Home of the Alpha Showdown, and one-stop shop for urban fantasy, paranormal romance and fantasy news and reviews.
![Round 5: Adam Hauptman vs. Dragos Cuelebre [Alpha Showdown 2013]](http://vampirebookclub.net/wp-content/uploads/et_temp/VBC-HomeofAlphaShowdown-67822_200x200.jpg)
It’s officially time for Alpha Showdown 2013! You made your nominations and we have 16 of the most badass, alpha characters from urban fantasy and paranormal romance novels locked into the bracket. Only one will be named champion and today’s first bout is sure to end in a knockout.
Round five is shifter time. Both Adam and Dragos know how to lead their people, but how will they fare in a fight?... 
Rising Darkness (A Game of Shadows #1)
Thea Harrison
Published: April 2, 2013 (Berkley)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Reviewed by: Mary
Rating (out of 5): 4 stars
Fans of Thea Harrison’s Elder Races will be both disappointed in this book and excited by it. Rising Darkness is nothing like her Elder Races series and does not take place in the same world. However, it is a mind-bending,... 
In an effort to help you keep that to-read list updated, I’ve compiled the hot urban fantasy and paranormal romance releases for April 2013. All dates are U.S. and tentative. Also: Click the title of any book to visit the Amazon page for pre-order or purchase goodness.
I’ve included genre classification with each book: UF is urban fantasy, PNR is paranormal romance, F is fantasy and YA is young... 
I kicked myself for waiting so long to start Thea Harrison’s Elder Races series. Dragon Bound was an excellent read. The whole VBC team is on board with the series, and Candace got extra swoony for Khalil in her review of Oracle’s Moon. She’s not the only one. Courtney from Literary Escapism tapped Khalil as her book boyfriend for Character Love Letters. Who’s your favorite Elder... 
Lord’s Fall (Elder Races #5)
Thea Harrison
Published: Nov. 6, 2012 (Berkley)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Reviewed by: Candace
Rating (out of 5): 4.5 stars
I’ve faced monsters and demons and nightmares that most people have never heard of, but you have always scared me the most. We might make a list of pretty words that we can call each other or use for our relationship, but I don’t feel... 
Storm’s Heart (Elder Races #2)
Thea Harrison
Published: Aug. 2011 (Berkley Sensation)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Reviewed by: Jo
Rating (out of 5): 5 stars
Note: While this review is spoiler-free, it does assume you have read the first in the series.
After reading Chelsea’s review of Dragon Bound, I decided it was high time I bumped it up to the top of my TBR pile (it’s... 
As happens from time-to-time here at VBC, I’m making an executive decision. We’ve had Thea Harrison’s Dragon Bound in the group read poll several times, and it always just misses being selected. Well, I had it on my physical to-read shelf for a long time. I quit waiting and finally read the book last month and Oh My God it was fantastic.
In the interest of good reading everywhere,... 
Dragon Bound (Elder Races #1)
Thea Harrison
Published: May 2011 (Berkley Sensation)
Purchase at: Book Depository or Amazon
Reviewed by: Chelsea
Rating (out of 5): 4.5 stars
Lately I’ve been trying to make time for the highly recommended books on my to-read shelf. The ones I bought on a friend’s recommendation and then got so busy with new review books that I didn’t sit down and, you know,... 
We’re doing things slightly differently this year. This is the first year where we have associate reviewers at VBC. As such, it didn’t feel quite right to only include my top 10. So, you’ll find my 10 picks for the absolute best books of 2012 and below that a top 5 list from Jo and Candace, respectively. Plus, of course, we have your winner for the reader’s choice best book. (See the Best Of lists... 
In an effort to help you keep that to-read list updated, I’ve compiled the hot urban fantasy and paranormal romance releases for November 2012. All dates are U.S. and tentative. Also: Click the title of any book to visit the Amazon page for pre-order or purchase goodness.
I’ve included genre classification with each book: UF is urban fantasy, PNR is paranormal romance, F is fantasy and YA is young... 
