Blood Lust [Paperback]

Blood Lust is the first book in the Preternaturals series by Zoe Winters. This book actually consists of 3 paranormal romance novellas that are also available as ebooks. Zoe sent me all 3 novella ebooks for review (& I also now own the paperback) and I love the world that she has created - it is packed full of paranormal species but everything fits together really well and you can see how much thought has gone into it. Just check out the website that she created for a store featured in the series & you'll see what I mean!

Considering the books are novellas Zoe has done a fantastic job of creating characters you can care about and I can't wait to see what she will do with a full length novel! Please see below for my reviews of each novella.

Kept:
I really liked Greta, she is a cat shifter who is on the run after she finds out that her tribe is planning on sacrificing her. The only person who is strong enough to protect her is Dayne but she is wary of him as he is a dangerous sorcerer who previously killed members of her tribe. I'm not usually a big fan of sorcerers but Dayne was a great character - he isn't a typical "good guy" but the more you get to know him the easier it is to understand why he acts the way he does. By the end of the story I really wanted him & Greta to have their happy ending.

This is the first glimpse at the world Zoe Winters has created and I read the whole novella in one sitting. Although the main characters are a werecat and a sorcerer we are given hints at a wide range of characters and species that left me keen to continue reading the series. I was impressed at the amount of detail Zoe managed to pack into just 86 pages, I would have loved to read a longer story but for a free introduction to an author this was a great quick read. Although I love books where the sex scenes are more fleshed out I still felt the passion between Greta & Dayne but also connected to them on a more emotional level. A great start to the series & I'd recommend this to any paranormal fan.

Claimed:
I loved both Anthony & Charlee when they were introduced in Kept so I was really pleased to see that they got their own story which continues the events right after the ending of Kept. When Anthony is drunk on magical blood he almost drains Charlee when he feeds from her - not wanting her to remember and be afraid of him he wipes her memory of the event. However, it soon becomes clear that he didn't just remove her memory of that night, she remembers absolutely nothing - not even who she is. When he is trying to help restore her memory he unwittingly draws human Charlee into the vampire world and ends up having to protect her from other vampires who want claim her as their pet.

After enjoying Kept I was looking forward to Claimed and thoroughly enjoyed it. I continue to be amazed at how much Zoe Winters can pack into a novella. Claimed is full of action and I loved watching the relationship between Anthony and Charlee develop. Charlee is a feisty character full of quick come backs that will have you laughing out loud. She has every reason not to trust Anthony after what happened the night he nearly killed her and several things happen that cause her to trust him even less but everything he does after the first night happens when he is trying to protect her. Being a vampire fan I couldn't help but love Anthony - he really is great hero material & I loved how everything was resolved at the end of the story. I'd definitely recommend giving this series a try but I would recommend reading them in order. If you're a fan of the paranormal I'm sure you'll enjoy this - Zoe has a great writing style that is full of humor, action and romance.

Mated:
Jane has been able to sense vampires since she was a child and this has meant she has lived her life in danger from the vampires who don't like the fact that she can see them. She has been forced to become a vampire groupie in the hope that one of them will turn her so her life will no longer be at risk. Abused and beaten by the vampire she had hoped would protect her it only gets worse when he gives her to the werewolf alpha Cole as payment for his gambling debt. She knows the rules of the vampire world and knows how to survive but finding herself at the mercy of a werewolf she has no idea what will happen to her. She has always believed that the werewolves are even worse than the vampires but can Cole prove she was wrong? And what will happen if the pack member who wants Jane dead manages to get hold of her?

Although I loved the first 2 novellas in this series I have to say that Mated was my absolute favorite. We were introduced to vampire groupie Jane in Claimed when she became friends with Charlee. I didn't think she was a particularly interesting character but as soon as I got to know her better in Mated she quickly became my favorite heroine in the series. She has been to hell and back but is a survivor and desperately wants to find somewhere she is safe and accepted. I absolutely adored Cole! He is a strong alpha who quickly recognises that Jane is his mate and wants to protect her. Understanding what she has been through he doesn't want to rush her or force her into anything so goes against all of his instincts by not immediately marking her as his mate. He is so sweet as he tries to gain Jane's trust & I dare you not to fall for him yourself.

Overall I would definitely rate this as a must read trilogy for fans of paranormal romance. Even if you're new to this genre I'd recommend giving it a try. I love Zoe's writing style and having seen what she can accomplish with these novellas I can't wait to get my hands on the full length novel that is due out this winter. I love the world she has created and am looking forward to immersing myself in it again in the future. My only warning would be not to start reading unless you have time to finish the whole story - I've read each of these novellas in just 1 sitting and devoured all 3 in less than 24 hours!

The cover on this is seductive, giving you a sample of what to expect. What the cover can't tell you is the myriad of characters it contains. Blood Lust is three novellas combined, comprising of Kept, Claimed and Mated. All three novellas flow together really well and the set of stories entwine with each other.

I thoroughly enjoyed all of the characters and all their guises. There's a healthy mix - werecat (cat therian), were, vamp, sorcerer and some humans. I love the storyline which seamlessly melded fantasy and everyday life. The stories are humorously told in places, with tangeable emotions from the characters.

There are some really well done hot sex scenes in this, so may not be suitable for all, the expectation of this is built up through the book and in each of the novellas. I like the explanation of why vampires don't have mirrors, this is without a doubt the best explanation I've read to date, it actually makes sense, and adds another element to vampires that doesn't appear anywhere else I've seen.

Blood Lust overall has similar themes in each of the three parts. A human runs from something (or someone) and meets their proverbial knight in shining armor....then has to trust in that person, whilst going against everything they thought they knew. My favorite out of the three is Claimed, which has vampire characters and humans as the main storyline, alongside characters from Kept. It's not an easy choice to make though, as they're all really addictive and I couldn't put them down once I'd started. I'm looking forward to reading Save My Soul...hope the wait won't be too much longer!

LOVED this book and although there were 3 stories in this, each one got better and better. I'm not sure if this is because I got to know the characters better or the writing style seemed to improve after the first one, but either way it really was great. I finished Zoe Winters first 4 preternaturals books in 4 days, I just couldn't put them down. Highly recommend, if you like Sherrilyn Kenyon, Kresley Cole, Gena Showalter, you will love these. :)