The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance 2 Review
Editor Trisha Telep has done it again, she's used her connections - and apparently her cyberstalking talents - to amass another BIG batch of vampire quickies - 25 in all. If you are a short story fan looking for a whole bunch of little reads perfect for squeezing into even the busiest of schedules, this is the book for you. Unlike its predecessor The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance (Mammoth Books), not only are the majority of the stories presented here actually romances, but a good number of the authors successfully delivered tales complete with back story, hookup and at least the promise of a `happily-ever- after' in their small number of allotted pages.
Most of the stories here avoid the darker side of vamp romance but there are a few that shun the light. If you are an avid urban fantasy and paranormal romance fan like me, you'll recognize most of these authors, but even I discovered a few I hadn't read before. My favorites stories were the ones by Bacon-Smith, Stein, Trent and Aguirre. And though there didn't seem to be as many connected stories in this incarnation of the 'Mammoth Book' - quite a few of the authors seemed to be breaking into new territory - Ione's Demonica short was good too.
So here's just a few words each to give you an idea of what's lurking within MBofVR2's 556 pages.
1. Jordan Summers - "Paris After Dark" -- A NYPD cop broken by the loss of her partner, finds a new life in Paris after a run in with a vamp serial killer - While the heroine gets a resolution, I liked that Summers didn't try to force a HEA on the starring pair. She just delivered a romantic connection complete with hook-up and left the HEA to the readers imagination. (4 stars)
2. Deborah Cooke - "Coven of Mercy" -- An oncologist who refuses to ever quit the fight, learns of mercy from an unusual `angel' - The hero had potential but his part of the story was too brief to make up for the fact that, although she was fairly well developed, I just didn't connect with the heroine. (3 -stars)
3. Karen MacInerney - "Le Cirque de la Nuit" -- A circus aerialist whose performance stirs a hidden watcher, wants to go solo in the spotlight, but is she willing to pay the cost of succumbing to the dark allure of Le Cirque de la Nuit? - Not a romance, even though there is a sensuality to the woman's performance, vampire fans who like their vamps with bite will appreciate the dark HEA. (3 stars)
4. Caitlin Kittredge - "Perdition" -- Doc Holiday is a vampire slayer in the old west - The romantic elements of the story are told in flash backs, but for some reason this one just didn't grab me. - (3 stars)
5. Dina James - "Deliver Us From Evil" -- A fake psychic eases a vampire's hunger - I was hoping for a continuation of Jame's story from the Mammoth Book of PNR, so that may have colored my reaction. (3 - stars)
6. Camille Bacon-Smith - "Blood and Thyme" -- The owner of vampire catering company, whose servers are also the hordeuvres, needs to find a chef when human food is required on the menu for a special event - I just really liked this one, mostly because I liked the starring pair. Even so, I would have loved for this story to have been novella length, so that I could have seen more interaction between the leads and I would have loved to have seen a bit more of their HEA, there is just the promise of it here - (4.5 stars)
7. Rosemary Laurey - "Into the Mist For Ever" -- A roman soldier/medic falls for a warrior woman on the brink of a battle between her people and his - connected to her `Forever' Vampires series, we finally get Gywlth and Justin's story ( 3.5 stars)
8. Patti O'shea - "Blood Feud" -- A vamp enforcer is teamed up with her old demon lover to stop a war between their races - I liked this one and wished there was more (4 stars)
9. Angie Fox - "Love Bites" -- After her 879 year marriage finally ends, a vamp princess looks for love on a dating game show, only the sexy bachelor she chooses has other plans for their dream date - this one was fun, and who can resist a hero in a kilt - no brogue though, boo hoo. (4 stars)
10. Caitlin R Kiernan -"Flotsam" -- A man heeds a monthly call to attend an ancient one as she rises from her watery resting place - this story was previously published as "Not One of Us". Keirnan's style is poetic, but not enough actually happens here to satisfy me (3 stars)
11. Jamie Leigh Hansen - "The Murder King's Woman" -- A Vampire's 'pet' pulls off a daring rescue - the rescue was really well done, and I liked the heroine's plan for getting what she really wants. I'd read more vamps stories by Hansen, if she decides to write more. (4 stars)
12. Carole Nelson Douglas - "Butterfly Kiss" -- When tomcat Midnight Louie stumbles on a vampire at the edge of true death, Louie needs to call in someone with hands, and he knows just the someone - fellow PI Delilah. - This short brings Douglas' Delilah Street and Midnight Louie series together, the cat's eye view initially put me off of this one but story turned out to be cute and humorous. Though whereas I might checkout the Delilah books, this was more than enough of Louie here for me. (3.5 stars)
13. Diane Whiteside - "Crimson Kisses" connected to her Texas vampire series -- A young woman arranges to run off with her vamp lover, little realizing that the meeting place she has chosen will force her lover to violate a powerful vamps territory - if you are used to Whitside's Texas vamps, you are going to find this one very tame (3.5 stars)
14. Jaye Wells -"Vampsploitation" -- Sabina is on first assignment as an assassin - This is a prequel to Red-Headed Stepchild, and sets Sabina on her solitary path (3 stars)
15. Stacia Kane - "Trust Me" -- A woman becomes mistress to a mysterious man whom she suspects of being Jack the Ripper - this story fit the space and managed some steamy stuff along the way (4 - stars)
16. Jennifer Ashley - "The Scotsman and the Vamp" -- A vampiress leaves behind her betrothed to become a silent film star - I liked the flapper filmstar idea but the romance was just sort of generic (3 - stars)
17. Justine Musk - "I need More You" -- A vampire suffers from the continual abandonment of her angel lover but can't resist when he calls her to him once more - I read this one twice, mostly because I hit this part of the book when I was really tired and it required more careful reading than many of the others stories in the book. The story here is layered under the texture of the setting and there was much that I missed the first time through and I did actually end up liking it (4 stars)
18. Jennifer St Giles -"Point of No Return" -- He has watched from the shadows and fallen in love from afar with the woman who is equally smitten with the statue which bears his likeness. - There was much that I liked about this story, but I would have liked to have seen what St Giles would have done with this in novella length and more space to develop the leads and establish their connection a bit more gradually (3.5 stars)
19. Dawn Cook (aka Kim Harrison) -- "With Friends Like These" -- Hey what are friends for if not to help you with those pesky relatives? - This was not at all a romance, instead it features a vamp and his roomie bud, (3 stars)
20. Nancy Holder - "Blood Gothic" reprinted story -- A teacher dreams of a vampire lover who will offer her eternity - Not only is this reprinted but this is second anthology containing this story in the last month or so (By Blood we Live) - Is the vamp real or not? I didn't find this one engaging or like the ending when I read it in either of the anthologies - (2 stars)
21. Larissa Ione - "Eternity Embraced" - a Demonica short -- An Aegis vampire hunter embarks on a rescue mission knowing that, since vamps tend to 'turn' captured hunters, `saving' her partner/lover from a fate worse than death will likely require a stake - I really like Ione's series and this was a nice little tidbit not connected to the main series arc. This short works because of the already established connection between the leads and the fact that Ione doesn't try to force the ending which leaves the reader with the promise of more than could be delivered in this short space. (4 stars)
22. Jeanne C Stein - "The Ghost of Leadville" -- A vamp remembers the one that got away - this is the second Doc Holiday story in the collection but it was my favorite of the two and one of my favorites in the anthology. This is a short story that really works, Stein told the complete story effectively and even brought a few tears to my eyes ( 4.5 stars)
23. Tiffany Trent - "The Vampire, the Witch and the Yenko" -- Disguised as a mechanic, a witch who is undercover on a mission to take out a Mafioso magic theif who drains witches of their power, crosses paths with a male vamp who is being stalked by a female vamp in heat determined not to take no for an answer. But even though the witch's cover is blown, she just may have the solution to both of their problems - This is my first story by Trent but I thought story worked pretty well as a short, but that doesn't mean that I wouldn't have liked more. (4.5 stars)
24. Ann Aguirre - "Circle Unbroken" - Fascinated with her prey, a vampiress gets caught in her own trap - A slightly different take on vamps from Aquirre who manages to deliver a story and a romance that feels complete. (5 stars)
25. Devon Monk - "Skein of Sunlight" - A `yarn' about a cancer survivor and her chance to make new memories - I like Monk's writing and the hero and the attraction between the starring pair made this one work for me - (4 stars)
(2 stars - didn't like it ; 3 stars = ok; 3.5 = pretty good; 4 = liked it; 4.5 = really liked it; 5 stars = loved it)
The Mammoth Book of Vampire Romance 2 Overview
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