a missed opportunity because it meant the author was portraying Cillian's life as much easier and more convenient than it would be in reality.
Another thing that made me screech to a halt was the author's cute but terribly inaccurate attempt to have Donal teach Cillian how to properly voice 'I love you' in an American accent. Donal does this by shoving his tongue into Cillian's mouth and demonstrating how to say the words using his tongue. This...is nonsense. This wouldn't work on any level. I'm sure the author was attempting to do something similar to Tadoma (which is a technique that used to be used by deafblind individuals to understand a person they were speaking to or to learn how to voice themselves) but that's not how it works at all. Even if the author had attempted to say the words 'I love you' herself, she would have noticed that the word I doesn't involve the tongue at all and the sound is created purely by jaw movement. Having Donal trying to teach Cillian how to voice without his Irish accent would have been great - if the author had done proper research and made it be more than just a throwaway sweet/sexy plot point.
In addition, it's a pet peeve of mine but I dislike it when authors write out characters' dialog when we're in the POV of a deaf character. Not only is it unrealistic but I think it misses a major opportunity to allow readers to gain a bit more of an idea of what life without hearing is like. It would have been so powerful if Cillian's POV scenes didn't involve any dialog while Donal's did. Since signing and texting and other methods of non-voiced communication is done through narration typically anyway, I would have loved it if the author didn't include any dialog, which would have taken care of the lip reading situation too.
Anyway, as I said, I'm sure the majority of readers won't notice any of these errors and I do appreciate that the author went well beyond the minimal effort that romance authors depicting deafness usually do (I've come across much, much worse) so I was only going to remove 0.5 stars for these issues. None of it was offensive or dumb - it was just a lack of in-depth research and the author clearly not knowing how to fully incorporate Cillian's deafness into the more complex scenes. Unfortunately, the second half of the story did bore me and I lost my enthusiasm for it, which is why I'm giving it 3 stars. All of these things are me-problems so I still highly recommend this because it is a really unique vampire MM romance.
I loved the overall premise of this story. I'm not a fan of age gaps and in particular, I hate stories where a 500 year old vampire falls head over heels for a random 25 year old who the vampire has nothing in common with. It makes no sense to me and I love that the author avoided this setup for this story. Cillian is a 500 year old vampire but technically, he's the young one in this 'age gap' romance, since Donal is a 1000 year old banshee. Having them both be very old and both be supernatural creatures meant I was fully on board with their romance. It was also great the author put a lot of thought into Cillian and Donal's ages and how being that old would impact them in the present (which is something I don't always see in supernatural creature romances). For example, the only language Cillian can voice fluently is Old Gaelic because that's the last language he learned prior to being turned (which is when he lost his hearing). He can understand English and he's fluent in ASL but he's not comfortable voicing in English because he knows he has a very thick Irish accent and most people struggle to understand him.
I also love how the author altered the typical Chosen-One trope to make the story more interesting. Cillian is a very old vampire but he suffered from a 're-birth defect' so he lost his hearing during the turning process. Due to the complicated vampire politics at the time, he was ostracized from not only his vampire family but from vampire society overall. He's spent 500 years drifting around as an outsider to both human society and vampire society, entertaining himself by constantly getting university degrees and learning to cope with his lonely existence. Due to being angry at the situation he's also avoided learning more about vampires, which is why he's surprised when Donal points out that many of Cillian's abilities (effortless hypnosis, very fast etc) are signs that he's a very powerful and unique vampire. The way it was set up meant I was rooting for Cillian all along and the discovery that he's one of the most powerful vampires to ever exist was something I cheered for instead of groaning at.
In addition, I liked the way the author handled the worldbuilding. We meet a variety of other supernatural creatures along the way, mostly through Donal's interactions with them because he's always been very involved in the supernatural world. When we're introduced to a new creature, there wasn't a boring info-dump about the creature's appearance, history, abilities etc. This made sense because Donal is familiar with these creatures. But the author does reveal small bits and pieces of information regarding the creatures, as the story requires. This is exactly how I prefer fantasy worldbuilding to be done so I liked that aspect.
The first half of the story was great because it focused on Cillian and Donal getting to know each other as Donal helps Cillian become a Vampire Master. Their flirting was very sweet and I loved how much Donal adored Cillian. Cillian embodied a perfect balance between vulnerable and powerful, naïve and all-knowing which made his character very endearing. I especially loved that he didn't adjust to living the life of a rich Vampire Master right away. He still preferred wandering around without shoes on and snacking on squirrels.
Unfortunately, the second half of the story didn't interest me. Donal and Cillian get together around the halfway mark so all that lovely built up tension between them disappears. Their relationship doesn't go through any conflict so the plot focuses on the mystery regarding the strange-entity-who-is-killing-vampire-masters and Donal and Cillian becoming parents by taking in 3 young vampires whose master Cillian had killed. My problem with the former plotline is that I wasn't in the mood for a supernatural mystery so while it was done well, I personally didn't care. In addition, I couldn't care less about the 3 vamplings. I hated that the focus on them took the focus away from Donal and Cillian but also didn't understand why they were important other than expanding Cillian's vampire family and thus, making him appear more powerful. In particular, the child-like characterization for the youngest vampling made me uncomfortable. The guy was 20-something year old and he'd only been turned recently but he acted like a literal child. He spoke like a child, acted like a child and both Donal and Cillian treated him like he was 5 years old. I get it - the guy is a baby in vampire terms but I couldn't shift my brain into thinking of the guy as a child, nor did I think it made sense.
On a smaller note, I also kept getting distracted by the author's depiction of Cillian's deafness. FYI - I'm going to use lower case for 'deaf' because I got no indication that Cillian identifies as Deaf rather than just being deaf. Anyway, overall the author did do research and there was a strong attempt at depicting Cillian's deafness properly. Unfortunately, I couldn't help but notice the numerous mistakes that kept creeping in, particularly when scenes were very complex and depicting Cillian's deafness properly would have added additional layers of complication. My biggest problem is that the author defaulted to the tired-and-false myth that deaf people primarily use lip reading and that lip reading is a good method of understanding what others are saying. This is untrue and the deaf community continues to work hard to re-educate people about this myth but it keeps popping up because it makes life easier for people who are creating deaf characters. Whenever a scene was slow and didn't involve many characters, the author did make an attempt at showing the various communication methods that Cillian and Donal used, including signing, miming, texting, lip reading and having Cillian voice (which he prefers not to do with others due to his very thick Irish accent). But when there were complex scenes like group conversations, the author defaulted to having everybody voice (their speech was conveyed through straight dialog) and Cillian has no trouble lip reading every single thing that's said. This was completely unrealistic and it meant there was no difference between scenes where Cillian spoke to a group of people versus scenes where Donal spoke to a group of people.
There were also scenes such as when Donal is hugging Cillian from behind and talking to him and Cillian can only see a sideview of Donal's lips right beside his head, yet Cillian has no trouble lip reading every single word of a complex discussion. Then there was Donal learning ASL within just a few weeks. These mistakes weren't terrible but I felt it was a missed opportunity because it meant the author was portraying Cillian's life as much easier and more convenient than it would be in reality.
Another thing that made me screech to a halt was the author's cute but terribly inaccurate attempt to have Donal teach Cillian how to properly voice 'I love you' in an American accent. Donal does this by shoving his tongue into Cillian's mouth and demonstrating how to say the words using his tongue. This...is nonsense. This wouldn't work on any level. I'm sure the author was attempting to do something similar to Tadoma (which is a technique that used to be used by deafblind individuals to understand a person they were speaking to or to learn how to voice themselves) but that's not how it works at all. Even if the author had attempted to say the words 'I love you' herself, she would have noticed that the word I doesn't involve the tongue at all and the sound is created purely by jaw movement. Having Donal trying to teach Cillian how to voice without his Irish accent would have been great - if the author had done proper research and made it be more than just a throwaway sweet/sexy plot point.
In addition, it's a pet peeve of mine but I dislike it when authors write out characters' dialog when we're in the POV of a deaf character. Not only is it unrealistic but I think it misses a major opportunity to allow readers to gain a bit more of an idea of what life without hearing is like. It would have been so powerful if Cillian's POV scenes didn't involve any dialog while Donal's did. Since signing and texting and other methods of non-voiced communication is done through narration typically anyway, I would have loved it if the author didn't include any dialog, which would have taken care of the lip reading situation too.
Anyway, as I said, I'm sure the majority of readers won't notice any of these errors and I do appreciate that the author went well beyond the minimal effort that romance authors depicting deafness usually do (I've come across much, much worse) so I was only going to remove 0.5 stars for these issues. None of it was offensive or dumb - it was just a lack of in-depth research and the author clearly not knowing how to fully incorporate Cillian's deafness into the more complex scenes. Unfortunately, the second half of the story did bore me and I lost my enthusiasm for it, which is why I'm giving it 3 stars. All of these things are me-problems so I still highly recommend this because it is a really unique vampire MM romance.
June 9, 2013
LHNB story released 9.6.13
4.5 stars rounded up
Excellent story of a reclusive deaf vampire discovered by fey (banshee) who takes an interested in him and his talents. The story is woven through with a nice mixture of Irish, vampire and fey folk law. There is also a quirky humour to each of the MC's.... and anything that hunts tree rats is a win in my books!
4.5 stars rounded up
Excellent story of a reclusive deaf vampire discovered by fey (banshee) who takes an interested in him and his talents. The story is woven through with a nice mixture of Irish, vampire and fey folk law. There is also a quirky humour to each of the MC's.... and anything that hunts tree rats is a win in my books!
June 10, 2013
Great world building, fantastic characters, and I loved the way the mythology was so seamlessly woven in.
November 20, 2014
3.75 stars. Very appealing protagonist. I've always loved vampire stories and this is a good one. Not quite as strong towards the end but it was too much story compacted into a novella.
September 21, 2020
2.5 stars
It's not really fleshed out enough for a full three stars, but I enjoyed every minute of it. It was a fun, easy read with original world-building, and I was able to feel like there were genuine stakes involved with some of the action scenes -- though not all of them. The humor worked, the romance worked, I loved the MC's personality.
There were definitely some niggles, but the really good stuff outweighed them by far, and I breezed through this thing so quickly they barely had time to register. Absolutely recommended when you're in the mood for a light-hearted romance with a sarcastic, deaf vampire who finds his place in the world 500 years after he comes into it -- and stays 100% true to himself in the process.
It's not really fleshed out enough for a full three stars, but I enjoyed every minute of it. It was a fun, easy read with original world-building, and I was able to feel like there were genuine stakes involved with some of the action scenes -- though not all of them. The humor worked, the romance worked, I loved the MC's personality.
There were definitely some niggles, but the really good stuff outweighed them by far, and I breezed through this thing so quickly they barely had time to register. Absolutely recommended when you're in the mood for a light-hearted romance with a sarcastic, deaf vampire who finds his place in the world 500 years after he comes into it -- and stays 100% true to himself in the process.
October 3, 2015
I loved this story. The prompt was wonderful and fresh (and wow, those eyes!) and Dalton ran with it. I love these characters and I want more about them.
I loved how finally, for once, the vampire was short, and was so because people in his day were shorter. I wish she'd explain why the 1000 year old (minor spoiler) was so tall.
I appreciated all the little sign language bits added in although (minor spoiler)
The story was surprisingly funny and I loved all the squirrel stuff.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that deaf people can get driver's licenses.
One small nitpick: Shouldn't have to tap out a beat in a dance hall with a deaf person; he should be able to feel it.
I loved how finally, for once, the vampire was short, and was so because people in his day were shorter. I wish she'd explain why the 1000 year old (minor spoiler) was so tall.
I appreciated all the little sign language bits added in although (minor spoiler)
The story was surprisingly funny and I loved all the squirrel stuff.
I was pleasantly surprised to find that deaf people can get driver's licenses.
One small nitpick: Shouldn't have to tap out a beat in a dance hall with a deaf person; he should be able to feel it.
November 1, 2014
I fell in love!! Fell in love with Cillian! His voice is beautiful and fun and *sigh*
I sense a sequel which would be awesome! I wouldn't mind reading more of Cillian and Donal, but I also wouldn't mind reading Adam's story, or even Zach's.
I sense a sequel which would be awesome! I wouldn't mind reading more of Cillian and Donal, but I also wouldn't mind reading Adam's story, or even Zach's.
Read
June 16, 2013It wasn't my kind of book, but I thought it was well done.
August 10, 2022
Cute couple-a vampire and banshee . Interesting and fresh . Started very good but by the end I was kind of bored.. It might be me and not the book though.. If you wanna read a vampire book without the fated mates silliness this one is pretty entertaining.
September 20, 2023
Squirrels! :D
Easy atmosphere, light hearted and fun. A shame, I really want to read more about those two and their Family. So much potential for a great book series... alas, only one short story with heart and the feeling of great things to come! I loved it (so much so I've read quite a few times)!
I also added some quotes:
Easy atmosphere, light hearted and fun. A shame, I really want to read more about those two and their Family. So much potential for a great book series... alas, only one short story with heart and the feeling of great things to come! I loved it (so much so I've read quite a few times)!
I also added some quotes:
I liked to send their ashes in a box. Just my little way of saying "thanks for biting me and leaving me for dead, you asshole".
Sometimes I sent a note. Last time I sent a photocopy of my ass.
"You'll want to keep him on a short leash. Lonely vampires are like wild dogs."
"He eats squirrels, is that normal?"
There was a long pause.
I would have been happier if he'd managed something like a wolf, or a bat, something traditional and in keeping with his new position.
I had to admit he was an adorable squirrel, though.
That warehouse was worse than even my apartment, though I'd lived in worse. I'd spent twenty years in a rotting shack by the seaside. A wonderful twenty years, actually. I'd hunted sharks. It was mildly suicidal, I admit it.
"I suppose you only date Irishmen?"
"Before you... I had a typewriter and - one night stands."
"Don't feel bad, most of my relationships have ended in murder."
"Fine." I shook my head. "Let's go squirrel hunting."
It one was unfamiliar with the vampire hunting habits, they could be forgiven for assuming the handsome young man in the suit with no shoes or socks climbing into a tree in the middle of winter was insane, or drunk. Cillian wasn't drunk, but I did wonder now and then about his sanity. This was one of those now and thens.
October 12, 2016
Three stars.
I wish the author spent more time on this book or that it came out as a full-length novel later. I promise to pay to re-read the full, improved and edited version.
There was obviously not enough time for MD to bring to light much of what was mentioned in passing or remained behind the scenes for us to figure out.
There are a few wtf moments of minor importance, but they are there and they are annoying.
The story also strongly reminded me of The Necromancer's Dance. There is a cray-zeh amount of similarities. The same city, same parts of the town for the living arrangements, mysterious killings, dead bodied piling up, PI's (or wannabes), morgue scenes, mysterious bedroom attacks, ancient mythical creatures of all caliber and capacity on a rampage, vampire politics and theirdick size fang size alpha games, predominantly in Boston and vicinity...
And I get it - there is only so much you can do. However, all that amounts to "minus two stars".
On the other hand.
- Great potential to be a real page-turner if released as a revised novel.
- A lonely, vulnerable vampire who is comfortable enough in his vampire-ness to turn into a . A compassionate and gentle vampire (just don't ask squirrels)...
- ...who loves art and Aivazovsky in particular *drool and slurp*
- ...and who lives and Boston *happy face* (total winner for me if you ask!)
Seeing how I am partial to the last two items on "the other hand" menu, I am upping my rating to 4.
Go Pats! :P
PS What would I NOT give to read a Brady/werewolf/vampire/mm (Gronk - duh!) fic!
I wish the author spent more time on this book or that it came out as a full-length novel later. I promise to pay to re-read the full, improved and edited version.
There was obviously not enough time for MD to bring to light much of what was mentioned in passing or remained behind the scenes for us to figure out.
There are a few wtf moments of minor importance, but they are there and they are annoying.
The story also strongly reminded me of The Necromancer's Dance. There is a cray-zeh amount of similarities. The same city, same parts of the town for the living arrangements, mysterious killings, dead bodied piling up, PI's (or wannabes), morgue scenes, mysterious bedroom attacks, ancient mythical creatures of all caliber and capacity on a rampage, vampire politics and their
And I get it - there is only so much you can do. However, all that amounts to "minus two stars".
On the other hand.
- Great potential to be a real page-turner if released as a revised novel.
- A lonely, vulnerable vampire who is comfortable enough in his vampire-ness to turn into a . A compassionate and gentle vampire (just don't ask squirrels)...
- ...who loves art and Aivazovsky in particular *drool and slurp*
- ...and who lives and Boston *happy face* (total winner for me if you ask!)
Seeing how I am partial to the last two items on "the other hand" menu, I am upping my rating to 4.
Go Pats! :P
PS What would I NOT give to read a Brady/werewolf/vampire/mm (Gronk - duh!) fic!
July 8, 2013
I very much enjoyed this take of the supernatural world from the perspectives of a deaf vampire and a wise, incredibly sexy supernatural being.
For a Love Has No Boundaries event with limited time to create a story, this was a surprisingly lengthy and complete vampire tale. I am quite leery of vampire stories due to the artistic license taken by most authors to re-imagine the world of vampires. This is one of those books that has its own take on the vampire world but does so without tarnishing the general concept.
I liked the idea of a reclusive, insecure vampire who learns to grow into his own power. Cillian is a fascinating mix of insecurities and inner strength. Donal is a perfect foil for him.
My main complaint is that the ending felt too rushed and perhaps, resolved too easily. Despite that, this is a truly enjoyable supernatural mm romance.
For a Love Has No Boundaries event with limited time to create a story, this was a surprisingly lengthy and complete vampire tale. I am quite leery of vampire stories due to the artistic license taken by most authors to re-imagine the world of vampires. This is one of those books that has its own take on the vampire world but does so without tarnishing the general concept.
I liked the idea of a reclusive, insecure vampire who learns to grow into his own power. Cillian is a fascinating mix of insecurities and inner strength. Donal is a perfect foil for him.
My main complaint is that the ending felt too rushed and perhaps, resolved too easily. Despite that, this is a truly enjoyable supernatural mm romance.
June 16, 2013
BRILLIANT job turning the prompt into a very special tale. (Kudos for working in the Rudolph reference!) I loved everything about this story! A deaf vampire, shunned by all the others of his kind for being a "freak", only to realize over time that he's far more powerful than the so-called "perfect" vampires? Hell yes! This is a unique and creative take on the basic "ugly duckling" storyline. I also loved the incorporation of the banshee and sirens. I'd love to learn more about these creatures in general.
This was so good! I could easily see the world being expanded in further novels. Would love a spin-off story about Zachary. *hint, hint*
And the "zesty" squirrels? Tooooooo funny! :-D
This was so good! I could easily see the world being expanded in further novels. Would love a spin-off story about Zachary. *hint, hint*
And the "zesty" squirrels? Tooooooo funny! :-D
June 21, 2013
3.75 stars
Take two. Because my computer sucks and ate my last review.
I really enjoyed Cillian's story. I thought it was a great twist having a vampire-- who are typically thought to be perfect in face and form-- be deaf and rocking it! I loved the way MW wrote Cillian's as kick ass despite the fact that his race had shunned him for being 'disabled'.
Then there was Donal who I could eat up with a spoon. I loved his take charge attitude and the way he cared for Cillian.
My only niggle was the way the 'big problem' wrapped itself up. I thought that bit felt a little rushed and I would have liked to explain the twist in who it ended up being a bit more.
Overall, a really enjoyable read.
Take two. Because my computer sucks and ate my last review.
I really enjoyed Cillian's story. I thought it was a great twist having a vampire-- who are typically thought to be perfect in face and form-- be deaf and rocking it! I loved the way MW wrote Cillian's as kick ass despite the fact that his race had shunned him for being 'disabled'.
Then there was Donal who I could eat up with a spoon. I loved his take charge attitude and the way he cared for Cillian.
My only niggle was the way the 'big problem' wrapped itself up. I thought that bit felt a little rushed and I would have liked to explain the twist in who it ended up being a bit more.
Overall, a really enjoyable read.
June 25, 2013
OK, so I was skirting around this one for more then two weeks, having had my fill of paranormal especially vampires for a long time. But my goal is to read all of the LHNB stories so I had a look at the ratings and decided I'll give it a go. Oh boy, am I lucky I did! You can't actually find any stereotypical plot device known from too many vampire books here. It was a refreshing new take on vampires and other mystical creatures with a great world building (I liked this "secret society" touch which influences human world considerably, but in a mainly positive way), well thought out characters, interesting (love) story. I would have wished to learn more about certain things and characters, maybe there'll be a full novel?????
June 16, 2013
Finally got to this longer than usual short story. It was excellent. Some standard vampire fare, just to hook audiences in, then it went off on its own merry way, with humour and strong warmth and affection.
The Irish pair, Cillian & Donal, although different species, find each other and both recognise the other for the soul mate they are seeking. I love boys not afraid to take on the big risky forever.
The training of Cillian to bring him to his own Master level was really excellent.
Lots of detail, lots of snark and lots of mystery.
The Irish pair, Cillian & Donal, although different species, find each other and both recognise the other for the soul mate they are seeking. I love boys not afraid to take on the big risky forever.
The training of Cillian to bring him to his own Master level was really excellent.
Lots of detail, lots of snark and lots of mystery.
June 12, 2013
This was really, REALLY good, a story about a deaf vampire, a banshee, Pookas, sirens and more vampires, with a bit of whodunit and some hot boy loving.
I loved watching Cillian grow into himself, and I really enjoyed the relationship that unfolded between him and Donal. The world-building and the mythology was also very well done.
Another fantastic free story from the M/M Romance group's Love Has No Boundaries collection.
Go - read it!
I loved watching Cillian grow into himself, and I really enjoyed the relationship that unfolded between him and Donal. The world-building and the mythology was also very well done.
Another fantastic free story from the M/M Romance group's Love Has No Boundaries collection.
Go - read it!
June 18, 2013
So good and I loved how Missouri Dalton built her world. The book hooked me and I never wanted to put it down. I have to say when I heard Banshee I kept thinking of Phoebe on Charmed when she turned into one. I loved her take on the Banshee and the other supernaturals in the book. This book is a steal especially since it's free. I really hope we get more from this world.
July 10, 2013
was surprised by how much I liked this story. I’m not usually a huge van of vampires, but I liked the mythology of this story very much, and I liked how the vampire wasn’t the typical arrogant ass. The plot was interesting, and I love the Island of Misfit Toys the vampire is building. A sweet story while not being sappy, or overly sentimental.
June 24, 2013
Quite an ambitious undertaking for such a short period of time.
Loved the first part, second half was ok.
LOVED the voice and understated humor :)
I'll probably check out something else from this author.
Loved the first part, second half was ok.
LOVED the voice and understated humor :)
I'll probably check out something else from this author.
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