COLIN'S CONQUEST by Lisa Rene Smith

Colin, a centenarian vampire, marks Joanna as his future mate when she is a young girl. Years later, Joanna is compelled to go to her family’s cabin deep in the Texas woodlands, where Colin claims her for himself. But Joanna isn’t willing to remain captive in Colin’s lair and keeps trying to escape from him. Colin is surprised by Joanna’s fiery, independent nature and is baffled at the human emotions this strong woman brings out in him. Joanna is fascinated by Colin and her passion for him cannot be denied. However, few females survive the transition from human to vampire, and Colin, once he realizes he is in love with Joanna, decides that he does not want to risk her life. He hypnotizes Joanna, commanding she forget him and his young companion Ben. But Joanna’s body does not want to forget, and she risks her life to find Colin, unaware that other, powerful male vampires are heading her way, each determined to have her as his mate.

Colin’s Conquest is a captivating tale wrapped around a sizzling romance between characters readers will not soon forget, filled with vivid details of the sometimes brutal lives of blood seekers. Packed with suspense and rocking with action, this superb paranormal raises the bar in the romance field. Readers will be quickly turning pages, engrossed in the fascinating world Smith has created, so much so that they will be reluctant to leave it. Highly recommended.

CHAOS THE VAMPIRE CHILD by Lisa Rene Smith

Smith begins the second of her blood seeker series twelve years after the ending of the first. Centenarian Colin and his transformed wife Joanna remain married, residing with their daughter Chaos, Colin’s neophyte Ben and Linnea, Colin’s creator. Chaos enters puberty and quickly changes from child to woman in one day, sending out her siren’s song. Women vampires are a rarity and much coveted by the males of their clan, who hear her mating call and hasten to find her. But Colin and his family are committed to protecting Chaos and will gladly give their lives to see that she remains safe and by their side. But there are blood seekers more ancient and much stronger than they, and death and destruction lie in their path as they seek to protect Chaos.

Smith once more delivers an outstanding paranormal. Action and adventure abound and romance is hot and sweet. Characters from the first book in the series return for a more in-depth look into their backgrounds and personas. The fight scenes are well-written and filled with suspense. Smith’s visualizations are uniquely poetic and draw the reader into the story as she takes them from the piney woods of Texas to the Floridian coast. Highly recommended.

THE PIRATE AND THE PURITAN by Mary Clayton

At a young age, Mercy Penhall witnessed her mother’s hanging and has not spoken in thirteen years. While sailing from Virginia to Massachusetts, her ship is destroyed by pirates and she is taken captive. Edmund Gramercy, forced by the pirates to be a captain, remains alive only because he knows how to navigate the seas. A compassionate man, Edmund protects Mercy from the other pirates, and is intrigued by her courage. Although attracted to Mercy, he realizes he can never have any sort of life with her due to his criminal background. Mercy has never experienced the feelings she holds for Edmund and would like nothing more than to remain by his side but fears she is not worthy of his love. Edmund helps Mercy escape and, from that point, both endure numerous hardships while longing for one another. Yet fate steps in more than once to bring the two together, only to be torn apart again.

Mary Clayton’s historical romance wraps the reader in an enthralling love story that moves from the high seas to colonial America. Clayton provides vivid detail of the time period with keen insight into the differences between the religious communities, the ongoing political strife, the way women were perceived, and the brutality of a pirate’s life. Characterization is excellent, from Mercy, a brave, mute Puritan who questions her religion and fears she is tainted, to Edmund, a compassionate man forced to live a cruel existence, to John Hanson, the evil Puritan minister intent on exorcising the witch within Mercy. Packed with action and suspense, readers will fall in love with the characters and this excellent love story. Highly recommended.