HUNGER (The Energy Vampires #2) by Jacquelyn Frank-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date August 8, 2017

Two strangers—one warm and human, the other deadly and craving—become pawns in an all-out vampire war as this series from the New York Times bestselling author of the Nightwalkers saga heats up.

As an energy vampire, Halo enjoys the chase for human blood—if it’s pure and consensual. But Halo goes from hunter to hunted when he is knocked unconscious and taken hostage by vicious sycophants. As he comes to, he realizes that he’s naked, starving, and trapped in a sealed room. With him is a deliciously human female, tempting him to feed—except her blood is heady with the scent of poisonous drugs. Never has nourishment been so near, yet so far . . . and it’s all part of the sycophants’ sick game.

The last thing Felice Mendoza remembers is everything going black. She awakens stripped, drugged, exposed, and alone—with a vampire. Halo is at once savage and tender, terrifying and alluring. Felice senses that her only chance to escape depends upon his survival. Given the choice between Halo and his enemies, Felice surrenders to his ravenous hunger. It’s a calculated risk—and a delirious pleasure. As Felice is ushered into a world as dangerous as it is desirable, their fight for deliverance is only the beginning.

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REVIEW: HUNGER is the second installment in Jacquelyn Frank’s contemporary, adult THE ENERGY VAMPIRES paranormal, romance series. This is energy vampire and hunter Halo, and antiques dealer Felice Mendoza’s story line.

SOME BACKGROUND: Energy vampires are aliens, descended to earth years before, who soak up their nourishment from the sun, and feed off the energy (not blood) of humans who are pure in body and spirit. Those e-vampires who cross to the dark side, getting their nourishment from the energy of impure humans, become known as sycophants. The energy vampires have been pulled into a war where the ultimate target is the Queen of the vampires, and all that she rules.

Told from dual third person perspectives (Halo and Felice) HUNGER follows two strangers-one human female and one e-vampire male-who find themselves imprisoned by an unknown jailer. Not only is Felice Mendoza unaware of the existence of the supernatural but our heroine is ‘drugged’ in an effort to force a starving Halo to turn to the dark side. What ensues is the building but forbidden relationship between Halo and Felice as they struggle to break free of their captors, and the fall out when Halo walks away from the woman with whom he has fallen in love. A good portion of the story line takes place in a secure room (cell) where our couple struggle to stay one step ahead of an unknown threat to their safety and lives

HUNGER and the Energy Vampires is a different kind of vampire series in that the vampires feed off energy and not blood. Humans are considered cattle; fodder and food at an all you can eat open restaurant; and it is forbidden to allow a human to know about the vampire’s existence-memory wiping is a frequent threat against our story line heroine. Impure energy, such as that from addicts, alcoholics and the like, will eventually turn the energy vampire into a sycophant-a self serving, vampire addict who is all about the next fix or high.

Saying that, although the concept is intriguing, the series failed to pull me in due to the less than positive treatment and consideration of humans. It’s not that I believe the humans should be treated as royalty but it is the way in which the author designed the series, and has the characters justify their misconduct towards humans. In the end, the energy vampires are snobs and bigots; reverse ‘specieism’ as it pertains to their earthly hosts; supernatural supremacists who care little for the humans from whom they feed and use. I think, if the author had presented her characters with a little less vitriol and venom towards their human counterparts I would have had more empathy for the story line characters. Perhaps it was the constant and continuous reminders (memory wiping/ bigotry) that lessened my enjoyment of the story line.

There is some great back and forth banter between our leading couple. Felice is a strong heroine who has fallen for the brooding and maddening vampire-she sees something in Halo that others have failed to accept. Halo is a hunter of the sycophant-and in this his duty is to the Queen, and not to fall in love with a human female. The series premise and story line is interesting in its’ concept but lost something in its’ presentation; the characters are colorful; the romance struggles with too many preconceived notions but there is a definite spark between our leading couple.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy