Series: Night Prince Series, Book 2
Author: Jeaniene Frost
Publisher: Avon Books
Length: 352 Pages | 1209 KB (Kindle Edition)
Publication Date: June 26, 2012
Available Formats: Paperback, Mass Market Paperback, Kindle Edition, eBook, Audiobook.
Source: Bought
My Rating: ★★★★★
Get it @: Amazon | Book Depository
Once Burned finally came out today! Kindle rules! I pre-ordered my copy months ago (when the original release date was still March ^.^) I waited until midnight EST, which for me is actually 1:00am, to finally begin the story. I told my boyfriend and my sister not to bother me, I wasn’t putting the book down until I was finished; and I didn’t. It was past 7am when I was finally done with the book. Was it worth it? Oh hell yeah!
We first met Vlad at At Grave’s End, the third book on the Night Huntress Series, and he quickly became my second favorite character. Bones has the number one spot, but oh, Vlad gives him quite a fight and after this book, it’s an all-out war. Can you imagine a duel between these two?
Vlad is still his arrogant pompous self, but don’t we love him like that? Although the story is seen from Leila’s point of view the entire time, we get thrown head first into Vlad’s domain, gaining an incredibly insightful look at the best known vampire in history; but don’t you dare call him Dracula. A man that had garnered a reputation of ruthlessness so great that he acquired the moniker of “the Impaler” before he was turned into a vampire.
It takes a special type of woman to match Vlad without falling into the submissive role; and that person is found in Leila. She is a survivor, a young woman who suffered an accident as a teenager that scarred her for life and also left her with some pretty nifty abilities. After a particular situation at the beginning of the book (sorry, not telling you) these abilities have gone public and have placed her in right in the middle of some ruthless vampires crosshairs. Vampires that will stop at nothing to use her as a pawn in their devious plans.
Once Burned, like all of Miss Frost’s books –at least all the ones I’ve read– has a great balance between action, love, comedy, strong characters and sizzling sex scenes. Speaking of sizzling…If you are a fan you must be aware of that famous Chapter 32. Well, if you liked that (and can’t seem to erase those words from your subconscious) I think you are going to enjoy Chapter 23 very much...
For this book we visit Vlad’s home in Romania. The architectural descriptions are breathtaking. Unlike some of her previous books, the scope of the novel is, although still happening in foreign territory, rather small. Yes, the story begins in Florida, USA; yes, there is a trip half way across the world, but once in Romania all the action that takes place is kept very locally.
There is an influx of new characters, all related to Vlad’s world one way or another. We get a glimpse of Cat and Bones as well as Mencheres and Kira; but it’s exactly that, just a small glimpse, the equivalent to a friend just dropping by your house to pick you up and then leave, yeah, that is how small their part in this book is. However, Bones is always memorable regardless of how much or how little screen time he gets. Sorry Ian, Spade or Denise’s fans, they are nowhere to be seen in this book. It actually makes sense since those are Cat and Bones’ friends and this is Vlad’s show.
The bottom line is that I loved this book, I enjoyed it greatly and I recommend it to not just all of Jeaniene Frost’s fans (which lets be serious, you all have already pre-ordered the book anyways). I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good vampire story. Haven’t read any of the previous Night Huntress novels, fret not, Once Burned is the beginning of a new series and it does one hell of a job as a standalone book (in regards to the previous series).
PS: In case you were wondering, book 2 in the series has already a name and a release date. Twice Tempted: A Night Prince Novel is expected to hit shelves on March 19, 2013. Just for added measured… Mayans, I’m praying that the reason your calendar didn’t continue was because someone slept on the job ~.^ What?! Don’t look at me like that; you know that you all think the same.
Want to read some quotes from the book, check this post for the Quote-A-Day edition.
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It was amazing. I loved reading it. And of course, twists and turns are part of the natural writing structure of the amazing Jeaniene Frost! Everything about it was amazing. Vlad and Leila are just perfect for each other. Both have a guilty and depressing past. Not to mention the fact that Vlad is immune to Leila's ability. And on top of both of those, they are both ruthless and determined. At the end Leila realizes that about herself. The pair both had great character progression, and even though we wont find out until the next book, I truly feel that Vlad loves her or is either in the process. Jeaniene just couldn't help herself by making us wait until the next book which is brutally not until next year.
ReplyDeleteYes! I feel the same, Vlad is falling for her, he's just too stubborn to let it happen organically; but I agree that they are perfect for each other.
DeleteOn the upside, the next book comes out on March 19, 2013... It is 2013, but we won't have to wait until June again, I hope anyways. *crossing fingers for good luck*