Though Nino‘s Italian, so maybe that stereotype is somewhat ameliorated. Two of them are grasping and manipulative and the third is dangerously close to being the cliched sassy, Black BFF (and I’d bet the love interest/heroine of a future book). There are only three females in the book, all relatively minor side characters. Outside of the mismatched tone and cover I only had one real complaint, the lack of significant female characters. So, how do you rate a book that’s perfectly lovely, but misrepresents itself? I don’t know. And I do I bought the book on the strength of my love for it alone. In fact, I don’t feel it represents the tone of the book at all, as much as I love it. But more importantly, it isn’t what that absolutely stunning, but honestly dark and brooding cover led me to expect.

The problem with all that nice, squishy, feel-goodness though, is that it leaves little room for tension, which combined with the third person present tense writing leaves the reader feeling distant and slightly bored. It is a lovely, squishy, feel-good, slow-burn romance that was actually great as an election night distraction. The only thing missing is the inclusion of nice little babies.Īnd there is nothing wrong with any of that. It’s a nice book about nice people (vampires) getting together to form a nice, supportive relationship amongst their nice families/friends. If I had to choose one adjective, I’d say it’s nice. It puts a whimsical spin on traditional vampire lore, while also creating a vivid new world where love is love. Lore and Lust is an exploration of cultures, contemporary society and romance. Truly, he is unlike any vampire Haruka has ever encountered: cautious, innocent and with the warmth and gravitational pull of the sun. When he receives a formal request to oversee an antiquated vampire ritual at Hertsmonceux Castle, Haruka grudgingly leaves his home to meet another purebred. As an elite purebred vampire in the twenty-first century, he is broken. Haruka Hirano is alive, but not quite living. The slow burn vampire romance you didn’t know you needed… I purchased a paperback copy of Lore & Lust directly from the author, Karla Nikole, after seeing an Instagram post about having some for sale.

Lore and lust book 2