Vampire Prince and his Rebel Love

If you have not read Captured, the first book in the Captive Series, please note that this review contains spoilers, as it contains refrerences which relate to it. I recommend that this series be read in order gain maximum enjoyment. Please check out my earlier review of Captured if you are interested.

Like the first book in this series, Captured, I found it hard to put this down until I had finished it. The main couple, Arianna and Braith are fated to be together, yet they seem doomed by birth and circumstance to be forced apart.

Renegade picks up the tale of the romance between the human Aria and Braith, the heir to the vampire throne, a few months after Arianna and Max escaped from the palace. Although Arianna knew that as Braith’s captive and blood slave they had no long term future, she is still angry and heartbroken after discovering that he is engaged to marry a female vampire. She seeks solace in the natural environment, but is a husk of her formal self. Matt, her childhood friend and fellow escapee, seeks to support her, believing like her family that Braith brainwashed her into thinking that she cared for him.

Braith has felt betrayed and filled with rage, since Arianna escaped, filling his days with violence and taking blood slaves to try and satisfy his bloodlust. He hopes to forget Arianna as his memory of her only pains him. Palace scouts catch sight of Arianna one day and give chase, but she escapes. Rather than let his brother Caleb or another vampire get their hands on her, Braith goes in search of her to exact his own revenge. He spies Arianna in the woods and gives chase in an extremely quick paced and emotional scene. We find out if Braith can bring himself to harm her or not and also what happens to the couple after Braith later takes her far away from the bosom of her family. The world beyond the palace and its environs opens up to us in this novel and are introduced to some new characters from Braith’s past and the real reasons behind the start of the war between humans and vampires. We also learn more about Braith and Arianna’s special bond. There are some startling revelations towards the end of this novel which set the scene nicely for the next book and impact on the future of all the major characters.

Arianna is on yet another emotional roller coaster with the return of Braith into her life. She is torn between her loyalty to her family and the rebels and her love for Braith, who as a vampire is their enemy. We see more of her prowess as a warrior in this book. Braith, despite his initial anger at what he sees as her betrayal, is as protective of Arainna as ever. He does not like the thought of her ever being with another and hates it when another male touches her. Their bond is such that they cannot bear being parted. I  hope  that Arianna manages to maintain her individuality in subsequent books and does not become subsumed by Braith’s alpha personality.

We do not see a lot of Caleb in this novel, but he remains an ever present threat. We do, however, learn more about Jack, Braith’s vampire brother, who has defected to the rebels, led by Arianna’s father. Jack is very protective of the seventeen year old Arianna and wants to protect her from Braith, as does her family.  Max wants Arianna for himself, despising vampires,  since his torture as a blood slave, and Braith in particular because of what he believes she suffered at his hands.

I love the intense and emotional way that this author writes this tale, leaving the reader in no doubt as to Braith and Arianna’s special connection, despite the many obstacles in the way of their love. It is an incredibly romantic tale; their sharing of each others’ blood in particular is very emotionally charged and for a novel aimed at young adults quite erotic. I recommend this book and the series for those who like to read paranormal romance with great world building, an ever evolving plot and intense characters. Refugee is the next book in this series and I will be posting a review of it fairly soon.  The author’s website indicates that the final novel Salvation will be published in June this year.

Please note – this book is classed as New Adult as it contains some language, violence, and sexual situations. Recommended for ages 16+

Author’s website http://ericasteven.blogspot.co.uk

Cover art by www.EbookLaunch.com and image used by kind permission of Erica Stevens