Tag Archives: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Overbite by Savannah Russe

Book Review, ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: Overbite
Author: Savannah Russe
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!),
My Bookshelves: Vampires
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Not that he was a loser in the game of love.

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Synopsis

For this dentist, one late night customer is going to completely change his life. And possibly open the door for a future full of romance, and a woman named Bunny…

Thoughts

It’s always good fun to read short stories, or really, any stories that investigate the daily lives of the characters. And the fact that vampires also need dentists was something that I had never considered. And, although I found this storyline a little droll, I loved the idea that there is a man who decided to give up his life and become the dentist to the undead.

If I didn’t find the lead so boring and just… bleugh (hewants a blonde bimbo called Bunny… EW), I probably would have been completely obsessed with this story. As it was, I still enjoyed it. While contemplating smacking the silly dentist on the head…

 <- A Temporary Vampire ReviewHunter’s Choice Review ->
Image source: Goodreads

A Temporary Vampire by Barbara Emrys

Book Review, , ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: A Temporary Vampire
Author: Barbara Emrys
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: By the time I had cleaned my face and hands and covered my shirt front, she was gone.

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Synopsis

New Orleans is filled with vampires, both the temporary and permanent kind. So what happens when two of them meet?

Thoughts

I wasn’t expecting a story like this in a collection of vampire romance short stories. For starters, even though a vampire was in it, it wasn’t really about vampires. And for another thing, it wasn’t really all that romantic.

Although the storyline and the characters in this story didn’t really draw me in… the setting did. There is something about New Orleans that has always fascinated me. To the point that it’s probably the only American city that I’m really interested in visiting. And the fact that a vampire story is based there seems somehow… right.

 <- In Which a Masquerade Ball Unmasks an Undead ReviewOverbite Review ->
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In Which a Masquerade Ball Unmasks an Undead by Colleen Gleason

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: In Which a Masquerade Ball Unmasks an Undead
Author: Colleen Gleason
Series: The Gardella Vampire Hunters #1.75
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires,
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: I’ve slipped one o’ your littler stakes here in the back of your hair.

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Synopsis

All Victoria wants is to dance the night away with Robin Hood, but the vampires have different plans…

Thoughts

There’s something weirdly romantic about Victorian London. Which is weird, because living in a time when women were just expected to marry and procreate sounds like a special kind of hell on earth. This short story, yet again, makes me love the romance of the time and the incredibly beautiful storylines that are built in this world.

Victoria is the kind of heroine that I often enjoy reading about – a female who is forced into a specific role. But, who is also independent,and able to kick butt when needed. I also love the imagery of her with a huge beehive of hair on her hand, dressed up as Marie Antoinette. With a stake in amongst all of her charms. Actually, it was almost a little like a Victorian Buffy… and now I want to see if the rest of the series has that go-against-the-grain vampire hunter feel to it.

 <- Play Dead ReviewA Temporary Vampire Review ->
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Play Dead by Dina James

Book Review, , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Vampire RomanceTitle: Play Dead
Author: Dina James
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 3.5 (Liked this)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal fantasy, Vampires
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Isn’t he an enemy of yours?

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Synopsis

Nik thinks that he’s found the woman of his dreams, but will his vampire brethren stop him from being with his soul mate?

Thoughts

I both liked and got bored with this short story. It was kind of interesting and fun. And I really liked the idea of one of the soulless damned (a vampire) finding his soul mate. There was a great little twist of irony in this and it was kind of sweet that even a soulless blood sucker could have that whole perfect fit, love at first sight experience.

The execution on the other hand just didn’t quite draw me in as far as I had hoped. I don’t know if that was because I just wasn’t interested in reading a vampire romance short story at the time or the style of writing. But, regardless, I actually skim read most of this story which is always a sure indication that I’m interested enough to finish it, but not interested enough to actually read everything word for word and truly absorb it. A weird little paradox that one…

 <- Dancing with the Star Review In Which a Masquerade Ball Unmasks an Undead Review ->
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Dancing with the Star by Susan Sizemore

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: Dancing with the Star
Author: Susan Sizemore
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep) & Vampires: The Recent Undead (Paula Guran)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: The problem is what are we going to do for a bartender now?

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Synopsis

She’s a vampire with a little ennui and a ghoul for a best friend. But a car accident might leave her with the best hope of a future that she could ask for… and a star worth dancing the night away with.

Thoughts

This was a really cute little story. Sephora has a major case of ennui and is kind of bored with her life. And she has a best friend who is a ghoul. All of which in and of itself would make a great short story. After all, this is the kind of story that has a great outline of characters and creatures. But then it gets better with the dream sequence.

I haven’t read a story with a good dream sequence for quite a while. And this one ticked all of my boxes. It was slightly confusing and opaque, but also clear in other moments. Which, for me at least, is what a dream is really like. The fact that it leads Sephora to her own leading man and helps to rescue him just makes it all the better.

I was expecting an entirely different story from what the title suggested. I was kind of expecting some kind of dancing with the stars dance competition to be honest. But this was so much better and more interesting…

 <- To Ease the Rage ReviewPlay Dead Review ->
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To Ease the Rage by C.T. Adams & Cathy Clamp

Book Review, , , , , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Vampire RomanceTitle: To Ease the Rage
Author: C.T. Adams & Cathy Clamp
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Cops, Crime, Romance, Vampires
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: Could you change your number?

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Synopsis

Her partner died two years ago. And now she has a mysterious stalker. When her ex-partner comes back from the dead, she finds out that her life is about to completely change.

Thoughts

When I started reading this story, I didn’t really understand how it tied into the idea of vampire romance (since I found it in The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance). It starts out with a cop who is being stalked. And I kind of assumed that this stalker was probably going to be a vampire… but still, it was probably the least romantic of the tales in this collection so far. At least at the beginning, the end had that za za zing that I’ve come to expect.

The premise that there are a bunch of rogue vampires running free, and that Tim is desperate to stop them with the help of his old partner was kind of fun. That it involves sex, romance and true and deep love just made it all the more intriguing. It did, however, annoy me a little that his condition was caused by a creepy little girl with a crush… but I digress, the story wouldn’t have happened without this catalyst.

All in all this was a fun and engaging short story that featured a vampire, sex and crime. There’s not really much more I could ask for from a vampirific short story.

 <- Coming Home Review Dancing with the Star Review ->
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Coming Home by Lilith Saintcrow

Book Review, , , , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Vampire RomanceTitle: Coming Home
Author: Lilith Saintcrow
Series: Dante Valentine #5.5
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Demons, Paranormal fantasy, Urban fantasy
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: I wonder if he’ll show up.

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Synopsis

A past love shows up at Liana’s doorstep asking for help. Will she have the strength to say no? Or will it continue to drag up memories from her past?

Thoughts

To be honest, I’m not 100% sure of what was going on in a lot of this story. It takes place at the end of a series and it makes it incredibly hard to truly understand the tensions that are occurring throughout the story. But that doesn’t mean that I didn’t go out and buy the first book in the series as soon as I was finished.

For me, this story opens up a whole new world in my mind’s eye. A world of vampires and demons and some kind of assassin. And I can’t wait to find out more about it. Even in this short story, there is this amazing world building, complex relationships and a past that is haunting the protagonist. All in all, a fantastic introduction into a new world that I now have to await to arrive at my doorstep.

 <- Brother’s Keeper Review Working for the Devil Review ->
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What’s at Stake? by Alexis Morgan

Book Review, , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Vampire RomanceTitle: What’s at Stake?
Author: Alexis Morgan
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Paranormal romance, Vampires
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: “Where do I sign?”

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Synopsis

She’s supposed to be convicitng a murderer. But what happens when that murderer is possibly the love of her life? There is only one way to find out… solve the murder and save the day.

Thoughts

This was a fun and easy little romance. It wasn’t anything ground-shaking, but it was really cute. And I loved that there was so much history built into a few pages. Not only were you swept along by the storyline as it unfolded, you were tantalisingly fed parts of their past which helped to build on the fun throughout.

I’m always pretty keen on a nice little play on words. And this title does that perfectly. It highlights the vampirism in the story, it shows you that there is something at risk, and just generally works very nicely. It keeps in tune with the happy, fun and easy tone of this piece.

 <- Love Bites Review Coming Home Review ->
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Love Bites by Kimberly Raye

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance

Title: Love Bites
Author: Kimberly Raye
Series: Dead End Dating #3.5
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Paranormal romance, Vampires
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: It was the perfect place to slice and dice and rid the world of fanged vermin.

Synopsis

She’s supposed to be a vampire hunter, an SOB. He’s supposed to be her target. But lust, hormones and a little bit of fate seem to be getting in the way of her first kill.

Thoughts

I really liked the narrator of this story. She had a completely relatable voice. She was pithy, sarcastic and full of sass. There was also this great sense of vulnerability and innocence in everything in this story that was, well, not entirely relatable, but certainly enjoyable to read. And that was all before the romance and the vampires got involved!

I love the idea of the main couple being naturally at war. That there is something far more at stake (pun intended) than just their lives, but their families, their hearts and their futures. It’s definitely a great indication of what the rest of the series is going to be like, and the first thing I did when I finished this short story was to order the first book of the series.

 <- Your Coffin or Mine?Just One Bite ->

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Dreams by Keri Arthur

Book Review, , , , , ,

Overview

The Mammoth Book of Vampire RomanceTitle: Dreams
Author: Keri Arthur
Series: Riley Jenson Guardian #3.5
In: The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Trisha Telep)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Easy reading, Paranormal romance, Vampires, Werewolves
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Robinson
Year: 2008
5th sentence, 74th page: So he kissed her, caressed her, loved her, until the heat that rose between them would not be denied.

Buy The Book Now at The Book Depository, Free Delivery World Wide

Synopsis

When Quinn decides that dreams aren’t enough for his relationship with Riley, he decides to travel to see her for a late night booty call. But what they find in her basement becomes an adventure all on its own, one that nightmares might be made of.

Thoughts

I have read the first Riley Jenson Guardian novel, but haven’t gotten any further into the series. It’s a pretty intense erotica and sexual story, so I definitely have to be in the right kind of mood for it. But when I read Dreams in my short story collection the other night, I remembered just why I have kept this collection on my shelves. It’s easy, fun and more than a little raunchy.

I like the idea of creatures that people assume are less than human (the Chameleons) being involved in a battle with Riley and Quinn. The fact that this story ends with the hint (and that is just a hint) that there is more to the characters than meets the idea worked really well in my mind. It reminds me that there are different kinds of intelligence, and many of the animals that we assume are “dumb” probably aren’t so.

Then this story ends in a raunchy sex scene… which is expected in this series. And even though it is completely expected, it’s a bit of a fun, and very adult, ending to this tale.

 <- Viper’s Bite Review Love Bites Review ->
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