Running and screaming will have to wait. A blood-sucking dead guy may be a vampire to you, but he’s an alien/human hybrid to Ophelia and she really must examine his olfactory nerve under a microscope first.
Ophelia longs to be free, free of diabetes, free of her ex-boyfriend, free to live.Something transformed Martin and made her his drug. If he has his way, she’ll never achieve the freedom to learn his true nature and origin.
Adrian’s the new guy in school. He faked his identity to get close to Ophelia, knowing the monsters who took his diabetic sister would try to take Ophelia, too. Then, he’d have them. But, he knew better than to get too close.
Ophelia was diagnosed as Type 1 diabetic at age eight, just like her father. Her twin, Bianca was not. It's the only thing different about them, other than their personalities. Ophelia is the strong one, she's had to be, Bianca is the out spoken, the wild child, or at least she wants you to believe that.
Ophelia has a secret admirer, one who adds to her collection of Star Trek and Star Wars figurines, as well to make her day better. Her ex-boyfriend, Martin Brynner, (whose Mother is the school principal and Father is the only law), won't hear that she no longer wants or needs to be around him, he's become an ass, forcing his presence when she least wants him to. He's convinced that Bianca is behind their almost breakup, and he'd be right, but it's what Ophelia wants too. Martin has changed, calling her his "Sweet" clinging to her body, as if she might give him life.
Adrian, Ophelia's secret admirer, knows the Brynners's secret, and he's trying to protect Ophelia from them and what they want, a diabetic who possesses the sweetness of her blood and life to continue theirs, or so they hope. There are creatures who live amongst the humans that are much scarier than one could guess.
Sugar Rush by Kimber An is the first of a new series centering around Ophelia, a diabetic teenager who attracts the Newbloods with her scent of sweetness, diabetes out of control. But, is it out of control because of her habits or is it out of control from factors beyond her ability to control? Are the Newbloods forcing her to become their "Sweet"? The Oldbloods have grown too weak and too few to stop the Newbloods, but there are those willing to help the weaker humans, to prevent the Newbloods from trapping and eventually killing their prey. In Ophelia's case, she really doesn't believe in vampires, she refers to them as alien/human hybrids, challenged by their supposed need for blood. Regardless of how she feels about those drawn to the sweetness of her blood, they do intend to capture their "Sweets" and it's not a pleasant experience; caged, trapped, used. Ophelia's father is also diabetic and his diabetes is out of control as well. It's ruining his body, weakening him, making him vulnerable to those who wish to harm him, and they are in control of his small Alaskan town.
Sugar Rush is fast fun read and another new twist on vampirism, again helping to keep the genre fresh and moving forward. I'm happy to read the differing ideas about how the vampire virus is created and perpetuated. This book combines a little of the old with a some new twists, making it an interesting read. The draw of the vampires in this book is that of the sweetness of the blood, but vampires don't always play by the rules, and neither should the humans they're hoping to enslave. The Newbloods in this story are creating the perfect "receptacle" by forcing Ophelia's diabetes out of control, and the Oldbloods are being overrun by the Newbloods, unable to control this new form of vampirism. The hero of this story is Adrian, who comes to Ophelia's rescue by distracting her ex-boyfriend time and time again, allowing for her escape from his greedy clutches. Martin clings to Ophelia as if his life depended on it... and come to find out it kind of does. But Adrian has his own motives as well, his sister has been taken by the Newbloods for feeding and breeding purposes... they're really only interested in the sweetness of the diabetic condition made worse with their scheming. Only Adrian can hope to save Ophelia, but it may come with great sacrifice. This story centers around Ophelia's imagination as well, she escapes her small enclosed town through her favorite books, movies, and TV shows, she's Buttercup to Adrian's Wesley (The Princess Bride), I love it! I recommend this book to others looking for something different in the vampire genre, I don't think you'll be disappointed, I know I wasn't. This is a YA paranormal romance with gorgeous cover art and a believable heroine in Ophelia, she's hoping to escape Martin and finds Adrian may be her only hope and her new love. I enjoyed this new take on the genre and I'll be looking to see what happens to Ophelia in the next book, Crushed Sugar. Adrian is a sweet and lovable character, so maybe there's hope that he'll return in the future books, after he gains control of this new being he's become. I also really enjoyed Brandon, Ophelia's Oldblood protector, all are willing to sacrifice themselves to save Ophelia. Sugar Rush is an excellent start for this new author, and I'll be waiting for the next in the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I really, really wanted to like this one - I mean the covers for this series are beautiful! - but unfortunately I just couldn't finish reading it. The prequel novella Crushed Sugar left me with a lot of questions & despite getting 36% into Sugar Rush we still know very little about the paranormal aspect of the story which I just found incredibly frustrating.
The characters all act a lot younger than 16 years old and the expressions they used constantly (Oh My Dog being the main one) were driving me insane! Having said that I think the story will really appeal to younger paranormal fans and the lanugage is suitable for young teens.
I was particularly frustrated by the Ophelia, she is being harrassed constantly by her ex Martin - really bad stallker behaviour going on there which would be enough to freak anyone out. At the same time a random stranger is breaking into her car & her school locker to leave her presents. Now that would worry me even if I didn't already have a crazy stalker but if it was on top of the harassment from Martin I'd be seriously concerned. The last thing I'd want is to catch the attention of another psycho. But Ophelia decides that she has fallen in love with the person who is leaving her presents - she has never seen him, never spoken to him, doesn't have the faintest idea who he is yet of course she loves him. Even more worrying is that when she talks to her twin sister about it her sister isn't the voice of reason telling her to slow down - she actually encourages Ophelia to try and meet up with a second potential psycho and agrees that of course they must be in love - after all he is leaving presents and Ophelia likes them, what else could you possibly want to know about your love interest? I'm not feeling the protective sister there.
Looking through the other reviews on here I know I'm in the minority for not getting on with this one so don't let me put you off giving it a try. The author has created some nice characters & I think the paranormal side to the story will be really interesting when it gets going. But if, like me, you are easily irritated by instant love for no reason then you'll probably want to give this a miss.
What a really REALLY cute story! I have never read a paranormal Romance book in a PG 13 way before - Kimber An did a REALLY Good job with this one!
This story along with the paranormal vampires (Alien/human hybrids) and shape shifters - has a really good moral to it - Ophelia - a typical 17 year old teenager who wants a shot to be as normal as she can be - was diagnosed with Diabetes at the age of 9. She struggles with her father's illness and her mother's stress. And let's not to forget her wacked out over protective boyfriend (Martian) whom refuses to let her break up with him. All why trying to keep herself from going hypoglycemic. Her Twin sister Bianca has a really cute sassy personality - and isn't afraid to tell it like it is. I loved the way she kept putting Martian in his place.
Ophelia starts getting little secret gifts (She's a Die-hard Trekkie (Star Trek) for 4 months and has no idea who they are from - until the Halloween/Christmas party when he revels himself as Sweet Wesley - since she went as the Princess Bride. The story picks up from there as a true romantic story with 2 teenagers who have very strong feelings for one another (nothing too hormonal - but they do have a few really intense kissing scenes :)
This book has it all - action , love, suspense. It brought tears to my eyes, made me Laugh out loud , Gave me goose bumps, and I even screeched a little at the end - before I cried again :)
I am REALLY looking forward to the next book Crushed Sugar:)
A fun little quote from the book that reminded me of my older brother with his friends when he was a teen :)
Hey, Martin. Heard your new truck has a six-cylinder.” That was guy-talk for "Dude, you‟re the Alpha Male." "Eight cylinder, actually.” That meant "Damn straight, I am." “Can we go see?” Meaning, "We acquiesce to your awesomeness."
Sugar Rush is Book 1 in the Ophelia Dawson Chronicles. It's a fantastic start to a series that I will continue to follow. Its unique and fun and very quick read.
Sugar Rush follows Ophelia as she is trying to keep her distant from her ex boyfriend Martin. Who is very very creepy. She has a secret admirer who has been leaving her little gifts and drawings for a few month until he finally reveals himself. However, poor Ophelia is in terrible danger and thus setting into motion that tragic events that lead up to the big ending and cliffhanger.
Having read the prequel to this story I think I enjoyed it more having that insight before hand. I feel I would have been a bit confused if I hadn't read it. It not like story is hard to follow even if you don't read the prequel it just made certain thing in Sugar Rush more clearer.
Ophelia and Adrian have got to be two of the more geekiest characters I have come across in books. I love it. It was so refreshing to about. Ophelia is such a sweet girl and it would be hard not to like her. She has one of those personalities that I think everyone can relate to it. Adrian isn't your average male lead either. He is very geek chic and just an all round nice guy. I really felt for Ophelia in this as she is trying to deal with Martin, her over protective, creepy boyfriend/exboyfriend. He refuses to listen to her when she is trying to break up with him. I loved how her sister Biance would always stick up for Ophelia she is very strong personality and I can't wait to see where Kimber An takes the girls next.
Sugar Rush is a great paranormal novel. It has vampires and shapeshifters but with very unique twists that is sure to just keep you entertained from start to finish.
Running and screaming will have to wait. A blood-sucking dead guy may be a vampire to you, but he's an alien/human hybrid to Ophelia and she really must examine his olfactory nerve under a microscope first.
Ophelia longs to be free, free of diabetes, free of her ex-boyfriend, free to live. Something transformed Martin and made her his drug. If he has his way, she'll never achieve the freedom to learn his true nature and origin.
Adrian's the new guy in school. He faked his identity to get close to Ophelia, knowing the monsters who took his diabetic sister would try to take Ophelia, too. Then, he'd have them. But, he knew better than to get too close.
Oh, yeah, he did. Seriously. I loved the fact that the heroine is such a Trekkie, as it is not only unusual to find a nerdy female lead but even harder to find a die-hard geek like Ophelia. With her health issues and her weird boyfriend problems it wasn’t hard to feel sympathy for her. Bianca her twin is over the top fun and a great complement to her sister’s serious character. My only issue is that for such an intelligent girl it takes Ophelia an awful long time to figure out who her secret admirer is so the story dragged a little for me. I enjoyed the unique paranormal aspect and the over all tone of the story. The descriptions and the location added to my satisfaction, as did the supporting characters. Martin might have been totally creepy but he was extremely well written. I cannot wait to see what the future holds for Ophelia. I recommend this one for anybody looking for a rare take on vampires and shapeshifters.
I actually have a hard time reviewing this one. It is far superior to the prequel and I did enjoy this book. I will have to say that I did not connect with Ophelia for quite some time. She was supposed to be a highly intelligent girl who is on the fast track to college, but her inner dialog was more toward a bubble headed girl who thought about nothing but boys. It just didn't gel with other things she did or wanted in life. However, I was still interested in what was going on and why Martin, her ex-boyfriend was being such a crazed stalker. As things escalate and Adrian really comes into the picture more and more of the paranormal also come into play. As to what is going on... we still are left in the dark.
As Ophelia finally comes to terms with her own inner strength, her inner dialog becomes more scientific and melds better with the character. This part of the book flows quick and things slowly and at the same time quickly build. We finally get to be privy to what is paranormally going on and by the end Ophelia becomes a hero.
I find that this book has a very unique and interesting take on vampires and how they operate. I really think that this world has a lot of potential for some quite fascinating tales. Although I didn't connect with the characters at the beginning, I did find them much more interesting by the end. Rating this book was hard for me, but in the end I think I'll give it 3 stars. I recommend this book to people who want a different take on the vampire world.
Opehelia hates her Diabetes. And if that wasn’t bad enough, her ex-boyfriend, Martin that just doesn’t get the fact that she doesn’t want anything to do with him, even if he starts calling her his Sweet. Thank goodness her twin sister Bianca is there to help put Martin in his place and help Ophelia out. Then Ophelia starts receiving little gifts from a secret admirer.
Adrian is an Oldblood, a vampire that is trying to protect the humans from the Newblood vampires that are addicted to a diabetic’s sweet blood. It seems the Newbloods have found a way to keep the blood sweet. Now Adrian is also trying to protect Ophelia from Martin too, but that is because he is a Newblood vampire.
This is a great story. I love Ophelia. She is a tough, geeky girl. It’s so hard to find lead ladies like this. I do admit that she was a little slow when it came to figuring out who her secret admirer was. I also have to laugh about her refusal to believe in vampires; instead she considers them an alien/human hybrid.
This is a great story. I think those that like young adult and the paranormal will like it. It is a new twist on vampires.
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
Ophelia a diabetic girl learns her blood holds the irresistible pull to all vampires. There are two species of vampires that are incredibly powerful. In the middle of it she must fight to remain unclaimed. While at the same time falling in love with Adrian a sweet and fierce human boy. Ophelia is a smart and funny girl who the likes most ,young adult readers, haven't seen. She's no Bella Swan(Twilight)or Rose Hathaway(Vampire Academy but rather a real-life type girl.