Title: Quenched in Blood
Series: Asheville Arcana 03 / Dreamspun Desire 32
Author: Ari McKay
Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Length: Novel (228 pages)
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (20th November 2018)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating:💖💖💖💖💖4.5 Hearts
Blurb: Will love mean rebirth… or death?
In the course of his work with the Asheville Paranormal Council, reclusive three-hundred-year-old vampire Julian Schaden discovers young Thomas Carter, the heir to a long line of demon hunters—a legacy Thomas knows nothing about.
He also knows nothing about the supernatural world or the danger he’s in. As Julian convinces him and later agrees to train Thomas to use his abilities, he struggles against unexpected feelings. Thomas is too young and innocent to become involved with Julian, but opposites attract, and this is one battle Julian is fated to lose….
Julian and Thomas grow closer as the demonic menace advances. A prophecy from a dying mage comes with a bleak warning: to save Thomas’s life, Julian might have to give up the only man he’s ever loved.
ISBN: 978-1-64080-944-4
Product Link: Dreamspinner | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Reviewer: Prime
Review: Quenched in Blood is the third book in Ari McKay’s Asheville Aracana series. If you’ve not read the previous books in this series, you won’t be able to follow with a great deal of the plot, as it is an ongoing story that started way back in book 1. To be honest I had to go back and reacquaint myself with the previous books as I had forgotten some of the details and found myself a little muddled at first.
I was really looking forward to this book, after falling in love with Eli and Arden and then with Whimsy and Harlan
I couldn’t wait to see what was in store for Arden and Whimsey’s best friend, Julian.
Julian is your typical brooding, loner vampire. He is best friends with Arden, who has known him 300 years, and who later introduced Julian to Whimsy. They were not only Julian’s only true friends, aside from the people that he knew professionally in the business of demon hunting (which obviously has a high mortality rate), but they were also his lovers when he needed physical touch and pleasure. However, that all changed when Arden, a half elf, and Whimsy, a mage, found their mates. In their individual stories, both friends worried for Julian and his loneliness.
The ongoing story of this series is the rise in possessed shifters and demons being summoned to earth, which could be apocalyptic unless the small group of paranormals in Arcana figure out how to find the artifact that could save them all. The only problem is that this could mean the death of some much loved characters. Julian who knows more than a thing or two about what’s they are dealing with, meets Thomas in the pursuit for clues.
Thomas comes from a long line of demon hunters who descended from an angel. However, he had no clue about any of this. His parents had died and recently his grandfather had died as well. When Julian arrives at the failing family farm where Thomas lives, Thomas’ entire world had changed. Now Thomas dives into a world of demons and training to fight demons. Julian is his teacher and the two of the find that they have some pretty hot chemistry quite quickly. Julian is reticent to let Thomas is but that is all part of his charm and is half the drama of the story.
That was a wonderful end (pretty sure it’s the end) to the series. Julian has shaped up into a fantastic character, who is so much deeper than the brooding vampire that he had first presented. He has a lot on his mind and is wicked intelligence. Thomas is also a great guy to get to know, the only thing is that his character didn’t develop quite so deeply as I had hoped he would. However, together both guys are dynamite. I really loved reading this story, fans of paranormal fiction, those that have read this series will love this story.