Review: Entertaining and Well Written!
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 21, 2013
Bittersweet Blood is a Paranormal Romance written by Nina Croft.3.5 Pretty Stars!The Review:I enjoyed this read. It was fast paced, well written and the main characters were interested, sexy and easy to connect with. I even enjoyed the plot, though entirely predictable, which was well developed and flowed easily throughout the whole story. It was filled with everything I'd want in a paranormal romance. There were Vampires, Werewolves, Demons, Fae, Shapeshifters and Witches, fun and loyal best friends and a sweet romance. So why only 3.5 stars? It's all been done before. Don't get me wrong, it was an enjoyable read, but in a market that's flooded with paranormal romances, there needs to be something to make a book stick out above the others in order to deserve 5 stars and to me, this one just didn't have the catch I was looking for.Characters...Tara Collins has lived a secluded life. Her mother died while giving birth, leaving her to be raised by a recluse aunt who in turn, forbids Tara from venturing out into the world and letting herself be known. Unknowingly to Tara, they have secrets to hide and her aunt is in charge of keeping those secrets hidden. They lived by a very distinct set of rules in which Tara obeys for the most part. But after her aunt passes away, she decides it's time to see what the world is about.After establishing a life for herself, she becomes curious about her mysterious past and seeks out the PI services of Christian Roth, which sets in motion a future she never wanted, new friends and enemies she could never have imagined and a love that sets her soul on fire.I liked the way Christian Roth was presented. The world building for his race was interesting and fun. We get to see part of The Order, in which Christian used to run. There's a delicate balance between the different paranormal races and war is on the brink, people are dying and others are in danger. There's a lot going on in this read.My biggest complaint was Tara. She was constantly complaining about how she wanted a normal life. I get that after such a sheltered life she wanted to experience things in a normal fashion but when you find out you have supernatural blood running through you're veins, I'd figured that after such a lonely and dull life of living with one person and never interacting with others, you'd embrace the abnormal and be excited about the possibilities she was introduced to. But that's now how her character responded. She could have come out fighting and been this total badass character but it was disappointing watching her shy away from it all. She eventually comes around in the end but by then, so much has happened that I was just tired of her complaining about her abnormal life.The Wrap Up:This was a quick and fun read and though it was predictable, I really enjoyed the story itself. I'd definitely move on to book two when it comes out and I'll probably invest some time into reading more works by this author.NOTE:: A gifted copy was provided for an honest review by Entangled Publishing, LLC through NetGalley.