"When her friend tells her she's got a solution to her new homelessness Kerstyn is shocked to find out she'll be staying with her viking rescuer who seems just as attracted to her than she is to him. What she doesn't know yet is that Dimitri is one of the first Vampires ever to be created, he's all powerful, can read minds (hers included, to her mortification) and see the future."
Published: Self Published on February 2012
Pages: 335 Pages
Form: E-book (from a tour for an honest review)
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Rulers of Darkness #2
Amazon: Buy / $6.04 (Kindle) (EU price, click to see US or compare to B&N)
Barnes & Noble: Buy / $3.25 (Nook)
All Romance E-books: Buy / $3.25 (Ebook)
Excerpt: First meeting
Kerstyn lives quite the boring life until she gets near attacked on the streets of Las Vegas and saved by a tall, blond, gorgeous viking looking guy, and then there's the fact that she's evicted from her apartment she shares with her bff and her screwed up boyfriend and of course her car dies... not the best day.
When her friend tells her she's got a solution to her new homelessness Kerstyn is shocked to find out she'll be staying with her viking rescuer who seems just as attracted to her than she is to him. What she doesn't know yet is that Dimitri is one of the first Vampires ever to be created, he's all powerful, can read minds ( hers included, to her mortification ) and see the future.
Dimitri has only two goals coming to Las Vegas, get his mate and get revenge on the vampire who assassinated him and stole his Clan, as everyone thinks he's dead it makes it all more fun to come back from the dead. But when his vengeance also bring visions of Krestyn's death, he has to do everything in his power to stop destiny from fulfilling itself. He won’t live without her.
I loved how the history of the vampire race was intertwined into the love story, it never got stale or boring, even the historical events kept the momentum going. A lot of characters were introduced and re-introduced, I loved seeing Falcon, Dorian and Victoria again, and I fell in love with Gabriel ( *swoon* I hope he gets his own book! ) and Hadrian! This book isn't just about the main couple, this is a true series that builds on all the characters and the events until you got this interwoven fabric of superb Paranormal Romance with a cool Urban Fantasy element.Kerstyn and Dimitri clicked so well, Kerstyn was a nice fresh breath of air for Dimitri who was very old (won't reveal how old!) and had been emotionless and pretty much dead inside until he met her. She was a nice opposite to him, a fiery red head to the cool and collected ( on the outside ) blond vampire. She had few moments of awkwardness which made her more human when compared to Dimitri who seemed to have everything in perfect control.
Of course Dimitri didn't have it all under control - he was slipping, succumbing to blood lust he hadn't felt in thousand years, lust for her blood only, and battling his beast inside that demanded he claim Kerstyn where Dimitri himself wanted to give her time to adjust - I loved how he wanted everything to go his way and how things just kept slipping off his hands. And let’s not forget the fact that he knew how to make his mate happy in bed, talk about Hot!
I haven't been this excited about a paranormal romance series with an urban fantasy twist since Night Huntress and if you love that series too then you want to give Rulers of Darkness a go!
Rating :
Sin City and Vampires
Sin City and vampires. If you ask me, it is the perfect combination.
Before I explain why I chose Las Vegas as the setting of this book, I want to say, I love Las Vegas. Living a few hours drive from the city is convenient and my husband and I go every chance we get – we went this past December as our Christmas gift to each other, nothing better than a romantic trip as a present. What I love about Vegas is the atmosphere – there is nothing like it anywhere else. I enjoy the shopping (so many malls and so little time), the clubs/dancing (again, so many clubs so little time), the food (there are a ton of 5 star restaurants owned/operated by world renowned chefs: Joel Robuchon and André Rochat to name a few), and the shows! This past time my husband and I saw BITE. Yes! Vampires and classic music – can’t go wrong.
To explain why Las Vegas fit into this book/series, I will need to give a little info. In the Rulers of Darkness series, there are 4 vampire clans and an Outcast Society. The clans had divided Europe into territories while the U.S. belongs to the outcasts. Now, which cities are busy enough with a high population that a vampire could reside in and not be noticed? New York, New Orleans, Chicago, and Los Angeles come to mind. But, if you were a strong, business minded outcast vampire with wealth and can lay claim to any city you want, (oh, and you already have the cities listed above, with the exception of Chicago) where would you want to live?
Gabriel Erhard, an extremely powerful outcast, has claimed Las Vegas, the City of Sin. What wouldn’t draw a vampire to this city? There is greed in many forms, gluttony, sloth, envy, wrath (when you lose all your money to the casino), pride, and lust – there is sex appeal everywhere. You can’t walk down the street without someone trying hand you a business card (or sometimes shove a business card) in your hand, advertising one strip club or another, you’ll see trucks with signs driving up and down the strip advertising…how should I put this without being too blunt…houses of ill repute – complete with very suggestive female photos and phone numbers. Not to mention the yummy tourists from all around the world. So, why wouldn’t a vampire like to call this city home?
Another factor would be one the Mafia (yes, the mob founded and created Las Vegas) also enjoyed – the desert. Many places to hid…anything you don’t want found. Dimitri Arsov, the last pureblood vampire plans to use the vast desert of the State of Nevada to his advantage. Dimitri has come to Las Vegas for 2 reasons: to claim his mate and to exact revenge on the traitor who tried to kill him 400 years ago. Las Vegas belongs to Gabriel Erhard, a vampire that Dimitri knows well and can trust with his secrets.
The pounding of the bass and the high pitch sound of techno was all that could be heard in the club. Bright spotlights roamed, flowing like waves over the sea of people dancing mindlessly to the music.
Turning from the window, Gabriel Erhard reclaimed his seat behind his massive, mahogany desk. He roughly ran his hand through his hair before turning his gaze back to the vampire nonchalantly reclining across from him.
He struggled to believe what he was seeing. It was strange to think that an hour ago he had been sitting in this exact spot reminiscing about the first day he had met Dimitri and now the murdered vampire was here, in his office.
“Four hundred years.”
Chills shook Gabriel’s entire body just as they had when Dimitri had materialized in his office. He had once believed he would never again hear that smooth, controlled, regal voice.
“To the day,” Gabriel added.
“I thought the anniversary of my death would be the best day to reenter vampire society.”
“I think it will take me four hundred years to get over my shock.”
“I thought you were going to faint.”
“If it were possible for us to faint, I would’ve.”
Dimitri laughed, his fangs flashing for the briefest of moments. Gabriel once again was stunned into silence. How could this be happening? How could Dimitri Arsov, who was murdered ages ago, be sitting in his office? Was this all a hallucination? Had he gone insane? Gabriel never thought he would join Hadrian, the mad, exiled king, but now he wasn’t so sure.
“You are not crazy,” Dimitri said with a smile, reading his friend’s troubled thoughts.
“That’s comforting,” Gabriel sighed as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. “How is this possible?”
“It’s all really simple, I was never murdered.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you fake your death?”
Dimitri’s eyes turned cold and penetrating. “My reasons will reveal themselves.”
Gabriel slammed his hand on the desk and laughed, “Damn, you haven’t changed a bit! You are as cryptic as ever.”
“You would not want to tempt Fate by knowing her plans.”
Gabriel shrugged, stood, and headed for the bar. He was itching for a drink.
“I have one more question for you. Why did you come here, to Vegas?”
Dimitri waited for Gabriel to finish pouring his brandy to answer, “There are many reasons behind my decision for coming to your city. One of which is that I can trust you. As you know, this country belongs to the shape-shifting breed and the outcast vampires. You, my friend, I know are loyal. Do not worry, your secret is safe with me.” He chuckled at Gabriel’s sharp look. “I will not tarnish your reputation by assigning you admirable qualities.”
Before I explain why I chose Las Vegas as the setting of this book, I want to say, I love Las Vegas. Living a few hours drive from the city is convenient and my husband and I go every chance we get – we went this past December as our Christmas gift to each other, nothing better than a romantic trip as a present. What I love about Vegas is the atmosphere – there is nothing like it anywhere else. I enjoy the shopping (so many malls and so little time), the clubs/dancing (again, so many clubs so little time), the food (there are a ton of 5 star restaurants owned/operated by world renowned chefs: Joel Robuchon and André Rochat to name a few), and the shows! This past time my husband and I saw BITE. Yes! Vampires and classic music – can’t go wrong.
To explain why Las Vegas fit into this book/series, I will need to give a little info. In the Rulers of Darkness series, there are 4 vampire clans and an Outcast Society. The clans had divided Europe into territories while the U.S. belongs to the outcasts. Now, which cities are busy enough with a high population that a vampire could reside in and not be noticed? New York, New Orleans, Chicago, and Los Angeles come to mind. But, if you were a strong, business minded outcast vampire with wealth and can lay claim to any city you want, (oh, and you already have the cities listed above, with the exception of Chicago) where would you want to live?
Gabriel Erhard, an extremely powerful outcast, has claimed Las Vegas, the City of Sin. What wouldn’t draw a vampire to this city? There is greed in many forms, gluttony, sloth, envy, wrath (when you lose all your money to the casino), pride, and lust – there is sex appeal everywhere. You can’t walk down the street without someone trying hand you a business card (or sometimes shove a business card) in your hand, advertising one strip club or another, you’ll see trucks with signs driving up and down the strip advertising…how should I put this without being too blunt…houses of ill repute – complete with very suggestive female photos and phone numbers. Not to mention the yummy tourists from all around the world. So, why wouldn’t a vampire like to call this city home?
Another factor would be one the Mafia (yes, the mob founded and created Las Vegas) also enjoyed – the desert. Many places to hid…anything you don’t want found. Dimitri Arsov, the last pureblood vampire plans to use the vast desert of the State of Nevada to his advantage. Dimitri has come to Las Vegas for 2 reasons: to claim his mate and to exact revenge on the traitor who tried to kill him 400 years ago. Las Vegas belongs to Gabriel Erhard, a vampire that Dimitri knows well and can trust with his secrets.
The pounding of the bass and the high pitch sound of techno was all that could be heard in the club. Bright spotlights roamed, flowing like waves over the sea of people dancing mindlessly to the music.
Turning from the window, Gabriel Erhard reclaimed his seat behind his massive, mahogany desk. He roughly ran his hand through his hair before turning his gaze back to the vampire nonchalantly reclining across from him.
He struggled to believe what he was seeing. It was strange to think that an hour ago he had been sitting in this exact spot reminiscing about the first day he had met Dimitri and now the murdered vampire was here, in his office.
“Four hundred years.”
Chills shook Gabriel’s entire body just as they had when Dimitri had materialized in his office. He had once believed he would never again hear that smooth, controlled, regal voice.
“To the day,” Gabriel added.
“I thought the anniversary of my death would be the best day to reenter vampire society.”
“I think it will take me four hundred years to get over my shock.”
“I thought you were going to faint.”
“If it were possible for us to faint, I would’ve.”
Dimitri laughed, his fangs flashing for the briefest of moments. Gabriel once again was stunned into silence. How could this be happening? How could Dimitri Arsov, who was murdered ages ago, be sitting in his office? Was this all a hallucination? Had he gone insane? Gabriel never thought he would join Hadrian, the mad, exiled king, but now he wasn’t so sure.
“You are not crazy,” Dimitri said with a smile, reading his friend’s troubled thoughts.
“That’s comforting,” Gabriel sighed as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk. “How is this possible?”
“It’s all really simple, I was never murdered.”
“I don’t understand. Why would you fake your death?”
Dimitri’s eyes turned cold and penetrating. “My reasons will reveal themselves.”
Gabriel slammed his hand on the desk and laughed, “Damn, you haven’t changed a bit! You are as cryptic as ever.”
“You would not want to tempt Fate by knowing her plans.”
Gabriel shrugged, stood, and headed for the bar. He was itching for a drink.
“I have one more question for you. Why did you come here, to Vegas?”
Dimitri waited for Gabriel to finish pouring his brandy to answer, “There are many reasons behind my decision for coming to your city. One of which is that I can trust you. As you know, this country belongs to the shape-shifting breed and the outcast vampires. You, my friend, I know are loyal. Do not worry, your secret is safe with me.” He chuckled at Gabriel’s sharp look. “I will not tarnish your reputation by assigning you admirable qualities.”
Thank you for having me on your blog today. I hope everyone enjoyed the post and the excerpt.
I wish you all Happy Reading!
With Amanda done, I'll leave you with some Rulers of Darkness fan art!
( By yours truly of course )
( Alicia Witt and Adam Fletcher )
( Sarah Lancaster and Andrei Andrei )
