Review: Madison Avenue Vampire by Jenna Reynolds

Title: Madison Avenue Vampire
Author: Jenna Reynolds
Genre: Erotic Historical Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Ellora's Cave
Series: Stand Alone Length: novella
Received By: Author for Review

~*~Blurb from Publisher~*~

It’s the swinging 1960s and Richard owns one of Manhattan’s major advertising agencies. He’s also a vampire. He hungers to make love to Lana Sorenson’s lush, voluptuous body, but he also thirsts to sink his fangs into her lovely neck. Richard’s desire for blood is nearly out of control and surrendering to both his lusts may deprive Lana of her life.

Lana is the proverbial farmer’s daughter. A small town girl from Wisconsin, Lana regularly sees things she never would have imagined in her wildest dreams. But when she finds out the handsome, sexy man she’s dating is a vampire, Lana is faced with the terrifying possibility that the first time she and Richard make love could also be the last. Literally.

After reading this short story by this new-to-me author, I did something that I've never done before. I read it immediately again. Why you ask? Primarily for two reasons: one, I got so caught up in the story that I slacked on my note taking. And, two, I felt like it was so 'complete' that I must have missed something. As odd as that sounds, let me explain.

I am a character driven reader and reviewer. I'll take development of characters over plot any day, and in Madison Avenue Vampire, that's what I got, with the exception that it had a better plot than I had originally anticipated. What gave this story even more 'points' in my book, was that it had all my sub-genres that I love rolled into one: erotica, historical, and paranormal romance.

Right from the beginning I was swept up in to the ambiance of a 1962 Halloween costume party, complete with the nostalgia of an old fashion vampire movie! The irony being that the one wearing the costume, was none other than our protagonist, Richard Harlan, an unknown, real life vampire. Not even his human girlfriend, Lana Sorenson, is aware of Richard's major flaw, until she happens to find him in a situation that opens her eyes to a whole new world. One of which she has a hard time admitting exists. But, having been together for months prior to this 'eye-opener', a strong desire to be with one another creates internal battles for both characters.

A couple of different aspects about this short read gave me an appreciation for the story. For one thing, this story is filled with historical events and classic trademarks for the time period. From antique elevators to the landing of a 'man on a moon', to the 1912 created perfume called L'Heure Bleue, and everything in between. Ms. Reynolds did such a good job with research, that I really did feel like I was part of this time period. Add to the list the fact that a vampire-human romance is taking place during this time frame, gained a little extra points with me. I'm personally unaware of anything like this, which makes it unique to me.

And speaking of unique, another aspect that I enjoyed about this book was the traits of the characters. Both are not typical to their stereotype. A vampire who eats Italian entrees and drinks wine, can be in the sunlight for short amounts of time? A 1960s female who wants something other than marriage and children, and not afraid to be different? I liked the way the author created these two characters.

This is a story that takes place within two major events -- a Halloween party and a night at a 60s Jazz club. This is the prime reason for my rating of this story. This is all about these two main characters and the development of their relationship, despite Richard being a vampire. The dialogue, the body language, and the physical interactions, all told a story. They both have issues in their past that makes them both skeptical towards one another, and hesitant to be together, not to mention that one's a vampire jaded by humans, the other a human in denial of the existence of vampires. It's a story of breaking down past barriers and accepting a need to be with the other person, no matter what.

This is such a cute, fast read, that I finished it one sitting. The story is simplistically wrote, with a few repetitions of pronouns, and sexual descriptors, but does not take away from the goodness of this story! There's a subtleness to the creation of imagery that worked well for this story, and quite frankly, I think that Ms. Reynolds just knows how to pull it off, since I usually like more descriptions.

"The hallway stretched before Lana, empty and shadowed. Richard had told her on their way to the party that Mrs. Pomeroy's mansion had been built back in the 1890s. It was four stories high. The party was on the second floor."

I really enjoyed the amount of dialogue and body language that allowed me to gain further insight into the characters. It wasn't until the last thirty pages or so, that things get extra steamy. In fact, steamy is an understatement. By the time these two found themselves tangled up with one another, I was nearly begging for them to do something with the high amounts of sexual tension between them!

"He smiled. 'Now, now. None of that. I have you again and I don't plan to let you go."

"His voice trembled. 'I can smell your blood. I burn for you, Lana. I burn wanting every inch of your body. Your blood. Your soul.'"

~*~Final Thoughts~*~

This is obviously an adult category book based on graphic sexual descriptions and language. I highly recommend this quick read to those of you who like character driven stories, smexy, mysterious vampires with issues, non-conforming heroines, and some serious intense heat! Madison Avenue Vampire is a keeper on my novella shelf for its uniqueness, and cute character development, not to mention hotness. I will definitely be looking for more reads from this author! 

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