The Emerald Lily

Captain Mikhail Romanov and a few Bloodguards are watching Briar Rose in order to remove Vilhelmina Dragomir, Princess of Arkadia, from her prison and take her to safety. “Mina” was induced into a bloodless sleep for nefarious purposes, and Mikhail must rouse her with a blood kiss, which awakens all sorts of forbidden desires in both of them. Mikhail has a mission, he must not fall for the princess, as more than Mina’s life is at stake: Mikhail has a family to avenge, and being a Bloodguard forbids him family and marriage. Protecting a beautiful princess will be a daunting task indeed. This is book 4 in the Vampire Blood series, and I felt THE EMERALD LILY was a return to what I liked most about the series; there was more action than in the two previous books, and the prologue was quite intriguing. I’m still not crazy about the instalust; as in the previous instalments, it feels like there is some sort of a rush to have a sex scene very early on. Also, the four-letter words and curses still feel somewhat wrong; they sound too contemporary amidst the overall quaint historical tone of the story; it’s like someone saying “Yo!” in a regular historical romance; they’re unwelcome jolts. Anyway. The story arc began in THE BLACK LILY continues, and Ms. Cross succinctly provides all the details so that even a newcomer will not feel lost. In spite of my aversion to instalust, Mikhail and Mina are lovely characters, the chemistry is decidedly there, and the vampire sex is very erotically charged. The writing is absolutely gorgeous, the descriptions are enchanting; the hart wolves and the Silvane Forest seen through Mina’s eyes is an experience in itself; the magical feel is superbly conveyed. Mina is regal, serene, and dignified; she is a delight, and poor Mikhail who is torn between Mina and his duty! And it was all so lovely, romantic, and beautiful, THE EMERALD LILY, happily soaring towards that fifth star, when Mikhail turned into your average domineering alpha hero. I could have done without the tossing of the heroine on the bed, and especially that he binds her wrists for some oral play. I do not like surprise BDSM elements, and here it completely destroyed the mood, for me. Then Mikhail is off to a gory battle; I don’t remember if there was that much violence in the previous instalments, or if it was because it followed the sex scene, but I was somewhat stunned, and not in a good way. Then, Mina’s first time: Mikhail enters her with “brutal force”. My, isn’t he considerate. I think those two episodes disrupted my reading. Mina is formidable, she possesses a phenomenal presence, and she is a tremendously appealing heroine; King Dominik’s delectable malevolence (he is a fabulous villain), and Lord Rathbone’s unmistakable charisma diminished Mikhail’s lustre in my eyes. But it’s all relative. I also wondered if, in the previous instalments, there were so many mentions of “his/her beast”; it became tedious. The worldbuilding is astounding, and Ms. Cross adds layer upon layer to her already fascinating world. There is loads and loads of action, so much so towards the end that my attention began to wander a bit. But all in all, THE EMERALD LILY is a great paranormal romance. I read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I’ve admired the covers of books in this series but I’m kind of over the whole vampire as hero trope. Too much, too quickly I guess. But I was entranced by the cover and intrigued enough by the blurb to request this book. Am I glad I did! This was a bodice-ripping, fang-dripping rollercoaster of a novel complete with princesses, evil witches, cute moppets, secret rebellions and shifters. Loosely based on Sleeping Beauty (and maybe Snow White), the vampire Princess Mina is locked into a perpetual sleep caused by blood deprivation, punishment for refusing to sleep with the evil Queen Morgrid’s despicable son Dominik. She is awakened by the blood kiss of Captain Mikhail Romanov, leader of the Black Lily, a group of noble vampires united against Morgrid’s reign of terror. It’s fast-paced, there’s the obligatory “mine” and lots of fangs and I loved it. Although it is not the first book in the series it can easily be read as a stand-alone as I did. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review.

Whooeee!!! This was an amazing ending to Juliette Cross’ Vampire Blood series!!! Princess Vilhelmina Dragomir is lost in a bloodless sleep. During her time spent locked away in tortured slumber, war rages across the land. And then the most amazing thing happens. A kiss. More specifically, a blood kiss. Mikhail Romanov has vowed his life and service to his brothers. At the root of his vow is the burning need to exact vengeance. The next step in doing that is to rescue the princess. But at what cost? Oh my gawd, I loved this couple!! Mina was always the dutiful perfect little princess, preparing to stand beside the man who would one day be king. When Mikhail awakens her body, her soul also begins to stir and she realizes that there is more to her than what she has been taught. Bit by bit she grows stronger as she reaches for what she wants with Mikhail as well as what her and her country require to be free from evil. Her growth was one of the highlights of this story and I literally cheered when she embraced everything that she was. Mikhail is drawn to Mina. He felt it the moment he first laid eyes on her. He tasted it when he awoke her with his kiss. Unfortunately, a wife and family are not permitted in his life and he struggles to keep his distance from her. But this is Juliette Cross so that effort isn’t going to hold out for long. I loved how protective he was over her even while he battled with his own feelings. And the comradery he had with his brothers in arms was entertaining as well as gut wrenching at times. This book is so full of twists and turns, excitement and action, and romance. It’s a fast paced, well written read that never gets bogged down or overwhelmed with unnecessary details or introspection. The action was realistic causing my heart to race and my breath to catch. (I’m not even going to talk about what happened to my fingernails!) A friend recommended the Black Lily when it was released and I timidly tried it. It’s safe to say I loved it and each book afterward. It’s a sad day that this series is ending but I can’t wait to see what this author is going to offer us next. This is an honest review of an advanced copy provided by NetGalley and Entangled Publishing.