Having a weakness for Stormy Glenn supernatural m/m romance/erotica novels, I picked up Blood Contract when I saw it listed in the Kindle store. I enjoyed the other Wolf Creek Pack stories (this one is number eight in the series), and this one did not disappoint. It's nicely written with good pacing and nicely nuanced characters. While some characters and stories from Ms. Glenn jump quickly into erotic sex, this one tkaes its time and focuses more on the characters themselvels than their situation. I have a hard time rating it because I think it falls between four and five stars. While not really a five-star story that compares to some of the incredibly moving and epic gay romance novels released, it does rise above many of the other disposable ones. So while it falls between four and five stars, I'll round up because I think it stands out from many of the other disposable erotica stories on the market today.
Under his father's prodding, Danny Erickson signs a contract to donate blood to his ailing brother, to whom he harbors no ill wishes. The condition of the contract is that when Danny does this, his Father, whom he almost hates, will have not further contact with him. He doesn't realize though that the contact is not between him and his father, but is between him and another gentleman named Dominic Ruelle, and his father is misleading him into believing it's to save Danny's ailing brother. Since the father makes a lot of money by negotiating the sale of his son, one can quickly see why Danny dislikes him so much.
Dominic is a Prince of a vampire coven. While he doesn't hold humans in very high regard (most vampires see them as nothing more than cattle), he considers himself more moral than most vampires and is upset when he found out that Danny signed the contract under false pretenses. Thankfully, Danny agrees to continue to donate blood to Dominic as Dominic will die without "pure" blood, and Danny is the only available candidate that can save Dominic in time.
It's from here that the feelings develop between Dominic and Danny. It's also from here that attitudes start to change amongst some vampires regarding humans. The story takes place in the same universe as the Wolf Creek Pack (WCP) series, but is more standalone than the previous stories. The only tie to the previous stories is when Dominic must seek the aid of another vampire Prince and his mate who are part of the Wolf Creek Pack lore.
While there is little action within the story, one does get a deeper look at vampire lifestyle and attitudes. The story does more to finely develop an understanding of vampires as they appear in the WCP tales. The pacing is nice, and the characters are also nicely nuanced and developed. Erotica is toned down a bit, and emphasis is stronger on chracters and lore than in explicit sexual scenes. All in all, it makes for a very nice romantic tale.