Blood Bytes

by Susan Phelan

It's New York City, way way in the future and many things have changed like the legalization of sex for hire and the popularity of the undead in the world's oldest profession. Conversely, the unreliability of males, immortal or human, remains a constant, or at least that's what Detective Tess Monterey has deduced after a particularly painful breakup with her partner and secret lover. While investigating an apparent sex slaying, the trail leads to Blood Bytes the city's only online vampire agency, and its most sought-after supernatural stud, Devante Matiero. The last person to see the victim alive, Matiero quickly rises to the top of Tess' most wanted list in more ways than one. Tess wades through a series of suspects and clues, along with her own distracting desires, desperately trying to close the case while holding onto her new-found stay-away-from-love conviction. But as she is destined to discover, things are not always as they appear. And not all good intentions pave the road to hell some actually overlay the way to heaven. Reader Contains light bondage scenes.

Genres: Ebooks, Vampires

298 pages, Paperback

First published August 9, 2007

About the author

Susan Phelan was born in the land of the Aurora Borealis and grew up loving the mysterious multi-colored lights that shimmer and shift across the night skies of Alberta.

She started writing in grade school where her love of suspense and the paranormal began to develop.

She lives in Alberta with her love Louis and their beloved pets, Tess and Abby.

Reviews

[Rhianon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This futuristic vampire romance slash murder mystery is an interesting read but gets three stars for predictability and ending flail.

The final chapter and epilogue left a good bit to be desired. The only true complete sex scene in the entire story is located here, and feels redundant and anticlimactic, for starters. The epilogue is poorly written and the entire end of the story feels at best forced, at worst meshed together.

Phelan's characters are interesting, though, and their interactions are authentic, the development and plot twists executed with fair competency. For a futuristic novel it's rather light on the science fiction and doesn't detract from the story setting or flow.

Most disconcerting, though, were the moments when the writer's prose and language felt stilted and left this reader no longer submerged in the telling of the tale. I can be a difficult audience to please, though, so I am certain there are those who would find enjoyment in this one.

[Nerine Dorman · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I'm a big fan of Phelan's writing (Crimson Hours is still with me) I wasn't blown away by Blood Bytes. What makes this story for me is, however, the characterisation and dialogue. Phelan is very good in this aspect of her writing. What didn't work for me was the ending, and also some of the mid-scene point of view shifts. I feel with a limitation on the amount of viewpoint characters there would have been greater overall tension. A tighter rein on some of the exposition was also needed. On the other hand, this Bladerunner-esque setting is fascinating and, as always, I love a society where vampires have "come out of the coffin" so to speak.

[Kylie Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastically written. A believable story written of the future. From beginning to end, an amazing story, it had everything from mystery to romance.