Customer Reviews

Acquainted With the Night

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Caro's life has become rather plain and simple since she stopped pursuing her Ph D. All that changes when her Uncle, the man who raised her was savagely murdered. In her journey to make the funeral arrangements she meets a man who was corresponding with her Uncle on a very tricky subject. Jude has some crazy ideas about vampires which Caro instantly writes off, but then she remembers some strange events that have happened in the past few days and realizes that he may just be right. They set off on a quest to find answers in an ancient text. But first they must follow the breadcrumb trail her uncle left for her in order to find it.

In Acquainted With the Night, the vampires are a combination of both science and history, making for an interesting blend. Things really were a case of past meets present as Caro and Jude were on a quest to find answers in an ancient text, all the while being chased by a man who would use them for his own horrific science project. It would have been very easy for this story to have become jumbled and confusing, but it never did. Every new revelation was presented in a very understandable way that only added to story. I really love books that have a world behind them that is fully realized and very rich, but never overtakes the main plot.

The relationship between Caro and Jude at first seemed to be incredibly rushed. Not that I am really complaining though, as they sure made for an incredibly steamy couple. However, once a shocking reveal was made all of their progress as a couple seemed to be set back to the stone age, which left me more than a little heartbroken myself. I went from be more than a little cavalier towards their relationship to feeling bereft at the sudden change. The book's ability to grab a hold of my emotions in such a way was really impressive. I always love a story that can make me become fully attached to the characters, and Acquainted With the Night sure fits that bill.

Despite its length, Acquainted With the Night read very quickly, to the point where the pages seemed to fly by. In fact there was only one small section that seemed to drag, but that could also be attributed to reader fatigue as I read it straight through. It is no small feat to be able to fully hold my interest for 500+ pages in one setting, so Piper Maitland definitely deserves some major kudos. I cannot wait to see what is in store next for Caro and Jude as a whole new can of worms was opened up at the end that can only spell trouble for them in the future.

Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy:

[...]

Fans of both THE HISTORIAN and the Jason Bourne series will love ACQUAINTED WITH THE NIGHT, which brings murder, intrigue, and a biological twist to vampirism. I'm a sucker for authors who meld supernatural creatures with the science of our own world, and Piper Maitland did a great job bringing a medical sensibility to this classic myth.

For the first few chapters, Maitland's mythology carried my interest above all else, as the heroine flounders from sheltered ignorance into the violence of her hidden past. Caro's development owes more to old school romance than urban fantasy, as she's more focused on being accepted by the hero than on embracing her birthright. In a typical, heroine-focused urban fantasy this would be a fatal flaw for me, but ACQUAINTED BY THE NIGHT has more of a thriller feel, driven by an engine of suspense and plot. Maitland's world building made the characters' human weaknesses one more flawed, realistic detail. While I would have enjoyed this book more with a different type of heroine, readers who focus more on plot can probably tack another bat onto this review (and though satisfying as a standalone, there's plenty more plot to pick up where this book leaves off).

Of all the details Maitland wove into her mythology, I particularly loved how she included the hyper-sexuality so common in Paranormal Romance as part of the physiology of vampirism. While I'm normally all about characters, those little details stole the spotlight in ACQUAINTED WITH THE NIGHT. Though Caro and Jude aren't so memorable for me, I'll enjoy mulling over the plausible biology behind Maitland's vampires for quite some time.

Sexual Content: References to rape, several sex scenes.

I happened to be reading this book around the time that I made the terrible mistake of completely wasting my money on watching The Devil Inside when it premiered in theaters.

So why am I bringing this up?

Simple - because lately there have been a few exorcism movies coming out lately and The Devil Inside brought nothing new to the table whatsoever.

Now if you look at the very crowded vampire genre that Acquainted With The Night belongs to, you can bet author Piper Maitland clearly faces an uphill challenge...

...but comes out swinging with a very distinguished novel.

The characters in AWTN are full of life (well, as much as vampires can be), and you'll have no trouble relating to them.

Maitland seems to have very little problems when it comes to breathing life both into the story's cast as well as they situations they face making this thick read (over 500 pages!) actually breeze by.

If you're feeling hyped-out by sugary blockbusters like Twilight and could do with something fresh, I highly recommend you start here.

If you're a fan of vampire stories, this one has a fresh outlook on the whole "nosferatu" genre. Maitland delves deep into the biological portion of vampirism and goes so far as to explain just what it is on a purely scientific level. The details are more scientific and less fantastical than what most paranormal novels offer.

The story itself flows smoothly, but the more I read, the more it grew dry in some places with not as much drama one would expect from a suspense genre novel. It was filled with transcontinental adventure and lots of hot, monkey sex, but in my opinion, not enough suspense. There was also places where I found myself wondering if the MC's (main character) actions were realistic.

And for part one of a series, the end left me hanging. In my opinion, there should have been a bit more at the end to entice the reader into continuing with the series. I honestly don't know if I want to read the next one or not.

However, Maitland is a fresh new voice on the scene and for an established author dipping her toes in the paranormal, I believe she has carved a nice foundation in order to grow upon.

My sister bought this book for me for Christmas as she knows I just love vampire novels! Unfortunately over the past few years the genre seems to have been flooded with second-rate pot-boilers, but I was delighted to find that "Acquainted with the Night" really stood out in terms of both writing and plot and had me rapt from cover to cover.

If you like well written vampire novels, characters you love and characters you love to hate, then you will enjoy "Acquainted With the Night". The entrancing medical aspect of vamprisim, which is an excellent twist, adds an injection of freshness to the genre, but the metaphors and exquisite writing lifts this book completely out of the paranormal genre into a class of its own. There isn't another vampire novel like this one. I thoroughly enjoyed it and cannot wait for the sequel. Highly recommended!

WOW!!! What a great book!! Be prepared to read it from beginning to end in one sitting, or at least try(the book has 500+ pages) This book is full of suspense,greed,and untrusting relationships.Never did I think that a book about vampirism could keep my attention...but it certainly did just that.Hats off to Piper Maitland!!!!

An elderly academic is murdered. In his death throes, he leaves a cryptic message intended for a young female relative. This coded message sends the young female relative and an attractive male academic on a treasure hunt across Europe. They discover a secret that casts new light on religious history and on the female lead's genealogy, fall in love, and are pursued by both legal authorities and criminal goons. You may be thinking you've read this book before. Piper Maitland adds a vampire twist to the formula, but I could never quite shake that Da Vinci Code feeling. Of course, we all have our favorite tropes, and one reader's "unoriginal" is another reader's "comfortable like an old shoe." If the idea of The Da Vinci Code with vampires appeals to you, then Acquainted with the Night is the book you've been waiting for. For me, though, the clichés hampered the reading experience.

Maitland does, however, flesh out the two central characters, Caro and Jude, more fully than many thriller characters are developed. For the most part, this is a positive. There's a stretch in the middle of the book where both leads become annoying -- their romance sours, he's being a bigot, she's trying to wheedle him into a reconciliation -- and I didn't like either of them much for a while. But overall, the two protagonists work well. I also enjoyed the vampire tycoon with a soft spot for our heroine, his dog, and modern-day goth rock. After meeting the other vampires in the novel, most of whom are evil and gross, he made a nice change. He's manipulative, sure, but he's interesting!

Acquainted with the Night is filled with action; the chase scenes and double crosses will keep the pages turning. Unfortunately, it ends on more of a "the story is just beginning" note than one might expect of a 500+ page book, and the unoriginal elements make the story predictable in places. Depending on your tastes, Acquainted with the Night could be a good popcorn book but, ultimately, it's forgettable.

Acquainted With the Night

I FOUND THE BOOK VERY ENTERTAINING ONE OF THE AUTHOR'S BEST WORK BY FAR. THE CHARACTERS MAKE YOU FEEL YOU ARE THERE WITH THEM. I LOVE ALL HER BOOKS, BUT THIS ONE IS THE BEST OF ALL.

When I first received Acquainted with the Night, the sheer size of the book intimidated me. It took me over a week to work up my courage enough to attempt to begin reading. It didn't take me long to get hooked and I finished the thick paperback in just a few days time. I found the entire plot line to be fascinating. I love how the author uses scientific terms to describe the existence of vampires. Her spin on these overdone creatures is refreshing. I especially love how Caro gets up getting hot for sex after being bit.

The sex scenes were pretty arousing and the action was abundant and entertaining. I enjoyed following the relationship of Caro and Jude as they struggled to stay alive and solve the clues Caro's dead uncle left for her. Piper Maitland did a wonderful job of tying up a lot of the loose ends but I was very disappointed when the story ended. I would have liked to see more about what sort of future Caro and Jude end up having.

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I loved this book. I don't have much time to read a book cover to cover any more, but with this book I made time... I could not put it down for anything!! I can't wait for the next... please tell me there will be another?