Thrall of the Vampire King

Blood Fire Saga #4

by Bella Klaus

Valentine is a man with two personalities.
One of them is a tyrant and the other is missing.

We’re both trapped in a stronghold of enemies, but the biggest threat to my life comes from Valentine.

He’s feral and out of control, making me hunger for his bite. He’s awakening something in me that’s dark and decadent and utterly beguiling.

If I don’t break free from his thrall, I could lose everything—my sanity, my freedom, and my life.

I must resist his wicked power and escape, even if I have to bargain with the devil.

Thrall of the Vampire King is book four of the Blood Fire Saga.

Genres: Paranormal, Vampires, Fantasy, Magic, Romance, Witches, Paranormal Romance

448 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 30, 2021

About the author

Bella 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.

Reviews

[Lene Blackthorn · Rating 3 out of 5]

We continue the journey with Mera in the Flame, watching Kresnik on his quest for power and vengeance, and Mera struggling to survive between Valentine and Kresnik. The former god is gearing up an army to strike back, but it's a mindless army of zombie and preternaturals - the fire mages are only a source of magic for him, and he finally shows his true face to everyone.
I however struggled with tis book, especially with keeping any sort of connection to Mera. I have absolutely no understanding for someone who could enjoy the treatment she got from Valentine, who was my probably least favorite character in this book (strong competition with Kresnik though). I get the point he has turned to preternatural vampire and is a mindless puppet more or less, but in the previous books there was a chance to see the real him at least as a soul. Here, we had nothing, this version of him is awful, and when Mera claims she loves him while enjoying some heated moments after being the target of his attitude just before, I literally facepalmed myself. I also felt that this book was very repetitive when it comes to half of the scenes involving Mera - one can't unsee the pattern, sex-stay in the room - leaves room - he finds out, gets angry, punishment comes, loop closed, restart. Don't get me wrong, the book wasn't bad, the story progresses well and gets darker towards the concluding volume, but I simply can't enjoy a good story if I have these strongly negative emotions towards main characters.

[Brittany Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mera is now trapped with the flame and her crazy,newly-resurrected father. Valentine still loves her- we think- but he is under the control of her father. Mera is sure that her dad wants her dead, and her mother isn't really offering any help in this situation. All the while, Hades has found a way to communicate to her and convince her to restore him to his former glory.

This book has so many twists and turns you won't know where you are! There are loads of explosive new details that come out though and they really do spur you on as a reader. Valentine has become a hot and cold character in this book- it is very hard to tell where his mind really is as he is not in control of himself. He seems to care for Mera still, just in a completely different way than before. Mera isn't the same as well, instead, she seems to be slowly biding her time though she is resigned that she is going to die at any moment. I suppose her feeling like that does make you will her on as the story continues- so a good ploy on the author's part.

The book has turned up the steam factor and it does get hot!! It will be interesting to see what happens in the next book...

[Amanda Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confused

I wasn't thrilled about this book. I hated this Valentine. I also hate that no matter what, Mera keeps getting betrayed. Interesting story and I'll continue reading. I'm just apprehensive. A couple times I find myself just wanted to read the last chapter to see what happened.

[Jessica Robbins · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I received a free copy of this book which I voluntarily chose to write an honest review for.

Things just keep getting more and more interesting as this story goes on. The last book was a mind warp all on it's own but now Mera as well as Valentine are being held by enemies. This wouldn't be so bad if he had control of himself but that is not the case at this point. Mera also has a lot to learn before she can really do anything. This makes for an intriguing story that will constantly surprise you with all the twists it likes to take. I cannot wait to see what happens next. If you enjoy paranormal romance then you really have to try this series. I really liked it so I give it 4/5 stars.

[Catherine Rowan · Rating 1 out of 5]

WARNING~~RAPE AND HUMILIATION!!

DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE A SEXUAL ASSAULT/RAPE SURVIVOR!! This book is a disgusting romp through an immature writer's nasty fantasies. No warning to those who may be triggered by the act of rape clumsily disguised as love? The deliberate humiliation and torture of the main character, who accepts it because she believes she can 'save' her past lover? Absolutely revolting and geared to teach women that being treated as a Second~Class Citizen is something to be enjoyed.

I am surprised that the writer didn't add to the story that leaving a human being tied to a bed for multiple days while under the influence of unwanted drugs (I.e. 'thrall', which has the same effects as heroin, according to the writer) without anyone caring for them will result in the character lying in their own filth, while succumbing to bed sores and infection. But, I guess that's not 'sexy', is it? Oh wait, maybe that's part of the next book! That's for others who enjoy this kind of freak. I won't be reading anything else from this writer.

[Penny · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t believe that every book in this series just gets better and better. I wasn’t a big fan of Valentine in this book, but I am left hoping he’s doing things a certain way because of trying to keep Mera safe, and he couldn’t tell her. I also think she’s feeling helpless, too, with all the events of the book before and this one. Vague, yes, but I don’t want to spoil anything. So much is changing in Mera’s world that it’s hard to not feel like I have whiplash. LOL! Being blown away by the events of this is a good thing, and I can’t wait to see where the author is going to take us next in this unique universe. Highly recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Arg!
These books are seriously getting better and better with every one!
I ADORE Hades! He was probably my favorite part of this book!
Valentine had me on the wall this book cause of his actions, but like everyone else I’m hoping this is just an effect of his trying to keep her safe.
This one is FULL of twists and turns and you will sometimes feel like you’re on a roller coaster of “oh crap!” But it is SOO WORTH IT! I couldn’t put TotVK down once I started it!
Mera is awesome and after everything she’s went through she is strong and killin’ it!!
I need more Hades and Valentine in my life! Ready for book 5!

[Belinda Clemons · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just keeps getting better and better. im truly loving Valentine and Mera.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

So far, I’ve given this series 4 and 5 star reviews. Let me explain my 3 star for this book in the series.

1- I felt the book was very repetitive. Bite Mera, Mera leaves room, Valentine finds Mera, bring Mera back to room and bite her again. This happened over and over again.

2- I didn’t love Valentine this book. I know he is a preternatural vampire and a dick, but he usually over comes these and shows Mera some sort of his true self. Or at least she got to visit his soul. I don’t like this version, at all.

Jonathon hasn’t returned but I still think we will see the slimy bastard, at some point.

Aurora finally redeems herself! I was hoping she was trying to save Mera but unfortunately, she wasn’t. Only pushing her along with insults from school mates.

We do learn the Kresnik was responsible for the memory swipe, blood curse, and tries to get Valentine to kill Mera at every turn.

Mera, is that sparks I see coming from your finger tips?!? Let the magic resume and get this show on the road.

[Yasmin Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Warning another cliffhanger...

I think the series could have been shortened into three or even four books which focuses on

1. The storyline of Mera and Valentine, how she came to have her heart broken, and learning about her past, present and future.

2. The continuation of the Fire Mages, Father Judes cult, the downfall of Valentine and subsequently the development of Mera as the Phoenix and escaping the cult.

3. The manipulation of Mera and Valentine, The Demon King and the supernatural council

4. Concluding the series: unlock her power, build alliances, free Valentine, destroy surrounding enemies and a happily (not so) ever after.

With the continuation of cliff hangers, it’s prolonging the storyline which is resulting in skim reading because of losing interest. I think this series had so much potential if it was compressed into 4 books as opposed to the currently published 5 books. The reason I am so far into the series is I need to know how it ends.

Fingers crossed for the final instalment!

[thebookcritic_ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Valentine will always protect Mera

This author purposely leaves holes in the story that makes you ask an obvious question right then but she doesn’t answer it until later in the book. I don’t feel like prolonging the answer in most cases adds to the story. For example, Valentine didn’t listen to anything Mera said in chapter 1. She couldn’t for the life of her understand why. It was so obvious. I really don’t understand why she doesn’t think things through. If you lost your power, why would you think you were still his master?! Like make it make sense. It didn’t hit her until chapter 2 what happened. Mera is not using common sense.

A piece of your power. That’s what aurora said and Mera didn’t pick it up.

A lot happened in this book.

Incest is definitely a trigger in this book.

[PelicanFreak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, just like the rest of this series so far, as soon as I finished Soul of the Vampire King, I absolutely needed to start this one right away. It ended on a painful cliffhanger and, to be honest, I loved every second of it. It’s so rare that anything hooks me this much anymore, everything is so unoriginal … NOT THIS SERIES! Klaus is a master of plot twists and characters that are evil, yet delicious and this is probably the most exciting series I’ve read in years. When I’m not actively reading it, my mind is still definitely lost in this world. It’s got a tight hold on me and I hope it never lets go.

I don’t want to give anything away and this series is complex so … I’ll just say: read this series! And be sure to read it IN ORDER.

5 stars.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

[Kim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had to force myself to get through this book. The first half of the book is just a bunch of rape scenes. Feels like the author wanted to write more edgier sex scenes, but could claim "It's not rape, it's with her mate!" Nah man, anyone that is fearing for their life and has to be forced into sex is just straight up rape. Thank god I'm finally done with this horrendous book.

[Nidhi Bhatt · Rating 1 out of 5]

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:
Website I Instagram I Medium I Twitter I TikTok

[Seraphia Bunny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrall of the Vampire King by Bella Blaus is the third book in her Blood Fire Saga series. Thrall of the Vampire King picks up where book two left off. Kresnik has been resurrected with the aid of Mera’s phoenix flames. But at what cost? Kresnik has been sharing a soul and body with Father Jude, and with the help of the rest of Mera’s team as well he has regained his true form, and claimed new powers that he never had before. Valentine is now under his control, and Mera’s life could potentially be in more danger than ever before.
Thrall of the Vampire King is truly a hot and steamy book. There are plenty of sex scenes to steam up the pages and keep Mera in “thrall” in more ways than one. She was left in a state of perpetual danger with the ending of the last book, but the question arises…how much of Valentine is left with Kresnik now in control of him? Can Mera save him? Can she save herself now? There is so much going on in this book and it’s really hard to put down. Mera doesn’t push the envelope as much in this book, which I have to say I actually appreciate. LOL! I don’t mind her brash attitude or behavior…sometimes, but there are moments of where she honestly would get on my nerves and I’d want to shake her and remind of something called…”SELF- preservation!”
I like that Kresnik doesn’t hide behind the “Father Jude” persona and try to be like…”oh well, I’m “still” Father Jude but with a different form.” No, he comes out and says who he is and what his intentions are…for the most part. This book has a lot going on and I like the darker elements that come out to play. The characters really show themselves in this book as well. The author pushes things quite often with Valentine. You just don’t know what you’re going to get with that man! He’s an intriguing puzzle to decipher as his actions and words drop clues here and there, but remain veiled just the same.
Get ready for some surprises and twists in this book! I loved it! My jaw dropped more than once as I was reading, but the ending really had my jaw dropping. So prepare yourself for a jaw-dropping ending that will leave you eager to find out what happens next in this series.
I am choosing to rate this book 4.5 out of 5 stars. There are a LOT of steamy scenes in this book, to the point of where I felt like it might be a bit overboard, because it was slowing down the progression of the overall storyline. I get it…Valentine practically walks around with a hard-on for Mera, but it seemed that became the MAIN focus of the story. No book is truly complete without a touch of tragedy and this book is no different. At the end of the day, honestly, if you enjoyed the previous books in this series, and love a lot of steamy in your novels, then I think that you’re really going to enjoy this book.

[Marissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow this book got a lot hotter and a lot darker! Definitely need multiple cold showers to make it through this book! I could not get enough and never have I wanted to throw a book so bad because the ending leaves me gobsmacked! I keep questioning what is going to happen next and at this point it feels like everything is up in the air!

I love that there was a slight personality change in Mera but more so that she is coming out of being innocent and has a bit of a naughty side that Valentine brings out of her. She doesn't seem to know what to think but with everything going on around and Kresnik being back she is just trying to make sure she doesn't lose her magic and can raise Valentine back from the dead. You get to learn a lot more about Kresnik in this book and I need to know what is going to happen next.

This book brought a lot of revelations but has also left me with a so many burning questions but it was a great read and I am most interested to see what happens with Coral!!

[C. Mercie M Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mera is never going to give up.....

She knows that Valentine is her soul mate, and nothing that happens will ever stop her from trying to reunite with his entire person. She has given herself over to him, body and soul. She is also no longer the uncertain shrinking violet that she was, she just needs to learn to burn through all of the dross encasing her mind, body, and soul. The characters changing and growth with the vibrant descriptions of everything going on around her pulls us fully into Mera's world. The only regret we feel for not seeing the outside world, is the same regret she feels from losing sight of everything & everyone else in her life as well. I'm addicted to her story, and cannot wait for her final chapters, while dreading the end at the same time. Thank you for transporting me from my world into another, the respite has been lovely.

[Charlotte · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just ties me up in knots and i absolutely love that it does! There was so much to take in in this book too. Mera (FMC) being at the mercy of The Flame, sadistic Kresnik and Valentine (using his thrall to keep her under his control). I struggled to work out of Valentine was protecting Mera or not? He seemed to go back and forth between Mera and Kresnik. That definitely kept me on my toes reading it. The steam level was off of the charts with Mera & Valentine too. More so in this book. I have to say that i loved Hades popping up in this book and his banter with Mera made me smile at times even if he couldnt be trusted. Or maybe he could? I really dont know? That ending though?? Jaw dropping good. This series just keeps getting better and im dying for the next book now

[Lilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot definitely is upped at this level and has the potential to be a great book, but the groundwork wasn’t made between the main characters to explain their love or their relationship. The previous books should have had many more “filler” scenes of them bantering or doing things together so you feel they ARE actually a couple. Or are actually in love. Because of this lack of groundwork, unfortunately I couldn’t relate to the characters or the relationship… and frankly didn’t care. The plot is great, but I enjoy a bit more relationship building rather than only moving the story along to reach certain points for the plot. Seems a bit robotic.
Add/ revise with the relationship building, and it’s a great series.

[Retta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew this wasn’t a four book series, but wow! Seriously that ending! I’m uh brutalized! I don’t know what to say. So unanticipated. I was expecting something with Valentine but not what happened. Bella Klaus is killing it, way to go with the book hangovers. I mean I just loved loved loved it. That poor girl can’t get a break, things just keep spinning her on her head and changing. It’s crazy. I mean I can’t wait for the next one! These almost can’t come out fast enough, but reality is I can’t complain cause she is putting them out fairly fast. These are wonderful, if you haven’t read them you should.

[Raina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beyond intense. Each book of this series pulls you further end. You will never know what will happen next. Mera is a fascinating character. She loves with her whole heart and feels the pain of others. She would give herself to save a stranger. But the amount of pain she is forced to endure would break a lesser being. Who to trust is a short list and seems to get smaller all the time. Valentine is a character that you have no clue what he will do next. His passion for her is almost an obsession to fully possess her. This is the fourth book but is not the last. I can’t wait to read what happens next.

[Alina · Rating 5 out of 5]

You have no clue how much a am really enjoying this series! Omg! Everytime I pick up the next book, I manage to always read it within one sitting. It's too good to put down. I have ruined a good night's sleep for a smolderingly good read. Sacrifices must be made. Lol
This one was really good and just the right amount of " dark" to keep the alluring mood that permeates all throughout these books.
I can get a little annoyed with certain people just not admitting their desires and making things more complicated than need be, but I understand to progress the story and create drama, it needs to happen.
Either way, great story. Great series. Must read.

[Aimee Bower · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mera is dealing with Valentine and what he is doing to her and keeping her safe. Mera also realizes something about her magic. She also has possible ally in her in getting Valentine back and dealing with Kresinick. Mera also gets closer to her birth mother. Mera is playing a serious game with what she is doing, what will happen when othes realize.

There is a lot of plot lines going on and there seems like there is more. We need to bring the really Valentine back, so this one is getting old. It seems to be slowly building to the end. I have enjoyed the books so far and will read the next one.

[Jennifer Soppe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Has excitement and heartache

Mera, a phoenix fire use, has been stripped of her magic and given to Valentine, the now controlled undead Vampire king, as a prize. As the story progresses small rebellious actions are punished, an old enemy reappears, and others blind faith may be just the thing she needs to survive. Bella Klaus’ Thrall of the Vampire King has excitement and heartache while continuing what seems to be a doomed romance. I don’t think my poor heart can take what is in store for them next.

I read this book with my Kindle Unlimited subscription and I received a free copy of the book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.

[FluffPandas]

Addictive characters!
The characters in this series are so addictive and I want more of them! I still hate a lot of the characters, some of them I am not sure I'm supposed to, but, oh well, the ones I like make it worth all the phone throwing.

I did struggle a little with the plot because I felt that it could have been explored better so it was easier to understand, but what happened was really cool and Hades (what a douche-nozzle) was an interesting and unexpected addition to me.

100% going to read the next one because I am going to finish this series. I need to know what happens after all these new twists!

[Mrs R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, it really took off in this book. Just when you think you know where this book is going it completely takes you by surprise.
Kresnik is running high on his new power but a small number of people are starting to doubt his intentions, but can they do anything about it.
Valentine intrigued me in this book, he was protective of Mera but still under the command of Kresnik. There is clearly more going on here under the surface.
We also find out more about how Kresnik came to be and Aurora's actions put her in grave danger.
I know I wasn't probably supposed to, but I loved the interaction between Hades and Mera.
Looking forward to what happens next.

[Lory · Rating 4 out of 5]

First let me say how much I'm loving this series. With that being said even though I found this to be a very entertaining and enjoyable read. I was kinda disappointed with the way that Valentine's manipulated Mera in this one and how she kinda went a long with it even though it wasn't exactly what she wanted. It left me feeling like what happened to my fierce and sassy heroine. Besides that it was great read. Can't wait to see what going to happen next. As always my reviews are totally voluntarily and no monetary compensation was received and the opinions I have expressed are my own.

[Dori Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through the horrors of Kresnik's rebirth and the unspeakable evils rained down upon those who believe themselves faithfully followers of Father Jude, Mera has clung tightly to her belief that she can still save Valentine. Now more than ever she will find that faith tested, and the bright shining future she dreamed of remains a distant memory, twisted by torture and blackened by hellfire and rage.

Bella Klaus spins a mesmerising tale, engaging the reader and leaves us hanging on the edge, desparate for the next page turn.

[Andrea Green · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowzers, I love this series and teh twists an turns continue this storey is just so good, i am expecially happy that her cat is back in all his glory and i absolutely love Hades.
Valentine confuses me a little in this book as his change in moods could give a girl whiplash but at the heart of it he is just trying to protect Mera.
Whilst helping Hades she is also helping herself she thinks as her goal is to re-ignite her power and then raise Valentine but not all is as it seems.
Brilliant storey with so much going on you need to find time to add this to your TBR

[Lexi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alright well things are definitely starting to heat up and also getting a lot darker. I hope we get to see more of the real Valentine soon. I’m also really hoping he’s doing what he’s doing for Mera’s safety cause I really want to smack him a lot of the time for his choices. The quest is getting more and more interesting as there are a lot of plots being added in this story. Mera’s in a very precarious and dangerous place it’s interesting to see how she’s going to make it out of this and if her and Valentine will really be able to be together. I’m hopeful for the next book.