Reviews

Lore & Lust: The Awakening by Karla Nikole

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kevinscorner's review against another edition

Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

The Awakening is the third book in the queer vampire romance series Lore & Lust that now follow two secondary characters from the previous books. Human doctor Jae Davies manages his interest in vampires by specializing in the fringe field of vampire medicine. First-gen vampire Junichi Takayama is a jet-setting designer and professional benefactor. When circumstances throw them together, these two men are immediately drawn to each other despite being different species. But when Jae starts changing as their relationship develops, they must move past their prejudices and preconceived notions if they want to make it work.

This third book is probably the best written and most conventionally plotted of the series so far. It also reads like a more traditional romance complete with a third act break-up (of sorts) compared to the first two. The awakening plotline was much better utilized and intricately tied together with the romance compared to the previous book’s vanishing plotline. It seems Jae might not be quite as human as he thinks he is.

Despite a rough start to their relationship, both men put in the effort and overcome their personal issues— first through Jae’s past casual encounters with vampires then Jun’s restrictive family and personal history. It’s always nice to see realistic issues even in fantastical couplings like Jae and Jun. Of course, Haru and Nino are still prominent characters and I loved seeing them develop further and guiding others as the established couple. Giovanni and Cellina also make a short appearance towards the end.

The Awakening delivers another slowburn queer romance while remaining fresh and never feeling like a rethread.

nmcannon's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

After enjoying the first two Lore and Lust books, I was very excited to read The Awakening. I’m happy to say it met my expectations!

While Haruka and Nino appear in brief scenes, The Awakening is Junichi and Jae’s story. A pureblood vampire who ran Haruka’s realm while he was MIA, Junichi is a fun-loving dapper gentleman who knows how he likes to walk around the block. Jae is a human doctor who specializes in vampiric medicine. He bridges the medical difference between the two species–and questions why vampires find his blood oh-so-tasty until they take a bite.

The mystery of Jae’s blood is the thrust of the novel, along with the burgeoning romance between our two leads. Both are stuck in their ways, and it was a toe-curling pleasure to watch them grow as individuals and as a couple. Nikole expands the lore of Lore and Lust quite nicely, especially The Great Vanishing. One ongoing quibble I had with the series is the overuse of the words “male” and “female” as nouns. I get Nikole used this narrative tic to connote how vampires are a different culture and species than human women and men, but I’m happy she uses it less and less each novel. Each installment has less talk of blood quantum too, which eases my anxiety. The Awakening takes it a step farther by Jae stating that any amount of vampire heritage makes a person a vampire. Very refreshing to hear.

Despite some bumps in the road, Lore and Lust continues to be a squee-ful series. If you want an achillean vampire/vampire romance with lots to say about cultural exchange and diversity, check it out!

My review of Book 1: Lore and Lust: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/4c6ba413-fdb2-4cb6-9062-c1162d57044b

My review of Book 2: The Vanishing: https://app.thestorygraph.com/reviews/c43e3737-e92a-4233-89e8-9865cb3f7a51