I can't begin to tell you how amazed I am that each book that this author puts out is exponentially better than the previous. All of Ditter's books have an amazing amount of action, intrigue, humor and beyond swoon worthy heroes, but what I love most about her books is that the heroines are just as strong as the heroes. It doesn't matter if they are human are not, her heroines are always smart, witty and have an incredible amount of inner strength to them. Nita was all of that and more. I happen to know who this particular heroine was inspired by and I think Ditter captured her spirit and tender heart perfectly. She possess a deep well of love and compassion that is protected by a tough outer shell that balanced perfectly with Vlad's arrogance and possessiveness. I do have to admit that as much as I adored Nita's fierceness, I did want to borrow the real life Nita's bat and smack her around a bit over her stubbornness and her insistence *GRRR* with going through with the (no spoilers) Shaman's ceremony.
Vlad has been alone for a long time. So long that he doesn't feel desire anymore. Until he meets Nita that is... Unfortunately he has a terrible prejudice against shifters. He believes they are nothing more than animals, beneath even humans who he considers little better than food. When he finds Nita injured he is infuriated by his physical response to her <--- his reaction is hilarious by the way. Instead of killing her on site he decides to save her because of her help in the previous book, (which if you haven't read yet, you need to do so ASAP because it's fantastic) Shon. Vlad thinks that he will be able to just send her on her way and never have to deal with her again. Uh yeah, not happening dude. He can't stop thinking about Nita or his body's response to her. But it's not all physical, she challenges him and he is fascinated by her strength and loyalty to her pack. Vlad can't seem to stay away from her and when they finally kiss? Oh baby, he is not letting her go! The passion between those two is explosive, especially when they finally give in to each other. I swear, I needed to drink a glass of wine and smoke an imaginary cigarette after reading all that "singe your eyebrows off" hotness!
The Seekers are still around and they have teamed up with someone close to Vlad. Nita is also having issues within her pack because they believe she is fraternizing with the Vampires. Threats to her position as alpha and a shocking ceremony made for some serious heart pounding, nail biting moments for me. Do not read this book at four in the morning in the same room as your significant other unless they don't mind being woken from a dead sleep to you yelling NOOOOOOOO! I had two different moments of that with this book. My husband was not pleased, Ditter. And I've been banished to read in the living room after twelve am from now on. Totally worth it...
The excitement and fast-paced intensity of The Rise of Vlad will make you unable to put this book down for a second because the "Oh my God, I NEED to know what is going to happen next" will consume you. So, if you are a fan of sizzling PNRs, I urge you to clear your calendar and go one click this bad boy right now!