Imagine you are 20 years old, on the brink of starting college, and about to spend spring break in France. Sounds great? Maybe not after you throw in an emotionally abusive mother, uncaring step-father, oh and don't forget the vampires you never expected to exist.
I just received a free ebook version of this breathtaking novella a few hours ago in exchange for reviews, and while I meant to merely read a few pages tonight, I could not put my ereader down and read the whole novella. The main character, Lorine, is the perfect balance of a female lead: not whiny or weak that you hope some other character will distract you from her nor so independent that you think they will snatch the author's pen away from them, but a normal girl who has moments of both strength and weakness. Lorine is someone people can relate to and understand. The secondary characters if her brother, mother, and step-father are clear and believable. They are a family with issues that are better than some, but definitely worse than others. The mother specifically I felt was shown very well through her dialogue and movements.
Onto plot, it was fast paced and gripping. I felt I was in France with her, and when Honore spun her through the nightclub, I felt I was living the fairy tale with her. And, when the fairytale ended, my heart beat just as fast as hers did in uncertainty and shock.
As the first of a series of novellas, this was a great beginning. I had never heard of reader's participation publishing before, but I am definitely a huge fan now. So far, it's a great idea and brilliantly executed. When all the novellas are out and they become a book, if they continue successfully as I eagerly hope they do, I would say the author should even consider making a series of the book and doing the novellas for each. Either way, 5 stars to this great beginning.