Scan barcode
charms1976's review
4.0
Oh Ms. Ashley, how you love to tease me and indulge my vampire fantasy! I am a sucker (no pun intended) for a vampire romance. What truly makes a vampire romance stand out for me though is how they were written before the vampires became sparkly and soft. I love them bad, tough, secretive and edgy. Author Amanda Ashley has never let me down with making a vampire romance a true dark and beautiful read.
Skylynn has watched and admired Kaiden from across the street from a young age up until adulthood. She remembers having a teenage crush on him even with his unusual quirks. So what if he only mowed his lawn at night. So he never quite aged as much as other people. As a teen she looked over those mysterious and crushed anonymously on him. Kaiden was her Grandfather's friend. When Kaiden would come over and join her Grandfather in his lab, she never knew what happened behind closed doors. She would hear bits and pieces of conversation, but never got the whole story. Her brother also had questions, but never ventured in asking them.
Now she is an adult, her brother is missing, and her Grandfather has just passed away. Skylynn is forced to return to her childhood home and begin settling her Grandfathers estate. Should she keep the house or sell it? What should she do with all of his medical journals and supplies? Shortly after returning, Skylynn is surprised to see Kaiden return to his home as well across the street. Even more surprising is the fact that he still looks as gorgeous and youthful as he did so many years ago. It seems that Skylynn's Grandfather had been making a medicine of sorts for Kaiden and he is running out of the last batch. He is hoping that Skylynn will help him out and look around her Grandfather's lab for the formula. Unfortunately, Kaiden is not the only person wanting the formula. Another person is wanting it and willing to do whatever it takes to find it -- including hurting Kaiden by going after Skylynn.
I really enjoyed the sweet romance between Kaiden and Skylynn. They have known each other for years, but never acted on their feelings. At first I was a little timid watching the two start a romance for the simple fact that Kaiden watch Skylynn grow up from a child. True, he didn't have sexual feelings for her when she was young, but that doesn't seem to make me ignore the fact that it seemed wrong. Once I moved past that though, I enjoyed reading about their romantic progression and the hopes in finding the formula. When the formula is revealed at the end of the book -- which is easy to figure out once you think about it -- you will be laughing along with the characters at the creative way Skylynn's Grandfather had hid it.
If you are looking for a darker and less sparkly vampire romance, then I urge you to give author Amanda Ashley a try. Not only does she do them well, but she has many to choose from for days of reading enjoyment.
Skylynn has watched and admired Kaiden from across the street from a young age up until adulthood. She remembers having a teenage crush on him even with his unusual quirks. So what if he only mowed his lawn at night. So he never quite aged as much as other people. As a teen she looked over those mysterious and crushed anonymously on him. Kaiden was her Grandfather's friend. When Kaiden would come over and join her Grandfather in his lab, she never knew what happened behind closed doors. She would hear bits and pieces of conversation, but never got the whole story. Her brother also had questions, but never ventured in asking them.
Now she is an adult, her brother is missing, and her Grandfather has just passed away. Skylynn is forced to return to her childhood home and begin settling her Grandfathers estate. Should she keep the house or sell it? What should she do with all of his medical journals and supplies? Shortly after returning, Skylynn is surprised to see Kaiden return to his home as well across the street. Even more surprising is the fact that he still looks as gorgeous and youthful as he did so many years ago. It seems that Skylynn's Grandfather had been making a medicine of sorts for Kaiden and he is running out of the last batch. He is hoping that Skylynn will help him out and look around her Grandfather's lab for the formula. Unfortunately, Kaiden is not the only person wanting the formula. Another person is wanting it and willing to do whatever it takes to find it -- including hurting Kaiden by going after Skylynn.
I really enjoyed the sweet romance between Kaiden and Skylynn. They have known each other for years, but never acted on their feelings. At first I was a little timid watching the two start a romance for the simple fact that Kaiden watch Skylynn grow up from a child. True, he didn't have sexual feelings for her when she was young, but that doesn't seem to make me ignore the fact that it seemed wrong. Once I moved past that though, I enjoyed reading about their romantic progression and the hopes in finding the formula. When the formula is revealed at the end of the book -- which is easy to figure out once you think about it -- you will be laughing along with the characters at the creative way Skylynn's Grandfather had hid it.
If you are looking for a darker and less sparkly vampire romance, then I urge you to give author Amanda Ashley a try. Not only does she do them well, but she has many to choose from for days of reading enjoyment.
elliefufu's review
2.0
His Dark Embrace by Amanda Ashley
Grade: D
“While I’ve been here, taking care of my mom and trying to keep my dad’s spirits up, Lance has been out on the town with another woman.”
Skylynn McNamara has returned to California after her grandfather’s death to sort out all of his belongings and settle his estate. Skylynn hasn’t been home since she left for college and is shocked to see her neighbor and childhood crush Kaiden Thorne still living across the street. Kaiden hasn’t aged a bit and Sky is shocked when he asks her out fulfilling her childhood fantasy. But Kaiden is not what he seems and the more time they spend together it becomes obvious Kaiden is not what he seems.
Kaiden Thorne has been a vampire for over four hundred years and with the help of his neighbor Mr. McNamara he was able to be a normal person and not a creature of the night. With McNamara death, the formula for keeping Kaiden able to walk in the sunlight is lost and he is desperate to find it. Kaiden is shocked to see Skylynn all grown up and as important as the formula is Kaiden cannot walk away from her. Kaiden is not the only one looking for the formula and soon old enemies are back in Kaiden and Skylynns life and together they must set things right.
I wanted to like this book but I have finally accepted that I am not a fan of this author’s work and need to just stop trying . I found this book to be very cheesy and the dialogue had me spending a lot of time rolling my eyes. The quote I used is the perfect example of the corny things characters say and it made it so hard to read this book.
Kaiden and Skylynn aren’t bad characters and I really liked them at first but after awhile they got very annoying. Neither could make up their minds about anything and Sky would run and hide when anything bad happened. Sky seemed very naive and very young, which is not something I look for in a heroine. I don’t think her and Kaiden are a good match and it made it very hard to root for them to have a happily ever after.
I don’t want to give too much away and I don’t want to be super negative. I personally am not a fan of this book or it’s characters and this will be the last book I read by this author out of fairness to her and her fans.
Grade: D
“While I’ve been here, taking care of my mom and trying to keep my dad’s spirits up, Lance has been out on the town with another woman.”
Skylynn McNamara has returned to California after her grandfather’s death to sort out all of his belongings and settle his estate. Skylynn hasn’t been home since she left for college and is shocked to see her neighbor and childhood crush Kaiden Thorne still living across the street. Kaiden hasn’t aged a bit and Sky is shocked when he asks her out fulfilling her childhood fantasy. But Kaiden is not what he seems and the more time they spend together it becomes obvious Kaiden is not what he seems.
Kaiden Thorne has been a vampire for over four hundred years and with the help of his neighbor Mr. McNamara he was able to be a normal person and not a creature of the night. With McNamara death, the formula for keeping Kaiden able to walk in the sunlight is lost and he is desperate to find it. Kaiden is shocked to see Skylynn all grown up and as important as the formula is Kaiden cannot walk away from her. Kaiden is not the only one looking for the formula and soon old enemies are back in Kaiden and Skylynns life and together they must set things right.
I wanted to like this book but I have finally accepted that I am not a fan of this author’s work and need to just stop trying . I found this book to be very cheesy and the dialogue had me spending a lot of time rolling my eyes. The quote I used is the perfect example of the corny things characters say and it made it so hard to read this book.
Kaiden and Skylynn aren’t bad characters and I really liked them at first but after awhile they got very annoying. Neither could make up their minds about anything and Sky would run and hide when anything bad happened. Sky seemed very naive and very young, which is not something I look for in a heroine. I don’t think her and Kaiden are a good match and it made it very hard to root for them to have a happily ever after.
I don’t want to give too much away and I don’t want to be super negative. I personally am not a fan of this book or it’s characters and this will be the last book I read by this author out of fairness to her and her fans.
itclouie's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
fox_cloud's review
3.0
Even though I nearly stopped reading this through the first half, the second half gets way better:)
More...