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Blood Fire Saga #1
Allure of the Vampire King
He Broke My Heart… Now He’s Returned For My Blood.
I’m no one—just a magic-less woman who fled the supernatural world after being dumped and humiliated by the most powerful vampire in Britain.
He made me a laughing stock , a cautionary tale. I had no choice but to leave.
That was a long time ago. I got over the betrayal. Now, I’m on the mend.
But when an assassin tracks me down to London, claiming that a deadly power thrums beneath my veins, only one person is strong enough to save my hide:
Valentine Sargon—the Vampire King who stole my virginity and broke my heart.
He’ll help, but only if I move into a safe house. With him.
Valentine is as handsome as the devil, silver-tongued and seductive as sin. I don’t trust him or the way he hungers for my blood. But I’ve run out of choices and can’t refuse.
He’s going to protect me from the assassins, but who’s going to protect me from him?
If you like enemies-to-lovers paranormal romances with adventure, conflict, and steam, you’ll love Allure of the Vampire King.
I’m no one—just a magic-less woman who fled the supernatural world after being dumped and humiliated by the most powerful vampire in Britain.
He made me a laughing stock , a cautionary tale. I had no choice but to leave.
That was a long time ago. I got over the betrayal. Now, I’m on the mend.
But when an assassin tracks me down to London, claiming that a deadly power thrums beneath my veins, only one person is strong enough to save my hide:
Valentine Sargon—the Vampire King who stole my virginity and broke my heart.
He’ll help, but only if I move into a safe house. With him.
Valentine is as handsome as the devil, silver-tongued and seductive as sin. I don’t trust him or the way he hungers for my blood. But I’ve run out of choices and can’t refuse.
He’s going to protect me from the assassins, but who’s going to protect me from him?
If you like enemies-to-lovers paranormal romances with adventure, conflict, and steam, you’ll love Allure of the Vampire King.
424 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 13, 2020
3914 people are currently reading
3197 people want to read
About the author
Bella Klaus
25 books685 followersBella Klaus is an avid fan of paranormal and urban fantasy featuring sultry-as-sin supernatural heroes and heroines not afraid to stand up to them.
Join Bella's reader group for giveaways, advance copies of her books, and to connect with Bella and other readers:
http://www.bellaklaus.com/facebook
Her first series is the Blood Fire Saga, a set of fast-paced stories where the natural and supernatural worlds collide. If you enjoy steamy romance, twists and turns and supernatural mysteries, you’ll love Return of the Vampire King its sequels.
When Bella isn’t crafting stories about magic, she lives in Central London with her inamorata, enjoys True Blood, Supernatural, and The Vampire Diaries, and hopes to one day craft the perfect chocolate cocktail.
Join Bella's reader group for giveaways, advance copies of her books, and to connect with Bella and other readers:
http://www.bellaklaus.com/facebook
Her first series is the Blood Fire Saga, a set of fast-paced stories where the natural and supernatural worlds collide. If you enjoy steamy romance, twists and turns and supernatural mysteries, you’ll love Return of the Vampire King its sequels.
When Bella isn’t crafting stories about magic, she lives in Central London with her inamorata, enjoys True Blood, Supernatural, and The Vampire Diaries, and hopes to one day craft the perfect chocolate cocktail.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 342 reviews
January 23, 2021
I have mixed feeling on this book.
But I have to say it was nice to read a book set in the UK for a change.
Initially I was intrigued. I mean who wouldn’t be? The Vampire King spends 3 years romancing Mera a magic-less young lady. Just just kick her into touch after their first time together. It didn’t make sense and I wanted to know why.
But getting to the bottom of this took a long while. It didn’t help that I wasn’t totally sold on Mera I’ll admit she annoyed me quite a bit. Plus the pacing seemed odd at times and ultimately lost me to a certain degree. Simply put there was just too much going on that I honestly lost interest.
There’s also a cliffhanger and several more books to come apparently. I was undecided about continuing but since the next book is out and on KU I’m going to give it a try. So fingers crossed I’m going in
But I have to say it was nice to read a book set in the UK for a change.
Initially I was intrigued. I mean who wouldn’t be? The Vampire King spends 3 years romancing Mera a magic-less young lady. Just just kick her into touch after their first time together. It didn’t make sense and I wanted to know why.
But getting to the bottom of this took a long while. It didn’t help that I wasn’t totally sold on Mera I’ll admit she annoyed me quite a bit. Plus the pacing seemed odd at times and ultimately lost me to a certain degree. Simply put there was just too much going on that I honestly lost interest.
There’s also a cliffhanger and several more books to come apparently. I was undecided about continuing but since the next book is out and on KU I’m going to give it a try. So fingers crossed I’m going in
Read
May 24, 2021Stopped at 59% into this. The writing wasn't bad, but it felt like up to the point I stopped, a lot of what was said was repetitive or spent on unnecessary details. If one were to break down the time spent on the h going on and on of her heartbreak, it would be a good 80%. The infuriating part is the 0.1% spent on essentially forgiving him? Uhh.. ok.
Another annoying thing is the amount of detail spent on food and the roads the characters take around London. I've read books where the story takes place in the city I'm living in and I'm like 'oh yea, I know where this is' and it adds a little relatable fun, but holy fuck, give it a rest in here. It's like each time she goes from one place to another it's ' blah street to Hyde Park and down XX street'. Multiple, continuous times. Are we supposed to be impressed the author knows this area or what? If I wanted to know the streets around London I'll go on Google maps. Likely wasted several pages worth of space filling with useless details.
The characters aren't super thrilling nor unlikable, the main plot is clear enough but just not exciting enough that I want to continue seeing where this goes.
Another annoying thing is the amount of detail spent on food and the roads the characters take around London. I've read books where the story takes place in the city I'm living in and I'm like 'oh yea, I know where this is' and it adds a little relatable fun, but holy fuck, give it a rest in here. It's like each time she goes from one place to another it's ' blah street to Hyde Park and down XX street'. Multiple, continuous times. Are we supposed to be impressed the author knows this area or what? If I wanted to know the streets around London I'll go on Google maps. Likely wasted several pages worth of space filling with useless details.
The characters aren't super thrilling nor unlikable, the main plot is clear enough but just not exciting enough that I want to continue seeing where this goes.
January 16, 2021
I found this one to be quite interesting and different. It had a paranormal yet almost UF feel to it. I really loved the feel to the story and the angst between these two were delightful. I loved how the hero reacted to the heroine and her "hate" of him. It was quite amusing to see their bantering develop. The plot just builds throughout the story and I had a blast with it. The only downside....it has a CLIFFHANGER ....but very eager to see where this author takes this series.
January 25, 2021
Oh boy, where to start... Two-dimensional characters with a plot that was lacking in reasoning and snowballed into nonsense. The only world-building in the book is in the form of either:
1) things that make the protagonist a special snowflake
2) reasons why the protagonist should be persecuted for being a special snowflake
Also:
Enemies to lovers Misunderstanding mountain <-- fixed that for you
1) things that make the protagonist a special snowflake
2) reasons why the protagonist should be persecuted for being a special snowflake
Also:
April 22, 2021
Really tried to get into this one, but it was just too slow for me. Too much internal dialogue. Felt as if I did not really get to know anyone with the exception of Mera. Valentine did not incite any hot vibes for me and I got to have that people. Secondary characters, as I type this I can not remember their names....so yeah not enough secondary character build for me.
Happy reading,
DD 💕
Happy reading,
DD 💕
January 12, 2021
This was the first book in a series by an author who is also new to me. I loved the blurb and the originality of the story.
Mera, our female main character, is a neutral. Which means she is a supernatural with no powers. She has no value to other supernaturals other than for blood and breeding. She grew up in a magical part of London that is hidden by wards, where she fell in love at 18, only to have her heart broken in front of everyone who mattered. While she was able to flee the supernatural world and settle into a “normal” life the old world doesn’t seem to want to let her go. Living in London she's trying to live a quiet, normal life but when her old love Valentine turns up her life is suddenly turned upside down. Valentine won't back down, someone is out to harm her and he will protect her from harm even it kills him. Can these two move on from the drama of the past, questions are risen, answers to be had, and a plot to kill that is deeper than either of them know surfaces.
I felt like this plot was quite original. It is an enemy to lovers scenario but I love the background and the development of the story. The main characters are quite three-dimensional and it is easy to like the main cast meme era. You find yourself rooting for Mera and even Valentine gets your vote throughout the story. As questions are asked and the answers reveal a whole other side to the story. The world-building was really well described (I’m quite a frequenter of London and I could see I perfectly and knew some of the places and areas).
The reader will feel totally immersed in this story and left wanting more, especially with that ending!! Can’t wait to read book 2
Mera, our female main character, is a neutral. Which means she is a supernatural with no powers. She has no value to other supernaturals other than for blood and breeding. She grew up in a magical part of London that is hidden by wards, where she fell in love at 18, only to have her heart broken in front of everyone who mattered. While she was able to flee the supernatural world and settle into a “normal” life the old world doesn’t seem to want to let her go. Living in London she's trying to live a quiet, normal life but when her old love Valentine turns up her life is suddenly turned upside down. Valentine won't back down, someone is out to harm her and he will protect her from harm even it kills him. Can these two move on from the drama of the past, questions are risen, answers to be had, and a plot to kill that is deeper than either of them know surfaces.
I felt like this plot was quite original. It is an enemy to lovers scenario but I love the background and the development of the story. The main characters are quite three-dimensional and it is easy to like the main cast meme era. You find yourself rooting for Mera and even Valentine gets your vote throughout the story. As questions are asked and the answers reveal a whole other side to the story. The world-building was really well described (I’m quite a frequenter of London and I could see I perfectly and knew some of the places and areas).
The reader will feel totally immersed in this story and left wanting more, especially with that ending!! Can’t wait to read book 2
February 6, 2021
Warning for some spoilers~
This book had so much potential - I was so excited to read it but it eventually just fell flat for me. For starters, I didn't feel not even one lick of chemistry between Valentine and Mera. The story didn't delve much into how these two fell in love, which is fine but I honestly think this book could have benefited from a few chapters of their early days.
For instance, when Valentine sacrificed himself for Mera, I felt nothing. Not even a smidge of sympathy for these two tragic lovers. And I know I would have felt something if I was truly convinced of them - but I'm not. I realised that I couldn't care less about what happened to them.
Another issue I had with this couple was that Valentine was centuries old - that was established, and he started pursuing Mera when she was eighteen years old. Yes, we've been here with the whole Twilight shenanigans but it didn't make it any less creepy. Especially when Mera mentioned that he showered her with luxury and wealth. It started to sound like he was grooming her. Yikes.
Lastly, god, the whole thing about how Mera was ordinary but *gasp* she actually had the power of Phoenix?! *gasp* What is this? Winx Club?
This book had so much potential - I was so excited to read it but it eventually just fell flat for me. For starters, I didn't feel not even one lick of chemistry between Valentine and Mera. The story didn't delve much into how these two fell in love, which is fine but I honestly think this book could have benefited from a few chapters of their early days.
For instance, when Valentine sacrificed himself for Mera, I felt nothing. Not even a smidge of sympathy for these two tragic lovers. And I know I would have felt something if I was truly convinced of them - but I'm not. I realised that I couldn't care less about what happened to them.
Another issue I had with this couple was that Valentine was centuries old - that was established, and he started pursuing Mera when she was eighteen years old. Yes, we've been here with the whole Twilight shenanigans but it didn't make it any less creepy. Especially when Mera mentioned that he showered her with luxury and wealth. It started to sound like he was grooming her. Yikes.
Lastly, god, the whole thing about how Mera was ordinary but *gasp* she actually had the power of Phoenix?! *gasp* What is this? Winx Club?
May 23, 2023
The two star rating is a bit generous. This one is very repetitive with awkward pacing. I found myself skimming a lot, because I wasn’t all that invested. Interesting premise, but not sold on the execution.
July 6, 2021
I'm loving this series! Exciting, hot, and full of twists and turns!
January 10, 2021
Mera (FMC) is a neutral. A supernatural with no powers which makes her of no value to other supernaturals other than for blood and breeding. Living in London shes trying to live a quiet, normal life but when an old flame - Vampire King Valentine turns up her life is suddenly turned upside down. Bringing a few steamy scenarios with it. Its a fast-paced read with main characters that you cant help but like. Which i did. Its a great first book in this series and with that cliffhanger ending i cant wait for the next book
February 10, 2021
3.5 - Interesting premise and I really like what little I have seen of Valentine. I adore
Macavity! Lol I want him and the protective "kitten" scene was sweet. The ending was sad and ends on a huge cliffhanger.
Macavity! Lol I want him and the protective "kitten" scene was sweet. The ending was sad and ends on a huge cliffhanger.
January 31, 2021
Oh this was so insanely good and I cannot wait to pickup book 2!
Mera was an awesome FMC and I was hooked into her story from the get go of reading the blurb I needed to know what was going to happen!
Valentine was sexy as sin. Brooding, powerful and just whew. He’s everything you want in a Vampire King!
I loved this story and can’t wait to get my hands on book 2 and see what we learn about Valentine and see how the story progresses in the next book!
Mera was an awesome FMC and I was hooked into her story from the get go of reading the blurb I needed to know what was going to happen!
Valentine was sexy as sin. Brooding, powerful and just whew. He’s everything you want in a Vampire King!
I loved this story and can’t wait to get my hands on book 2 and see what we learn about Valentine and see how the story progresses in the next book!
May 26, 2021
A great read!
I enjoyed this book very much. Mera was to be engaged to the Vampire King, Valentine. But the night of their engagement ball, he humiliated her by denying that they were engaged and were in love. With her heart broken, Mera leaves that realm for the human world. Over the course of 3 years, she slowly put the pieces of her heart and her life back together. So she’s stunned when Valentine appears in her crystal shop and acts like nothing ever happened, and is ready to pick up where they left off.
I loved the characters that the author created. And the push/pull between Mera and Valentine just leapt off the page. She’s disgusted with herself that she’s still attracted to him, but all is not as it seems. The world building is great, even if a bit overdone. There’s almost too much in the way of descriptions. Reminded me of Georgette Heyer’s regency romance books. When you enter a ballroom, she’d spend an entire chapter describing the room, and maybe 2 pages alone on the chandelier. Ok, so this book wasn’t that bad, but I almost feel like I could find my way around London based on her descriptions. 😉
The book does end on a cliff hanger, so I’m very anxious to see what happens. I do recommend this book. Especially if you love Vampires. Valentine is simply devine.
I enjoyed this book very much. Mera was to be engaged to the Vampire King, Valentine. But the night of their engagement ball, he humiliated her by denying that they were engaged and were in love. With her heart broken, Mera leaves that realm for the human world. Over the course of 3 years, she slowly put the pieces of her heart and her life back together. So she’s stunned when Valentine appears in her crystal shop and acts like nothing ever happened, and is ready to pick up where they left off.
I loved the characters that the author created. And the push/pull between Mera and Valentine just leapt off the page. She’s disgusted with herself that she’s still attracted to him, but all is not as it seems. The world building is great, even if a bit overdone. There’s almost too much in the way of descriptions. Reminded me of Georgette Heyer’s regency romance books. When you enter a ballroom, she’d spend an entire chapter describing the room, and maybe 2 pages alone on the chandelier. Ok, so this book wasn’t that bad, but I almost feel like I could find my way around London based on her descriptions. 😉
The book does end on a cliff hanger, so I’m very anxious to see what happens. I do recommend this book. Especially if you love Vampires. Valentine is simply devine.
October 5, 2021
The first one third of the book was engaging in spite of the filler drivel that went on my nerves, before every step in the book you had to go through pages of repeated filler until the next step and so on, however Midway in the book I found out there are seven installments and counting in this series, AND the story carries on like this day time soap operas that a character dies and then is resurrected by hapless producers who would do anything to extend the series. It was a firm no thanks, DNF for me.
January 23, 2021
Intriguing
A solid start to a new series featuring supernatural. We meet Mena a woman with no powers born into a magical family. She has settled with the humans after a devastating break up three years earlier. Just as she is about to let go of the past a series of surprise events change everything she thought she knew. This makes for an intriguing story since you never know what will happen next including that doozy of an ending. I really liked it so I gave it 4/5 stars.
A solid start to a new series featuring supernatural. We meet Mena a woman with no powers born into a magical family. She has settled with the humans after a devastating break up three years earlier. Just as she is about to let go of the past a series of surprise events change everything she thought she knew. This makes for an intriguing story since you never know what will happen next including that doozy of an ending. I really liked it so I gave it 4/5 stars.
February 11, 2021
The Jury is still out...
So here's the skinny where I stand with this book: 1st I loved the storyline. I just wish the author had made the heroine a little bit stronger. 2nd I kinda hated all the internal monologue.. (A little annoying at times)... Anyway, 3rd I hated the ending and that's only because I hate cliffhangers and this Author left us with a doozie... No HEA for this book guys.. :'(
Overall rating:
3 1\2* ~ I Like it!
So here's the skinny where I stand with this book: 1st I loved the storyline. I just wish the author had made the heroine a little bit stronger. 2nd I kinda hated all the internal monologue.. (A little annoying at times)... Anyway, 3rd I hated the ending and that's only because I hate cliffhangers and this Author left us with a doozie... No HEA for this book guys.. :'(
Overall rating:
3 1\2* ~ I Like it!
May 18, 2023
KINK REQUIRES CONSENT
**contains spoilers**
If you know me, you know I will read just about any dark paranormal romance. Add an enemies to lovers element and I’m yours from now until eternity. So when I stumbled across the ALLURE OF THE VAMPIRE KING, book one out of seven of the complete Blood Fire Saga, I didn’t hesitate to download it. For those of you interested, it’s part of Kindle Unlimited so the buy-in is minimal, though to be clear I don’t recommend you download it.
If you’re triggered by rape, sexual violence, or drug abuse, then please steer clear.
The basic premise of the story revolves around powerless mage Mera who was dumped by the Vampire King Valentine. Turns out that she actually has a ton of powers (which four books in she still can’t use), was bred from a phoenix, and can bring people back to life. She also was never dumped by Valentine, rather they formulated this plan to keep her safe because being a fire mage is illegal and someone tampered with her memories to make her think it was real.
Now at this point, you’re probably thinking okay sounds juicy enough for a good read, why the heck didn’t you finish it?! Because by the time book three came around, and ultimately book four I simply could not read any more scenes where rape was being paraded as acceptable.
To be clear, I love a bad boy turned good storyline as much as anyone, and with dark romance you have to leave the pearl clutching at the door and buckle up for the ride. I understand that. In fact, it’s part of the reason I love dark romance so much. This also, by default, means that dark romance is filled with triggers. It’s why any author worth their salt will list out the trigger warnings in the beginning.
But there is a very clear line, and when you pretend rape is anything other than rape, you’ve crossed it.
You’ve gone from dark romance to perpetuating misogyny and rape culture. You’ve caused harm.
Before I go fully into this, I’d also like to add that even if there wasn’t a serious consent problem in these books, they were still poorly written. I got through the first three and a half but by the time I was half way through the second one, I was essentially skimming. If the last three books were written the same way as the first four, the series could have been shortened to three books, four max. The MC’s inner monologues are long and often unnecessary. Homegirl is an overthinker, and as an overthinker myself I empathize. But the problem is that she takes up, what feels like, 50% of the story just thinking of a thousand different angles on one plot point, and then most of the time she’s wrong. So basically I read through that entire three page monologue, just for it all to be irrelevant. I suspect the author uses this as a strategy to familiarize the reader with the inner workings of the world, but it’s more distracting than anything else.
It also takes away from Mera’s strength and boldness, and makes her seem lost and confused. Plus the way she reacts to Valentine only exacerbates that and makes her indecisive as well. She has a whole plan (a plan I had to read her go into excruciating detail about), and then one look at his six pack, and she forgets everything. This book only had one type of diversity: gender, and because the characters were superficial, confused, and ineffective, so was the diversity representation.
If I could go back, I would have stopped at book one, said goodbye to these characters and lived happily ever after. But I didn’t, and now through my pain, I hope I can save you some.
So let’s get into it — where it all went wrong: thrall, rape, and the preternatural vampire.
Thrall in this story is a chemical compound that vampires secrete from their fangs. It acts as a drug which is forced into the bloodstream of the human they’re feeding off of to make them more “compliant”. Think of it like vampire heroin as it has similar effects.
Essentially in book one Mera has a curse put on her that makes her irresistible to vampires. Valentine attacks her in a frenzy, but manages to kill himself to save her. But because he has some of her phoenix blood in his system, he becomes a preternatural vampire. Preternatural vampires need to drink a lot of blood to survive, and are basically walking primal bodies without souls. They’re also controlled by whoever has their heart, which in this case is the book’s big bad. Throughout book three and what I got through in book four, preternatural Valentine is still into Mera, and thinks of her as “his”. He begins having sex with her without her consent and against her will, meaning he rapes her. Half way through the rapes she “gives in”. Eventually, it escalates to preternatural Valentine drugging her with thrall so she’ll be too drugged out to move and “escape”. This way he can properly “protect” her (y’all I’m eye rolling even as I write this). At this point she’s so drugged out that she can’t give consent anyways. By the end, she spends half her time trying to wake up from her thrall induced haze and the other half of the time trying to convince Valentine to not lock her up or inject her with more thrall. With what time she has left, she meditates and talks with Valentine’s soul and tries to avoid having her magic sucked dry by the big bad. That’s it, that’s all I got through.
The whole plot made Mera so ineffective, and it got to a point where even Valentine’s soul was telling her to get the hell away from his body. But, in her mind, Valentine had sacrificed himself for her so she needed to save him, and that, for some unfathomable reason, meant she needed to constantly be raped. Mera’s explanations and behaviors slowly started morphing into those of a victim of abuse. And that’s not surprising because she was a victim of abuse. To make matters worse, Valentine’s soul is used to make the reader continue to empathize with him, and to humanize him so we can forget all the pain and violence his preternatural side is putting Mera through.
Though the preternatural plot line is used to up the stakes, it did the opposite for me: it made me want to watch Mera walk away from Valentine before he caused her any more harm. I was no longer rooting for them as a couple, and truthfully I was no longer rooting for Mera. The only things I did want was, one, for her to stop with the monologues, and two, for her to get away from her abuser.
If we zoom out to a more macro lens, I have a big problem with this book parading itself as a dark romance. This is not a dark romance. This is not enemies to lovers. This is not romance at all. This is abuse. This is the story of someone who is physically stronger than our female protagonist, doing whatever they want to her body without her consent. This is the story of her making excuses for her abuser and taking on responsibility for actions that were not her own or her choosing.
And while dark romance can and does have rape, it requires the rape to be acknowledged as rape. It requires some sort of resolution to the harm that was perpetuated. Don’t pretend what Mera and Valentine have is anything other than toxic and abusive. Don’t pretend this is smut.
Sex without consent is rape. Period. Point blank. The end.
If one person is into it at the beginning, and then they say no, any point after that no is rape. If someone’s body reacts in a way that makes it seem like they’re aroused but they have not vocalized consent, you don’t have consent. Drugging someone against their will is abuse. A relationship where one person has to bargain to not be drugged is abusive and toxic. There’s no way to make it anything other than what it is: rape. So don’t package a book as a dark romance when really what you’ve written is the story of domestic violence. Don’t package it as kinky, when its sexual violence.
Kink requires consent, without it its rape. Plain and simple.
To flaunt it as anything other than is harmful and promotes misogyny and rape culture. It endangers women. It’s misogynist to suggest that Valentine has a right or claim to Mera’s body. It’s harmful to say Valentine should be forgiven because oh he’s just not himself, or he’s not normally like that. That’s the excuses we give abusers and perpetuators of sexual violence. There are real women in the world who have been the victims of sexual assault, and when we create storylines where abusers don’t repair their harm or recieve justice, we make it harder for those real life women to speak up about their abuse, we make it harder for them to accept that they were harmed and hurt, and we make it harder for them to receive the justice they deserve.
What’s more, when we try to play off rape as sexual kink we do a disservice to the liberation of sexual pleasure. You want to throw on a pair of handcuffs in bed? You want to explore BDSM? You like a little role play? Some dom sub action? Have at it. Whatever gets you off is your business and you should be able to explore that in whatever way that feels best for you, as long as everyone involved in consenting.
Rape on the other hand is sexual assault, not sexual deviance, and not sexual exploration. To equate the two, as this book does, dismisses rape as less than what it is and it suggests that kink is somehow wrong or harmful. It’s not, again, if there’s consent.
Truth be told, it didn’t have to be this way. There are so many other ways this story could have progressed without resorting to rape:
- Preternatural Valentine could have not forced Mera to have sex with him.
- Mera could have wanted to have sex with preternatural Valentine. Listen, it’s not for me, but if it gets your motor running , no judgment, have at it!
- Preternatural Valentine could have slept with some else who was consenting. I don’t condone cheating, but I stand by the opinion that it’s better than rape.
- Valentine didn’t have to die but could end up being locked up and Mera could have saved him that way.
- Acknowledge rape as rape.
As I haven’t finished the series, I’m aware that some of these may not have been possible depending on how it ends, but I can also say without a shadow of a doubt that wrongfully portraying rape as kink was not the only only option.
So I had to put the book down and add it to my very limited Did Not Finish pile.
All of that being said, I do believe that the author can do better. I won’t say I’ll never read any of her books again. What I will say is that I hope this message reaches her in whatever way the universe intends, and she takes it to heart. And if there’s any way I can help with that, I would be happy to.
Until then, remember folks: kink requires consent.
A bit about me:
I'm a South Asian diversity adviser, writer, and activist, whose work is rooted in the cross-section of storytelling and activism. In a nutshell, I help writers write about lived experiences outside of their own.
I guide my clients in shaping diverse characters and authentic stories so they can reach wider audiences, tell more impactful narratives, and be more confident when writing stories that veer from the communities they're familiar with. No one wants to be canceled and no one wants to lose the trust of their readers. Luckily you don't have to.
If you're interested in scheduling a free consultation, you can find me here:
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**contains spoilers**
If you know me, you know I will read just about any dark paranormal romance. Add an enemies to lovers element and I’m yours from now until eternity. So when I stumbled across the ALLURE OF THE VAMPIRE KING, book one out of seven of the complete Blood Fire Saga, I didn’t hesitate to download it. For those of you interested, it’s part of Kindle Unlimited so the buy-in is minimal, though to be clear I don’t recommend you download it.
If you’re triggered by rape, sexual violence, or drug abuse, then please steer clear.
The basic premise of the story revolves around powerless mage Mera who was dumped by the Vampire King Valentine. Turns out that she actually has a ton of powers (which four books in she still can’t use), was bred from a phoenix, and can bring people back to life. She also was never dumped by Valentine, rather they formulated this plan to keep her safe because being a fire mage is illegal and someone tampered with her memories to make her think it was real.
Now at this point, you’re probably thinking okay sounds juicy enough for a good read, why the heck didn’t you finish it?! Because by the time book three came around, and ultimately book four I simply could not read any more scenes where rape was being paraded as acceptable.
To be clear, I love a bad boy turned good storyline as much as anyone, and with dark romance you have to leave the pearl clutching at the door and buckle up for the ride. I understand that. In fact, it’s part of the reason I love dark romance so much. This also, by default, means that dark romance is filled with triggers. It’s why any author worth their salt will list out the trigger warnings in the beginning.
But there is a very clear line, and when you pretend rape is anything other than rape, you’ve crossed it.
You’ve gone from dark romance to perpetuating misogyny and rape culture. You’ve caused harm.
Before I go fully into this, I’d also like to add that even if there wasn’t a serious consent problem in these books, they were still poorly written. I got through the first three and a half but by the time I was half way through the second one, I was essentially skimming. If the last three books were written the same way as the first four, the series could have been shortened to three books, four max. The MC’s inner monologues are long and often unnecessary. Homegirl is an overthinker, and as an overthinker myself I empathize. But the problem is that she takes up, what feels like, 50% of the story just thinking of a thousand different angles on one plot point, and then most of the time she’s wrong. So basically I read through that entire three page monologue, just for it all to be irrelevant. I suspect the author uses this as a strategy to familiarize the reader with the inner workings of the world, but it’s more distracting than anything else.
It also takes away from Mera’s strength and boldness, and makes her seem lost and confused. Plus the way she reacts to Valentine only exacerbates that and makes her indecisive as well. She has a whole plan (a plan I had to read her go into excruciating detail about), and then one look at his six pack, and she forgets everything. This book only had one type of diversity: gender, and because the characters were superficial, confused, and ineffective, so was the diversity representation.
If I could go back, I would have stopped at book one, said goodbye to these characters and lived happily ever after. But I didn’t, and now through my pain, I hope I can save you some.
So let’s get into it — where it all went wrong: thrall, rape, and the preternatural vampire.
Thrall in this story is a chemical compound that vampires secrete from their fangs. It acts as a drug which is forced into the bloodstream of the human they’re feeding off of to make them more “compliant”. Think of it like vampire heroin as it has similar effects.
Essentially in book one Mera has a curse put on her that makes her irresistible to vampires. Valentine attacks her in a frenzy, but manages to kill himself to save her. But because he has some of her phoenix blood in his system, he becomes a preternatural vampire. Preternatural vampires need to drink a lot of blood to survive, and are basically walking primal bodies without souls. They’re also controlled by whoever has their heart, which in this case is the book’s big bad. Throughout book three and what I got through in book four, preternatural Valentine is still into Mera, and thinks of her as “his”. He begins having sex with her without her consent and against her will, meaning he rapes her. Half way through the rapes she “gives in”. Eventually, it escalates to preternatural Valentine drugging her with thrall so she’ll be too drugged out to move and “escape”. This way he can properly “protect” her (y’all I’m eye rolling even as I write this). At this point she’s so drugged out that she can’t give consent anyways. By the end, she spends half her time trying to wake up from her thrall induced haze and the other half of the time trying to convince Valentine to not lock her up or inject her with more thrall. With what time she has left, she meditates and talks with Valentine’s soul and tries to avoid having her magic sucked dry by the big bad. That’s it, that’s all I got through.
The whole plot made Mera so ineffective, and it got to a point where even Valentine’s soul was telling her to get the hell away from his body. But, in her mind, Valentine had sacrificed himself for her so she needed to save him, and that, for some unfathomable reason, meant she needed to constantly be raped. Mera’s explanations and behaviors slowly started morphing into those of a victim of abuse. And that’s not surprising because she was a victim of abuse. To make matters worse, Valentine’s soul is used to make the reader continue to empathize with him, and to humanize him so we can forget all the pain and violence his preternatural side is putting Mera through.
Though the preternatural plot line is used to up the stakes, it did the opposite for me: it made me want to watch Mera walk away from Valentine before he caused her any more harm. I was no longer rooting for them as a couple, and truthfully I was no longer rooting for Mera. The only things I did want was, one, for her to stop with the monologues, and two, for her to get away from her abuser.
If we zoom out to a more macro lens, I have a big problem with this book parading itself as a dark romance. This is not a dark romance. This is not enemies to lovers. This is not romance at all. This is abuse. This is the story of someone who is physically stronger than our female protagonist, doing whatever they want to her body without her consent. This is the story of her making excuses for her abuser and taking on responsibility for actions that were not her own or her choosing.
And while dark romance can and does have rape, it requires the rape to be acknowledged as rape. It requires some sort of resolution to the harm that was perpetuated. Don’t pretend what Mera and Valentine have is anything other than toxic and abusive. Don’t pretend this is smut.
Sex without consent is rape. Period. Point blank. The end.
If one person is into it at the beginning, and then they say no, any point after that no is rape. If someone’s body reacts in a way that makes it seem like they’re aroused but they have not vocalized consent, you don’t have consent. Drugging someone against their will is abuse. A relationship where one person has to bargain to not be drugged is abusive and toxic. There’s no way to make it anything other than what it is: rape. So don’t package a book as a dark romance when really what you’ve written is the story of domestic violence. Don’t package it as kinky, when its sexual violence.
Kink requires consent, without it its rape. Plain and simple.
To flaunt it as anything other than is harmful and promotes misogyny and rape culture. It endangers women. It’s misogynist to suggest that Valentine has a right or claim to Mera’s body. It’s harmful to say Valentine should be forgiven because oh he’s just not himself, or he’s not normally like that. That’s the excuses we give abusers and perpetuators of sexual violence. There are real women in the world who have been the victims of sexual assault, and when we create storylines where abusers don’t repair their harm or recieve justice, we make it harder for those real life women to speak up about their abuse, we make it harder for them to accept that they were harmed and hurt, and we make it harder for them to receive the justice they deserve.
What’s more, when we try to play off rape as sexual kink we do a disservice to the liberation of sexual pleasure. You want to throw on a pair of handcuffs in bed? You want to explore BDSM? You like a little role play? Some dom sub action? Have at it. Whatever gets you off is your business and you should be able to explore that in whatever way that feels best for you, as long as everyone involved in consenting.
Rape on the other hand is sexual assault, not sexual deviance, and not sexual exploration. To equate the two, as this book does, dismisses rape as less than what it is and it suggests that kink is somehow wrong or harmful. It’s not, again, if there’s consent.
Truth be told, it didn’t have to be this way. There are so many other ways this story could have progressed without resorting to rape:
- Preternatural Valentine could have not forced Mera to have sex with him.
- Mera could have wanted to have sex with preternatural Valentine. Listen, it’s not for me, but if it gets your motor running , no judgment, have at it!
- Preternatural Valentine could have slept with some else who was consenting. I don’t condone cheating, but I stand by the opinion that it’s better than rape.
- Valentine didn’t have to die but could end up being locked up and Mera could have saved him that way.
- Acknowledge rape as rape.
As I haven’t finished the series, I’m aware that some of these may not have been possible depending on how it ends, but I can also say without a shadow of a doubt that wrongfully portraying rape as kink was not the only only option.
So I had to put the book down and add it to my very limited Did Not Finish pile.
All of that being said, I do believe that the author can do better. I won’t say I’ll never read any of her books again. What I will say is that I hope this message reaches her in whatever way the universe intends, and she takes it to heart. And if there’s any way I can help with that, I would be happy to.
Until then, remember folks: kink requires consent.
A bit about me:
I'm a South Asian diversity adviser, writer, and activist, whose work is rooted in the cross-section of storytelling and activism. In a nutshell, I help writers write about lived experiences outside of their own.
I guide my clients in shaping diverse characters and authentic stories so they can reach wider audiences, tell more impactful narratives, and be more confident when writing stories that veer from the communities they're familiar with. No one wants to be canceled and no one wants to lose the trust of their readers. Luckily you don't have to.
If you're interested in scheduling a free consultation, you can find me here:
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February 8, 2021
I stand by what I said, I am going to love this series. This new author has a lot going for her. I cannot wait to see what she does later in her writing.
Mera is such an interesting character. I was so rooting for her, for she just does not do what she is told. She has her own mind and will use it. The plot kept my interest, the characters are engaging and the pace was spot on.
So if you are looking for a new series to start of paranormal romance, I have just the book for you.
Mera is such an interesting character. I was so rooting for her, for she just does not do what she is told. She has her own mind and will use it. The plot kept my interest, the characters are engaging and the pace was spot on.
So if you are looking for a new series to start of paranormal romance, I have just the book for you.
May 2, 2021
I will not be reading the rest of the series. After reading book one my option is that to continuo the series is a waste of time. The main character is a stupid girl who constantly makes mistakes, has no depth and takes stupid life decisions. Her lover "tries" to save her but ends up dooming her and she honestly appears to be too stupid to live. There is far more that could be said here, but I am just going to end it like this in order to move on to better reading material.
January 1, 2021
A whole new world, the author did a great job of taking an idea that you might have seen and spinning it into a story unlike any other. By the time you think you have a handle on what is going on, you get some twists and find yourself addicted to the story
January 21, 2021
Off to a great start! Well written with a different take on vampires I immediately was “sucked” into the story and the world created by this author. A world filled with magic, intrigue, secrets, deception, adventure and steam this enemies-to-lovers paranormal romance is definitely worth a read!
January 27, 2021
This started out good, but it slowed down.
I dont think I will continue with this series.
I dont think I will continue with this series.
June 18, 2021
I really think this is a me not you I just couldn’t get into it.
September 21, 2021
2.5 stars ⭐️ Mixed feelings not sure on this one. Will read next to see if it gets better
August 17, 2022
Cliffhanger warning
This was a unique vampire love story. I had gotten tired of them and almost didn't even give it a chance. Wonderful love story but so many twists, turns and questions. I don't know how Valentine and Mera will get out of this one. The book description does NOT do this book justice.
This was a unique vampire love story. I had gotten tired of them and almost didn't even give it a chance. Wonderful love story but so many twists, turns and questions. I don't know how Valentine and Mera will get out of this one. The book description does NOT do this book justice.
January 11, 2021
This is an amazing start to a new series. Mera had her heart broken and was humiliated by the man she loved, so she left her home to try and pick up the pieces. Just when she thought she had finally gotten over him.... he shows back up and finds out that things are not what she always believed. Now she must figure out who to trust, because it could be a matter of life or death.
February 27, 2021
This book took way long to get going and it was repetitive.
I’m going to read the next one because things were just picking up. I like the plot of the story.
I’m going to read the next one because things were just picking up. I like the plot of the story.
December 5, 2021
An action-packed start to the series
This is definitely an action-packed start to the series. With strong characters and a compelling plot, it kept me reading until the end kind of annoyed me. Looking forward to the next book. Recommended for fans of the genre.
This is definitely an action-packed start to the series. With strong characters and a compelling plot, it kept me reading until the end kind of annoyed me. Looking forward to the next book. Recommended for fans of the genre.
January 20, 2021
This is not working for me so I'm going to DNF. It's moving very very slowly with a lot of extra details that are not purely necessary.
January 14, 2021
Five books in this series at 3.99! Drawn out! RIP OFF!
This book could have been amazing as I loved the storyline, but I’m not paying £3.99 for the second book and third and the fourth and the fifth!!!! It’s too drawn out. It could have been written in one book but it was drawn out so it can carry on. What a shame. If this book was finished in one or two I would give it five stars!
This book could have been amazing as I loved the storyline, but I’m not paying £3.99 for the second book and third and the fourth and the fifth!!!! It’s too drawn out. It could have been written in one book but it was drawn out so it can carry on. What a shame. If this book was finished in one or two I would give it five stars!
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