Jared-Sarah McCarty

Jared
Sarah McCarty
Berkley, Apr 2010, $
ISBN: 9780425232408

Jared Johnson smells a weak vampire female trapped by two Sanctuary male vampires on Renegade land. He thinks of the vampire civil war six months old as Sanctuary tries to find female breeders. Jared ignores the woman and kills both males. She is upset with him for not showing them mercy. As Jared and Raisa Slovenski argue, they flee enemy vampires. He finds her blood that she needs, but she says no as the human couple are a good pair ; he wonders how she survived alone.

They reach the D’Nally werewolf ranch where the weres are attracted to Raisa. The alpha Ian asks why she is so weak and offers her blood; she says it is wrong and rejects his offer. She faints and is dying from a lack of blood. Jared offers his blood and she says this is right and takes some. For the first in her three centuries as a vampire she does not have an allergic reaction to blood. Jared tells her she is his “Sunbeam”. She says she liked being turned while he hated it. Her cousin brought her to America to work as a whore; but she refused so was beaten to near death before the conversion. He says some bitch converted his brother who changed him. As they fall in love with the enemy in pursuit, their respective nineteenth century pasts interfere with their current lives.

The lead couple is a super pairing and the support cast is extremely well drawn. The story line is fun to follow as the lead couple fall in love while dodging the enemy and each other with a great twist re their relationship. Although a bit more back story on the Shadow Wranglers vampire schism would help newcomers in understanding, rural romantic fantasy fans will fully relish Jared’s tale and seek out his brother, Caleb’s entry.

Harriet Klausner