There was a lot of good in this one.

I liked that it was slow burn, which is a little unusual in my experience with harems.

I liked the way different creatures used mana, and how they gathered it. Tying in all the typical tropes of vampires drinking blood and such. It also made it a little bit more sense why the MC would be quite desirable in an harem and not just the "he's irresistible" thing that I've often experienced. I also liked that multiple supernatural races had polyamory and it was far more common than in todays (human) society.

My biggest complaint, really, is that I didn't really laugh while reading. And the flirting/banter in romance generally makes me laugh. It's what I love about the genre. That and the excessive "careful that's hot" but I've heard from some american friends that it's common there??

The bad guy was also a little obvious, but you can't get everything!

I kind of loved this. This was a read that had me both laughing, giggling and blushing furiously.

I think calling it dark is a little misleading, and that definitely had me assuming the worst at every turn. But other than some monsters actually.. being monsters, it was a very sweet and wholesome story of both romance and friendship.

I loved that it actually was about lesser known monsters. It wasn't vampires and werewolves and the typical ones we saw. But.. other. Some I had heard of, and others I hadn't and that was refreshing.

I also loved that this was a story of three friends, all very different friends, that some of them has bad ideas and disagree with those ideas but still stick together out of loyalty.

I loved that the MC was kind of a wreck, and that that didn't change through the book. He was nervous, and insecure, and gangly, and very much a ditz. And that didn't change just because a hot guy kisses him. Yet there was enough introspection that he might change in the next book: He wasn't happy about being indecisive and insecure.

My biggest complaint really, is that it still follows the cliche romance recipe where toward the end there is a big "misunderstanding" that might break the couple up. Which, yknow the relationship hasn't even started yet. But my eyeroll was SO POWERFUL when it happened. I'm probably very overexposed to it.

Okay, a book really has to catch my attentions for me to rush to the PC to leave a review right away. So here goes.

I don't normally enjoy urban fantasy with a male MC, I mean I've read the Dresden files, and it was okay. Even got good stars from me, but I never reread them. My favs books? I reread. Every. Single. Year. Dresden files never did that for me. I feel like most male MC stories get stuffy, maybe it's because I'm a female myself, but most female MC's have this sass going on, even if there isn't any romance, even if the MC isn't interested in getting down and dirty with someone you have that element of people flirting with her, and wanting her, and her pissing people off and running off. Male MC's never have that, they dont have that sassy flirting or romance element and that... just bores me.

But this? This was bloody excellent.
I loved Arlo, absolutely LOVED his character. He is built up so majestically I cannot WAIT to read more books with him in it. I know he isn't a vampire, but with that intro that is what I had in mind from the beginning: Arlo the vampire. And the way he acted? that is EXACTLY how I imagine someone of above intelligent would behave after a few centuries among the living. Details fade away. Become less important. You forget humane manners and shizzle.
I read a lot of urban fantasy, and they almost always do vampires as if they're just human with fangs.
Oh, 500 years old? Let's fall in love with the clutzy 21 year old who hasn't seen the world! It makes me gag, how on earth would someone who has seen 500 years worth of female going to fall head over heels in love with just another common female?

I know I know.. that's the fantasy isnt it. thats the selling point.

but yes.
I loved the characters.
I loved the magic, I loved that it was explained, and well thought out, I loved that I didn't ENTIRELY expect what happened with "the mother" at the end. I normally know exactly whats gonna happen, who the bad guys are, and why they're doing what they're doing but the end surprised me. (and the epilogue? Yummy!