Review: A fun and quirky story
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 12, 2014
I got a kick out of this story. It takes place in a world where paranormal beings rule and humans are treated as third-class. Here, Count Vlad (a vampire) finds a dirty, uneducated, wild young human male in his stables. Something about the young man touches him, and he brings him in to help protect him. His assistant, Igorian (a flamboyant diva of a vampire), can't understand why Vlad is so enthralled with this hissy creature. Vlad already has his allotment of two blood donors from the paranormal Council, and can get in trouble if he tries to stake claim to a third. Also, the human isn't branded, so he's up for grabs by anyone that finds him. Humans can live in the world, but they do have to be registered and serve some purpose, even if it's just as slaves."Boy" (the hissy human Vlad ultimately names "Bela") just escaped from a sadistic master who kept him as a slave and beat him. Uneducated, with a tenuous grasp of language, he views all vampires and werewolves with extreme prejudice. Except Vlad, who he grudgingly starts to feel protective of.The world is interesting in a quirky and odd way. Many of the people are named as slight variations of fictional horror characters. Lou Garoux (a werewolf), Pan Thyr (a panther shifter), etc. Also, many places are humorous variations of real-life places or businesses (like Starbloods, the coffee shop).The drama in the story comes from Bela's former owner trying to get him back. It seems Bela left with something that could tie the sadistic bastard to some unsavory and illegal business deals, and the man will do anything to get Bela back. It's odd, fun, sexy, and a very enjoyable little tale.