Vampire Thirst/Dragon Heat by Ella J. Phoenix – Reviews
Vampire Thirst
Dragon Heat Series
by Ella J. Phoenix
Book #2
Link to order Vampire Thirst: Amazon
Description:
Sometimes life takes you down a completely different path from the one you had originally planned.
After successfully rescuing the daughter of a draconian senator and other innocent women from a vampire psychopath, Sam and fellow warriors, Zoricah and Yara, have to trade sunny New York for gloomy London. Time is running out on their unfinished mission. More innocent people will die if they don’t catch the person behind the attacks in New York. But something is making Sam lose control of her powers. Something or someone. Ever since her first – and quite heated – encounter with Hikuro, her energies had gone haywire. The vampire king’s second in command affected her in a way no one had ever before. Her torment, however, is bound to get worse, with Hikuro’s unexpected arrival in London.
Ever since she set foot on vampire territory, Sam had turned Hikuro’s carefully controlled life upside down. He doesn’t trust her, but some strange force pulled him toward her; an inexplicable attraction that defies centuries of training. But if Hikuro is to keep his king safe, he must keep a close eye on Sam, even if he loses his sanity and his heart in the process.
Review:
As I said in my previous Dragon Heat review, Ella J. Phoenix knows how to bring the heat and she does it again in Vampire Thirst. This book picks right up where the first one leaves off, and let me say, the heat in this book just keeps climbing. In my previous review I made mention of Ella’s ability to create sub-plots and carefully weave them into the main plot, thus creating more story-building and depth to her characters and story. So in this book, the sub-plot that was Sam and Hikuro in Dragon Heat, now becomes the main attraction.
Sam and Hikuro were already beginning to smolder in Dragon Heat, but in their story they catch fire. These are two fantastically written characters who draw the reader into the story and make us fall in love with them. Hikuro is Tardieh’s 2nd in command and comes off as being a big, serious and at times smug arrogant jerk. However, thanks to Sam, we get to see there is a flip side to Hikuro. Deep down he really is a softie at heart, who is tender, loving and patient with Sam. He will do anything to keep his lady safe, even though she insists on pushing him away for reasons he doesn’t understand. No matter how much Hikuro tries to draw on his centuries of training and patience, it seems to just fly out the window where Sam is concerned. There’s an attraction and pull in Sam’s direction that Hikuro just doesn’t understand, and for that reason alone frustrates him. He’s never wanted a woman the way he wants Sam and he finds this unsettling because he’s worried if feelings get in the way, he won’t be able to protect his King properly. I have to say I just loved getting to know Hikuro more in Vampire Thirst and found him to be the complete hero. Loyal to his King and ppl, but at the same time, willing to take risks to be with his lady love. Sigh……what a guy.
Sam is a great female lead. I really enjoyed getting to know her and learn her backstory. We learn how Zoriach rescued Sam from an asylum where they were doing experiments on children may years ago and basically brought her back to life from her comatose state. Ever since then Sam has been dealing with learning how to control powerful energies within herself. She’s able to create energy blasts and shoot them out of her hands and body. However, being back in London and hanging around Hikuro has thrown her powers out of whack. Even though she’s drawn to him both physically and emotionally Sam is afraid to get to close to Hikuro for fear of harming him. You see she’s already managed to knock him on conscious, send him flying across the room and knock him on his behind with her powers, poor Hikuro. As they intensify the more afraid for Hikiruo she becomes. The more Sam tries to distance herself from Hikuro, the more determined he is to figure her out.
I really enjoyed watching these two grow as a couple. They were humourous at times, serious, and steaming up my pages. The more Hikuro learns about Sam the more he likes and wants to help her understand not only herself and her powers, but how to fully control them and use them to her advantage, especially when in a battle situation. The scene where he’s showing her how to concentrate and put out a candle flame had me smiling and laughing at the same time. As cute as they are as a couple, they also know how to turn on the heat. The sexual chemistry between these two is so strong you could cut it with a knife. Word to the wise, keep a glass of ice water nearby as Hikuro definitely knows how to love his lady completely. (fans self, gulps down glass of ice water, LOL!!)
Even though this one’s all about Hikuro and Sam, we learn that it hasn’t been smooth sailing between Zoricah and Tardieh since they got together. In this one Zoricah and Tardieh have become the sub-plot. We get to see these two learn what it means to be partners in everything, and what it will mean for both of them should they become mated. In no way does Ms. Phoenix dull these two characters, if anything they become even more interesting and continued to steam up the pages once they finally stopped being foolish and admit they definitely want to be mated. They finally come to their senses and admit that it won’t be easy for either of them, but they are stronger together then apart. I really enjoyed this part of the story and was happy to see that even though the focus of this book was on Sam and Hikuro, Ms. Phoenix was able to draw Zoricah and Tardieh into the story in a way that suited their characters and what it would mean for future plot lines. Now that they will be mated, we see how the rest of the Draconian world is reacting and can only imagine what the vampire world will think. Will they be seen as betrayers to their ppl, or a new era being welcomed in? Time will only tell, and from the looks of things so far appears they are heading for a bumpy ride. As far as their friends and comrades are concerned, they couldn’t be happier for the soon to be mated couple.
Finally in this one we get to see more of Yara( Zoricah and Sam’s friend), the panther shifter/witch. She’s going to be quite the interesting character down the road. So far I like what I see, and like where this character is heading and who she may be heading too. Ms. Phoenix introduces us to a new character, a wolf shifter named Rafe who right now seems shady, but I know there’s more to his story, and have a funny feeling that Yara and him will be meeting up down the road. I do enjoy a good shifter story.
Vampire Thirst continues to bring the heat in Ella’s Dragon Heat series. Sam and Hikuro sizzle as they struggle to come to terms with each other and what roles they play in this battle against the vampire and draconian races. The action is fast paced and the battle scenes are well written. The ending of the book had me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. I enjoyed the way Ms. Phoenix created this story, set up the events that took place and developed her characters. She creates her main plot and sub-plots to go hand in hand, thus weaving her tale seamlessly and developing a world and story you just want to get swept into. Ella Phoenix has a talent for writing and it shows in her imaginative and inventive storylines. I love the elements of mythology, magic, power, and shape-shifters that she brings to life before my very eyes. Her stories are definite page turners and find it hard to put her books down once I get started. Looking forward to reading her next installment and seeing what adventure she takes us on next.
Until next time, happy reading.
Dragon Heat
Book # 1
Dragon Heat Series
by Ella J. Phoenix
Links to order Dragon Heat: Amazon / Barnes & Noble
Description:
Zoricah, the draconian demigoddess, has limited time to uncover a series of killings before one of her own meets the same fate. Determined not to let that happen, Zoricah has no other choice but to ask for the help of her race’s archenemy.
Tardieh, the Vampire King, has long learnt not to trust the Dragons but when the flames of passion ignite between him and Zoricah, he finds himself torn between overwhelming sexual heat and his centuries-old distrust.
Together they have to overcome their own prejudices before it is too late for their races and their love.
Review;
Having already read one of Ms. Phoenix’s books(Manataka) I was very happy to have the chance to read a couple more of her books. This time around it’s her Dragon Heat series and book one is aptly named Dragon Heat. I love books with dragons, vampires and other worldly beings, so when I read the premise of this book, I was sold instantly. Vampires and dragons having to work together, bring it on.
First off, I should say that I have quickly become a fan of Ms. Phoenix. I just love the way she writes, builds her worlds, characters and storylines. She does another amazing job here with Dragon Heat. We have Zoricah the Draconian Demigoddess and Tarhieh the Vampire King, both from different races who are known for distrusting the other due to centuries of battles and issues between the two factions. So when Zoricah seeks out Tardieh for help, you better hold onto you boot straps people cause we are in for a bumpy ride. Even though they don’t trust each other there’s no denying the chemistry between Zoricah and Tardieh. The heat between these two characters is palpable and steams up the pages. There has been something between them from the first moment they met some 200 years ago, when Zoricah freed Tardieh from a Draconian prison. Now they must figure out how to work together and deal with their attraction at the same time.
Zoricah and Tardieh aren’t the only one’s who have trust issues in this story. Both have their trusted friends and warriors who fight with them. Neither Tardieh’s men, nor Zoricah’s friends/warriors trust the other group. On top of having to deal with each other, Zoricah and Tardieh have to somehow find a way to get their respective warriors to trust one another and work together as a team. As the story progresses we slowly see the two sides begin to trust each other and come together as one unit to battle their enemy. Both teams are well balanced and compliment one another out in the battlefield. As they start to trust one another friendships are formed and we get to see some lighter moments between the teams amongst all the darkness and battles.
As the story progresses, I became quite interested in the sub-plot Ms. Phoenix begins to create between two other characters, Sam(Zoricah’s friend/warrior) and Hikuro(Tardieh’s 2nd in command). There is no denying that these two are going to tango, err I mean tangle down the road. These two definitely have the wow factor as well, and I can’t wait to see where Ms. Phoenix will go with these two. See that’s another reason I enjoy Ms. Phoenix’s writing. Even though she has her hero and heroine that the main story is about, she manages to weave sub-plots along the way that begin to tell another story, but without straying from, or disrupting the main plot. If anything, it adds more depth to the storyline and gives the reader glimpses of what’s possibly to come down the road in future storylines. I know it’s left me salivating for more.
Dragon Heat was a fun, quick read, with imaginative and very creative story telling. Ms. Phoenix once again does a terrific job of creating her characters, mythology and storylines. The chemistry between Zoricah and Tardieh is hot, and kept me turning page after page to see what they would do next. The battle scenes are well written and kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I have a funny feeling this story isn’t finished yet. As I said, Ms. Phoenix does an amazing job of weaving sub-plots within her main story, and I for one can’t wait to continue this fantastic series in her next novel Vampire Thirst.
Until next time, Happy Reading
Reviewed by Marcie
Copy provided by Author
