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rabidreading

Rabid Reading

Book reviewer at The Demon Librarian. Evil Queen. Hater of slugs, clowns & the color pink. Pandora addict. Reading, always reading. 


Favorite book genres: UF, PNR, Dystopian, YA/NA/Contemporary Romance, Fantasy, Sci-Fi Romance, and anything written by Karina Halle.

Blood Roses  - Lindsay J. Pryor **Find this and other reviews @ The Demon Librarian** Intense!Blackthorn is not a nice place. Just ask Leila, the leading lady of Blood Roses.From the moment Leila stepped onto the page, I felt for her. Raised her whole life in the safety and security of Summerton, she has never set foot on the vampire-infested streets of Blackthorn, nor does she want to. But when she receives a frantic call from her younger sister Alisha, begging for help, Leila has no choice but to enter the proverbial lion's den.Getting in is the easy part. It's getting out that will be tricky, because a certain uber-sexy and dangerous vamp has figured out Leila's most closely guarded secret, and he's not about to let her go.Caleb has hunted serryns for years. He hates them with the fire of a thousand suns, and having one fall into his lap resurrects all the darkness inside of him. Darkness that is aimed entirely at poor Leila.Leila is put through the wringer in this book, and yet somehow, she prevails. She stood up to Caleb, poked holes in his armor, and defied all his negative expectations. And she did it in a way that not only won him over (reluctantly), but me as well (wholeheartedly). The strength of character she displayed impressed the hell out of me, and I was cheering her on the whole way.Caleb, for his part, is one very bad boy. In any other book, he'd be slated as the villain and I'd be booing and hissing him off the page. He's cold, unforgiving, and more than a little cruel. Yet he's also a devoted brother, an astute businessman, and loyal to his people. I would never call him good, but he isn't outright evil either, and honestly, I liked him. A LOT. He's exactly the kind of complex character I love to sink my teeth into.Supporting characters Alisha and Jake (Caleb's brother) deserve a special mention. Jake in particular surprised me. He comes off at first as a useless playboy, but he sure proved me wrong! I'm pleased as punch he and Alisha both had scenes written from their POV. The story wouldn't have worked nearly as well without them and I hope we see more of them both in the future.As in book one, the story unfolds over a short period of time, and once again, I did not feel gypped in any way. BLOOD ROSES is a fully-developed, thoroughly engrossing story filled with heavy emotional hits and swoonworthy moments. In or out of the bedroom, whether they are viciously fighting or tearing each other's clothes off, Caleb and Leila burn up the pages together. Every moment between them seethes with emotion and intensity. It's potent stuff, and the more I read, the more hooked I became. In fact, when the book ended, it took all of, oh, five minutes for the withdrawal to set in. I wanted MORE.That's right. I am officially addicted to this series. Why, you ask? Because Lindsay Pryor is my kind of fearless author. She isn't afraid to "go there", to create characters and situations that challenge me as a reader. She doesn't wrap anything in a pretty bow for me, and after two books, she has yet to hand me a single quick fix or easy answer. Black and white? Forget about it! You will find nothing that simple in the the world of Blackthorn. Everywhere you look, there are blurred lines and shades of gray. There are no clear-cut Happy Ever Afters, either. I don't think there can be in this world. Not yet. I could be wrong, but my gut tells me there is a lot of story yet to be told, and everything we're reading now is merely the prelude. All these different stories are going to intersect at some point (I hope), and I can't wait to see what happens when they do.BLOOD ROSES isn't a wild, action-packed ride through the paranormal world. If that's what you are in the mood for, I would recommend you look elsewhere, because you'll only be disappointed. However, if you're hunting for a book that isn't afraid to get its hands dirty and show you a darker side of life - a book with characters who will grab you by the throat and refuse to let go - then you should definitely check out the Blackthorn series.5 Stars ★★★★★ARC provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.