BLOOD GUARD (A Mission Novel #1) by MEGAN ERICKSON

‘Mission was not a city where dreams were made. At least, not for people like me.’

It’s no secret how much we love our paranormal reads! It’s our go to when we’re in a book funk and our pleasurable indulgence. We immediately got sucked into…pun intended…Blood Guard by Megan Erickson and loved the initial world building and introduction of a Vampire world living under the streets upon which humans walk unbeknownst to them what lurks beneath.

‘Maybe we weren’t all meant to belong somewhere.’

This was a slow build romance which perfectly set up a forthcoming series full of vampires, turf war and ultimately love. We have to mention that reading Blood Guard took us back to how we used to feel when reading paranormal books. For want of a better description, the way in which this story was written and how it made us feel was like proper old school PNR which is why we loved it so much. We were filled with nostalgia for the time, back when we first became addicted to this romance genre.

First we meet Tendra, who works as a bartender and comes across as a bit of a loner and orphan to boot; having been shifted from pillar to post by her deceased single mother. She feels unlucky in every aspect of her life yet keeps a sassy attitude with an inner quiet strength that stands her in good stead when her whole world is turned upside down. Along with her cat she finds herself in a situation that shocks her to her core. It all begins when she notices a somewhat intimidating man watching her in the bar where she works who then follows her into the night.

‘The sun on my face was like life. I’d spent all of my life looking at the sun as my killer, and now I saw it as my savior.’

Athan is the sexy warrior brother of the future Vampire king, Idris, and has one mission. To retrieve and bring home the woman whose blood is prophesised to give his brother the ability and strength to fight and overcome a clan of vampires set to destroy the human race and make them blood slaves. There’s a revolt happening and it needs to be stopped. But just who is pulling the strings for a change that will affect not only humans but the vampire race too?

‘I’d never abandon her, and if my father forced my hand, he’d see just how strong his youngest son had become.’

Athan and Tendra’s journey was jam packed with action, humour and sexual tension.  We loved every minute we spent with them wishing we had more! Their story set up a series we just know we’re going to love. Whilst Blood Guard can be read as a standalone in the sense that each book will feature a different couple, the overall storyline does continue from one book to the next.