Review: Crisp world building. Great series starter.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 20, 2013
McCallister really pulls the everyday category paranormal romance out of the ordinary with BAD MOUTH. With crisp world-building that establishes a dual-caste vampire society living side-by-side with humans this could easily have become a strong fabric for an urban fantasy or full-length paranormal romance series. I'm impressed with how well she pulled it off in such a short format without completely veering outside of the trope-y goodness categories are known for.Kade is the cocky vampire tasked with helping Val and her partner solve a slew of murders that are causing tension in Seattle. She dislikes him from the start but there's no denying the growing attraction between them. Well-bred and on the serious side she's annoyed with Kade's crass language and blunt way of saying things, yet it grows on her as the story progresses. A relationship between them is a really bad idea considering that he's a vampire prince and she's working on legislation to make all vampire transformations illegal. The sensual tension sparking between them, however, just can't be denied.This is one of those yummy enemies-to-lovers type stories that somehow flows so organically you forget they shouldn't be able to make it work. The steamy scenes practically melted my poor ereader and Kade's bad mouth made me blush more than a few times! But what really helps this one be a great series starter is the small cast of secondary characters. I'm well known for latching onto secondaries and while I liked Killian and Alice--who are the couple in the next series entry--I just love Ezra, so here's hoping McCallister writes a story for him too. There's a lot of room to dig around in this unique vampire society so fans of lengthier fiction might love BAD MOUTH as a palate cleansing read between longer ones.Love a good dirty-talkin' hero? Kade's your man! Salivate for enemies-to-lovers without feuding families involved? BAD MOUTH's just what you're looking for. If you love your PNR with the world of the paranormals open to the humans ala True Blood, this one is a must read.Notes: ARC received via publisher.