Review: Lucifer by DB Reynolds (Vampires in America #11)

Lucifer (Vampires in America #11)
DB Reynolds
Published: Nov. 18, 2016 (ImaJinn Books)
Purchase: Book Depository or Amazon
Review source: purchased

Reviewed by: Kris

Rating (out of 5): 3.5 stars

Note: While this review will be spoiler free, it does make reference to previous books in the series.

The mate of Canadian Vampire Lord Sophia, Colin Murphy, has been kidnapped. In a major play for Canada, the European vampires are using Colin as a way to distract Sophia from their movements in her territory. In order to help Sophia retain control of Canada, Aden is lending her one of his most powerful lieutenants, Lucifer Scuderi, in order to find Colin. While grateful for the help, Sophia is still a Vampire Lord and none too trusting of another powerful vampire in her territory, so she sends along her most trusted bodyguard, Eleanor Morel, to oversee Luc’s search for Colin.

Lucifer is prepared for anything but seeing Eleanor again—his long lost love he was sure had perished 20 years ago. Eleanor is certain that she made the right decision leaving Luc after she was turned into a vampire, but having to work with him to find Colin may be more than she can handle. Lucifer and Eleanor will have to come to terms with their past and learn to work together because more than just Colin’s fate hangs in the balance. If Canada falls, the rest of the continent may follow suit.

I adore the Vampires in America series, which is why I had trouble reviewing this particular installment. Lucifer has all of the hallmarks I have come to expect from DB Reynolds: captivating characters, a fast paced and intelligent plot, some seriously sexy scenes, and top-notch world building. So why did Lucifer fall short for me?

Lucifer as a character is fantastic! Smart, loyal, and extremely powerful, he fits right into the group of characters we have come to know and love. The future potential he has is really interesting and I am very curious to see what happens to him. Unfortunately, I had a very hard time connecting with Eleanor. She is one of the weaker female characters in a series filled with some excellent and interesting women. I did not buy into her motivation or past actions and despite her working hard to achieve her place as Sophia’s guard, she feels thin.

Despite my issues with Eleanor, the idea of a vampire/vampire couple was really exciting and new for this series. I wish that was explored a bit more–there is only really one scene where that is addressed. I think if there was more behind this aspect I might have connected with Eleanor more.

The looming war with the European vampires was a major factor in Lucifer, and I loved that aspect of the story. All of the conniving and betrayal, the urgency and consequences, make this a very exciting installment in the overarching plot of the series.

There is a fair amount of pretty graphic sex in this book—which is normal for this series. However, because I did not really connect with the heroine and a majority of the scenes did not move the story along, it felt very repetitive to me. Actually, that is a complaint of the series as a whole, especially the latter installments. The overall story DB Reynolds is telling is strong enough that it does not need extraneous love scenes.

Despite that, Lucifer is an important step in this series and one I did enjoy. I highly recommend this series—you will find top-notch storytelling, compelling characters, and several new book boyfriends (but we all know Raphael is the best, right?).

Sexual content: graphic sex, references to rape