Title: Reluctant Partnership
Series: Partnership in Blood Spin Off 02
Author: Ariel Tachna
Genre: Paranormal, Alternative World
Length: Novel (280pgs)
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (3rd October 2011)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb: Thanks to the efforts of Raymond Payet and l’ANS, vampires now have the same legal rights as mortals, and research at l’Institut Marcel Chavinier is focusing on the mysterious partnership bonds between wizards and vampires. But the battle for public opinion rages on. When Detective Adèle Rougier encounters Pascale Auboussu, a shy young woman turned into a vampire against her will, Raymond and Denis Langlois, chef de la Cour nearest the crime, fear a public relations nightmare.
The vampire responsible for Pascale’s turning must be brought to justice, but Denis is distracted by an unlikely potential partner—Canadian researcher Martin Delacroix, who is spending a year’s sabbatical at l’Institut—and Denis’s lingering feelings for his deceased lover prompt him to reject the bond. There’s no denying the attraction between them, though, and the allure of companionship is nearly as strong as Denis’s grief.
Growing familiarity and yearning for a true mate may induce Adèle and Denis to soften their stances against new partnerships, but Adèle will have to accept a deeper intimacy with Pascale when she has never considered a relationship with a woman, and it will take a near-deadly attack to make Denis admit his most hidden desires. Now he has to hope Martin will be willing to stay.
Product Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=2528&osCsid=ff0a2v6kmk7tb6hv1987ilpi93
Review: Okay, I had some qualms about reading this one, why? You ask, well I loved the Partnership In Blood series and it ended, we had the epilogue and everything, I mean I mourned Alain and Orlando, all the other wizards were old, the vampires were gearing up for when they lost their own wizards and lovers and then suddenly we have the spin-offs, where they are all young again and it completely ruined it for me. If it hadn’t had an epilogue and I hadn’t mourned then it wouldn’t have been a problem but it did and I had. I really couldn’t enjoy the book that much but I will still give you an honest review.
The story was well written and it had all the detail that we expect from Ariel Tachna, we had the emotional conflict, the physical conflict and the mental conflict. Denis doesn’t want a partnership; he lost the love of his life thirty years before and he just isn’t ready for any sort of long-term relationship. Martin is only in France for a year and although he is fascinated by the partnerships when he does embark on one he wants a vampire from where he lives in Canada. Adèle doesn’t want another partnership EVER after what she went through with Jude, but by accident she finds out that she is compatible to a newly turned vampire; now if she can just resist the pull. Pascale is turned against her will, she has to get used to her new life as well as deal with the discovery of being an eligible partner for a wizard and try to find a compromise within that partnership.
This storyline is really strong, the plot is good and the sex is hot. Now there is f/f and there are a few m/m scenes as well between the wizards and vampires that we have come to know and love. We discover a surprise about Denis’s old lover and we find out why Denis is so strong for such a young vampire. The way that the main characters all had to weigh up the pros and cons, their own wants and needs and the effect that it would have on their partnership partner was really good. They didn’t rush into anything and they tried to find common ground before they entered the partnerships.
I recommend this to paranormal lovers, those who like conflict, hot sex and a great story-line.