Holiday with a Vampire: An Anthology

by Maureen Child and Caridad Piñeiro

Book Overview

'TIS THE SEASON TO TAKE A WALK ON THE DARK SIDE... Silhouette Nocturne is proud to present these two sensual, heartwarming tales of love during the holiday season. True, the heroes may not wear red suits or be very jolly. But tall, dark and handsome, with the unusual power to thrill, can sometimes be the best gift of all. In Christmas Cravings by Maureen Child, a vampire finds himself in need of a miracle, and discovers it on the doorstep of his childhood...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0373617763
• ISBN13: 9780373617760
• Release Date: November 2007
• Publisher: Harlequin Nocturne
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 4.2" x 6.6"

Customer Reviews

Holiday with a vampire

if you love vamps buy it! It was really good. I loved the stories. Im vamp addicted and read all the vampire romances this was a really good one.

4.5 & 3.5 stars - Two vamps find love & get their humanity back for Christmas!

Holiday with a Vampire has two very different vampire romances, both authors approach the redemption through love in different ways. Of the two, Maureen Child's "Christmas Cravings" was my favorite. Her vamp hero, Grayson, was a very sympathetic character having lost his life and his family as a 'reward' - no good deed goes unpunished - for helping a stranger 150 years ago. Since then he has made the pilgrimage back to his family home each Christmas to wallow in his grief, but this time he is attacked. Injured and knowing that he is too weak to get himself to safety before the sun rises, he almost welcomes the knowledge that his second death will end his tormented existence. Instead he is pulled to safety by the new owner of his home, Theresa Franklin. Grayson believes that vamps are evil killers and plans to leave right away to protect Theresa from himself. Having lived on the run for 5 years after a stalker killed her dog and her best friend, Theresa quickly recognizes that Grayson is no monster, his noblity and humanity shine through. Now she just has to convince him, while trying to avoid the vamps and the human 'monster' that are determined to kill them both. I really liked this story, and would have given it 5 stars if the ending hadn't been so abrupt. I really disliked the setup to Caridad Pintero's story, "Fate Calls". Instead of waiting for our hero and heroine to meet and connect, Pintero throws a sex scene between the vamp Hadrian and his prey into the beginning of the story to show how disconnected Hadrian is from humanity. Of course Hadrian finds no satisfaction in the sexual portion of the encounter because he no longer feels human lust, just blood lust. This introduction to the hero doesn't portray him in a very sympathetic way and then to make him even more 'endearing', during his first encounter with the heroine, Connie, Hadrian enthralls, kidnaps, and bites her and then ties Connie to his bed. Her bravery intrigues him and of course he is so sexy that she finds herself melting for him in spite of her fear and his poor dating habits. It took me a good portion of the story to get over this ickiness. Once Connie starts awakening Hadrian's long dormant humanity and Pinero finally allows her hero to open up his emotions, the story gets better. Hadrian's backstory and transformation was interesting enough to redeem the story along with the hero. So 4.5 stars for Child and 3.5 for Pintero, but 4 stars for an anthology isn't bad and these shorts are perfect for sneaking in a few moments for yourself between all the Christmas craziness.

From one of the Authors!

I loved participating in this wonderful holiday anthology with Maureen Child! Hadrian and Connie proved to be compelling and fascinating characters and I hope you'll find them to be some of your favorites. Here are some of the reviews for FATE CALLS from HOLIDAY WITH A VAMPIRE: The Best Reviews: "Caridad Pineiro writes a wonderful Christmas paranormal romance starring two appealing lead characters. " Cataromance, 5 stars: "Caridad Pineiro breathes life into her engaging characters with sharp wit and an original story filled with creativity. . .(A)nother memorable vampire story to stir the imagination of her readers. "Fate Calls" is a magical Christmas story with spirited characters and an enjoyable holiday romance." Romantic Times: "Annoyed by the holiday bell-ringer raising money across the street from his home, vampire Hadrian Aurelius kidnaps Connie Morales. But Hadrian gets more than he bargained for . . . . "Fate Calls" has strong, well-developed characters. Hadrian is particularly compelling." If you enjoyed this novel, look for more books in THE CALLING vampire novels in late 2008. Also look for these other books by Caridad Pineiro: Moon Fever The Calling: Blood Calls (Book 6) (Silhouette Nocturne) Sex and the South Beach Chicas South Beach Chicas Catch Their Man Secret Agent Reunion (Silhouette Intimate Moments)

worth spending the holiday with vampires

"Christmas Cravings" by Maureen Child. Tessa Franklin saves the undead life of Grayson Stone left to die in the sun. However, his life remains forfeit as vampires warn him to pick sides and die; stay neutral and die. This is multifaceted vampire romance starring two strong protagonists, but the resolution seems too easy following stratospheric problems and threats. "Fate Calls" by Caridad Pineiro. Connie Morales tries to raise money for charity ringing her Christmas bell. Across the street from Connie is irritated vampire Hadrian Aurelius who finally decides the only way to stop the ringing is to kidnap the irritant ringer. He abducts Connie, but instead of peace on earth, he finds himself attracted to Connie. Caridad Pineiro writes a wonderful Christmas paranormal romance starring two appealing lead characters. Sub-genre fans will appreciate spending the HOLIDAY WITH A VAMPIRE (or two). Harriet Klausner

Fantastic Holiday Fun!

It's been a while since I've read a really good romance. I've been on the lookout for something that's well written, fun and something I can sink my teeth into (pun intended). So it was with a great amount of joy that I found Holiday with a Vampire! It's composed of two novellas by two of my favourite romance authors. Maureen Child is an incredible writer and her novel Eternally was fantastic. Caridad Pineiro, author of the amazing Calling vampire series, has quickly become one of my absolute faves and is on my automatic buy list, no matter what she writes. Child's contribution is Christmas Cravings and concerns Grayson Stone, a vampire still punishing himself for the death of his family every Christmas. Pineiro's offering, Fate Calls, concerns Connie Morales who is swept off her feet by a handsome vampire who thinks he has no soul. The two stories compliment each other so well and they are the perfect holiday treat. I tried to take my time reading it but, having picked it up yesterday afternoon and finishing it last night, I'm already on my second read. Holiday with a Vampire is perhaps the best romance book I've read in ages. It's fresh, fun and you can feel the Christmas cheer coming in waves from the books pages. If you buy yourself one holiday treat this winter, make sure it's Holiday with a Vampire!