Blood of the Maple
Dana Marie BellFantasy romance
Available from Carina Press
ISBN: 9781426891441
April 2011
| Parker Hollis is the only vampire of his kind. A seduction gone wrong in the Swinging Sixties has left him a vegetarian vampire; his blood has to be mixed with leafy greens. Maggie's Grove seems like the perfect place for him to move. It is a small paranormal friendly town with ready employment for the vampire botanist. His neighbor is Amara Schwedler, a dryad. She is a bit more than a dryad and is considered a freak in a town of beings that are far from normal. Her blood is green and leafy and she is beautiful and very appealing to Parker, in fact she is his true mate. Trouble arrives in the form of Terri, the witch who cursed Parker so many years ago. She is determined to keep Parker for her own and has killed to obtain his love, but she has never come up against someone like Amara or a town like Maggie's Grove.
Ms. Bell has created a unique and inviting place in Maggie's Grove. The inhabitants are very colorful and each unique in their own way. Parker's best friend Greg, a ghostly former witch who lives life more fully than most humans is one of the most colorful. His romantic relationship with Parker's Renfield is entertaining and very creative. The author's depiction of life in this unique small town is very detailed and there are many different paranormal beings in the town. Parker and Amara's romance is very steamy and emotional, especially since the two are outcasts among their kind. Amara is a very different sort of dryad and it is sad to see how she is treated by most of the populace until the dryad leaders finally step in. The plot is interesting and filled with suspense and action; Terri is one of the most bizarre and disturbed villains I have ever encountered, and she definitely keeps things interesting.
Overall rating:
Reviewer: Maura Frankman |
