The Gifted and The Damned (The Vampire Wars Series, Book #1)
by Dana Michelle Burnett
Blurb:
Seduction was her gift...He was her weakness...In the small town of Corydon Indiana, witches, seers, and shape shifters live hidden from the everyday world in plain sight. They live under the constant memory of the trials of Salem and live by a code of secrecy.
Ruby Malone, the only siren ever born to her family of witches, held the hearts of many men in the palm of her hand, making her the talk of the supernatural community, but there was only one man that she wanted. Making seer Archer Wallace hers was the only thing Ruby cared about until a war between the gifted and the vampires turned her world upside down.
Suddenly, the world that Ruby knows is gone. Archer is off fighting in the war and Poe Corvus, a rebellious shape shifter with a past, tempts her to be the siren she was born to be.
Bambi's Review:
My Rating: 
Sultry Scale:
This was a pretty good read, kinda gloomy though. I'm almost positive that it's a paranormal retelling of Gone With the Wind. It was all about the lives of the people who were suffering during war time, only instead of the North vs. South, you had Vampires vs. Gifted (all other paranormals). The characters and some of the events match up perfectly.
Ruby, the siren, was very much like Scarlett O'Hara, with her black hair and green cat eyes. All men loved her, and she seemed silly on the surface, but you end up rooting for her and she proves herself by surviving the war, and taking care of those around her to make sure they survived too. Ruby is also in love with Asher (the Ashley Wilkes character), but he marries Melina (the Melanie Hamilton character). Melina's brother (Andrew) is the Charles Hamilton character. And the scandalous Poe is our Rhett Butler. Like Scarlett in GWTW, I liked Ruby in this book and felt she got a bum rap. I hated the way that people treated her and never gave her a chance. The only ones who were ever nice to her were Melina and Poe... despite all that she did to survive the war. I can't say much more about the plot without giving away spoilers, so I'll stop w/ the comparisons now.
So I liked the story, but a couple things took away from the experience for me. There were too many POVs... Ruby, Asher, Melina, Lily, Poe, Ruby's mom, Ruby's dad, and so on. Just too many. When there are too many POVs, it is harder to connect with any single character. Luckily I was able to connect somewhat with Ruby, but not with any of the others. I actually wish I would have figured out the GWTW angle sooner, because I think that would have colored my reading a little different. I would have also liked to see more of a story line between Poe and Ruby... I didn't get the "grand passion" feeling from them that Scarlett and Rhett are so famous for. I think there is going to be a second novella coming soon, there was a link to claim a free copy of The Innocent and the Damned at the end, but the link did not work. I will keep reading and hope to see more Ruby and Poe in future books.
I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Sultry Scale:
This was a pretty good read, kinda gloomy though. I'm almost positive that it's a paranormal retelling of Gone With the Wind. It was all about the lives of the people who were suffering during war time, only instead of the North vs. South, you had Vampires vs. Gifted (all other paranormals). The characters and some of the events match up perfectly.
Ruby, the siren, was very much like Scarlett O'Hara, with her black hair and green cat eyes. All men loved her, and she seemed silly on the surface, but you end up rooting for her and she proves herself by surviving the war, and taking care of those around her to make sure they survived too. Ruby is also in love with Asher (the Ashley Wilkes character), but he marries Melina (the Melanie Hamilton character). Melina's brother (Andrew) is the Charles Hamilton character. And the scandalous Poe is our Rhett Butler. Like Scarlett in GWTW, I liked Ruby in this book and felt she got a bum rap. I hated the way that people treated her and never gave her a chance. The only ones who were ever nice to her were Melina and Poe... despite all that she did to survive the war. I can't say much more about the plot without giving away spoilers, so I'll stop w/ the comparisons now.
So I liked the story, but a couple things took away from the experience for me. There were too many POVs... Ruby, Asher, Melina, Lily, Poe, Ruby's mom, Ruby's dad, and so on. Just too many. When there are too many POVs, it is harder to connect with any single character. Luckily I was able to connect somewhat with Ruby, but not with any of the others. I actually wish I would have figured out the GWTW angle sooner, because I think that would have colored my reading a little different. I would have also liked to see more of a story line between Poe and Ruby... I didn't get the "grand passion" feeling from them that Scarlett and Rhett are so famous for. I think there is going to be a second novella coming soon, there was a link to claim a free copy of The Innocent and the Damned at the end, but the link did not work. I will keep reading and hope to see more Ruby and Poe in future books.
I was provided a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Available for purchase at
Excerpt
Ruby looked up at me, her green eyes glittering in the near
darkness. My gaze fell on her red trembling lips.
Before I could stop myself, I was kissing her, forcing my tongue
between her teeth. At first, she fought me, but then I felt her mold herself to
me and press herself against my groin.
There was no waiting. I pulled at her clothes, almost tearing them
off her. Her creamy flesh beckoned me, smelling of earth and sin. I tore away
my own clothes so that I could hold her warm body against my naked skin.
She reached up and took my face in her hands, “Look at me.”
I looked down into her green eyes, feeling my very soul pull
towards her. “What?”
Ruby brushed her hand over my cheek, “I do love you. I love you so
much that it scares me sometimes.”
I was kissing her then, trailing my lips along her jawline and
down to her neck. I could hear her unsteady and ragged breaths as I licked at
her collarbone, but my own breath was coming just as fast.
I eased her down onto the floor and stretched out beside her. My
lips found her breast, she cried out as they closed around her nipple. I
brought my hand up to knead the other breast, pinching that nipple between my
first finger and thumb. Ruby arched her back and twisted her fingers in my hair
as my tongue circled her nipple before taking it between my teeth in a gentle
nibble.
I pulled her closer, sliding my hand under her so that I could
clutch her buttock. I ran one finger along her cleft, teasing her nether
opening.
She drew in a sharp breath and bucked her hips upwards as if trying
to get closer to me. I ached with my need to impale her, to fill her
completely.
I groaned, low and animalistic. I shifted so that I could move
further down, leaning over her and brushing her hair off her neck and
shoulders.
“Can I really trust you?” I asked as I teased her skin with a
feather touch.
“Yes,” she gasped. “Yes.”
I brought my lips back down to her lips and then trailed along her
throat, between her breasts, and stopped just below her stomach. I positioned
myself between her legs, eased her thighs apart, and then lowered my mouth to
her wet slit.
Ruby gasped as I buried myself there, lapping at her inner folds.
She bucked and cried out as I held her down and worked her over. She was still
twitching when I moved back up her body, kissing her hot flesh, as I took her.
She clutched at my shoulders, pulling me closer. I felt her come
apart again and again until I could not hold back anymore. I swore as a shudder
overtook me.
We remained on the floor, Ruby’s head against my chest. My fingers
tracing the ridges of her spine as I listened to our hearts beat in time.
About The Author
Dana Michelle Burnett spent most of her life writing short stories and sharing them with family and friends. Over the years, her work was published in numerous commercial and literary magazines including Just Labs, Mindprints: A Literary Journal, Foliate Oak, and many more. Her short story John Lennon and the Chicken Holocaust was include in The Best of Foliate Oak 2006.
Dana Michelle's Spiritus Series introduced the idea of a ghostly romance and became a Kindle bestselling series. Her Gypsy Fairy Tale Series combined the magic of the Tuatha De Danann and the Irish Travellers and the first book in the series, Once, was included in the Faery Realms Multi-Author Box Set. With this new series, Dana Michelle dives into the trials and tribulations surrounded the paranormal gifted during a war with vampires.
She's an avid reader of anything dark and romantic. Dana Michelle lives in Southern Indiana with her dancing diva daughter and an assortment of pets.
Dana Michelle loves connecting with her readers.
You can find Dana at
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