Finding Home

Blood Brute #0.1

by Dixon Reuel

I'm a vampire hiding in plain sight, with my human by my side.

World War I has broken out across Europe.

Needing to find a new home for the rest of our coven, we flee to England.

If my human dies, I die. If we can't blend in, we'll be run out of town. If my human and I don't secure a suitable home for the rest of the coven, we can never hide from humanity

If none of those things happen, we'll be eventually found out by the army's local enlistment officer, who's determined to ship my human off to the front!

So, yeah. We're screwed.

Blood Brute, and its prequel Finding Home, is a heart-wrenching journey in the tradition of Stephen King's The Stand and The Road by Cormac McCarthy. If you like LGBT romance, dark themes, and complex characters, then you'll love this paranormal post-apocalyptic tale.

Get your copy today!

Blood Brute combines urban & paranormal fantasy, along with the metaphysical and visionary, in this science fiction dystopian series! For lovers of mystery, thriller & suspense, with a huge dash of horror in this post-apocalyptic teen & young adult fiction. Ideal for fans of suspense and mystery authors and those who like their suspense with a dash of romance. Blood Brute are vampire novels set in an apocalyptic fantasy where romance and zombies collide. Suspense and romance combine against the backdrop of vampire cities out like nothing you've seen before in a vampire ya book. Enjoy English suspense / suspense horror books? Now they come with a dash of zombie wards, too! Vampire young adult books meets more dystopian fiction novels. Blood Brute comes as the perfect vampire books for adults in hardcover, if that's how you like your vampire fiction! Suitable for teens who enjoy vampire books all the way up to those you love suspense thrillers for men.

Genres: Zombies

68 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 19, 2020

About the author

Dixon Reuel is the author of the Blood Brute Series, a complete six-book queer dark fantasy set in the ruins of a world ended by zombie plague — where vampires survive, covens fracture, and love turns out to be the most dangerous thing of all.
Writing from Dublin, Ireland, Dixon's work has been recognised by the Wishing List Indie Book Awards and the Page Turner Awards, and has received editorial reviews from NetGalley and Kirkus. A background in Early Irish language, mythology, and poetry — including a runner-up place in a national Irish poetry award and a writing residency at the Tyrone Guthrie Centre, supported by the Arts Council of Ireland — brings a particular attention to language and landscape to the Blood Brute world.
The Blood Brute Series is complete and available now. All six books, both volumes, and the full omnibus edition are ready to read.

Reviews

[Dixon Reuel]

UPDATE - February 2022:

Wow, this is where Blood Brute all started! I published Finding Home (a prequel short story to the series) in October 2022 and now, a year and a half later, it's nice to look back at how far I've come as an indie author and how the series has developed.

Finding Home is set in June 1914, just as WWI breaks out across Europe. My degree is in History and during my studies it was the centenary of WWI, so we focused on this time period a lot. I remember seeing pictures of the Pals Battalions and wondering what came of these men--I really wanted to honor these haunting images of happy, grinning men draining out of their little English villages and heading off to who knew where. Straight onto the frontlines of danger, mostly.

That's why in Finding Home Cypriot is so touched by what he sees: people celebrating these men leaving. Because Cypriot has been drunk from by the Owl Court coven for so long, he lives longer than any human. Still, he feels guilt that he doesn't live the same life as these brave men.

Finding Home is about how the Owl Court coven find their home, but it is also a story about Cypriot's humanity and an insight into what he struggles with throughout the Blood Brute series.
______________________________________________

And that's BLOOD BRUTE's other prequel, FINDING HOME, completed and published and released into the world!

I hope everybody enjoys this insight into the coven's life before the events of the first book, RISE OF ONE!

FINDING HOME is available from an array of ebook retailers (Amazon, Google Play, Kobo etc) at this link: http://bit.ly/BBFindingHome

Happy reading! Let me know what you think!
-DR

[Joy Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

#DixonReuel

Finding Home: Blood Brute - Prequel is a nice little novella about Rise, a vampire, and his coven. It's about how they came to live at Owl Court on top of Holly Hill. The setting is England 1914 wartime.

This is a prequel to Rise Of One, the first book in Dixon Reuel's Blood Brute series. It is also my first read from this author. What drew me to the series is that it includes both vampires AND zombies... what more could a girl ask for!!!😁😋🤗 I think the premise is exciting and so far, so good.

There is another prequel novella called On The Edge Of Salt that I am reading next, prior to starting Rise Of One, the first full novel of the series.

[Helen Whistberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating glimpse into what looks like will be a very intriguing fantasy/horror series. A vampire and his companion are searching for a new home for their coven to try and escape and wait out the turmoil of World War I in safety. This short story prequel does a great job of introducing characters that will figure in the main series as well as being an entertaining standalone tale. I appreciated the parallels between vampirism and the almost ghoulish glee with which the town's army recruiter is sending young men away to war with little concern for their fates. The characters, setting, and writing are all top notch and I look forward eagerly to the release of the first novel of this series.

[Fionnuala Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb opening instalment

A superb opening instalment of a series I have been looking forward to for some time. Dixon Reuel is a rising star on the Irish fantasy scene. Combining complicated characters, intricate world building and a riveting plot her flair and originality bode well for the full length 'Rise of One.'

[Guthrie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic prequel!

I've been waiting for this one for a while and could not be more pleased. Beautiful writing and compelling characters make this a must read. Can't wait for the next in the series!

[Paige · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another short prequel novel for this series shows us how Rise and Cypriot found the coven's future home at Owl Court.

[Barbara Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

It only takes two hours for this PG15 paranormal of two members of a vampire coven seeking a home in England at the outbreak of WWI.

[A C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finding Home is a short story prequel to Dixon Reuel's Blood Brute series, and a first look at some of the cast who feature in the first instalment, Rise of One. It is an intriguing sample of the relationship at the heart of the vampire coven, between Rise the vampire and his human Cypriot. In this, we see the two main characters searching for their new home against the sinister backdrop of World War I, and we get to learn just a little about the mysterious Owl Court and what it will come to mean to the coven.

The book features Reuel's signature grounding and vivid prose, which she shows us just enough of Rise's world to leave us desperate for more. The humanity of the coven is brutally contrasted against the monstrosity of war and the behaviour of an all-too-human army recruiter.

This is a small window into the enticing world of Reuel's vampire coven, and a great read ahead of the release of her first book in the series, Rise of One.

[M'lissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finding Home, centered around the coven's acquisition of Owl's Court, provides exactly what you would anticipate in a prequel novella to Rise of One, a story set almost exclusively in that house. You meet all the characters already known from the novel, but also the crucial Widow O'Leary. Without this strange and intriguing character, there would be no Owl's Court and no future for Rise's coven. I do wish we got more background on the widow, since she very clearly has an interesting past, but maybe that will come in future writings. All other parts of this prequel give just enough context about the area and life the coven will have before the time of war and brutes come, that I am intrigued to continue with On the Edge of Salt to hopefully fill in some of the gaps

[Petrina Binney · Rating 4 out of 5]

A dark, urban fantasy set in 1914, Finding Home is the story of secret vampire, Rise, and his lover/regular meal, Cypriot, as they search for a permanent home for their coven. Having escaped Italy and Germany, and with only an advertising flyer to guide them, the pair must negotiate the house sale with an eccentric, tarot-card-wielding widow, while keeping their relationship and natures secret, all against a backdrop of war and white feathers.

A great, quick read, the characters were intriguing, the story rich and the ending very satisfying. A great introduction to a powerful writer.

[PS Livingstone · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this novella, for its intriguing characters, vivid descriptions, and a new twist on an old idea. The writing is sharp and the dialogue is snappy - Dixon Reuel does a lot in a short period of time. Finding Home is a wonderful prequel to Rise of One (coming December), a perfect way to whet your appetite for this upcoming series.

[Priya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe I was absent while reading but couldn't make the heads and tails of the story in the first few pages, so only continued reading to finish this short story. Until one of the intriguing word showed up -- vampires, went back to start reading and by the time it ended...a happy curious reader. Wonderfully written short story!

[Tracy Smyth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a short prequel to introduce us to the characters

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing, definitely going to give this series a go!

[Sentinelle23 · Rating 3 out of 5]

INSTRUCTIVE

1914:

In the middle of August, Rise and Cypriot were driving to an unknown place.

They had heard of a house for sale...

-------------

An instructive and mysterious prequel that tells how the couple found their future home.

I found it a little bland compared to all of the exciting books in this dark and unique series.

A series to discover.

[D BIRKHOLZ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intriguing Prequel to the Blood Brute Series

Really liked this prequel, I was interested because of the vampire aspect, didn't know till the end that the coming apocalypse involved zombies... My least favorite thing... Still, might read the series anyway 😄 I'd recommend to anyone that likes Vampires... 5 Stars from me 😄

[Tom Britton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a cup of tea

[Heather Samsa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was good as a prequel and having read the other books, it was a good continuation!

[Shelba · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't say too much one way or another, it was just 'okay'.

I did find it repeated at times. For instance, Purgy offers to take them to the house, and then two pages later, Rise asks if Purgy will take him to the house. Then Rise asks O'Leary if she is a seer, a sorceress or a witch... and a few pages later asks her if she is a witch. Got a bit of an issue with short term memory, Rise?

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant prequel to this excellent dystopian series! A great introduction to the main characters & ideas of the story! A really enjoyable read! I do always enjoy this writers work & look forward to reading more of her stories!