Black Heart

Darkfell Vampire Clan #0.5

by L.A. McGinnis

He thinks he owns me. He thinks he's won. He has no idea what he's up against.

My life isn't my own—not until I turn eighteen and the King has claimed me for his. Once I'm blood bound to him for the rest of my life, he'll control me forever, which is the whole twisted purpose of this.

Insurance I'll never rise up against him.

But when he threatens my men, my family, in exchange for my obedience, I discover four reasons to fight him. A warrior in exile, a poet with the face of a god, my very best friend and the man I once betrayed.

I'm told to choose, but I want them all.

Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Romance

110 pages, ebook

Published June 30, 2021

About the author

Fueled by black coffee, ice cream and bad nineties music, L.A. McGinnis spends her days writing best-selling steamy fantasies filled with damaged heroes who long to be whole and smart, authentic heroines. A life-long fascination with storytelling inspired her to weave these contemporary tales of legendary fated mates where the princess never needs rescuing, but sometimes the hero does.

Reviews

[Sue Philips · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new author for me and I will admit one who will fast become a favorite. Black Heart is a reverse harem paranormal story where we meet Contessa (shortened to Tessa) and her "boys" Rafael and Markus. Viktor, the brutish, bullying king has his sights set on Tessa and is hell bent on making her his. Over her dead body. She's gutsy, and won't be threatened - by anyone. Not even the king. Old friends Caden and Silas appear on the scene and between the whole lot of them they concoct a plan to save Tessa from the king - also garnering help from Caden's father - who is "friends" with the king.
Will they succeed and is there more to Caden's father than meets the eye?
This story is one that I found hard to put down and I sincerely hope I can read more by this author.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty quick read. The author does a great job of introducing the characters and helping the reader understand the world they have created. Tessa has herself a whole harem and a mess of problems.
I gave this four stars because it felt like the main points in a much longer book that I would have rather read. I learned long ago that novellas are rarely my cup of tea. I want to dive into characters, learn their stories, really work for that HEA. This was all very quick and I didn't get to find out too much about the characters' stories.
All that being said, I'm glad I read it as an intro to the series and I would recommend it to anyone who loves protective men and a reverse harem trope. It was written well and I'm excited to read the queen's story inside this world.

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know I’ve read this story before. Was it part of one of the Darkfell books? I’ll have to check and get back to this review.

Mystery solved: This is a cleaned up version of Blood Chosen that was included with Darkfell Vampire Clan boxset. I haven’t lost my mind.

[♥ I’d Rather Be Reading ♥]

4 in series + 1 novella

[Joey · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars unforch. Full disclosure, I read "Blood Chosen" not "Black Heart"-- the same book but I think in an earlier and poorly edited iteration, included in the Darkfell Vampire Clan boxset. I liked seeing Tessa and her men, seeing them from their perspectives. It was pretty cool. Too much sex for me BUT that's a lot of the point of this book so lol. It felt sloppy. BUT!!!! I loved literally every other darkfell book, literally loved, and I read an earlier (I think?) version of this book, so I have no idea how this review would hold up comparatively.