A Vampire's Heart

Ellowyn Found #1

by Kayleigh Sky, Darcy Stark (Narrator)

Vampires live.

And they hunger… 

Otto Jones, a cop assigned to the seemingly random murder of a vampire, would rather hide out in the nearest bar than waste his time on a dead vamp. He hates the bloodthirsty demons. But when the king of the vampires commands him to work with one of the lesser princes and find the killer, he has no choice.

Prince Jessamine Senera is ready to sacrifice his happiness in a loveless marriage for his family’s benefit… but not yet. He dreams of adventure, excitement, and true love. He lives on romance novels and detective stories and wishes he could drink synthetic blood like every other vampire. But he can’t. He needs human blood to survive and is hated by vampires and humans alike. 

As Otto and Jessa draw closer to an entity that doesn’t want to be discovered, Otto finds the heart he thought long dead opening to the romance-loving Jessa. No good can possibly come from falling in love with a vampire, but when a shadowy assailant attacks Jessa, Otto will descend into the darkest pit of the earth to rescue him.

If you like vampires, mythical and urban settings, intense suspense, and happy ever after, then you’ll love this first book in the dark and mysterious Ellowyn Found trilogy!

A Vampire’s Heart is a stand-alone paranormal dystopian noir romance with a satisfying conclusion to the love story and a central mystery that weaves the trilogy together.

Genres: Vampires, M M Romance, Paranormal, Mystery, Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Romance

Audible Audio

First published November 13, 2018

About the author

Kayeigh Sky is a m/m erotic romance writer.

Kayleigh’s stories are tales of struggle and pain, loss and despair. Love is won in the battle to rise out of the depths of darkness. Victory is in the sweet bliss of happily ever after.

Once upon a time Kayleigh hid out in a cold dark garage reading a book her parents forbid her to read. She was nine years old. The book? Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin, a story of love between two men–well, actually the story was a little more complicated than that, but hey, she was nine.

In the dark of the garage, a light, a passion, a sheer joy for love in all its manifestations awoke.
And love between two men–Hot!

Kayleigh’s men are often broken, always brave, and always memorable.

Reviews

[Nazanin · Rating 3 out of 5]

3. Stars

I liked the characters, they were both really likable. I liked the plot, the world building and the mystery was good. The only thing that I had an issue with was the writing. I didn’t like it, it made me confused sometimes! And another thing I was really tired of hearing about Maisie (the MC’s dead sister), he always thinking about her and what she does/did in every situation! Told in multiple POV, 3rd person. It’s the first installment in the "Ellowyn Found" series and it’s not cliffy. Overall, it wasn’t that bad but it wasn’t really good either and hope you like it!

[Gerbera_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I didn't know what to expect because this is my first time reading anything by this author. The book is superb. The world-building is outstanding, so detailed that it paints a clear picture of this new world inhabited by vampires and humans. It's dark, hungry and unforgiving. It's steeped in prejudice and desperation but still there is a glimmer or hope. This is enemies to lovers story with plenty UST and wonderful relationship development.

Otto is such a character. He is a human detective who is fighting a losing battle with himself and the world order. He is a grieving brother, he is a protector, he is a hopeless man at the bottom of the bottle with nothing to lose but his sense of self. When he investigates recent murder of a vampire he meets Jessa, youngest vampire prince, and fights tooth and nail against attraction, possessiveness and desire to love and be loved.

Jessamine is half-vampire and half-human, he is romantic at heart but feels that he has to atone for his imperfections by marrying a vampire he does not love. He is a ray of sunshine in the dreary cold day to Otto's darkness and sarcasm. The events make it possible for him to be for once someone else and help Otto bring justice. And what starts as unwelcome task for Otto turns into passionate desire to love and protect his innocent prince from harm, to cherish and have hope for the future.

The mystery is encompassing many families, different species and spanning years. So many players are in the game for power and dominance, world is torn by ignorance and thirst for riches, friends lost and new enemies made, secrets upon secrets until Otto and Jessa don't know which way is up. It was quite an adventure. So many important secondary characters that created this new culture, made this story multidimensional and fascinating. I loved Otto's gruffness to Jessa's soft touch - their differences and imperfections made them that more beautiful together. The ending is unexpected and leaves one wanting to know more. I highly recommend it!

** ARC kindly provided by the author for my honest review **

[Cadiva · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first book from this author and what an absolute gem I picked to start my Kayleigh Skye experience.

The world building and character building is simply stunning, without ever feeling like exposition, the narrative opens up an alternative reality in which a war between vampires and humans has not long ended and the land itself is as dangerous as the supernatural.

Earthquakes caused by excessive over mining of the land exposed the previously hidden underground vampire empire and conflicts between traditionalists who seek to put the humans back in the food chain and those vampires who would like to live in peace, forms a backdrop to this romantic suspense.

I fell in love with pretty much all the "good" characters, from grumpy cop Otto, to his baby Prince half breed vampire lover Jessa, from Jessa's over protective brother and sister, to the vampire King, to the human Isaac who worked as a blood donor for Jess.

Each character is built up through layers of cleverly revealed narrative and dialogue and the ending had me simultaneously crying "nooooooo!" out loud at the same time as applauding the author for hiding it so well.

This is book one in a trilogy in which there is an overriding storyline so while this doesn't end with a cliffhanger as such, not all plot elements are concluded.

Now I'm desperate to find out more about the lore and heritage of this world and to see where the road is taking Isaac.

#ARC kindly received from the author in return for an honest and unbiased review.

[Nazanin ex-Profile · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world building was great but this book was confusing at times. I enjoyed it overall.

[Shin Mon Thway · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have very mixed feelings about this book. 🤔 On one hand, I liked it but on the other hand, it was super confusing. 🤦‍♀️ I think it’s also because there’s no glossary in the audio version. Let’s review. 🙂

Otto is a detective on mission. Years ago, his sister was murdered and the murderer was never caught. Now he’s just drifting by in a world full of chaos and adjustment. The world he once knew was gone. Now it’s not a world for humans anymore but for vampires and humans. Half blooded Prince Jessamine never knew the old world. Frail and sickly, he has always been protected by his older brother and sister. He has longed for freedom for so long and he dreams of finding his fated love just like his father did. When a series of murders emerged and Jess has to work together with the grumpy detective Otto, he knew Otto is his fates. But he’s a vamp and Otto hates vampires. Moreover, the guy doesn’t have the word “commitment” in his dictionary. Meanwhile, the murders are continuing. How would Jess convince Otto that they belong together no matter who they are?

I think the main issue with this book is that the author tried to achieve too much in too small a book. 🤷‍♀️ Don’t get me wrong, this is not a short book however this book needs at least 200 pages to cover everything and for readers to understand everything. I was sprung up on with so many words and phrases I don’t know and o had zero idea about the background and the world building of it. Again, don’t get me wrong. I think the world building is expansive and super creative but I don’t understand most of it. Frankly, I still don’t get most part until the end. And another issue I have with this book is the romance aspect of it. I don’t feel that connection and spark between Otto and Jess. 🤦‍♀️ For me, I feel like they ended up because they are fated and because it’s convenient. 🙃 They are not dying for each other if you know what I mean. The one remarkable thing about this book is the narration of Darcy Stark. The guy performs. ❤️ He doesn’t read. He acts, performs and he excels. It was a phenomenal performance. 👏 Loved it and I’ll definitely try more of his narration.


3.5 family, lies, love and a new world stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️💫




Audio rating

Story - 3 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Marathon - 4.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
Performance - 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Overall - 3.5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫






Disclaimer: An audio copy of this book was provided by the author via LesCourt services for an honest and unbiased review.

[Elaine White · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF'd at 28% - This review is to explain why.

~

** I WAS GIVEN THIS BOOK FOR MY READING PLEASURE **

~

A Vampire's Heart
Ellowyn Found, Book 1
Kayleigh Sky

★★☆☆☆
399 Pages
POV: 3rd person, multi-POV
Would I read it again?: No.
Genre: MM, LGBT, Paranormal, Contemporary, Vampires, Crime/Murder Mystery


DNF – I gave this one 28% to grab me, which constitutes about 100 pages. That should be more than enough to grab my attention and suck me in, set the scene, set up the world-building and get into the main plot. Unfortunately, it wasn't. By this point, I felt like the story had barely started. The “investigation” of the plot was floundering into absolutely nothing – and I already know from the author's warnings and other reviews that it's not solved in this book – so I have to wonder over just why it's 399 pages, yet such a strong emphasis is given to this murder plot? It baffles me.

~

Okay, let's start as we mean to go on, shall we? This book (as I'm writing my review) has a half dozen rave reviews, but I'm the odd one out. I didn't love it. I'm not even sure I'd say I liked it. It was just a bit bland and Meh for my taste. A bit too safe. Because, this book had some serious issues.

I was initially excited to start reading this one because – the cover, the title, the blurb: what's not to love? However, once I started reading, I realised that there were a few too many issues for me to ignore. Some minor editing mistakes here and there? I usually note it but don't give it weight. However, this one has some issues that were minor and personal peeves, and others that were early indications of a wider problem, that continued throughout the novel.

For me, it took about 10% for me to grow interested in the story and where it might lead. This was for a few reasons. First off, I'm not a fan of Otto's character, who appears to be the main POV. He's a broody, alcoholic, locked-in-his-own-head kind of guy with few redeeming features. He's arrogant, angry all the time, judgmental of everyone, and obsessed with two things: the murder of his sister (understandable) and an “irresistible” attraction to Jessamine that got really old really quickly.

When it comes to the writing, there were editing issues throughout (small things like laid instead of lay, but also big things like inconsistencies in description/detail and in particular Chapter 1) Phrasings were off, e.g. “he didn't think it hardly mattered”, “waste a time”, “the day passed as he loved it” and things happened by magic because there was no transition between actions or movements, when a minute ago the weather was described right down to the mist and dew. For example, one minute Otto is walking through an alley and everything from the sights, sounds, and the way the light falls on the ground is described, but then the next minute he's already on his secret drink without actually sitting down or ordering or even acknowledging the bartender exists.

Right from the get go, I felt like Chapter 1 didn't come together as a cohesive chapter the way some of the following chapters did. The introduction to a nearly 400-page novel is vital, because if I'd bought this myself, without the intent to review, I probably wouldn't have continued past Chapter 1. I felt like I'd walked into the middle of the story, and the world-building was almost non-existent. I struggled to make sense of who/what Otto was, because of the inconsistent descriptions, and the feeling of being “lost” occurred quite often after that point, too. It didn't help that I found some of the language use (particularly the swearing) during Chapter 1 to be off and unnatural. Whether because the whole chapter didn't feel right or not, I can't say.

I also had a problem with the lack of explanations and world building. There were little littered explanations about what happened to bring the vampires into the human world, but it was so weighted with blame and guilt and negativity that it became a drag to read and take in. And I'm still not clear what “The Ellowyn” means – is it a race of vampires? Is it a sub-species? Is it the term for vampires who drink human blood? Is it a status? Is it something to be revered or resisted? Who knows.

For me, Jessamine was one of your stereotypical Damsel-in-Distress characters. Right from Chapter 1, I didn't like how he was portrayed. It was off-putting, stereotypical and sometimes derogatory and degrading, with the constant comparison to a woman, and the implication that he was weak and shouldn't be out alone just because he was femme really didn't help me like Otto. The story continued in that vein, implying that he was basically made of glass, that he had no rights at all, and that he was so naive that he was barely more than a child being coddled every moment. Yet, he was ridiculously sex-obsessed, especially when it came to Otto.

However, there was no chemistry between the two. Otto and Jessamine had an insta-lust thing going on, but it revolved solely around looking at each other. It had no basis in anything real or tangible. And it was obvious. It didn't help that, by the 28% mark where I stopped, they had met 4 times, only twice to properly talk and see each other in close proximity, and neither time showed even a spark of anything close to chemistry. It wasn't even just because Otto was so anti-vampire, either. There was just nothing between them whatsoever. And, in a story that is 399 pages – with a murder mystery style plot that ISN'T resolved in this book – I have to assume the romance or relationship is the predominant factor of the novel. Except that it doesn't go anywhere. It has barely existed for the first nearly 30% of the book, which – to be honest – felt kind of pointless. Nothing was resolved, nothing really all that exciting or important happened. I could have easily condensed that 28% into 5% and still got the same point across.

The story was also repetitive at times. Otto was constantly breaking the scene to think about Maisie or Jessamine “the romance guy” in the first few chapters. It was done at the appropriate times, but became so repetitive that I actually got sick of reading about both of them through Otto's eyes. I didn't help that all Otto cared about was that Jessamine was “the romance guy” and who in their right mind wanted to read romance novels. The judgment was grating.

~

Overall, while some of the rave reviews are right – the vampirism in this book is done in an original way and with some clever features – they just didn't add anything to the story. They didn't really have a purpose. The only importance they had was of the difference between ordinary vampires and “drainers” which was part of the central plot. Other than that, they were no different to humans in so many ways that I just failed to be impressed. I've read a lot of vampire books, some original, some that stick to the core of the genre, and this one was pretty much in the middle.

I wasn't a fan of the Cast of Characters. Maybe if it had been at the end, I could have bookmarked it for if I needed it, but being at the beginning, I felt like I was accidentally reading spoilers every time I skimmed past. I don't know *any* of these characters before I begin the book, so I didn't really get why it was there. All this information should be easy to decipher from the novel itself.

I didn't love the characters. Otto was unappealing and unlikeable for the entire part of the book I read. I found Prosper to be an ordinary oblivious vampire, with a chip on his shoulder. Jessamine was sweet, but a little naive and sex-mad for my liking. And, overall, I didn't want Otto and Jessamine together. I didn't root for them. I didn't feel any chemistry, when they finally met, and I just felt like the only thing between them was an instant-lust borne simply from their looks. It was a bit too superficial for me.

Then came the editing and plot problems. If this had been a debut novel, I probably could have forgiven some of the issues, like the editing, the plot inconsistencies and such, but it's not. It *is* my first novel by this author, and I'm thinking it might have to be my last. The writing just wasn't to my taste, it was a bit all over the place throughout what I read and, for a book of 399 pages, it failed to come together, for me. If it can't grab me by 100 pages, then it's not going to.

Sadly, I was bored and distracted through what I read. I wasn't inspired to keep going. I'm not particularly interested in finding out who the dead guy was, who the guy who escaped in the second chapter was, if Jessamine and Otto get together, or what Isaac has to do with anything. None of it bothers me, and that's a problem. To read a book of any length – but particularly one that requires the time and attention that 399 pages does – I need to WANT to keep reading. I need to be invested in the story, the characters, and the plot. And, sadly, I just wasn't.

[Lori S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a train wreck of a story. There are leaps in scenes without connecting sentences, leaps of logic without information. Also, the characters had no real life, no real interesting personalities to speak of; they felt and read like cardboard. The plot is too thin to carry the story far, despite its interesting premise, and the murder "investigation" gets hijacked into being a series of dates for the MCs. ::rollseyes:: The worldbuilding's not bad, though it, too, could do with a lot of beefing up. Maybe get this to a professional editor? Might help, might not.

Suffice it to say, I wasted $6 on this thing, but finished it. Masochistic much?

[Fatimama · Rating 1 out of 5]

Update:

So I was bored and forgot that I’ve read this and tried it again. I finished it this time but the MC was unlikeable, the story was disjointed. The book was unnecessarily too long.

DNF. This was boring AF. The MCs don’t meet until after a few chapters of mind-numbing exposition. I had no desire whatsoever to be interested in the “romance”

[Jewel · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, I want to say that you don't need to read the Prequel, A Vampire's Vow , before reading this book. You do get a little bit of background, there, but A Vampire's Heart gives you plenty to put you into the story. So, if you don't have A Vampire's Vow, don't sweat it. In fact, I think reading it after reading at least the first book, would be less confusing. 

A Vampire's Heart takes place maybe 20 years after A Vampire's Vow and Jessa is now an adult (he was around 3 years old in the Prequel). A Vampire's Heart  begins with Jessa being surrounded by 3 humans, who probably didn't know their victim was a half-vampire prince. Jess is young and unassuming. He's pretty and wears nail polish and has a bag full of romance novels. Otto interrupts before the men get violent and chases them off.

Otto took me forever to warm to. He's gruff and tired and doing his best to die of alcoholism. He tells himself he hates vampires, because of what happened to his sister, but the truth is, he really hates himself. Otto is a man at war with himself and he thinks he has little to live for.

Jessa is a half-vampire prince of a fallen dynasty. His brother, who was to be king, gave it all up to protect Jessa, and 20 years after the uprising, he's still protecting Jessa. Jessa is what is known as a "drainer". He's allergic to the synthetic blood that allowed peace to happen, so he feeds from donors. He's young and romantic and ... resigned to what he feels is his fate.

I enjoyed the hell out of the mystery and the romance, as Jessa and Otto get to know one another. The sex is hot and the story took me places I didn't expect to go. I loved it.


 

[ancientreader · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this up at the last Smashwords sale with considerable eagerness, despite the LEO protagonist, because I so enjoyed the author's Extraordinary Locket of Elijah Gray. An early reference to someone selling his blood (to a vampire) as a "whore" got me twitchy, but reclaiming of slurs is a thing, so I gave the author the benefit of the doubt and kept reading -- until 8%, when the character who I presume will turn out to be the love interest said, "A pimp is only one step up from a whore."

DNF with extreme prejudice.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first book of Kayleigh Sky and I'm definitely intrigued with this series. There is a great world building and I like the concept of 'drainer' as the pariah among the vampire. Prince Jessamine is one of the drainer and he was heavily protected by his family. When I started this book, I was expecting the vampire hero to be the alpha type, so Jessamine, who is basically a vampire twink caught me off guard.

The human detective, Otto, on the other hand is your cynical, gruff and broody detective who didn't get along with his co-worker. Otto is not a very likable character, he definitely won't be making anyone swoon, but his personality feel real - the asshole cop who still believe in justice.

Honestly, throughout the read, I find myself more invested in the homicide cases of the vampires instead of the romance between Otto and Jessamine. Their romance is slow burn and lack sexual tension. I was there waiting for them to make some sexual gesture or a meaningful stare, but Nada. When they finally come together, I just don't feel their chemistry. The investigation on the other hand was intriguing and kept me guessing who is the bad guy. Ultimately, I believe there is big story arc that will continue through the rest of the series, but we did get a some answer at least, just not the big picture yet. I can't wait to see what's next for this series. I hope the romance part can be better.

[Lulu · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Jessa’s cock fattened again at the thought of Otto skulking around in a dangerous neighborhood. Weirdo."


Story: 8
Writing: 8
First MC: 9
Second MC: 8
Secondary characters: 6
Mystery: 7
Sexual tension: 5
Humor: 4
Hotness: 6
Product placement: -
Ridiculousness: 3
Annoying: 2
Audio: 10 (11h 23min)
To re-read: 8

A very involved story about an obsessed alcoholic human detective Otto and a romantic half vampire Jesse..and off they go solving a mystery 😁

Plenty of background info on how we ended up with the vampires ruling the world and the disappearance of major cities. Between the two MC there is a reluctance to start anything.

I liked the story, loved the mix of mystery and a slow burn. The mystery is spans for years with many parties involved, my head spun trying to keep track of whats going on and suspecting everyone under the sun.
Also someone sucked his own dick!

bendy guy, obsessions, romantic guy, and apple juice

[Myriam]

Ridiculous worldbuilding, info-dumping left and right. A protagonist straight from central casting and I'm out already.

[Niinii · Rating 4 out of 5]

The world building was great but this book was confusing at times. I enjoyed it overall.

[~nikki the recovering book addict · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I’m rather conflicted, to be honest. While I enjoyed the world the author built, I’m also rather confused.

The writing wasn’t as clear as I hoped. It had multiple POVs although the bulk of it was the two main MCs, Jessa and Otto. There was too many components that weren’t explained well. I mean, I respect the author for attempting to show rather than tell but the show wasn’t as well done as it should be.

I do hope I continue with this series but it does depend heavily on the blurb for the next book, I guess?

[Renée · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I have no idea what happened in this book.

[Stephanie GooglyEyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5*
I dropped it down a half a star because there were a few parts where I felt a little lost.
Other than that, I LOVED this book...loved.it.

Her take on vamps was one I've not read before. Humans destroying the earth (go figure lol) which in turned destroys the vampires, making them co-mingle after the war. The synthetic blood isn't new, but allergies to it is, and the idea of "drainers", which one of our heroes happens to be.

I loved that Jessa, or Jess to Otto, was huge into his romance novels. It's unfortunate how he got into them, but the idea of him hanging onto them in hopes he may have that one day is sweet. He may be vampire, but he's also half human.

Otto is a gruff and somewhat mean human character, but he's only that way to the right people. The way he handles Jessa through the story paints him in a totally different light.

This is a story of a murder mystery that turns into so much more and I can't wait to see where it leads. I really, really hope good things for Ruin. He's one of my favorite characters.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok - this book is really difficult for me to rate. I loved Jessa, who really developed his character and went from a very shy Vampire to someone who stood up for himself.

Otto was a bit more difficult as I did not see a lot of development or his will to improve or change. he also was really prejudiced and it took him a lot of time to get over that

the story was difficult because there was a lot of information but not really information at all
that was ok for the first half ...then I got a bit frustrated but the end was well done

all in all, I really liked the book and I am looking forward to the next book

[Natalia · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Susan65 · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Blogger Girls

How can a book be so good and such a difficult read at the same time? I will tell you. The writing is superb, the world building is near flawless, but the sheer number of characters and the social families within the Vampire hierarchy is staggering. This book comes with a glossary so you know there will be some time needed to get everyone straight, even more so because the names are all ethic to ancient vampires. No Tom, Dick nor Harry to be seen. And Jessa is a guy not a girl…that took a bit for me to wrap my mind around.

Prince Jessamine (Jessa) Senera is the young, royal, and well protected “drainer” vampire. Drainer because he needs to actually feed on human blood to survive, unlike “normal” vampires who live off synthetics. Otto Jones is a lost and disgruntled-with-life human cop who absolutely hates anything and everything that has to do with fangs. So, of course, these two fall for each other. But it is not easy because one is betrothed to another and he plans to stick with his commitment to his family, and the other, well, he hates anything with fangs.

This is not a romance, per se, but a romance in the middle of a murder mystery. Someone is killing people and vampires. And this murder is what brings Prince Jessa and Cop Otto together…and the Vampire King who conspires to keep them working together to solve this mystery. Now Jessa was beyond cute in his excitement to get out from under the intense protection of his family and play detective for a while. His love of books, and associating what he read and adding to it to help solve the case was very funny. Otto hates vampires, but Jessa doesn’t seem like an evil vampire, but more like an adorable and excitable puppy. Otto has an internal battle with himself over Jessa and it is sometimes painful to watch. But when they finally agree to a little no strings sexual activities, you understand that what they have is not fleeting and those strings are starting to get thicker and thicker. Baby fangs aren’t so bad afterall.

This is the first book in a new series so I understand that the world building and introduction of lots of characters is necessary. I really did enjoy this read, it is genuinely very good, it just required me to stop and think who belonged where, and that kind of took me out of the story a few of times. I hope the next book is released sooner than later because with the long list of characters and this extravagant new world, it may require a reread and I am not sure I want do that again. So, long and short, it is truly an amazing world and let’s hope the next book is released soon.

Overall Impression: I really liked it

[Joyfully Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Joyfully Jay review.

4 stars

ampire’s Heart does one thing very well: draws out a slow burn between Otto and Jessa, while consistently maintaining monologues from both characters about how they want each other and why they can’t have each other. For Otto, this set up has a strong flavor of “enemies to lovers,” except there is the caveat that he seems to instinctually recognize Jessa is his one true love. By way of example, even as Otto is narrating all the reasons why having anything to do with Jessa is a bad idea and trying to convince himself Jessa’s not worth his time, thoughts like “he’s mine!” ping through Otto’s narrative. This is repeated for Jessa as well.

Outside the love story, Sky has attempted to weave a high-octane thriller/mystery. To be honest, the pacing of the action here felt a bit slow. I struggled a bit to follow the flow of the story and how/why Jessa and Otto ended up in the situations they ended up in. This is somewhat exacerbated by the post-apocalyptic setting. I was fairly deep into the story before I realized that things like the internet and computers were not universally available for the characters. Otto even comments how the lack of internet means the vast majority of crime goes unsolved….yet there are security cameras available at vampire establishments.

Read Camille’s review in its entirety here.

[Carra · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Vampire’s Heart gives us a bit of an alternate take on the vampire mythology, not sticking to the stereotypes and opening up a different path for this series. One of the strengths of this book is the depth of its characters—both main and supporting ones—which for me resulted in getting hooked enough to want to see where the author is going to take things from here.

Otto comes across as rough, sullen and jaded, and for much of the story it was difficult for me to see how he would change his attitude to make the romance part actually work. His seemingly unwavering opinion of vampires—and drainers in particular—made for a pretty high hurdle to overcome. Jessa is his complete opposite, presenting as fragile, soft, and a romantic at heart…though don’t let that fool you as he’s capable of more than you might think given first impressions. Once they do get together, it feels mostly like a physical connection with a very slow build to something deeper. They certainly have the physical chemistry!

There’s a case with the apparent murder of a vampire that isn’t clear-cut at all, and all that seems to keep coming up are more and more questions. When you think you might have figured things out…well, you probably haven’t. And while you’ll get resolution for Otto and Jessa’s story, this is just the beginning; if you’re like me, you’ll find yourself captivated by the ending and wanting to see what comes next. Getting to that point though was a bit drawn out, and things did move kind of slowly for the first half of the book.

Overall though, I was intrigued and enjoyed this enough for a 4-star rating, and I’ll be keeping an eye out for the next book in the series. I really like it when an author bucks vampire stereotypes and offers something fresh and outside the standard mythos, so that was a strong factor in my attraction to this book. This story is meant for readers 18+ for adult language and sexual content.

[Nic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting

First book by this author, so therefore did not know what to expect. The building of a world after devastating earthquakes was very interesting. The resulting earthquakes resulted in vampires coming to the surface - they previously lived underground. The author created a different spin on vampires which I found interesting. Jess and Otto were both interesting and their backstory was nicely developed. Now although I enjoyed the development of this different world it needed more details and the vampires were too similar to humans. I also found myself confused a few times during the course of the mystery because things just did not make sense. Overall, it was a good enough story. I suspect the next book will be about Isaac and Rune which I will read.

[Jennifer Ali · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ohhh I’m pretty mixed about this book.

I don’t really know how I feel about it.

It’s weird, I loved the world it was built around, I loved the character development, I loved the MCs and their flaws. The sex was hot.

And yet none of it pulled together for me, the story felt discombobulated (is that the right word? Good thing I’m not a writer..)
Everything felt bitty, and broken, chapters seemed to start and end with no real connection. For some reason the book as a whole didn’t work for me but the characters individually really did and I loved them and their relationship building kept me turning the pages.


Does my review make any sense.

[Diane Dannenfeldt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall I really enjoyed this book. Both the narrator and the author are new to me and I can't wait for more from both of them. My only real issues were Otto constantly thinking about Maisie, its been 10 years yes I know her murder is still unsolved but it felt like every thought was of her. And I was having a problem with keeping all the names straight. Initially I didn't like Otto, he just rubbed me the wrong way, but it didn't take too long before I fell for him. Jessa I loved from the moment he stepped onto page. Jessa is a "drainer" someone who has to drink from humans and is allergic to the synth blood. He is such a romantic & all he wants is to love & be loved. He is engaged to Wen, an arraigned marriage, & has resigned himself to having a loveless marriage. Wen isn't bad to him and isn't disgusted by Jessa's need to drink blood from donors. There are so many secondary characters that I liked. Both Jessa's brother & sister, the king and Issac his donor. One of the sort of bad guy (you will see what I mean about "sort of" when you read the story) I knew was involved from the beginning. There wasn't anything obvious, I just had that feeling. So we have the investigation of a string of murders. Otto does something, and gets fired. The king hires him to investigate the killings and pushes Jessa to help Otto out. Otto, who despises vampires, is immediately drawn to Jessa & start thinking of him as his mate. Otto tries to deny his attraction.
Jessa is also immediately attracted to Otto. Okay for those of you who are turned off about cheating, which I absolutely hate, there isn't any cheating. Jessa & Wen haven't bonded yet & they are free to do what they want until then. Again, it's arraigned not because they love each other. As they get closer to figure out who is involved in the murders and why, they also get closer together until they give into their desires. I really loved these two as a couple and the sex was off the charts hot IMO. I can't wait to continue with this series.

Audio ARC provided by LesCourt Services in exchange for an honest review.

[Free_dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Review

I’ve read a lot of vampire books but never one quite like “A Vampire’s Heart”. It’s definitely a very unique setting and one that I enjoyed a lot.

It’s not a romance in the traditional sense of the word, though we do get a HEA for the our two protagonists. It just takes them a long time to get together and it’s not really the main focus of the book. I loved that slow build at first, but when they finally did get together and managed to admit their feelings, it still find kind of abrupt. I’m not much of a mystery reader usually, but this got me really invested and I certainly did not expect the reveal of the bad guy.

The world building was truly excellent. As I said before, the setting in and of itself is pretty unique. Vampires have lived underground for millennia, but they had to leave their home because humans a few years before, after humans finally managed to screw up the environment enough. The earth is constantly moving, minor earthquakes are now an everyday occurrence. Life isn’t easy, the peace is very much a tentative things and many lives were lost in the war between humans and vampires.

Otto Jones is not a happy man. He’s an alcoholic and very much obsessed with the death of his sister. He is a haunted man, who can’t seem to find peace. I still liked him but I thought he want through a rather sudden chance of personality in the epilogue.

Jessa is really sweet. Being a drainer isn’t easy, humans and vampires alike are quick to hate you for it. I loved how pragmatic he was about his engagement, even if he was actually a real romantic.

The side characters had depth as well. I especially liked Isaac and I hope he’ll get his own book.

The tone of the book is rather dark and a little bit creepy. A perfect autumn read, for those foggy days and nights, where you never know what’s really lurking in the shadows. But the epilogue felt out of tune with the tone of the rest of the story. It actually quite bothered me, which is the main reason why I gave this “only” four stars and not five.

“A Vampire’s Heart” was an interesting break from the endless sugary-sweet romances out there. The mystery is really the main focus of the book. Even though I’m usually not a reader of mysteries, it made for an intriguing mix of genres.

If you’re looking for gorgeously sparking vampires and a sweet romance, you’ll probably want to keep looking, though.

Personally, I’m already looking forward to the next part in the series.

I’m a bit torn on what to think about the cover. I can’t quite make up my mind if I like it or if I think it’s kind of generic…

[Jenn (not Lily) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not quite sure what the ending meant. Except that it's not really completely done until the end of the trilogy maybe? I had a few WTF moments in here, and not always because I didn't understand what was going on with these characters. I'm not sure if I'll be reading the other two books or not, especially since I'm pretty sure some things aren't going to be fully explained until the third book. If then. Jessa was an ok person, but I'm still not convinced that I even like Otto. I'm a little afraid of how I'll feel about Zev, so I guess this series is going to stay on Mount TBR for a while before I get around to the next one.

[Rina Pride · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.8... Quando dou 3 estrelas é porque sempre acho que a história poderia render muito mais ( não significa que eu não tenha gostado da história, quando não gosto passo 2 estrelas). Gosto bastante do clichê humano X vampiro, aqui ficou interessante porque Otto tinha um ódio por vampiros, ódio justificado, pois sua irmã foi morta por um, mas aí ele conhece Jessamine que é um vampiro mestiço.. O destino faz dessas coisas kkkkkkk Nunca diga nunca. Além dos principais, eu gostei bastante do rune, espero que tenha algum livro dedicado só para ele. Tem mais 2 livros... Veremos se rune vai protagonizar algum 😊

[jaxnsmom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was weird. I liked some part and did not like others. I will read the others and hope it gets better.