Blood Kiss by J.R. Ward is a new look into the world of the Black Dagger Brotherhood, a younger look as Ward takes us into the training academy with a class of new recruits. And included in these recruits, for the first time, are females, some from important families. I liked this twist and modernization of the brotherhood, especially after many of them fought alongside powerful females in their own books.

The new trainees are introduced as they complete an incredibly difficult obstacle-style course to see who can make the cut – and who can’t. They form some bonds along the way, and they find some rivals. The initiation is brutal, and knowing what the brotherhood has to face, I can understand why.

The romance between the trainees is a little sweeter and more innocent than what was typical in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series, but it was still very intense and surrounded by a very major life and death situation. I really enjoyed most things about the story, but it isn’t really a new entry point for readers that haven’t read the original series. There is a lot of background that you will need to know to fully understand what is going on.