Early Review: Bound by Night by Larissa Ione (MoonBound Clan #1)

Bound by Night (MoonBound Clan #1)
Larissa Ione
Published: Sept. 24, 2013 (Pocket)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Review Source: Provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

Reviewed by: Chelsea

Rating (out of 5): 4 stars

When I heard Larissa Ione was going to step all the way into the vampire world with a new series, my immediate reaction was: Yes, please. My second reaction was to stare at the cover photo longer than necessary and made clever comments regarding dagger placement.

Bound by Night is more than a foray into the vampire world for Ione. She’s given us a heady romance with the kind of hero that you swoon for and get frustrated with in equal measure. The heroine feels similarly and there is some “fine be that way” sex happening between the pages.

In the MoonBound Clan world vampires aren’t just out in the world, humans have subjugated them. Most are turned into slaves, others used for medical testing. Nicole’s family is at the forefront of the big business of selling vampires. She grew up with them, but due to an attack when she was a child she fears vampires. She once loved a vampire nanny who cared for her, but that woman’s death changed things for Nicole.

Riker is one of the few vampires who lives outside the cities and has freedom. He’s part of the MoonBound Clan—there are several groups, each with ties to Native American mythology—a group of vampires who act as a family and live in a damn nice version of a rabbit warren.

Riker and Nicole’s worlds collide when she’s brought back to the warren. The woman he thought he hated and feels he should still hate sends his blood boiling in a whole other way. She should fear him, but her real concern is what he’ll do with her heart. There’s a great comraderie among the vampires within the clan, and unlike other group o’ vampires series, this one even has a woman as part of the warrior group. There were plenty of teases of the other members of the clan—enough to make you start picking favorites and making wishes for the next books.

Bound by Night is a lush romance of two people letting go of their hate to find love. Their romantic interactions are powerful. Unlike Ione’s Demonica series (first book: Pleasure Unbound), Bound by Night savors the slow build of sexual tension. It’s worth it. Oh, is it worth it, but patience is required.

If you love the early Black Dagger Brotherhood novels or the Midnight Breed series, Bound by Night is going to hit all the right buttons for you.

Sexual content: Tease, tease, tease and then graphic sex