Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
Update: Only 100 votes separated these two in the end, but like the unknown beast he is Barrons came out on top. Two ultimate leaders are pit against each other in this round of the Alpha Showdown. They’re also both big-time favorites and frequent faces on book boyfriend lists everywhere. But we’re mean, so we’re going to make you pick: Acheron or Barrons? We’ve lined up great bloggers to explain why each...
Update: Barrons dominated this round like the alpha he is. He advances in the Showdown. The first-ever Alpha Showdown champion re-enters the ring. His opponent is new to the Showdown, but not to fighting. Can Simon take out the big, bad Barrons? We’ve lined up great bloggers to explain why each alpha deserves to advance. Read the pitches, and then make the call. JERICHO Z. BARRONS You know him from: The...
Update: The Frost Fans came out in full force. Bones managed to defeat Ryodan in this round. We never thought we’d consider Bones an underdog, but he’s been in the Alpha Showdown several times, and has yet to take the title. Will this be his year? Ryodan knows how to clench that Alpha Showdown championship, but will he be able to fell our beloved vampire this time? We’ve lined up great bloggers to explain... 
You read that headline right. It’s time to start playing favorites here at VBC. The annual Alpha Showdown will be back in May, and we need to know who you want to see in the event. If you haven’t experienced Alpha Showdown before, it gets a little crazy. Here’s the gist: VBC readers nominate their favorite characters who exemplify alpha status—male or female, leaders, warriors, general badasses—and we... 
From VBC’s Chelsea: We’ve covered the best books of 2013, but we’re ready to look forward here at VBC. There are so many wonderful reads waiting for us in 2014. To help you get excited for new books, we’re going to post our reviewers’ most anticipated 2014 books. Add your favorites in the comments. Today Krista talks about several stellar urban fantasy titles coming in 2014. (See Amy’s picks.) KRISTA’S... 
A Note from Chelsea / VBC: All the suggested poolside reading lists we see online point to cheeky contemporary novels or lighthearted romps. Well, at VBC we know there are plenty of books featuring paranormal elements, badass heroines and sexy heroes that are perfect for reading out under the sun. So, of course, we’ve decided to do our own Beach Reads picks. Each Friday for the next several weeks, we’ll... 
Wow. This year was the biggest Alpha Showdown we’ve seen. There were more votes, more comments, more traffic and even more bribes from authors. Everything was bigger. So perhaps it is fitting this year’s Alpha Showdown champion is larger than life. He’s friends—we use that word loosely—with the original Alpha Showdown champion Jericho Z. Barrons. Yes, I’m talking about Ryodan. We may not know him well...
Wow! This year’s Alpha Showdown has certainly been epic. We’ve had heated battles from the very beginning, surprise upsets throughout (we’re still surprised Vlad didn’t make it past the first round as he is the original Prince of the Night) and a whole lot of finding new reads. I hope you guys have had fun with this event and found yourselves some new book boyfriends. That said, it’s time for the final...
Things are advancing in the Alpha Showdown 2013. We’ve hit the second tier of the event. Winners will start battling winners. Expect the stakes to be raised and the smack talk to increase. This round could be called the Fever Battle. Which complicated anti-hero from Karen Marie Moning’s Fever World is the most alpha: Ryodan or Christian? You decide. Read the pitches, then make the call. Who should advance...
Things are advancing in the Alpha Showdown 2013. We’ve hit the second tier of the event. Winners will start battling winners. Expect the stakes to be raised and the smack talk to increase. Both alphas this round pulled out last-minute wins in earlier battles. Christian eked ahead of original Prince of Darkness Vlad while Jane Yellowrock managed to defeat our favorite enforcer Terrible. Read the pitches,... 
