Author: Jeaniene Frost
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: June, 2012
Genre: Paranormal Romance / Urban Fantasy
Description: She's a mortal with dark powers...
After a tragic accident scarred her body and destroyed her dreams, Leila never imagined that the worst was still to come: terrifying powers that let her channel electricity and learn a person's darkest secrets through a single touch. Leila is doomed to a life of solitude...until creatures of the night kidnap her, forcing her to reach out with a telepathic distress call to the world's most infamous vampire...
He's the Prince of Night...
Vlad Tepesh inspired the greatest vampire legend of all—but whatever you do, don't call him Dracula. Vlad's ability to control fire makes him one of the most feared vampires in existence, but his enemies have found a new weapon against him—a beautiful mortal with powers to match his own. When Vlad and Leila meet, however, passion ignites between them, threatening to consume them both. It will take everything that they are to stop an enemy intent on bringing them down in flames.
My Thoughts: Jeaniene Frost is one of my favorite picks when I want a little “bite” to my romance. I love her Cat and Bones series. I didn’t love Vlad when I first met him in the earlier books. I found him to be very arrogant with an extremely large chip on his shoulder. With Once Burned, readers are given an inside and very in depth look into Vlad’s life. He’s not the typical vampire hero that readers will instantly fall for, but without realizing that it’s happening, readers will find themselves drawn to him, wanting to know more and get to know him better. I’m still annoyed that Ian has not gotten a story yet and still hoping for one, but by the end of this book, I found myself firmly a fan of Vlad.
Leila is also not your typical heroine. I really liked that she thinks quickly on her feet and makes the most of a bad situation to turn it around. I knew Leila would be an interesting character as soon as she is kidnapped in the beginning of the book, Instead of being a blubbery and withering victim, she turns the tables on her kidnappers. I found her gifts of telepathy and electricity very intriguing as well. Ms. Frost does an excellent job of bringing in the background of both of these characters to give the reader a better idea of who they are without digressing too much from the main story.
A lot of new characters are introduced that I really liked, especially Maximus, a vampire who works for Vlad and who befriends Leila. This story has a great mix of action, passion, intrigue and even some funny moments. Cat, Bones and Mencheres also make an appearance so there really wasn’t anything I could complain about too loudly. The story ends with a big unfinished twist that I hope will be addressed in the next book, Twice Tempted.
My Final Verdict: I found this to be a very good start to an interesting series that should appeal not only to fans of Cat and Bones, but also to all fans of vampire romance. Vlad and Leila are very strong willed characters that I enjoyed getting to know and look forward to what they face next.
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