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I never wanted to be Chosen. Married off to one of the Elites and whisked away to the City of Lights. It was supposed to be some kind of honor, to share our bodies, our blood, to preserve the peace between our two races… for some girls in my town, it was a fairy tale ending. For me, it was just another way the Elites reminded us that we were slaves.
But then I met Damien. The most beautiful boy I’d even seen, and a prince. He saved me, and showed kindness in the woods. His sky blue eyes stirred up feelings I’d never had before. Dreams I’d never allowed myself to consider. There’s no way he would choose me.
But then he did.
The only problem is, I get the feeling he doesn’t even want me. Everyone wants to know why I’m so special, what he saw in me.
I wish I knew. Because I’m leaving everything behind for him, to serve him and preserve the covenant. But when I get to the City of Lights, I discover the reality is far more complex than the legends they’ve been feeding us. Not everybody is happy to be ruled. And some will fight to be free. Once I get a taste of revolution, it lights my blood on fire.
But that means my new husband is also my worst enemy.
How can I share a room, a bed, without tipping him off?
Taste is a dystopian vampire romance. Fans of the Hunger Games, Red Queen, futuristic scifi and classic paranormal romance will love this unique twist on the 'vampire hunter' mythology.
This is NOT a complete novel! This is just a "taste" of the full book, which will be out near the end of 2017. If you like the story so far, you can sign up to get the full book for free when it's ready!
But then I met Damien. The most beautiful boy I’d even seen, and a prince. He saved me, and showed kindness in the woods. His sky blue eyes stirred up feelings I’d never had before. Dreams I’d never allowed myself to consider. There’s no way he would choose me.
But then he did.
The only problem is, I get the feeling he doesn’t even want me. Everyone wants to know why I’m so special, what he saw in me.
I wish I knew. Because I’m leaving everything behind for him, to serve him and preserve the covenant. But when I get to the City of Lights, I discover the reality is far more complex than the legends they’ve been feeding us. Not everybody is happy to be ruled. And some will fight to be free. Once I get a taste of revolution, it lights my blood on fire.
But that means my new husband is also my worst enemy.
How can I share a room, a bed, without tipping him off?
Taste is a dystopian vampire romance. Fans of the Hunger Games, Red Queen, futuristic scifi and classic paranormal romance will love this unique twist on the 'vampire hunter' mythology.
This is NOT a complete novel! This is just a "taste" of the full book, which will be out near the end of 2017. If you like the story so far, you can sign up to get the full book for free when it's ready!
61 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 7, 2017
644 people are currently reading
3140 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 163 reviews
September 4, 2022
* I received/won a copy of the audiobook from the author. All opinions in this review are my own.
Yet another one of those books that I finished and somehow forgot to review and input to Goodreads. *Sigh* I haven't lost my head yet because it's attached to my body by the neck it seems.
I'm *pretty* sure I tried picking this up in the past at least 1 other time. There are some books that just don't work for me if I need to physically read them but will work for me as an audio book. This one was one of those.
I loved this book so much! The main couple was interesting. The heroine is just as in the dark as the reader is about everything that's happening to her so she's right there along with us for the mystery. I wish the hero was more open and communicative with her. Though judging by how this book ended and left things between them, things are going to get worse before they get better.
I'm very interested in the mystery at hand and will probably pick up the next book in the future!
Yet another one of those books that I finished and somehow forgot to review and input to Goodreads. *Sigh* I haven't lost my head yet because it's attached to my body by the neck it seems.
I'm *pretty* sure I tried picking this up in the past at least 1 other time. There are some books that just don't work for me if I need to physically read them but will work for me as an audio book. This one was one of those.
I loved this book so much! The main couple was interesting. The heroine is just as in the dark as the reader is about everything that's happening to her so she's right there along with us for the mystery. I wish the hero was more open and communicative with her. Though judging by how this book ended and left things between them, things are going to get worse before they get better.
I'm very interested in the mystery at hand and will probably pick up the next book in the future!
November 22, 2022
Damien is not worthy of Emily.....I said it and I do not take it back....at this point.
Great storyline. Riveting. Exciting. Edge of seat kinda stuff happening here. BUT (there is always a but isn't there?) Damien let me down. He reallllly let me down and there may be no way for us to patch up our relationship.
Time will tell. Or the next book will.
Happy reading,
DD 🥂
Great storyline. Riveting. Exciting. Edge of seat kinda stuff happening here. BUT (there is always a but isn't there?) Damien let me down. He reallllly let me down and there may be no way for us to patch up our relationship.
Time will tell. Or the next book will.
Happy reading,
DD 🥂
September 10, 2017
GIVE ME THE REST OF THE GODDAMN BOOK.
November 22, 2020
As I was reading this, I kept dubbing it A Throne of Twilight and Hunger Part 1: The Divergent Red Queen Selection because it's one of those types of books: a YA mish-mash of all the tropes and cliches. You'll either love it for being a comforting stew of familiarity, or be put off by the feeling that you've read all this somewhere before. It is however a very tangled mesh of ideas rather than sticking to one or two of the usual pathways, so in that sense it does have something different going for it. My main problem with it, despite enjoying it as an easy read, was that it's full of huge inconsistencies and revisionist tendencies.
Our story follows Emily, a girl in an ash-filled dystopian future where ordinary humans live in tightly controlled, poverty stricken compounds surrounded by forbidden wastelands. They're kept there for their own safety by beings known as the elite(s) - you'll know them as vampires. They're fast, strong, immortal, and deadly, all because of the "elixir" that flows inside their veins (they're also darned handsome, but we'll come to that). Emily is having to support her sick family by sneaking out to hunt, dance around childhood friend Trevor's attractions, and hope that she isn't named a "chosen" when the next ceremony comes. Yep, each year the elite(s) come to the compounds to pick out potential mates as part of their pact to protect humanity. And Emily is chosen, though not willingly by either side. She knows this eilte boy - he saved her once, and seems to have done so again. He's also impossibly good looking and son of the elite king. Prince Damien might not be sweeping her off her feet, but she's got to go with him and be his consort. After the trials, of course. All the chosen girls must compete to prove their worth to high elite society. And that's before she discovers underground rebellious mutterings, secrets from her own past, and the inevitable love triangle...
OK, so a little tough love here (and please believe it comes from a place of love rather than intended cruelty): this book needed an editor. Or some critical beta readers. Just someone to point out the plot holes, inconsistencies and general typos/grammar/punctuation situations the story finds itself in. I'm always drawn in by this author's writing; he has a way with words that is so YA it hurts but I love it anyway, and when the world's feeling ugly there's nothing better that curling up with a familiar writing style. What's really needed is some work on the storytelling part, because it's just a bit... all over the place. It's like lots of pieces of different puzzles slotted together, but some of them don't have the transitions between that make them make sense for the story or the character development. The first few chapters feel very different from the rest of the book. Scenes and genres jump about, and while it flows, there's this feeling that it's trying to be too many different things.
I was most bothered by the character inconsistencies. Emily started off wanting to be all Hunger Games/Katniss tough girl, but suddenly morphs into being all about books and boys and pretty dresses. She forgets her goal of protecting her family and starts mooning over Damien and wondering why he won't touch her. Damien on the other hand kept flopping between being hot and cold without obvious reasons why. He starts off resenting, maybe even hating Emily (for forcing his hand?), but then is all about wanting to protect her/declaring love/taking her... roller skating? They go from 0 to eternal teenage love in the blink of an eye, then have a revisionist view of all that's gone on between them before. They don't even seem to have spent that much time together. I was just very... confused. I didn't care for Trevor's violent and aggressive stance at the beginning as he seemed borderline abusive, but again later this is revised away by making him angry, but the gentle sort of simmering resentment. Emily first says she thinks of him as a brother, then fantasises about him, then says she'd always loved him... Again, very confused.
I liked the story, and as I say the writing style (even with the excessive commas unnecessarily tripping up the flow of some sentences) is something familiar, cozy and easy to read. There's plenty of silly YA logic lore to the world building that I appreciated; no one ever asked for hard sci-fi when it comes to vampire dystopian romances, and it's integrated well into the narrative without feeling info-dumpy. I did wish we'd gotten to know characters better, as there weren't a lot of interactions between Emily and... well, anyone else to really get a feel for them. I also hoped we'd get a bit more description in general, everything being a mash of olde sounding castle stuff but with modern techy touches. The most described thing seemed to be the characters' outfits in each scene: Emily told is in detail if she and others wore jeans/sweater or a prom queen confection, but not much else about people.
So I read it, I liked it even as I played spot the similarity, and I already bought the next book in the series to support the author so I'd most likely give it a go now it's decided what sort of story it wants to be (it also ends on a massively sharp cliffhanger, so...) I don't know if I could recommend this book in the current form though, as those inconsistencies really are quite evident. Some editorial polish would bring out the best of this story, and it deserves it because it is quite a fun hybrid of all the YA.
Our story follows Emily, a girl in an ash-filled dystopian future where ordinary humans live in tightly controlled, poverty stricken compounds surrounded by forbidden wastelands. They're kept there for their own safety by beings known as the elite(s) - you'll know them as vampires. They're fast, strong, immortal, and deadly, all because of the "elixir" that flows inside their veins (they're also darned handsome, but we'll come to that). Emily is having to support her sick family by sneaking out to hunt, dance around childhood friend Trevor's attractions, and hope that she isn't named a "chosen" when the next ceremony comes. Yep, each year the elite(s) come to the compounds to pick out potential mates as part of their pact to protect humanity. And Emily is chosen, though not willingly by either side. She knows this eilte boy - he saved her once, and seems to have done so again. He's also impossibly good looking and son of the elite king. Prince Damien might not be sweeping her off her feet, but she's got to go with him and be his consort. After the trials, of course. All the chosen girls must compete to prove their worth to high elite society. And that's before she discovers underground rebellious mutterings, secrets from her own past, and the inevitable love triangle...
OK, so a little tough love here (and please believe it comes from a place of love rather than intended cruelty): this book needed an editor. Or some critical beta readers. Just someone to point out the plot holes, inconsistencies and general typos/grammar/punctuation situations the story finds itself in. I'm always drawn in by this author's writing; he has a way with words that is so YA it hurts but I love it anyway, and when the world's feeling ugly there's nothing better that curling up with a familiar writing style. What's really needed is some work on the storytelling part, because it's just a bit... all over the place. It's like lots of pieces of different puzzles slotted together, but some of them don't have the transitions between that make them make sense for the story or the character development. The first few chapters feel very different from the rest of the book. Scenes and genres jump about, and while it flows, there's this feeling that it's trying to be too many different things.
I was most bothered by the character inconsistencies. Emily started off wanting to be all Hunger Games/Katniss tough girl, but suddenly morphs into being all about books and boys and pretty dresses. She forgets her goal of protecting her family and starts mooning over Damien and wondering why he won't touch her. Damien on the other hand kept flopping between being hot and cold without obvious reasons why. He starts off resenting, maybe even hating Emily (for forcing his hand?), but then is all about wanting to protect her/declaring love/taking her... roller skating? They go from 0 to eternal teenage love in the blink of an eye, then have a revisionist view of all that's gone on between them before. They don't even seem to have spent that much time together. I was just very... confused. I didn't care for Trevor's violent and aggressive stance at the beginning as he seemed borderline abusive, but again later this is revised away by making him angry, but the gentle sort of simmering resentment. Emily first says she thinks of him as a brother, then fantasises about him, then says she'd always loved him... Again, very confused.
I liked the story, and as I say the writing style (even with the excessive commas unnecessarily tripping up the flow of some sentences) is something familiar, cozy and easy to read. There's plenty of silly YA logic lore to the world building that I appreciated; no one ever asked for hard sci-fi when it comes to vampire dystopian romances, and it's integrated well into the narrative without feeling info-dumpy. I did wish we'd gotten to know characters better, as there weren't a lot of interactions between Emily and... well, anyone else to really get a feel for them. I also hoped we'd get a bit more description in general, everything being a mash of olde sounding castle stuff but with modern techy touches. The most described thing seemed to be the characters' outfits in each scene: Emily told is in detail if she and others wore jeans/sweater or a prom queen confection, but not much else about people.
So I read it, I liked it even as I played spot the similarity, and I already bought the next book in the series to support the author so I'd most likely give it a go now it's decided what sort of story it wants to be (it also ends on a massively sharp cliffhanger, so...) I don't know if I could recommend this book in the current form though, as those inconsistencies really are quite evident. Some editorial polish would bring out the best of this story, and it deserves it because it is quite a fun hybrid of all the YA.
October 26, 2020
Hunger Games meets Divergent with a side serving of Dracula and Beverly Hills 90210...
An easy read - a post apocalyptic tale very reminiscent of The Hunger Games, but with vampires.
I enjoyed the ride, but there are several typos which should be easy for the author to quickly amend.
I'm prepared to read the next book in the series.
An easy read - a post apocalyptic tale very reminiscent of The Hunger Games, but with vampires.
I enjoyed the ride, but there are several typos which should be easy for the author to quickly amend.
I'm prepared to read the next book in the series.
November 9, 2025
Kindle
This book was fun and boring at the same time. I don't know how else to explain it.
I liked the fmc and her dad. The rest ... not so much.
Will I re-read this in the future, continue with the next book?
Probably not.
This book was fun and boring at the same time. I don't know how else to explain it.
I liked the fmc and her dad. The rest ... not so much.
Will I re-read this in the future, continue with the next book?
Probably not.
May 20, 2021
Ugh, that was painful.
What killed this book for me? The h. Simple as that. While the storyline wasn't all that original, nor the characters that well developed, I could have forgiven any of those things. I would have forgiven any of those things, but I cannot forgive the h being such an unlikeable twat. Seriously, the h in the story is a walking husk of contradictions and uselessness. I understand that this is the first in a series and that characters need the opportunity to grow and mature throughout a series, but what's the point of growth if someone doesn't care enough about the character in the beginning to see if that happens?
Okay, I know that some contradictions in personalities can be appealing. Like, for instance, a person that is always being a dick but has a heart of gold kind of thing, but the h in this story is not a contrast in contradictions in that way. I found her neither profound nor complex. No, she actually acts in contradictions. For instance, while arguing with her childhood bestfriend on why she will go through with the whole being chosen and taken to the citadel thing, she uses the argument that "it's the law." However, in the beginning of the book, she meets her soon to be chosen because she is breaking the law. Really, girl? Really? That's kind of like selective hearing and it doesn't fly with me. Also, she is constantly using the "it's my duty to my family" justification for so much, but when she FINALLY gets to this super special citadel palace (a place that actually has the means to help her family)...she doesn't do shit for her family. She could try to appeal to her fiancée prince--I mean, he has saved her life on no less than three occasions--to help her mother, but does she? Fuck no. Instead, she pouts about while getting her ass kicked and wonders what's wrong with her and why he won't drink from her. UUUGGGGHHHHHHH. Fucking made me sick. Her jealousy and immature behavior just made me dislike her more, and I found myself hoping she got her throat ripped out by one of the elite. I figured if I was having those thoughts, then it's probably best that me and this series parted ways.
As always, I have mad respect for the author and my opinions on this book are in no way personal towards the author or other fans of the book. This is just my opinion on the story I read and how I perceived the characters and storyline.
What killed this book for me? The h. Simple as that. While the storyline wasn't all that original, nor the characters that well developed, I could have forgiven any of those things. I would have forgiven any of those things, but I cannot forgive the h being such an unlikeable twat. Seriously, the h in the story is a walking husk of contradictions and uselessness. I understand that this is the first in a series and that characters need the opportunity to grow and mature throughout a series, but what's the point of growth if someone doesn't care enough about the character in the beginning to see if that happens?
Okay, I know that some contradictions in personalities can be appealing. Like, for instance, a person that is always being a dick but has a heart of gold kind of thing, but the h in this story is not a contrast in contradictions in that way. I found her neither profound nor complex. No, she actually acts in contradictions. For instance, while arguing with her childhood bestfriend on why she will go through with the whole being chosen and taken to the citadel thing, she uses the argument that "it's the law." However, in the beginning of the book, she meets her soon to be chosen because she is breaking the law. Really, girl? Really? That's kind of like selective hearing and it doesn't fly with me. Also, she is constantly using the "it's my duty to my family" justification for so much, but when she FINALLY gets to this super special citadel palace (a place that actually has the means to help her family)...she doesn't do shit for her family. She could try to appeal to her fiancée prince--I mean, he has saved her life on no less than three occasions--to help her mother, but does she? Fuck no. Instead, she pouts about while getting her ass kicked and wonders what's wrong with her and why he won't drink from her. UUUGGGGHHHHHHH. Fucking made me sick. Her jealousy and immature behavior just made me dislike her more, and I found myself hoping she got her throat ripped out by one of the elite. I figured if I was having those thoughts, then it's probably best that me and this series parted ways.
As always, I have mad respect for the author and my opinions on this book are in no way personal towards the author or other fans of the book. This is just my opinion on the story I read and how I perceived the characters and storyline.
March 30, 2022
First things first, I do want to thank you for the giveaway copy.
This book, like so many new-ish books I've won kindle copies for, all seem to have the same problem. They're rehashed versions of popular books, and they all end on a cliffhanger and a page telling you to 'BUY THE NEXT BOOK TO SEE HOW THINGS PLAY OUT!'
Want to know the quickest way to get me to NOT buy a single book you've ever written, ever? That.
Cliffhanger and poor ploy to squeeze money out of your readers aside, this is, as the other reviewers have mentioned, Hunger Games: Twilight edition. Literally plot point for plot point, and character for character, the same damn story. Even the twists at the end are the EXACT same twists as the Hunger Games, save possibly like... one? Either way, if you've read one, then you might as well give yourself free Goodreads credit towards your reading goal this year because they're identical.
I really wanted to give this book more than one star. But it's horrifically unoriginal, includes underage sexual scenes / assault (MC is 17. Why not just... make her 18 so it's not gross?), and the lovely little 'Choosing' system is inherently homophobic and misogynistic, as only MALE 'Elites' choose FEMALE 'Commoners'. The final nail in the coffin is the book having no ending. Hard pass on continuing with this series.
This book, like so many new-ish books I've won kindle copies for, all seem to have the same problem. They're rehashed versions of popular books, and they all end on a cliffhanger and a page telling you to 'BUY THE NEXT BOOK TO SEE HOW THINGS PLAY OUT!'
Want to know the quickest way to get me to NOT buy a single book you've ever written, ever? That.
Cliffhanger and poor ploy to squeeze money out of your readers aside, this is, as the other reviewers have mentioned, Hunger Games: Twilight edition. Literally plot point for plot point, and character for character, the same damn story. Even the twists at the end are the EXACT same twists as the Hunger Games, save possibly like... one? Either way, if you've read one, then you might as well give yourself free Goodreads credit towards your reading goal this year because they're identical.
I really wanted to give this book more than one star. But it's horrifically unoriginal, includes underage sexual scenes / assault (MC is 17. Why not just... make her 18 so it's not gross?), and the lovely little 'Choosing' system is inherently homophobic and misogynistic, as only MALE 'Elites' choose FEMALE 'Commoners'. The final nail in the coffin is the book having no ending. Hard pass on continuing with this series.
July 20, 2018
I enjoyed reading Taste: Kingdom of Blood and Ash. The story was good and I liked the characters. The ending was dramatic and I would read book Two. The story had some dark parts that I liked. I enjoyed Emily, Damian, Trevor and King Richard.
I give Taste 4 stars for its exciting read.
I would recommend this book to Paranormal, Fantasy and YA lovers.
I give Taste 4 stars for its exciting read.
I would recommend this book to Paranormal, Fantasy and YA lovers.
April 14, 2022
Emily lives in a compound with her ill mother and younger siblings, but the starvation makes her hunt outside in the forbidden area—where poisonous ash can kill her. But the vampires are what makes this post-apocalyptic setting seem more thrilling than the Hunger Games as Emily must prepare for the choosing ceremony where the elite vampires pick their brides.
Honestly, I devoured this book in one day because I couldn't put it down. For those who can't survive reading a vampire romance without any steam—you may want to move along and skip this book. But if you're like me and want to see the relationships between human heroines and vampires develop slowly, Taste of Vampire is the one to go for. This story is amazing and easy to read when you're tired. It takes you away to the post-apocalyptic world where vampires and humans live in peace with a mutual agreement (which at some point stops seeming so mutual but more like "these humans are our livestock willingly").
In other words, I can't wait to read the sequel.
Honestly, I devoured this book in one day because I couldn't put it down. For those who can't survive reading a vampire romance without any steam—you may want to move along and skip this book. But if you're like me and want to see the relationships between human heroines and vampires develop slowly, Taste of Vampire is the one to go for. This story is amazing and easy to read when you're tired. It takes you away to the post-apocalyptic world where vampires and humans live in peace with a mutual agreement (which at some point stops seeming so mutual but more like "these humans are our livestock willingly").
In other words, I can't wait to read the sequel.
May 13, 2024
good book! hunger games/divergent. book flowed well, never long boring dialog bewteen events. but the ending! damn luckily i can dive into the next one right away. id be mad if i had to wait, definately wanting to know whats next
September 30, 2018
Familiar, but still enjoyable
The story is familiar. You definitely see echoes of hunger games and the selection, but Murphy injected enough new material that it doesn't feel like a tired repeat. Good fast read. Kind of annoyed by the whiny, apathetic prodigy, tho.
The story is familiar. You definitely see echoes of hunger games and the selection, but Murphy injected enough new material that it doesn't feel like a tired repeat. Good fast read. Kind of annoyed by the whiny, apathetic prodigy, tho.
July 30, 2023
I got this book free from Book Doggy daily newsletter. When I started reading I thought I was reading the Hunger Games...but it was a very different story. It sucked me in then spit me out wanting more. Great characters and world building and a cliffhanger ending. I had to buy the next one.
September 13, 2018
Emily never expects to be Chosen, but its a great honor or so she's been told. Damien has been detached from the world around him until Emily crosses his path. The two are drawn into an intricate plot where everyone has an agenda.
I raced through this book; its engrossing and a bit addictive. The plot reminded me a little of Hunger Games and Divergent with a sprinkle of the Selection and Vampire Academy. Yet, its also completely a new look at a dystopian world of scary creatures and bio-engineered vampires.
I don't remember how I found this book or author, but I can't wait for book 2 in this series to come out. D.S. Murphy is definitely on my radar now.
I raced through this book; its engrossing and a bit addictive. The plot reminded me a little of Hunger Games and Divergent with a sprinkle of the Selection and Vampire Academy. Yet, its also completely a new look at a dystopian world of scary creatures and bio-engineered vampires.
I don't remember how I found this book or author, but I can't wait for book 2 in this series to come out. D.S. Murphy is definitely on my radar now.
April 23, 2017
Taste is a short fascinating story of a girl chosen to be the bride of an immortal prince. Her selection ensures the safety of her town. But Emmaline just wants to stay and live her safe normal life with Trevor. Will she adjust to her new life with the prince?
This short story was really good, but I so hope there will be more to it. The story ended with so much potential for an exciting novel! I give Taste 4.5 stars. And I’m desperately hoping for more!
This short story was really good, but I so hope there will be more to it. The story ended with so much potential for an exciting novel! I give Taste 4.5 stars. And I’m desperately hoping for more!
July 3, 2018
So worth the wait!
This book was soooooooo worth the wait! I would have gave this 5 stars if not for the typos. There were quite a few. Even with the typos this book was fantastic!! I just pray that I don't have to wait as long for book 2! I couldn't put this damn book down! I mean I read this book in 3hrs!!!
This book was soooooooo worth the wait! I would have gave this 5 stars if not for the typos. There were quite a few. Even with the typos this book was fantastic!! I just pray that I don't have to wait as long for book 2! I couldn't put this damn book down! I mean I read this book in 3hrs!!!
May 6, 2017
Noooo
What I forgot to look at how many pages it has before I got this. Right when you're hooked it stops! Can't wait for the rest when it comes out in august. Her mom should be shot, just saying.
What I forgot to look at how many pages it has before I got this. Right when you're hooked it stops! Can't wait for the rest when it comes out in august. Her mom should be shot, just saying.
January 28, 2018
What a tease
It is only a couple chapters,but oh my what chapters they are! If you love hunger games or any dystopian stories you will love this! 5 stars for this story but 1 star only for the unfinished story and shortness. I WANT THE REST OF THIS BOOK DAMN IT!
It is only a couple chapters,but oh my what chapters they are! If you love hunger games or any dystopian stories you will love this! 5 stars for this story but 1 star only for the unfinished story and shortness. I WANT THE REST OF THIS BOOK DAMN IT!
May 12, 2017
Gripping book!
This book reminds me kinda of the hunger games and is really, really cool! I found it awesomely captivating. Thanks
This book reminds me kinda of the hunger games and is really, really cool! I found it awesomely captivating. Thanks
October 4, 2024
So good! I felt like it was an interesting take on Hunger Games with a fantasy side. No spice, FMC is 17 and starts an interesting journey into a utopian society with lots of dark secrets.
February 16, 2024
Over the course of many months I forced myself to read these books only because I like Derek as a person and as a writing coach, and I thought I might learn a thing or two out of reading his YA fiction. Surely a man with all this knowledge and experience must be an excellent writer himself, right?
Wrong
Those who can’t, teach, and this horribly written series is quite the example of it. I want both to steer readers away from this terrible book and help writers (Derek himself included) avoid the mistakes mentioned below, so this is going to be long. Very long.
Note: This review is a combination of book 1 and 2, and I have no intention of reading the third one.
*********Spoilers ahead.*********
Everything wrong with this book:
POV:
-Emily, the main character, can describe how her own hair shines under the moonlight.
-She can describe other people’s expressions, feelings, and reactions even when she’s not directly looking at them (she can tell when someone behind her back winces, raises an eyebrow or looks angry).
-She can also describe how soft her blankets are even before she’s even awake to notice them.
-Also, she keeps referring to her own complexion as “my milky-white skin”, “my fair skin”, or “my eggshell-white skin”. It’s evident that at least the initial drafts were written in a third person, and were later changed to a first person narrator just to copy popular books from the early 2000’s like The Hunger Games and Divergent.
Book Cover:
-The book cover shows a brunette with bronze skin in a red dress. But Emily is described as pale white and usually wears blue or pink dresses.
Female representation:
-Unless this was written by a 13 year old girl who’s never read anything but tumblr posts and wattpad fan fics, there’s no excuse for the way girls are represented here. To think a man in his 30’s wrote this, a man who by the way has daughters of his own, makes this all the more concerning.
-So in this book, teenage girls are nothing but trophies to be paraded around by powerful, wealthy men, the Elite (this is how vampires are referred to in the story). Elites come once a year to the impoverished compounds to choose a young, virgin girl for a wife, so the girls are not allowed to even date before the choosing ceremony, only after the Elites have decided not to take them. So pretty much, humans get the Elite spoils.
- If they do get chosen, Stockholm syndrome takes over at once and the girls immediately fall in love with their new owners, even if they were terrified of them before.
-The Elite takes his chosen girl to live in his castle (they all have castles), where he gets to decide on her wardrobe, her meals, can force her to attend social events, and can even force her to have sex with him (by the way, they are all minors, Emily is barely 16, and I think the oldest girl is 18). The chosen girls' lives revolve around entirely around their men, they even have to train to become strong enough to protect them (more on that later) and are expected to become an example of beauty, manners, and strength to every other girl out there.
-So all they human girls have to be pretty, subservient, obedient and virginal. On the other hand, the Elite can, and often do, have mistresses, frequent brothels, marry more than once in their lives and can return a girl home to her parents for any reason, at any time, which is supposed to be really bad but is not like the more girls from a given town are chosen, the more favors that town gets or anything. But I guess it's humiliating, so no girl ever wants to go back.
-Girls are always fawning over whoever the alpha male is at the moment. Emily bounces between her elite fiancé Damien and her best friend Trevor, depending on who’s in charge of her life at any given time.
-If the girls are by themselves, they still submit to a hierarchy of power: whenever an Elite woman is not present (even the lowest ranked elite, like a maid) to tell them what to do, the role will fall on the shoulders of the oldest girl on the group. This means that Emily is never the one to suggest which path to take or where to go; she relies on either any elite female or older girl to make all the calls for her.
-When a men is present, either human or elite (including in fighting squads or search parties) girls become quiet and submissive, following the lead of any man around even if he is weaker, younger or less experienced than they are. Emily justifies her passiveness by saying she wants to hide her powers so she won’t frighten people, but...I mean, they only keep her BECAUSE of her powers, they need to understand the extend of her abilities, but no, she just won't show them if there's a man around.
-Not a single woman in this story is truly in charge of anything in her own life. Just because they fight in puffy dresses (which they often do) does not make this a female empowerment story.
The Choosing:
The whole point of having a choosing ceremony is so that The Elite have a constant supply of fresh blood and don’t need to hunt humans for food. Okay, fine. But, Elites are all sterile and can’t breed anyways so there’s no need for them to choose ONLY young, virgin girls. Literally, anyone would do. Why going thru this whole "choose a bride" thing if marriage is pointless anyway?
-Why is choosing reserve for male Elites only? Don’t female Elites need fresh blood as well? Can a female Elite choose a virgin male as well? Apparently not.
-If humans have no saying on the matter regardless, why are there no Elites choosing same sex partners? Can we just choose a healthy boy or girl from town and send them every year as an offering instead of going through all this?
The Trials:
-So after choosing a poor, underage, virgin girl, the male Elite takes her to the fancy Capital to marry her. However, before the wedding, the girls need to prove their worth by fighting each other to death in an absurd Hunger Games-like event which is also televised across the country. So they have to train to not only survive the trials but also become strong enough to protect their husbands should the need arrive.
-Why, though? Each Elite has his own army, why do they need to turn the girls into their personal bodyguards? And why do they need to make the girls fight each other to death? Just so they die in the arena and the Elite can go hunt for another virgin next year? Don’t they need the girls to stay alive so they can feed on them? Isn’t it an unnecessary waste of blood to get a girl brutally murdered on screen for amusement?
The Plot:
-Emily’s motivations are whatever the plot needs it to be. They change by the chapter, and conflicts are usually resolved as soon as they arise. For instance, in book one it takes almost 4 chapters to establish her motivation is to save her sick mother. She never gets around doing anything about it other than thinking of some convoluted plans involving spitting on a napkin, but then the choosing ceremony happens and it gets in the way. After getting chosen and taken to the Capital, she is so dazzled by her Elite fiancé and the splendors around her that she forgets completely about her mother and her new goal becomes to seduce her fiancé and win the trials. It takes her WEEKS to remember that she wanted to help her mother, and then all it takes to resolve this plot point is to ask Damian to help her. And he does. But none of it matters because her mother gets immediately killed by the bad guys anyways.
-King Richard (the main bad guy) takes Emily’s younger siblings hostage but like, they are taken to a palace and they don’t even know they are hostages, so….who cares? For all intends and purposes, they now have a better life than they ever did at the compound. But then Emily’s new motivation becomes to rescue her siblings. Instead, she joins some rebels humans who want to overthrow the Elites and her new goal becomes finding a cure for vampirism, which, you know, fine, that’s a worthy goal, but why, tho? So she can turn Damian human and feel a little less guilty about marrying him?
- Emily’s family members are nothing but props, they don't even have personalities; her siblings don’t even have dialogs! It’s never believable that she cares about them, or humanity for that matter, all she cares about is saving Damian and even if she fails, she is also conveniently in loved with Trevor so it's a win-win for her eitherway.
Evident revisions:
-It’s quite evident when the author came up with an idea to advance the plot, only to realize he hadn’t established it earlier, and proceed to work his way back to shoehorn it in whenever possible. Maybe I'm the only one who notices this, but it's like he wrote the scenes out of place (which is fine) but then had to figure out how to connect them. For example, there's a scene where a tavern brawl takes place and the situation escalated so much, the author had to retroactively insert a new character who only shows up that one time to save the girls and get them out of the situation. But it was so evident when he introduced the new character (by way of Emily spotting him briefly at the distance) just so that it would make sense form him to be the one who would intervene later on. Like I said, maybe because I'm also a writer I can spot this little details, but this happened so much so often that it became quite evident and it bothered me.
World building:
-The author could not decide what type of world he wanted to write about: fantasy, dystopian, sci-fi, paranormal, so he wrote them all. Sometimes we live in a post-apocalyptic world where nothing of the past remains except a few pieces of technology (like electric pumps), other times we live in fully futuristic cities with enough resources to build tracking devices that can also perform constant blood-work on the wearer.
-In a single setting, such as Damian’s castle, we switch between having electrical lights to using candles (in a library, of all places).
-Animals are supposed to be poisonous mutations due to radiation, yet Emily hunts them for food.
-Vampires, werewolves, telepathy, mind control, and powers inherited through bloodline exist, but are explained away as science magic.
-Rebels sometimes have guns and bombs, other times the same group of rebels have nothing but swords and arrows.
-Sometimes we have cars and motorcycles, other times we have horses and carriages. It is as if the author kept forgetting what type of tech each faction was supposed to have and just wrote whatever sounded coolest at the time.
Strange LGTB inclusions:
-The only two female characters romantically involved with each other are not white, american girls (the story is supposed to take place in a post-apocaliptic America). One is black and the other albino, both come from far away territories like the North Pole or an island. They are also portrayed as more promiscuous than the pure, pristine, virginal, American Emily. So, it's like the author says that being lesbian is okay, provided you are not a white american.
-Thomas, an Elite clearly portrayed as a flamboyant, fashion-loving queer vampire in one chapter, gets turned into a 100% straight, macho man by the next. The first time we see him is hinted at the fact that Thomas had feelings for Damian and only married to keep appearances; that later on gets changed to them being simply really good friends who barely interact with each other for the remainder of the story. So non-white lesbians are okay, but gay man ARE NOT OKAY WE DON'T DO THAT HERE
Continuity issues:
-Damian’s eyes switch from green to blue at least twice across the story.
-At one point King Richard is called King Robert.
-Emily keeps forgetting she hates the red birthmarks on her hands and goes from being obsessed to keep her gloves on, to not wearing them for days.
-Emily keeps saying Damian doesn’t love her even though every time they are together he tells her, explicitly, that he does.
-Emily claims she has read every book in her town at least three times so she has an extensive knowledge of the world, but can’t recognize normal everyday items such as hair brushes.
-Emily is able to recognize marble, satin, and silk just by looking at them but doesn’t know what a motorcycle is.
-Peasants are supposed to be extremely poor and malnourished yet they have eggs, bacon and coffee almost every week (again, animals are supposed to be poisonous).
-The sun hasn’t shone in almost a century but people still farm and grow crops somehow.
-It’s only been 100 years since humanity devolved into this war between vampires and humans, yet we have entirely new civilizations with complex organized religions and political systems that would have otherwise take hundreds of years to form.
-There’s no one old enough to pass down knowledge from before the wars (I think the oldest human in the books was said to be in his early 50’s).
-An asian woman becomes a doctor and a scientist capable of replicating vaccines and complex pieces of engineering just by reading books.
-One of the vampires uses her mind control powers to trick some characters into eating rotten food FOR THREE DAYS STRAIGHT. If so, how did none of them get sick enough to sense something was off?
-There are a few sex scenes which are extremely uncomfortable to read considering the character’s age, but I think it’s more an issue of the delivery, of how a man tries to portray female arousal that really comes across as a more of a male fantasy than anything else.
-Emily knows werewolves are human and can be turned back into people, yet still refers to them as beasts or monsters and has no problems killing them whenever she encounters one.
-Emily has no agency: things happen to her instead of because of her actions. Whenever she acts on her own, she usually makes things worse yet takes no accountability for it (other than feeling guilty) and her actions either never get discovered or are immediately forgiven.
-Each new reveal is more absurd than the last, and is usually delivered using dialogue exposition (the bad guy even goes on an evil monologue at some point) or by Emily getting a dream/vision that explains/solves everything.
-Damien’s insta crush for Emily is explained by saying she is the granddaughter of the man he was best friends with years ago, who she also resembles a bit. Make that what you will
This has been really long, and barely scratches the surface of everything that’s wrong with these books. If you are 18+ and want a better love story about vampires farming humans for blood, go read the korean webcomic “Blood Bank”. It’s intended for mature audiences, yet the themes, character development and plot are much better handled in around 61 chapters than these books ever could in over 1000 pages.
Wrong
Those who can’t, teach, and this horribly written series is quite the example of it. I want both to steer readers away from this terrible book and help writers (Derek himself included) avoid the mistakes mentioned below, so this is going to be long. Very long.
Note: This review is a combination of book 1 and 2, and I have no intention of reading the third one.
*********Spoilers ahead.*********
Everything wrong with this book:
POV:
-Emily, the main character, can describe how her own hair shines under the moonlight.
-She can describe other people’s expressions, feelings, and reactions even when she’s not directly looking at them (she can tell when someone behind her back winces, raises an eyebrow or looks angry).
-She can also describe how soft her blankets are even before she’s even awake to notice them.
-Also, she keeps referring to her own complexion as “my milky-white skin”, “my fair skin”, or “my eggshell-white skin”. It’s evident that at least the initial drafts were written in a third person, and were later changed to a first person narrator just to copy popular books from the early 2000’s like The Hunger Games and Divergent.
Book Cover:
-The book cover shows a brunette with bronze skin in a red dress. But Emily is described as pale white and usually wears blue or pink dresses.
Female representation:
-Unless this was written by a 13 year old girl who’s never read anything but tumblr posts and wattpad fan fics, there’s no excuse for the way girls are represented here. To think a man in his 30’s wrote this, a man who by the way has daughters of his own, makes this all the more concerning.
-So in this book, teenage girls are nothing but trophies to be paraded around by powerful, wealthy men, the Elite (this is how vampires are referred to in the story). Elites come once a year to the impoverished compounds to choose a young, virgin girl for a wife, so the girls are not allowed to even date before the choosing ceremony, only after the Elites have decided not to take them. So pretty much, humans get the Elite spoils.
- If they do get chosen, Stockholm syndrome takes over at once and the girls immediately fall in love with their new owners, even if they were terrified of them before.
-The Elite takes his chosen girl to live in his castle (they all have castles), where he gets to decide on her wardrobe, her meals, can force her to attend social events, and can even force her to have sex with him (by the way, they are all minors, Emily is barely 16, and I think the oldest girl is 18). The chosen girls' lives revolve around entirely around their men, they even have to train to become strong enough to protect them (more on that later) and are expected to become an example of beauty, manners, and strength to every other girl out there.
-So all they human girls have to be pretty, subservient, obedient and virginal. On the other hand, the Elite can, and often do, have mistresses, frequent brothels, marry more than once in their lives and can return a girl home to her parents for any reason, at any time, which is supposed to be really bad but is not like the more girls from a given town are chosen, the more favors that town gets or anything. But I guess it's humiliating, so no girl ever wants to go back.
-Girls are always fawning over whoever the alpha male is at the moment. Emily bounces between her elite fiancé Damien and her best friend Trevor, depending on who’s in charge of her life at any given time.
-If the girls are by themselves, they still submit to a hierarchy of power: whenever an Elite woman is not present (even the lowest ranked elite, like a maid) to tell them what to do, the role will fall on the shoulders of the oldest girl on the group. This means that Emily is never the one to suggest which path to take or where to go; she relies on either any elite female or older girl to make all the calls for her.
-When a men is present, either human or elite (including in fighting squads or search parties) girls become quiet and submissive, following the lead of any man around even if he is weaker, younger or less experienced than they are. Emily justifies her passiveness by saying she wants to hide her powers so she won’t frighten people, but...I mean, they only keep her BECAUSE of her powers, they need to understand the extend of her abilities, but no, she just won't show them if there's a man around.
-Not a single woman in this story is truly in charge of anything in her own life. Just because they fight in puffy dresses (which they often do) does not make this a female empowerment story.
The Choosing:
The whole point of having a choosing ceremony is so that The Elite have a constant supply of fresh blood and don’t need to hunt humans for food. Okay, fine. But, Elites are all sterile and can’t breed anyways so there’s no need for them to choose ONLY young, virgin girls. Literally, anyone would do. Why going thru this whole "choose a bride" thing if marriage is pointless anyway?
-Why is choosing reserve for male Elites only? Don’t female Elites need fresh blood as well? Can a female Elite choose a virgin male as well? Apparently not.
-If humans have no saying on the matter regardless, why are there no Elites choosing same sex partners? Can we just choose a healthy boy or girl from town and send them every year as an offering instead of going through all this?
The Trials:
-So after choosing a poor, underage, virgin girl, the male Elite takes her to the fancy Capital to marry her. However, before the wedding, the girls need to prove their worth by fighting each other to death in an absurd Hunger Games-like event which is also televised across the country. So they have to train to not only survive the trials but also become strong enough to protect their husbands should the need arrive.
-Why, though? Each Elite has his own army, why do they need to turn the girls into their personal bodyguards? And why do they need to make the girls fight each other to death? Just so they die in the arena and the Elite can go hunt for another virgin next year? Don’t they need the girls to stay alive so they can feed on them? Isn’t it an unnecessary waste of blood to get a girl brutally murdered on screen for amusement?
The Plot:
-Emily’s motivations are whatever the plot needs it to be. They change by the chapter, and conflicts are usually resolved as soon as they arise. For instance, in book one it takes almost 4 chapters to establish her motivation is to save her sick mother. She never gets around doing anything about it other than thinking of some convoluted plans involving spitting on a napkin, but then the choosing ceremony happens and it gets in the way. After getting chosen and taken to the Capital, she is so dazzled by her Elite fiancé and the splendors around her that she forgets completely about her mother and her new goal becomes to seduce her fiancé and win the trials. It takes her WEEKS to remember that she wanted to help her mother, and then all it takes to resolve this plot point is to ask Damian to help her. And he does. But none of it matters because her mother gets immediately killed by the bad guys anyways.
-King Richard (the main bad guy) takes Emily’s younger siblings hostage but like, they are taken to a palace and they don’t even know they are hostages, so….who cares? For all intends and purposes, they now have a better life than they ever did at the compound. But then Emily’s new motivation becomes to rescue her siblings. Instead, she joins some rebels humans who want to overthrow the Elites and her new goal becomes finding a cure for vampirism, which, you know, fine, that’s a worthy goal, but why, tho? So she can turn Damian human and feel a little less guilty about marrying him?
- Emily’s family members are nothing but props, they don't even have personalities; her siblings don’t even have dialogs! It’s never believable that she cares about them, or humanity for that matter, all she cares about is saving Damian and even if she fails, she is also conveniently in loved with Trevor so it's a win-win for her eitherway.
Evident revisions:
-It’s quite evident when the author came up with an idea to advance the plot, only to realize he hadn’t established it earlier, and proceed to work his way back to shoehorn it in whenever possible. Maybe I'm the only one who notices this, but it's like he wrote the scenes out of place (which is fine) but then had to figure out how to connect them. For example, there's a scene where a tavern brawl takes place and the situation escalated so much, the author had to retroactively insert a new character who only shows up that one time to save the girls and get them out of the situation. But it was so evident when he introduced the new character (by way of Emily spotting him briefly at the distance) just so that it would make sense form him to be the one who would intervene later on. Like I said, maybe because I'm also a writer I can spot this little details, but this happened so much so often that it became quite evident and it bothered me.
World building:
-The author could not decide what type of world he wanted to write about: fantasy, dystopian, sci-fi, paranormal, so he wrote them all. Sometimes we live in a post-apocalyptic world where nothing of the past remains except a few pieces of technology (like electric pumps), other times we live in fully futuristic cities with enough resources to build tracking devices that can also perform constant blood-work on the wearer.
-In a single setting, such as Damian’s castle, we switch between having electrical lights to using candles (in a library, of all places).
-Animals are supposed to be poisonous mutations due to radiation, yet Emily hunts them for food.
-Vampires, werewolves, telepathy, mind control, and powers inherited through bloodline exist, but are explained away as science magic.
-Rebels sometimes have guns and bombs, other times the same group of rebels have nothing but swords and arrows.
-Sometimes we have cars and motorcycles, other times we have horses and carriages. It is as if the author kept forgetting what type of tech each faction was supposed to have and just wrote whatever sounded coolest at the time.
Strange LGTB inclusions:
-The only two female characters romantically involved with each other are not white, american girls (the story is supposed to take place in a post-apocaliptic America). One is black and the other albino, both come from far away territories like the North Pole or an island. They are also portrayed as more promiscuous than the pure, pristine, virginal, American Emily. So, it's like the author says that being lesbian is okay, provided you are not a white american.
-Thomas, an Elite clearly portrayed as a flamboyant, fashion-loving queer vampire in one chapter, gets turned into a 100% straight, macho man by the next. The first time we see him is hinted at the fact that Thomas had feelings for Damian and only married to keep appearances; that later on gets changed to them being simply really good friends who barely interact with each other for the remainder of the story. So non-white lesbians are okay, but gay man ARE NOT OKAY WE DON'T DO THAT HERE
Continuity issues:
-Damian’s eyes switch from green to blue at least twice across the story.
-At one point King Richard is called King Robert.
-Emily keeps forgetting she hates the red birthmarks on her hands and goes from being obsessed to keep her gloves on, to not wearing them for days.
-Emily keeps saying Damian doesn’t love her even though every time they are together he tells her, explicitly, that he does.
-Emily claims she has read every book in her town at least three times so she has an extensive knowledge of the world, but can’t recognize normal everyday items such as hair brushes.
-Emily is able to recognize marble, satin, and silk just by looking at them but doesn’t know what a motorcycle is.
-Peasants are supposed to be extremely poor and malnourished yet they have eggs, bacon and coffee almost every week (again, animals are supposed to be poisonous).
-The sun hasn’t shone in almost a century but people still farm and grow crops somehow.
-It’s only been 100 years since humanity devolved into this war between vampires and humans, yet we have entirely new civilizations with complex organized religions and political systems that would have otherwise take hundreds of years to form.
-There’s no one old enough to pass down knowledge from before the wars (I think the oldest human in the books was said to be in his early 50’s).
-An asian woman becomes a doctor and a scientist capable of replicating vaccines and complex pieces of engineering just by reading books.
-One of the vampires uses her mind control powers to trick some characters into eating rotten food FOR THREE DAYS STRAIGHT. If so, how did none of them get sick enough to sense something was off?
-There are a few sex scenes which are extremely uncomfortable to read considering the character’s age, but I think it’s more an issue of the delivery, of how a man tries to portray female arousal that really comes across as a more of a male fantasy than anything else.
-Emily knows werewolves are human and can be turned back into people, yet still refers to them as beasts or monsters and has no problems killing them whenever she encounters one.
-Emily has no agency: things happen to her instead of because of her actions. Whenever she acts on her own, she usually makes things worse yet takes no accountability for it (other than feeling guilty) and her actions either never get discovered or are immediately forgiven.
-Each new reveal is more absurd than the last, and is usually delivered using dialogue exposition (the bad guy even goes on an evil monologue at some point) or by Emily getting a dream/vision that explains/solves everything.
-Damien’s insta crush for Emily is explained by saying she is the granddaughter of the man he was best friends with years ago, who she also resembles a bit. Make that what you will
This has been really long, and barely scratches the surface of everything that’s wrong with these books. If you are 18+ and want a better love story about vampires farming humans for blood, go read the korean webcomic “Blood Bank”. It’s intended for mature audiences, yet the themes, character development and plot are much better handled in around 61 chapters than these books ever could in over 1000 pages.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 13, 2025
Interesting read. Not sure who she really loves or is leaning to…I’m gonna reread and hope it makes sense eventually but, my biggest problem is her self doubt. Her view on her lover and love. A man that loves her will choose her always. Would protect her without thought or care however he needs to. Father is a threat? Leave and start a new life.
But, father is the king? I’m not like most people so most of you will respond with a “YA!, Wait..hold on what? You…what the actual f?” Becasuse apparently when your first thought is if he actually loved her it wouldn’t matter where the threat came from. Nothing touches her. The world burns to ashes as you watch it spread through on an unrelenting path of destruction out into the universe. You instantly know it is the emd of the universe as its know. The abyss starts to engulf you until you look to him for support and imstead get what appears to be delusion. He’s smiling his most loving, tender, happy and seducing smile with that dom side peeking so you know you’re in for it later…wait but the smile wh…and it just all falls into place as he leans down and kisses your forehead in that way that you feel all of his love for you and instantly safe then whispers “ I finally get you all to myself. And you’re still going to regret that smart ass comment. You thought it was over eh? Go get the crop.” And your heart melts as you realize that…every word had been true. He was a villain. He had no care who would burn. No family, friends…truly there was nothing but you on his mind, in his heart and welcome in his soul. He would make sure that if he had to bum the universe to keep you safe he would. And you knew at the deepest level of your soul…not even the tiniest ember would come near you. He was the only one that did what he said he was capable of for you. The only one. And, it’s a damn good thing too you really love this new collar he bought you and the cuffs that are holding your hands behind your back. It’d be such a shame if they got burned before…oh sh..did he say crop???? Damn gag cmon cmon “ hmmmphfr,m” “what was that? I didn’t hear a safe word…”
Your entire soul and being is smiling. You can feel your shine is so powerful it’d light the next universe…that’s why he thought you were so special…he saw it all along. And finally you do too.
But sh you really shouldn’t have pushed that last bratty comment in…it’s not your fault though you thought the universe was ending!!
“hmmff..mmmfffm merriment….arg….merffffy merrrfy”
“No” with the softest kiss “good girl. I love you.”
That’s love. He couldn’t say he loves her if he wouldn’t off his pops. Pops has $$. His friends have even more gold. Easy answer. Take out dad. Grab all the account info from, those under his rule. Wipe em out and head to the island where it’s waiting .
Choice my ass. You love her it’s not even a question so you never even need to actually ake the choice. It’s only “of course ,y darling” as the option. Plus, the gold of his friends “ it said the king was broke eh??” Would happily finance the costs to her fa,ily and their new life. Not lives. It’s just one now
But, father is the king? I’m not like most people so most of you will respond with a “YA!, Wait..hold on what? You…what the actual f?” Becasuse apparently when your first thought is if he actually loved her it wouldn’t matter where the threat came from. Nothing touches her. The world burns to ashes as you watch it spread through on an unrelenting path of destruction out into the universe. You instantly know it is the emd of the universe as its know. The abyss starts to engulf you until you look to him for support and imstead get what appears to be delusion. He’s smiling his most loving, tender, happy and seducing smile with that dom side peeking so you know you’re in for it later…wait but the smile wh…and it just all falls into place as he leans down and kisses your forehead in that way that you feel all of his love for you and instantly safe then whispers “ I finally get you all to myself. And you’re still going to regret that smart ass comment. You thought it was over eh? Go get the crop.” And your heart melts as you realize that…every word had been true. He was a villain. He had no care who would burn. No family, friends…truly there was nothing but you on his mind, in his heart and welcome in his soul. He would make sure that if he had to bum the universe to keep you safe he would. And you knew at the deepest level of your soul…not even the tiniest ember would come near you. He was the only one that did what he said he was capable of for you. The only one. And, it’s a damn good thing too you really love this new collar he bought you and the cuffs that are holding your hands behind your back. It’d be such a shame if they got burned before…oh sh..did he say crop???? Damn gag cmon cmon “ hmmmphfr,m” “what was that? I didn’t hear a safe word…”
Your entire soul and being is smiling. You can feel your shine is so powerful it’d light the next universe…that’s why he thought you were so special…he saw it all along. And finally you do too.
But sh you really shouldn’t have pushed that last bratty comment in…it’s not your fault though you thought the universe was ending!!
“hmmff..mmmfffm merriment….arg….merffffy merrrfy”
“No” with the softest kiss “good girl. I love you.”
That’s love. He couldn’t say he loves her if he wouldn’t off his pops. Pops has $$. His friends have even more gold. Easy answer. Take out dad. Grab all the account info from, those under his rule. Wipe em out and head to the island where it’s waiting .
Choice my ass. You love her it’s not even a question so you never even need to actually ake the choice. It’s only “of course ,y darling” as the option. Plus, the gold of his friends “ it said the king was broke eh??” Would happily finance the costs to her fa,ily and their new life. Not lives. It’s just one now
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 20, 2021
2 Decapitated Slagpaws/Mutts out of 5.
Lately I have been struggle-busing to find any good non-reverse-harem-paranormal-vampire stories and TASTE is no exception.
The beginning is set up EXACTLY like the Hunger Games. A girl who learns to hunt with a bow and arrow after her father dies and sneaks outside the fence of theirdistrict compound in order to provide for her mother and siblings.
You even haveGale Trevor who is the best friend!
Sometimes when he helped his dad in the shop, his strong arms pounding a sledgehammer onto red-hot rods of metal, his sculpted abs would drip with sweat. I’ll admit I’ve had… inappropriate thoughts. But I wasn’t sure I was ready to risk our friendship.
I should've known when I read this sentence I was going to be disappointed.
So she goes to thereaping choosing ceremony and
Twilight vibes:
Chick is into the dude, the dude desires her, but consistently rebuffs her advances because he's afraid of hurting her with his hunger.
The Selection vibes:
Describing all the outfits...
The dress was a classic one-piece, navy blue, with a lightweight skirt and black sequins and beads ornamenting the embroidered top and shoulder straps.
And the author even stole from Jesus:
The preacher held up the small white wafer, and King Richard took it.
"This is my body, which is given for you and for many, to promote peace between our races."
I just wish there would've been some originality in the series. Not just renaming characters and places with a very similar plot.
Also, there were a lot of grammar mistakes and there was one word in particular that got mixed up later on in the story: renitent.
They consistently were using that word and then in conversation it switched to reticent.
"I left everything—my home, my family, to come here. For you. And you don’t even want me. Is it because I’m reticent?" I asked.
"Don’t say that word out loud," he said quickly. "Promise me."
Needless to say, there are more things I could say, but after having a string of two star books, I'm tired and I think I will leave it at that.
Lately I have been struggle-busing to find any good non-reverse-harem-paranormal-vampire stories and TASTE is no exception.
The beginning is set up EXACTLY like the Hunger Games. A girl who learns to hunt with a bow and arrow after her father dies and sneaks outside the fence of their
You even have
Sometimes when he helped his dad in the shop, his strong arms pounding a sledgehammer onto red-hot rods of metal, his sculpted abs would drip with sweat. I’ll admit I’ve had… inappropriate thoughts. But I wasn’t sure I was ready to risk our friendship.
I should've known when I read this sentence I was going to be disappointed.
So she goes to the
Twilight vibes:
Chick is into the dude, the dude desires her, but consistently rebuffs her advances because he's afraid of hurting her with his hunger.
The Selection vibes:
Describing all the outfits...
The dress was a classic one-piece, navy blue, with a lightweight skirt and black sequins and beads ornamenting the embroidered top and shoulder straps.
And the author even stole from Jesus:
The preacher held up the small white wafer, and King Richard took it.
"This is my body, which is given for you and for many, to promote peace between our races."
I just wish there would've been some originality in the series. Not just renaming characters and places with a very similar plot.
Also, there were a lot of grammar mistakes and there was one word in particular that got mixed up later on in the story: renitent.
They consistently were using that word and then in conversation it switched to reticent.
"I left everything—my home, my family, to come here. For you. And you don’t even want me. Is it because I’m reticent?" I asked.
"Don’t say that word out loud," he said quickly. "Promise me."
Needless to say, there are more things I could say, but after having a string of two star books, I'm tired and I think I will leave it at that.
December 8, 2023
OVERALL RATING: 3.75🌟
Immediate Thoughts
Well, I am certainly hooked.
Plot 4🌟
The plot of this is so interesting. It’s a classic dystopia plot, where there is a rebellion trying to rise and your main character gets involved in some fashion. The dystopia was set up similar to Red Queen, Elites are the royals, humans are the peasants. It still had its own twist, where they rely on each other for protection and food, and the Choosing ceremony was an interesting part of the story. I’m a fan of dystopias if they are done right, and I think the author has developed a very interesting one! I would also add that this was reminiscent of The Hunger Games as well, but Red Queen themes really stuck out to me.
Characters 3🌟
I need some more character development! Daimen and Emily both are very interesting people, but it focused so much on the now, and by the end, the past became very important! Aside from that, Daimen is very brooding and mysterious, and I hope to see some charm from him. Emily, though naive at times, is brave and passionate.
Pacing 4🌟
I thought this was paced well. It moved along very nicely.
Writing 2.5🌟
The writing is the downfall of this book. It was very choppy at times. I noticed two things in particular that hurt this book. The dialogue needs some work. I cannot feel the emotion at all with the characters, and at times I couldn’t even tell who was talking. The author is fabulous at narrating! So much description of what is happening, and beautiful ways of describing things! I need that same level of passion felt in the voices of these characters. The other thing was the unveiling of major points. There was no justification at times, it just happened. This is a spoiler, so unveil at your own risk.
Plot to smut ratio N/A
Smut Quality N/A
Overall Entertainment or Emotional Reactions 5🌟
Despite my criticisms, I was 100% hooked and looked forward to reading this, I seriously could not put it down, haha.
BONUS Description Accuracy
It’s pretty vague, and I like that 😂 I am being picky here, but I don’t like that the word vampire is being used in the title, they don’t even call themselves vampires!
Final Thoughts
I enjoyed this! I think I will read the other books on KU first, and if I like them, I’ll definitely purchase.
Trope(s): Marriage of convenience
Immediate Thoughts
Well, I am certainly hooked.
Plot 4🌟
The plot of this is so interesting. It’s a classic dystopia plot, where there is a rebellion trying to rise and your main character gets involved in some fashion. The dystopia was set up similar to Red Queen, Elites are the royals, humans are the peasants. It still had its own twist, where they rely on each other for protection and food, and the Choosing ceremony was an interesting part of the story. I’m a fan of dystopias if they are done right, and I think the author has developed a very interesting one! I would also add that this was reminiscent of The Hunger Games as well, but Red Queen themes really stuck out to me.
Characters 3🌟
I need some more character development! Daimen and Emily both are very interesting people, but it focused so much on the now, and by the end, the past became very important! Aside from that, Daimen is very brooding and mysterious, and I hope to see some charm from him. Emily, though naive at times, is brave and passionate.
Pacing 4🌟
I thought this was paced well. It moved along very nicely.
Writing 2.5🌟
The writing is the downfall of this book. It was very choppy at times. I noticed two things in particular that hurt this book. The dialogue needs some work. I cannot feel the emotion at all with the characters, and at times I couldn’t even tell who was talking. The author is fabulous at narrating! So much description of what is happening, and beautiful ways of describing things! I need that same level of passion felt in the voices of these characters. The other thing was the unveiling of major points. There was no justification at times, it just happened. This is a spoiler, so unveil at your own risk.
Plot to smut ratio N/A
Smut Quality N/A
Overall Entertainment or Emotional Reactions 5🌟
Despite my criticisms, I was 100% hooked and looked forward to reading this, I seriously could not put it down, haha.
BONUS Description Accuracy
It’s pretty vague, and I like that 😂 I am being picky here, but I don’t like that the word vampire is being used in the title, they don’t even call themselves vampires!
Final Thoughts
I enjoyed this! I think I will read the other books on KU first, and if I like them, I’ll definitely purchase.
Trope(s): Marriage of convenience
August 2, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. Dystopian setting with vampires created by science. It reminded me A LOT of The Hunger Games! My main problem with this book ( and the reason I can only give it 3 stars) is that there were just SO MANY TYPOS! Between the spelling errors and a little lack of punctuation... I was constantly being pulled out of that world and into this one to re-read sentences & just be completely baffled by the errors. This book is not poorly written, it is poorly EDITED, if at all. Let’s take a look at the worst offenders:
1. Was I going to be forced to dress up and prance around for the rest of my lift?
Lift? You mean life?
2. I bit my lip, wondering if I’d misheard him, or if he was going to qualify that statement somehow.
Qualify that statement? Am I stupid or does that just not make sense? Correct me if I’m wrong please.
3. The dress had ribbons on the sleeves, and a small bouquet of flesh flowers was pinned up with beads and lace in her hair.
Flesh flowers? This one made me laugh a bit as she had just wandered into a brothel/whorehouse.
4. A few drawn out notes of music from ice scream truck.
Ice SCREAM??? 😂
5. He was only been a kid,
What?!?!
6. I grabbed a chair held it up in defense.
YO! Can I get some punctuation over here?!
I’M JUDGING YOU! Would have also taken “And” as an answer AND probably the most appropriate one.
7. If I could use their momentum to fling me over... before I could think too much about it, I made a loop with the wire and tossed it around the front edge of axe.
THE axe! Geez Louise, that’s a whole word missing!
This next bit isn’t exactly a mistake but the abrupt ending of the fight scene reminds me of the ending of the book, which just ended rather sudde....... yeah, kind of like that. LOL
8. I pried it off me with my other hand, just as it was about to bite—its fangs glistening with venom. Finally, we destroyed all the bots.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
So to sum up this review- I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next one! However, I am very glad that I didn’t pay for this and borrowed on kindle unlimited 🙏🏻 I would have been mad!
1. Was I going to be forced to dress up and prance around for the rest of my lift?
Lift? You mean life?
2. I bit my lip, wondering if I’d misheard him, or if he was going to qualify that statement somehow.
Qualify that statement? Am I stupid or does that just not make sense? Correct me if I’m wrong please.
3. The dress had ribbons on the sleeves, and a small bouquet of flesh flowers was pinned up with beads and lace in her hair.
Flesh flowers? This one made me laugh a bit as she had just wandered into a brothel/whorehouse.
4. A few drawn out notes of music from ice scream truck.
Ice SCREAM??? 😂
5. He was only been a kid,
What?!?!
6. I grabbed a chair held it up in defense.
YO! Can I get some punctuation over here?!
I’M JUDGING YOU! Would have also taken “And” as an answer AND probably the most appropriate one.
7. If I could use their momentum to fling me over... before I could think too much about it, I made a loop with the wire and tossed it around the front edge of axe.
THE axe! Geez Louise, that’s a whole word missing!
This next bit isn’t exactly a mistake but the abrupt ending of the fight scene reminds me of the ending of the book, which just ended rather sudde....... yeah, kind of like that. LOL
8. I pried it off me with my other hand, just as it was about to bite—its fangs glistening with venom. Finally, we destroyed all the bots.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
So to sum up this review- I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next one! However, I am very glad that I didn’t pay for this and borrowed on kindle unlimited 🙏🏻 I would have been mad!
March 16, 2022
(3.5 Stars)
First and foremost let me disclose that I won "Taste of Vampire" through the Goodreads giveaway; however, my review is not influence by this. I can imagine that it is difficult for authors to get the right mix of world building, character development, action etc. Yet, I wonder if they ever consider the amount of dialogue they write into their novels versus descriptors and character thoughts. For me, I need a healthy dose of dialogue and this is an area "Taste of Vampire" lack.
Let me say that the world building and storyline was unique and creative. I enjoyed reading about the before and how the world has change with blood and ash. Emily is a human livin in a compound protected by the King of the Elite (vampires). She has dark scars on her hands and arms that have always been there. Although she attempts to cover them as often as possible they are seen and she is taunted by the local bully, Jessica. Emily does not have tie to worry about this because she spends her time hunting food for her family. One day she goes outside of the compound where she encounters several Elite soldiers who decide she would make great prey. Before they have the chance to rape her they are stopped by Damien, the prince.
Each year the compound holds a ceremony for the seventeen year old girls to determine if any of them will be selected to be the chosen for an Elite. Emily does not expect to be selected and she is resigned to staying in the compound and marrying her best friend, Trevor. However, when the ELITE who attempted to rape her selects her once again Prince Damien comes to her rescue and overrules him. Now Emily is on her way to the Citadel where she will wed Damien.
The course of true love never runs smoothly so it comes as no surprise that there will be many obstacles to Emily and Damien's joining. One such obstacle is the attacks on the Elite by Rebel forces. The question quickly becomes who are the good guys and who are the bad? In order to obtain this answer, you will have to read the book to find out. I enjoyed this read but wished often that there was less self talk and more dialogue. Hopefully the next installment will correct this.
First and foremost let me disclose that I won "Taste of Vampire" through the Goodreads giveaway; however, my review is not influence by this. I can imagine that it is difficult for authors to get the right mix of world building, character development, action etc. Yet, I wonder if they ever consider the amount of dialogue they write into their novels versus descriptors and character thoughts. For me, I need a healthy dose of dialogue and this is an area "Taste of Vampire" lack.
Let me say that the world building and storyline was unique and creative. I enjoyed reading about the before and how the world has change with blood and ash. Emily is a human livin in a compound protected by the King of the Elite (vampires). She has dark scars on her hands and arms that have always been there. Although she attempts to cover them as often as possible they are seen and she is taunted by the local bully, Jessica. Emily does not have tie to worry about this because she spends her time hunting food for her family. One day she goes outside of the compound where she encounters several Elite soldiers who decide she would make great prey. Before they have the chance to rape her they are stopped by Damien, the prince.
Each year the compound holds a ceremony for the seventeen year old girls to determine if any of them will be selected to be the chosen for an Elite. Emily does not expect to be selected and she is resigned to staying in the compound and marrying her best friend, Trevor. However, when the ELITE who attempted to rape her selects her once again Prince Damien comes to her rescue and overrules him. Now Emily is on her way to the Citadel where she will wed Damien.
The course of true love never runs smoothly so it comes as no surprise that there will be many obstacles to Emily and Damien's joining. One such obstacle is the attacks on the Elite by Rebel forces. The question quickly becomes who are the good guys and who are the bad? In order to obtain this answer, you will have to read the book to find out. I enjoyed this read but wished often that there was less self talk and more dialogue. Hopefully the next installment will correct this.
July 13, 2018
Wow Derek Murphy does it again for me, first with his book Shearwater than he really struck a chord with me through his magnificent book Orpheum and yes the pun was intended and now, Taste! I had thought this would be yet another vampire story but this book turned out to be so much more. It is a post apocalyptic, dystopian novel where we find a society divided into two classes that of the elites ie. the blood suckers and the humans who they kept to satisfy their thirst. The king, obviously an elite, had formed a covenant whereby he promised peace with the slogan 'live together, or die apart' and since the signing the humans where kept in compounds surrounded by electric fences where ash fell from the sky continuously making humans dependant on the elexir provided by the elite to keep them healthy. On the day of the choosing, a group of young women where chosen as mates for the elites, offering their blood freely just to live in the citadel of lights. However a group of rebels was trying to bring down the king and the institution and Emily, chosen by Prince Damien himself, found herself torn between a love she was feeling for Damien and a loyalty towards her fellow humans and her dear friend Trevor. She is a renitant hence could not be compulsed as other humans were, so she was walking a real tightrope when meeting with the rebels. On the day of the trials she discovers something so shocking she just could not stay in the citadel of lights anymore cause the king discovered what she was too. 'When injustice becomes law, resistance becomes duty' and she knew where her loyalties lay! This was an exhilarating read, full of emotional turmoil, love, loyalty and even backstabbing, class war, courage and revolution!! Bring on book 2 and well done yet again Derek Murphy for yet another great book!
November 12, 2021
Another "New to me" author. I actually saw this somewhere and was intrigued by the summary so decided to give it a try. This is a slightly different take on the normal "Vampire" genre with the world of the "Elites". The author does a good job with the world building on this, but I did feel that it could have been a little bit stronger. Some really relevant facts that help the reader to better understand this world are not given out until late in the book.
I went back and forth between liking the male MC - Prince Damien. We do not really know enough to completely trust the information we are given on him yet. Same with the female MC. Yes, she is in a new and strange land, but she waffles back and forth between behaving like a "strong" character and then in the next moment, her behavior is puzzling. Seriously, if someone said that they were going to tell me the "truth" of who I was - I don't think I could just forget about it and continue on with my life as if that statement was never made. It isn't until the very end that she finally begins to demand that people give her the information about her that everybody else seems to have.
But, with that being said, I enjoyed this book. I listened to most of it on audio and had no problems with the narration. The next book in the series is out, but the audio has not yet been released. I'm not sure when the audio is scheduled to come out - I am going to look into it and see because I've already downloaded the next ebook in the series. I would prefer to listen, but will read it if it is going to be too long.
Just a word of warning, book one does end in a cliffhanger. As cliffhangers go - it is not the worst - but it definitely makes you want to go and get the next book immediately.
I went back and forth between liking the male MC - Prince Damien. We do not really know enough to completely trust the information we are given on him yet. Same with the female MC. Yes, she is in a new and strange land, but she waffles back and forth between behaving like a "strong" character and then in the next moment, her behavior is puzzling. Seriously, if someone said that they were going to tell me the "truth" of who I was - I don't think I could just forget about it and continue on with my life as if that statement was never made. It isn't until the very end that she finally begins to demand that people give her the information about her that everybody else seems to have.
But, with that being said, I enjoyed this book. I listened to most of it on audio and had no problems with the narration. The next book in the series is out, but the audio has not yet been released. I'm not sure when the audio is scheduled to come out - I am going to look into it and see because I've already downloaded the next ebook in the series. I would prefer to listen, but will read it if it is going to be too long.
Just a word of warning, book one does end in a cliffhanger. As cliffhangers go - it is not the worst - but it definitely makes you want to go and get the next book immediately.
June 13, 2025
This review is mainly for me and to remember why it’s a dumpster fire :)
Soooo I was immediately taken aback by the exact copy and paste of the hunger games. A girl lives in a poor compound (district), uses a bow and arrow to hunt for her family, and her dad is dead. There is also a choosing (reaping) for her to be selected by a vampire. The amount of dystopian series this author ripped off is almost impressive. It’s giving the hunger games, divergent, the selection, matched, etc.
The main heroine has an extremely contradictory characterization. She’s constantly shifting from one viewpoint to another depending upon the situation which is really frustrating. She’s just written poorly.
There is also almost no chemistry or interaction between her and her “chosen” which is a shame.
One of my biggest gripes is that her “best friend” is a guy who only is her friend because he wants her sexually/ romantically yet she thinks he has pure intentions yet also knows that he wants her and was also willing to settle for him if she didn’t get chosen in this vamp hunger games selection. He also indirectly called her a whore which was insane and she’s just like “oh well he’s upset 😢”.
So yeah, an insanely little amount of effort was put into the characters and overall plot of this book. Do not read this copy-paste dystopian shit show 😃
Soooo I was immediately taken aback by the exact copy and paste of the hunger games. A girl lives in a poor compound (district), uses a bow and arrow to hunt for her family, and her dad is dead. There is also a choosing (reaping) for her to be selected by a vampire. The amount of dystopian series this author ripped off is almost impressive. It’s giving the hunger games, divergent, the selection, matched, etc.
The main heroine has an extremely contradictory characterization. She’s constantly shifting from one viewpoint to another depending upon the situation which is really frustrating. She’s just written poorly.
There is also almost no chemistry or interaction between her and her “chosen” which is a shame.
One of my biggest gripes is that her “best friend” is a guy who only is her friend because he wants her sexually/ romantically yet she thinks he has pure intentions yet also knows that he wants her and was also willing to settle for him if she didn’t get chosen in this vamp hunger games selection. He also indirectly called her a whore which was insane and she’s just like “oh well he’s upset 😢”.
So yeah, an insanely little amount of effort was put into the characters and overall plot of this book. Do not read this copy-paste dystopian shit show 😃
August 18, 2025
The setup’s not half bad: Emily lives in a starving human compound, her sick mother dying, and she literally risks eating poisonous ash to get healing elixir enough to save her. Then there’s Damien—the elite vampire prince, handsome, icy, and obviously brooding. He’s supposed to be the romantic foil, and well, he is—but he’s also frustratingly flat.
Worldbuilding has potential—it’s Hunger Games meets Red Queen, with vampires and toxic skies. The Trials setup is clever. But execution? Clunky. Dialogue is muddy and the big reveal about Emily’s identity—like a doorknob turning in a dark room—gets rushed.
The Not-Good Stuff:
Emily is sometimes doing things because the plot says so, not because it makes sense.
Damien remains emotionally distant, until suddenly... swoon bait.
deaths at the end? More anchor than shock, and the emotional whiplash hits zero.
The Okay Parts:
The dystopian setup is hooky enough to keep you flipping pages.
The brief moments of intrigue—and the tension of “who’s going to die next?”—are addictively messy.
Bottom line: mid-tier vampire romance. If you’re craving dark YA with a fast pace and don’t mind being dangled into Book 2 by means of a heavy-handed spoiler, this will do. Just don’t say you weren’t warned about a random character’s death—and Emily’s identity plot twist—by the last page
Worldbuilding has potential—it’s Hunger Games meets Red Queen, with vampires and toxic skies. The Trials setup is clever. But execution? Clunky. Dialogue is muddy and the big reveal about Emily’s identity—like a doorknob turning in a dark room—gets rushed.
The Not-Good Stuff:
Emily is sometimes doing things because the plot says so, not because it makes sense.
Damien remains emotionally distant, until suddenly... swoon bait.
deaths at the end? More anchor than shock, and the emotional whiplash hits zero.
The Okay Parts:
The dystopian setup is hooky enough to keep you flipping pages.
The brief moments of intrigue—and the tension of “who’s going to die next?”—are addictively messy.
Bottom line: mid-tier vampire romance. If you’re craving dark YA with a fast pace and don’t mind being dangled into Book 2 by means of a heavy-handed spoiler, this will do. Just don’t say you weren’t warned about a random character’s death—and Emily’s identity plot twist—by the last page
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