Book: Falling for a Villainous Vampire: A Novel by Charlotte Stein
Reviewed by Maggie Hayes
Rating: 3.75/5
Falling for a Villainous Vampire by Charlotte Stein
⭐⭐⭐¾ (3.75/5)
I enjoyed witchy Marley and vampire Halsten's enemies (kind of)-to-lovers romance. In each of her lifetimes, Marley has been hunted and killed by Halsten, or so she believes. She asks her fellow witch friends—Cassie and Nancy from the previous books in the series—to help her cast a spell that makes Halsten forget her. It all seems well and good, except Halsten also forgets who he is and only knows that he's a Viking vampire inexplicably drawn to Marley. Now Marley, afraid to unleash him on the world lest he hurt someone or get hurt himself, gets to know the man behind her supposed enemy and realizes their story isn't quite what she's been led to believe.
Marley broke my heart a little. She has almost no one in her life because she's terrified Halsten will take them away. She's spelled her parents away and purposely tries to drive off potential friends. Her best friend is a sentient cell phone who serves as her familiar and is kind of sassy to her. I love a girl gang, so I was HERE for every scene of the three witches working their magic together. No one, human or witch, should have to spend their life alone, waiting to die.
And Halsten? My heart broke AND swooned for him BIG TIME once his backstory was revealed. This vamp is fully ten toes down for Marley. His post-spell innocence is ridiculously charming—very Eric Northman (IYKYK)—and I love that he learns about the modern world by watching TV, especially the Buffy the Vampire Slayer shout-out. His determination to prove himself to Marley and protect her at all costs had me rooting for him.
The romance takes some time to build, as it should when one person believes the other wants to kill them. But when it finally does, it's equal parts sweet and spicy. I've never read a vampire romance where blood wasn't the only substance capable of sustaining a vampire's life force, but I am SO HERE for it.
A strong finale to the Sanctuary for Supernatural Creatures series.
Thank you to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for providing an ARC!