Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Review: Crave by Karen E. Taylor

We interrupt this program with an important word from our moderator:

Anna here~ Crave is a reissue of the first 2 books in the Vampire Legacy series by Karen E. Taylor, and after searching for book links to share I realized that it can be confusing as *bleep* to sort through proper reading order etc. I actually have the originals for most of this series in storage, but haven't read them in ages, and wasn't even aware that Crave was a reissue until I arranged this post. I had passed them on to Jenny for review before I could even take a closer look. I remember enjoying the originals but I have to now wonder if they might seem dated, since they were first published in the late 90's. If you have read any of this series I would love to hear what you think. And now back to our regularly scheduled program...

Book description:
As a vampire, Deirdre Griffin has roamed the world satisfying the exquisite, ecstatic craving for blood that is her life force. And at last, her lover has joined her, hungry for his transformation, prepared to feed with her for eternity. Yet, for the first time, Deirdre feels fear...
From the farthest corners of the globe to the underworld of Manhattan, enemies are closing in. For a rogue vampire is on the loose. And he isn't just killing humans. Now, the hunters are the prey. But someone else is coming for Deirdre - someone she cannot possibly defend herself against. Blood of her blood, flesh of her flesh - and craving the tangy, acrid, deadly smell of vengeance...
Review:
In Blood Ties, Deirdre is a vampire who does not always like what she is, but is able to satisfy the hunger within her.  She has changed the love of her life into a vampire as well, and Mitch has taken to being a vampire with a level of enthusiasm that Deirdre does not always share. When another of her blood relatives begins to cause some problems it is left to Deirdre to answer for him, as she was his creator. This proves to be harder than it should be because Larry is unpredictable and a little off. When he escapes his holding cell and then vampires are beginning to be hunted, Deirdre does not feel safe. Can Deirdre and Mitch find Larry before it is too late?   
In the second book Blood of My Blood Deirdre is again hunted but this time by a daughter that she didn't know existed. Lily is out to get revenge on her mom for leaving her to die alone, and she will stop at nothing to find her. Deirdre does not have a clue that this girl is looking for her and has no idea what is coming for her. When she realizes what is going on she does not know what to do and ends up fighting for her life and Lily’s.
Both of these stories were full of mystery and action. You kind of have a hint in the first one who the suspect is, but you have no idea how that suspect is managing what they are doing. I liked how they showed the vampires as the ones being hunted instead of focusing on the human vampire connection. Both stories were great reads, that had side plots that you had to follow to get the whole picture. All in all a great combination of stories.
Author website:
Other books in the Vampire Legacy series:
Reviewed by Jenny
This book was sent by the publisher for review.

1 comment:

Cylver said...

I read these books years ago and loved them. To me, they don't seem dated. Maybe because I'm a little dated myself!
Anyway, I'm really glad they're back in print, since taken together they really are a gem of a series.