Sunday Surprise!

Blood Vice by Keith Melton (The Nightfall Syndicate #1)

Mafia hit man. Vampire. The criminal underworld just got a whole lot darker.

Business has never been better for hit man Karl Vance. Boston is awash in mafia blood, and Vance has a certain fondness for blood. He’s a master vampire—one of the most powerful of his kind. Having sworn to never again feed on the blood of innocents, Karl preys instead on Boston’s criminal underworld. Which makes him a valuable asset to those who deal in death.

Maria Ricardi intends to use that asset to its full extent in order to gain power within her patriarchal crime family. Vance thinks he’s been hired to keep track of the family’s princess, but she’s got a plan to get her hands dirty and earn the respect she deserves. And she’s not above using their instant attraction to get what she wants.

That driving ambition draws the attention of a rival clan’s newest and most dangerous “consultant.” Alejandro Delgado, Vance’s centuries-old nemesis. Delgado zeroes in on the one chink in Vance’s armor—his fondness for the headstrong Maria.

When she becomes enslaved by Delgado’s unnatural kiss, only one thing is certain. Vance has to decide which he wants more. To settle the score—or rescue her soul.

Hellfire Lounge by R. Allen Leider

The Devil’s Rat Pack! Satan is your host and his guests include Beezlebub, Druscilla Marie d’Lambert (Wicca Girl) and Cheralyn Rose Moscowitz (Daughter of Darkness). The drinks are strong and a coven of master storytellers–C.J. Henderson, James Chambers, John L. French, R. Allen Leider and Richard Dean Starr–impart tales of strange and unearthly things. Sip your bubbling brew and hear of a dragon who prefers bacon to virgins; the cannibal curse of Aleister Crowley; a kindly grandfather accidentally transformed into a blood-thirsty zombie; two complete case files of supernatural investigator Bianca Jones; soul-searching and snatching in the most perverse manner; a Holocaust survivor’s bizzare revenge goes amok; cowardly reprobate Darby goes to Hell to help a friend; the Devil’s three sons–Moe, Larry, and Curley–foul up the Apocalypse; the ancient Syrens plot world domination via the recording industry; and many more accounts of the supernatural. Bonus: New Scotland Yard enlists MI-6 agent Wicca Girl–Druscilla, Queen of Witches–to capture a 300 year-old serial killer. Have a seat and join the party! You never know who you’ll meet in THE HELLFIRE LOUNGE!

Rabbit: Chasing Beth Rider by Ellen C Maze

What if your bestselling novel attracts the wrong kind of attention?
Author Beth Rider’s second vampire novel has hit number one and she is flying high on her new-found fame. But at a fated book signing that runs late into the night, Beth is confronted by an evil she’d only experienced in nightmares. Jack Dawn, a supernatural monster belonging to an ancient race of bloodthirsty immortals known as the Rakum, vows to track down and kill the young writer because of the vile redemptive message her book is bringing his people.

The Rakum have spread evil among mankind since the Beginning, growing in strength and influence with every passing century. A respected Elder among his brethren, Jack recognizes the novel’s destructive potential and his duty to destroy her before the book’s promises annihilate his Kind. His method of subduing the novelist is an ancient punishment perpetrated against humans who bring them the ultimate displeasure; Jack marks her as a Rabbit. By forcing her to ingest his poisonous blood, Beth’s body now regenerates endlessly and she is set free to be tracked by his hungry brethren. The plan? His people will torture her, slowly, night after night, until she goes insane. Marking her was easy – now Jack only has to sit back and wait for the Rakum to do their worst.

Jack’s proselyte Michael Stone was brought up from his youth to be strong, sensible and oftentimes, brutal. But at one hundred and thirty, Michael is old enough to appreciate the quiet and ordered life he’d carved out for himself over the years. Aware that his Elder has marked a human for death, Michael is on the lookout as he leaves work late one night. When he stumbles upon the beautiful and apparently innocent Beth Rider, he is instantly smitten, despite the fact that a few seconds later he realizes that she is the target of his Elder’s fury. Puzzled by Jack’s unreasonable condemnation, Michael takes it upon himself to protect the lovely author from the limitless lust of his brethren.

Rakum grunt Javier – Millier was never one to question the Fathers nor doubt the word of the Elders but after reading a curiously odd vampire novel, he begins to doubt the understood deity of his race. Soon identified by Jack Dawn as a traitor, Javier goes on the run with Elder Roman and a mortal with a personal hidden agenda. They also are in pursuit of the book’s author, although their intentions are quite dissimilar from those of their brethren.

Facing the most terrifying trial of her life against creatures known only in fables, one simple woman will unintentionally threaten the very existence of a powerful and accursed people. In the climactic mêlée, it is a race to the death, or if Beth has her way, a race to the life-of every Rakum who makes the choice.

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.

7 Comments

  1. Wow, where did you dig these up from? They all sound great. I love the idea of a vampire hit man, and esp. a book centered around a writer-heroine and competing moralities. In fact, that sucker is going on my list now.

  2. Thanks for including Hellfire Lounge….the companion anthology to the Wicca Girl trilogy series that started last May. One should read Wicca Girl first to full appreciate the referenced events. Thanks again.

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