Angie Wade » 4 review
What an awesome story! I loved that you are told how Dracula came about. I loved how he choose his brides. I loved how he was so passionate with his love making. And I loved that his third bride believed that she could find a cure. These authors fit together like a glove. You wouldn’t have known that there was more than one author reading the book. Absolutely an amazing storyline!
You start out with Vald Tepes lll as a child and doing what brothers do as kinds with his brother Radu and Marceau. Their father a high ranking Lord with his vast land and castle, the boys did as told and on occasions went to meetings at different locations instead of their father. In the wood surrounding their land at certain times of the year, Gypsy caravan would be close by to celebrate and party.
One day Vald and Radu were kidnapped and taken to Mehmed, their fathers enemy. They were being held for ransom and until the spring thaw. Radu and Mehmed hit if off in more ways then one and was always together. But when spring came and the boys could leave, there was trouble with one of the women Gypsy and Vald was caught in the wrong place, so she cursed him.
I love how the story continues to carry out how Dracula lived and killed. You learn of each wife and how he saves them from eternal death, but giving them eternal life. Each bride is beautiful beyond measure and each is night and day in personality. But each has the same goal, to please Dracula.
I never really knew how Dracula came about. This story was so life like, that it had me believing it did happen so many, many years ago. I could picture all of it in my minds eye and see how each life was and changed. How Vald hated his cures, but loved a very beautiful woman. He thought of himself as a monster, but he was really a Romeo. I enjoyed this book very much and recommend it highly. Angie Wade Dracula’s Brides by LJC Fynn, Alyssa Drake, Rota Delude and K.L. Bone is a crazy good paranormal anthology with wonderful authors and an even better storyline. It gives readers a different take on the classic vampire stories of how Dracula became a vampire. Here is a bit about each story...
Blood Curse By LJC Fynn
**Part I: Prince Vlad Tepes III**
The beginning of this book with meeting the King and his three sons Mircea, Vlad and Radu pulled me in immediately. The love Vlad ll has for his family is amazing and his fascination for Aylin makes me want to know more and more of where their story will go. Like all books of this type, there is lies, betrayals and death. Making for a really good story so far!!!
**Part II: Vlad the Impaler**
Wow this story is gripping. Revenge for family and loss of loved ones makes for a real page turner. I thought Aylin was gonna be the one to keep Vlad ll from going off the deep end but boy was I wrong. Aylin was every bit as dangerous as a witch could be!!!!!
**Part III: Dracula **
Cursed and alone, I feel sad for Dracula!! He didn’t want to be a monster and never have love from someone. To be without his family is torture enough but to have to feed off others to live is almost unbearable. This story had me completely engaged!!!
Crina Reborn By Alyssa Drake
The story of Dracula and Crina, his first bride, is twisted but sweet. Crina, a girl terrified of being owned by a man, to be bedded and beaten tried everything in her power to free herself from obligation. She even gave herself entirely to a monster who turned out to be her saviour, her hero, the man she chose to be with. Dracula and Crina together feels like it was destined to be and I definitely enjoyed reading about how it all came to be!!!!
Emilia By Rita Delude
The story of Emilia I found quite sad. She wanted so badly to be with her love Darius and even after she met Dracula she still only wanted Darius still. However when Dracula wants something or someone there is no stopping him and he wanted Emilia all to himself. As sad as I was for Emilia I did like the story as it was full of action and intrigue.
Isabella’s Story By K.L. Bone
In this third and final story of Dracula’s brides I was once again pulled into the details and the sadness of the story. Isabella believed she would live the life of a wife and mother to her longtime friend and lover Christopher. She was content in that fact until she met Tepes (Dracula). He saw the smart and curious girl in her, one that he believed could lift his curse and maybe someday in the future she would.
Overall, I was completely taken in by the story and didn’t want it to end. The writers in this anthology did an amazing job making the stories flow together as well as making them unique and engaging. Well done for sure. Highly recommend this to any paranormal vampire fans out there.
Angie Wade ***I voluntarily read and reviewed this book, all opinions are my own.***
I read this anthology because I am a big fan of KL Bone. Usually I only read KL Bone's story, but this time I decided to read the entire anthology...and I am really glad that I did. Each story had it's own charm and I loved all of his brides, individually. Actually, if I have to say anything, I actually just wanted more, more about the brides and their lives with Dracula. I did LOVE how KL Bone ended the story with you know who finding the book (trying not to spoil it for those who haven't read it) but it was a cute ending.
Specifically, with Isabella's story, I loved how she was able to travel and had such spirit for someone in the nineteenth century and that prologue was very distinctly KL Bone. I loved it.
5 stars for a great anthology! Angie Wade Dracula's Brides: A Paranormal Romance Anthology: Begins with Aylin's Curse & intertwines the story of Dracula & his three brides.
Blood Curse by LJC Flynn - We begin with the tale of Prince Vladimir Tepes 111 better known as Dracula. This is the telling of how Dracula became to be.
Crina Reborn by Alyssa Drake - Is the tale of how Crina met Dracula & became reborn & married Dracula. We learn about who she was and what her life was like before her death and reborn.
Emilia by Rita Delude - Is the daughter of a Baron engaged to Darius Balan who's family sells Emilia's father goods for distribution to the Barons tenants and indentured servants. While her fiance is away she travels with her father to visit Prince Vladimir Tepes 111 at his castle he offers his protection to the Baron for exchange of his daughters hand in marriage as he is smitten with her.
Isabella by K.L Bone - Is the tale of a sweet young intelligent female who travels with her aging grandmother to Romania. Eager to learn about her family's past she finds & go through her grandfather's old notes and studies them. We travel back in time when Isabella's grandfather a Duke turned explorer chasing the elusive villain the vampire. When Isabella first meets Dracula unknowingly briefly, revelations occur that will keep Isabella's imagination going for a very long time.
Entwined between tales each saga is seamlessly connected and flows through smoothly. Each tale has its own elements of fantasy, real romance, and intrigue. The writing styles capture the essence of the genre. Each tale gets better and better when you read them. A well crafted anthology that is creative and fabulously perfected. Angie Wade This story was somthing else I don't know what it was but it made me feel the pain Vlad live through. Living an immortal live for a crime that you don't even had anything to do with it was sad for me.I love the writing this authors can create in the story the characters and the feelings that they made the reader feel are just amazing and perfection for me love ever single page from beginning until the very end. Angie Wade
I really enjoyed the book. How can anyone not love a good Dracula book? I recommend everyone to read this book. You won’t be disappointed. Angie Wade Review for story written by K.L. Bone.
Isabella’s story is the last in this anthology about the life and death of Vlad Tepes III, also known as Dracula, and his immortal brides.
I absolutely loved this story! Isabella is a sweet and young intelligent woman who is intrigued by traveling, hisotry, folk lore and tales of adventure. She travels with her aging grandmother back to Transylvania and becomes further enamored with the tales her grandfather sought to uncover.
The moment she first meets Dracula Thank , although she does not know it is him, is brief and full of revelations that will keep Isabella’s imagination turning for years to come. When she falls ill, the mysterious red eyed creature comes back for dear Isabella and takes her as his third and final bride and gifts, or curses, her with immortality.
K.L. Bone has a way of sucking you into her stories and keeping you there until the very end, no matter what! I could not put this story down. I loved that folk lore and tales from Transylvania were woven into the story and how it was so fluent and enrapturing!
And not to mention that epilogue! Whoa! That was fantastic and amazing! Bram Stoker makes his appearance at the very end while researching for his famous Dracula novel and finds the journal that was Dracula’s and in the writing of dear Isabella’s grandfather! So wonderfully woven into this fantastic story that it gave me goosebumps! I absolutely loved it and it’s another reason I thoroughly enjoy the works of K.L. Bone, she never misses a beat! Angie Wade Holy wow! Amazingly put together by these ladies. I love how each story entertwines with each other. Learn about Dracula and his three wives and all they have to offer up. Be careful not to step too close or you may be bitten. Learn everything that you didn't know about Dracula and step into the lives of his wives. Absolutely perfect and I can't wait for more! Angie Wade By LJC Fynn, Alyssa Drake,
Rita Delude, and K. L. Bone
Aylin's Curse
I curse you with the need of thirst,
From the blood of the first.
Eternity of pain, a curse with no cure.
To keep your mind sane, you'll need the blood of the pure.
The sun in the sky will leave you restricted,
Not the blood of the wicked.
My life I sacrifice to place this curse on your head,
Your undying life forever lost, paid for with the blood of the dead.
This is a wonderful way to start off the book and you will come to understand this curse as you read on in the book.
Blood Curse by LJC Fynn
This is the story of Prince Vlad Tepes III also known as Dracula and how he came to be.
Vlad has a living Father who they call Dracul an older brother named Mircea, and a younger brother named Radu. Radu is the only brother who looks different with his blonde hair and big blue eye's. Their Father takes them all out to a battlefield where everyone is dead showing that his father won the battle and took a crown making him now King of Wallachia. Vlad then hears the sound of drums and curiously follows the sound. What he sees stops him in his tracks. There are people in beautiful colors dancing around a fire, with open jars . He see's a young girl singing as she slowly closes each jar. She wears her long curly hair down, and she has huge eyes. He asks his father what they are doing and is told that they are gathering the spirits of their fallen. The little girl's name is Aylin and one day she will be their witch. As they are talking about her she looks up and for the first time in Vlad's 12 years he feels his heart skip a beat as her green eye's knock the speech out of him. He is told that they are Turkish Gypsies and never to mess with them. The story then skips to 12 years later. Vlad and Radu end up at Mehmed II's court in the Ottoman Empire as guests even though they are brought there against their will. Mehmed is a ruthless leader who will do anything to get what he wants, but he didn't expect to have feelings for Radu. Vlad ends up having one night of love with Aylin and she is seen leaving Vlad's room by Matthais (another ruler) who is in love with her. I don't really want to give the rest of this story away by telling you more and spoiling it however I will say that in this story you will find out how Dracula came to be the Monster we have all heard about.
LJC Fynn did such a great job writing this story and explaining how or where Dracula came from. This author is very talented and I really look forward to reading more when I can.
Crina Reborn by Alyssa Drake
This is the story of how Crina the first of Dracula's Brides came to be.
Crina is terrified of marriage from the age of three years old as she witnessed her Aunt's dead body being dumped at their door by her Aunt's abusive husband. As Crina grows up she has nightmares that her sister Ylenia soothes away every night until her parents find out. Eventually these nightmares become so debilitating that her parents withdraw her from school and she goes to work in the fields with her father becoming the son he never had and her sister becoming a social butterfly. All goes well until a girl named Anghel Vaduva gets jealous of Ylenia and starts rumours about her making her an outcast. Ylenia is left to then work with their Mother at home, matchless and bitter. Then a shred of hope appears in the form of Mr. Stefan Arden, the neighbour whose land abutts the north side of their plot. One day, on the eve of her sixteenth birthday Crina is reintroduced to Mr. Arden. Crina and her Father go to the fields to work, but she notices strange movement out of the corner of her eye. It's a pig who runs over her and looks like it will trample her Father. She hears a deep voice yell stop and it is Mr. Arden. He tells the pig he's been bad and needs to be punished then bashes the poor creatures head in. In short order Mr. Arden comes to dinner and makes a marriage contract with her Father for her sister. Now as I've said before I will spoil no more of the story, but it is fairly obvious that at some point Crina will meet Dracula and become reborn and marry him.
Alyssa Drake did a fabulous job writing this story. She is an incredibly talented writter who knows just what readers want. Just seeing Ms. Drake's name made me itch to read this story.
Emilia By Rita Delude
This is the story of Emilia. Emilia is the daughter of a Baron. She wants to marry Darius Balan. They have known eachother since they were fifteen years old. Their families know each other as they have met occasionally for festivals, weddings, and funerals. Darius's family sells Emilia's Father milk, cheese, and goat meat for distribution to the Baron's tenants and indentured servants. When she's eighteen Darius asks her Father if he can marry her and he says No stating that Darius has nothing, no castle, no kingdom, and no money so he won't give the marriage his blessing. Darius says he'll prove he can give her everything needed and says he'll be back in two weeks with the proof. When Darius is gone for a week Emilia's Father talks her into going with him to the castle of Prince Vlad Dracula. Right away Dracula is smitten with her and tells her Father so, offering his protection to the Baron if he will give his daughter to him in marriage. Days later they leave the Castle and after they get home Darius proves to the Baron that he is indeed worthy of his daughter and the marriage between them is set. I'm not going to give this story totally away, but what could go so horribly wrong that we can know Emilia becomes a Bride of Dracula and not her beloved Darius?
Rita Delude did a great job with this part of the anthology. I enjoyed it and found it to be quite the page turner.
Isabella's Story By K.L. Bone
This is the story of Isabella and starts out in 1870 England with a dying old man named Christopher begging Bell who has just returned for forgiveness which she gladly gives. She then asks him Are you ready to meet the angles my love? She then kisses his wrinkled cheek before dipping down to his throat, where his collar has already been flipped aside in invitation.
We then go back to 1820 England
Isabella's Grandfather is a Duke turned explorer who met her Grandmother in Romania. Their marriage was somewhat of a scandal and a love match all at the same time. She grows up listening to her Grandmother's stories of her youth in Romania. Ofcourse her Grandfather was chasing the elusive villian the vampire. Her Grandfather passes away and her Grandmother invites Isabella on a trip to Romania. Isabella says she will go and leaves her fiancee Christopher to take care of things back in England while she's gone. While in Romania she finds her Granfathers's old notes on Vampires and studies them. She meets Dracula himself however doesn't realize who he really is. She contracts a sickness in Romania which does seem to get a little better just as it's time to go home. Isabella then believes her metting Vlad is all in her head during her fever. She goes back home and marries Christopher, gets sicker and sicker of dysentery and is told she is going to die. One night she collapses in fever again and when she awakes Vlad is there once again. Now I will go no further with this story as I don't want to ruin it for you.
K.L. Bone did a wonderful job writting this third and final story of Dracula's Brides. I couldn't put the story down. It was that fascinating.
Epilogue August 1890 Whitby, England
A man on holiday from London is eagerly looking forward to compose his own stories. After he reads some and takes notes he spies a thin book that had been pushed to the back of the shelf. He blows the dust off the cover and reads the title. The Confesions and Journey of Dracula: Prince of Transylvania. Translated by George Seymour, Duke of Somerset. Additional notes by Isabella, Countess of Scarbrough. Donated by Earl Christopher Thomas Saunderson of Scarbrough, 1855.
Eyes alight with possibilities, Stoker turns the page.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this anthology as I have had the pleasure of reading some of these authors work in other anthologies and they didn't disappoint me at all. These are very talented writters who know exactly what readers want when reading a collection of stories. They always seem to flow from one story into the next without any hesitation at all. I have no problem giving this anthology five stars and I would recommend it to Vampire lovers everywhere. Angie Wade I tend to stay away from vampire and zombie type novels because I usually end up having nightmares after reading them or seeing a movie with them in it. But this one with its eye-catching cover and title got me hooked, and I'm glad it did. If you're like me, wary of this type of book, don't be it's a winner. Oh, and I haven't had a nightmare yet from it, but it's still early. Lol. Angie Wade
Enchanted Anthologies brings you a co-written paranormal romance anthology based on Bram Stoker's Dracula.
Centuries ago, Dracula found himself cursed at the hands of a witch after murdering her family. Now, he is forced to live his days as a slave to the sun, plagued with a constant thirst for blood, and an immortality without love.
Crina was a farm girl in Romania who met Vlad shortly after he turned. He fell in love with her innocence and kindness.
Emilia was a virgin who was stolen away from her family and fiance on the eve of her wedding, captured by the count for her beauty.
Isabella was the last to turn at his hands. Her wit and intelligence captured his heart.
Can love last an eternity?
Four Novellas intertwining the story of Dracula and his three brides.
LJC Fynn - Dracula
Alyssa Drake - Crina
Rita Delude - Emelia
K.L. Bone - Isabella
This anthology is intended for readers aged eighteen and over. Draculas Brides