Customer Reviews

Blood Wager (Blood Destiny #1)

5 star:		(58)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Lissa's husband had just died, and she decided to go to a bar and get drunk. Since she never drank, it didn't take her much. She noticed the two men who came in, of course, since one wanted to buy her a drink, but she refused and after her 4th glass of wine she went out to her car. That's when it happened - as it turned out, the men were vampires and they had decided to turn her and see how long it took her to rise. It was a game to them - the wager was £ 1,000,000 that she would rise within 9 days. Of course, they would then have to kill her, because otherwise they'd have to take her in and take care of her and they had no intention of doing that. Once Lissa realizes that she is probably going to die at the hands of the vampires, she flees and this book - "Blood Wager" - is about how she survives the first few months as a vampire.

There are certainly some plot holes - how, for example, did Lissa suddenly just know she was a vampire? But these certainly do not detract from the overall story, which is very well written, flows smoothly and has a nice, tight plot. The characters are all well-defined and interesting and I enjoyed reading it very much. In fact, I loved "Blood Wager" so much that I purchased the next two books in the series, "Blood Passage" and "Blood Sense." Connie Suttle plans 9 books in the series (at this time) with the 4th book - "Blood Domination" - due out October 15, 2011 and the 5th - "Blood Royal" - due November 15, 2011. I suggest that those who enjoy a good vampire novel check out Suttle's books - they are very enjoyable!

Connie Suttle's debut novel is about to receive a glowing four star review from me! Yet another self-published author who's not only surprised me but has also made me question my reluctance to review indie authors. Blood Wager is original, modern and has unusually good intentioned characters for a vamp/were book. The combination of superb world-building, engaging personalities and a sassy writing style make this novel a must read for all Urban Fantasy fans. I only have one small beef with this story which I'll get to a bit later but no author can expect to be perfect on their first try!

Blood Wager starts off with the story of how Lissa becomes a vampire. Unfortunately for Mrs Workman, her turning is the result of a cruel joke which makes for a severely lacking intro to the un-dead world. At first she doesn't even realize that she's now a member of the fanged population. I really enjoyed this aspect of the plot. Lissa's flying by the seat of her pants as she attempts to uncover the intricacies that come with her new vampire status. I couldn't help but admire Workman from the get-go. She's having what very well could be the worst day of her life yet she manages to keep a level head and do what must be done. It was fun watching Lissa discover her new abilities. Her only point of reference is pop culture so she tries anything and everything that she's ever seen in movies. Some work, some don't. Suttle also comes up with her own short-form lingo in the form of FVM (f$@%ing vampire manual) which I adored. Every time something backfires Lissa jokes about how useful it would be if she had a vamp 101 book.

I was anxious for the werewolves to make their appearance. I enjoy a good vamp read but my heart belongs to canine shifters. I had a hunch early on and Connie was kind enough to drop a few breadcrumbs here and there but the mid-point twist was still a welcome surprise. I enjoyed unraveling Suttle's take on pack and vampire hierarchy. She develops each supernatural's world superbly by merging existing lore with her own and the result is a well-rounded, believable, Blood Destiny universe. On top of exceptional world-building, Blood Wager is also overflowing with unbelievable characters! There's Lissa, of course, who despite having been constantly put through the wringer still manages to maintain her big heart and do-the-right-thing attitude. William Winkler is Workman's new boss. At first I disliked him to the extreme but he continued to surprise me throughout this book and by the end I actually liked him! Last but not least is this book's man candy, Gavin Montegue. My verdict is still out on him but I can't deny how hot he is! Maybe he'll pull his head out of his butt in Blood Passage.

Now time for the not so good stuff. This book could have finished a good 50 pages earlier in my opinion. It was almost as if the main plotline concluded and then a second one started up in the final chapters. I understand the reason behind it; Connie wanted to tie up a few loose ends and create a segue for the next installment. However, I think she could have done it in fewer pages which would have resulted in me feeling less frustrated towards the end. Blood Wager was going to receive a 5 star review from me until I found myself having to wade through an unnecessarily long ending.

Connie Suttle is definitely an up and coming author to watch out for! Blood Wager blends memorable characters with a down-to-earth sassy writing style to create Urban Fantasy magic! The second installment in this series is already available; Amazon.com here I come!

Two vampires walk into a bar, see a fat old woman crying over the death of her husband, and proceed to make a bet as to how long it will take for the woman to be changed into a vampire. It's an interesting and gritty beginning to a book with a whole lot of promise. Unfortunately, things go down hill from there and as much as we like Lissa, the plot holes are big enough to drive Buicks through, the writing is choppy, and the characters are strangers.

First of all the writing style is very disjointed. The main character speaks in the first person, narrating the majority of the book but snippets are randomly thrown-in from secondary characters which are written in the third person. These side scenes are rushed and skeletal in details, often only a paragraph long. Just enough to distract you and then throw you back into first person writing again. In most cases these outtakes could be cut out all together or condensed into longer more solid scenes, maybe longer scenes outside Lissa's pov would help develop these secondary players. As is, most secondary characters are cardboard cutouts.

And then there are the plot holes. OMG! The holes! I guess I should put a ***SPOILER*** alert here, though nothing I'm going to mention is from too deep into the novel.
1) the initial bet makes no sense since we've been told no female vampires have been successfully made in 700 years
2) Lissa immediately acknowledges she's a vampire and knows exactly what she has to do. Not even a half a page is devoted to the obvious "I have fangs!!"
3) The vampire council is omnipotent, immediately knows about her, and wants to destroy her as a rogue vampire even though she is A) a super rare female and B) not killing anyone, not exposing their race, and not acting out of control.
4) Lissa finds a bodyguard position that conveniently involves night work only and the interview consists of getting tackled and defending herself. That's it! No firearms use, knowledge of crowd control, or references.
5) All activities and movements conveniently take place at night. Lissa's employer never seems to want to go anywhere during daylight hours.
6) Lissa's super paranoid employer is conned into ditching his protection detail because he got a call that his sister was being held hostage. Super paranoid employer doesn't actually hear his sister's voice or wait to confirm she's missing before abandoning his super paranoia to rush off alone.
7) Um, she's shot 3 times in the back and no one thinks this is much of an injury. Also Lissa doesn't seemed surprised no one thinks much of her injury even though she still believes no one knows she's a vampire.
8) Lissa wants to leave her job after getting shot but is coerced not to. She's told if she tries to leave her employer will blackmail her- he knows she's not who she says. Wait.... huh? Blackmail only works when you KNOW a secret that someone is trying to hide. Firstly, there is nothing to indicate at the time that the employer knows who or what Lissa is, only that she isn't who she says. Secondly, Lissa has no identity that she's trying to maintain or past that she is trying to protect. She has no kids, her husband is dead, and she's facing eternity as a kick-butt undead. She could just disappear again. So why exactly is this a motivator?

This is where my brain short circuited. I couldn't keep reading. I know some might find it unfair to review a book I haven't finished, but isn't it a review in and of itself that I couldn't finish it?

If the author ever sought mainstream publication for this, my first advice would be to patch up the holes. Then flesh out these characters, clean up the points of view, and do some world building. This first novel alone could easily be 3 quality novels if the writer was patient enough to do the story justice. For readers considering this novel? Well I have pretty high standards when it comes to writing; I admit it. If you are just looking for a paranormal story then your 99 cents might find a good home here, but if you can't stand poorly written novels no matter the price, look elsewhere.

The story starts in a bar with a woman, Lissa, who is upset about a loved one's recent death. A series of events send her blindly into the world of vampires. She's forced to give up the world she knew for the unknown. After getting a decent night job, Lissa kicks butt through one situation after another wherein she's confronted by a Vampire Council, werewolves, a couple of serious hotties who seems to take turns annoying the crap out of her, and the eventual knowledge of unusual abilities....If all this isn't enough to get you to read this story, know that it's just absolute fun. Brain candy about on the level with Laurell K. Hamilton and, to my mind anyway, a far cut above the Charlaine Harris series.

Lissa is highly personable and makes for an easy read.

The only real negative I have to say about this is the pacing. About 80% of the way through the story, it seemed that the main conflict was resolved, but then it feels as if there's another story tacked on. That was an interesting enough story, but it felt a little out of place. Maybe this is because it's a series and this had to do with series development. I am personally anxiously awaiting book 2.

I am not a fan of poorly written books, even when the plot is well thought out (I will then skim to the end to find out what happened!) But when I hit on a series that IS well written, has characters that instantly make you laugh, cry, empathize, and sit on the edge of your chair, I plow right in without another thought.

My house is a disaster; the dishes are piling up in the sink. The first volume I bought 24 hours ago ... I'm about to finish volume three ... and am so relieved that are more to come that are already out there.

Need I say more??

I picked up BLOOD WAGER based on Ilona Andrews' recommendation & unfortunately, that was a mistake. Yes, at its best the book has a vibrant bleakness that reminds me a little of Ilona Andrews. But Suttle's writing is short on description, with very little in the way of imagery or scene-setting. She keeps the action rolling, but I wished she'd cut out a few scenes and focused more on making me care about her characters instead.

The book starts with the lead character, Lissa, being turned into a vampire as part of a wager. This is an example of the brilliant and bleak part of Suttle's writing. Forty-six year old Lissa walks into a bar in tears because her husband has just died, and these two vampires laugh because she seems so old, aged by grief. This whole scene just squeezed at my heart.

But then Lissa wakes up, and that's when things start to go wrong. She figures out she's a vampire quickly and doesn't have time to be shocked - she needs to escape. She has to leave her identity behind, her home and her city, because she knows those two vampires will track her if they can. She learns to feed and ends up working security as a night guard in Texas.

The way she described her new boss, the other guards, I assumed that this was just another stop on the way before she's discovered by the vampires. The other characters are flat and don't do anything interesting. I couldn't visualize them and didn't think any of them had any personality. Including her boss. But, as I kept reading and Lissa keeps working security for this guy, I realized that actually this gig wasn't just a temporary thing. We find out things about her employer that make him a really important character; and Lissa integrates herself into his world by saving lives and baking cookies.

Soon enough Lissa is acquiring rare powers and doing battle against impossible odds - like twenty-to-one, where she's the one - but coming out victorious. I started to get a bad, Mary Sue sort of feeling. The other characters don't emote very well but it starts to seem like they're all infatuated with Lissa, and the ones who aren't turn out to be villains.

I didn't hate BLOOD WAGER but I didn't like it, either. The writing style just doesn't work for me, and while I liked some of the story elements I saw a few red flags as well. Not a series I'll continue with.

So I figured, sure, for this price, why not? The reviews were good and probably the only reason I kept on as the first half or so of the book is not as well written and reads a bit rocky to me. Boy am I glad I kept reading!!! This book is the start of one of my favorite series. The first couple books start out fairly traditional urban fantasy: vampires, werewolves, throw in a little romance, some kick butt action, and actually pretty clean for the genre (no explicit sex and a light to moderate amount of swearing). Then in later books, boy oh boy does her world get intriguing and quite imaginative. Almost a bit more traditional sci-fi (which I don't usually like, by the way). That said, my advice to readers is to give the author the benefit of the doubt here at the beginning and keep reading. Each book improves on the last and you definitely won't be sorry.

First off let me say that I bought this book because it was inexpensive and wanted something new to sink my teeth into. I wasn't expecting much. This book, and this series turned out to be a new favorite that I have devoured.
Blood Wager has been adequately summarized numerous times so I would rather address a few of the poor reviews and criticisms as well as my own impressions of the plot and writing. I will preface this by saying that I have read all five of the Blood Destiny books that are currently out.
I must say that I find the style of mixing first and third person jarring, and very difficult to pull off smoothly (although I notice for some reason it seems to be very popular with authors of late). Connie Suttle picks it up quickly, and the transitions become smoother as the book progresses. What some people have pointed out as plot holes bewilders me. Yes, Lissa wakes up and surmises (and accepts) that she is a vampire fairly quickly. The evidence is overwhelming... she's no longer physically resembles herself in any way although from newspapers she can deduce she's only been "out of it" for a few days. She has fangs with an intense hunger, and supernatural strength. This pretty much leaves being a vampire or being intensely delusional -- the character is practical, if oddly naive, and it is appropriate to her proactive nature that she accepts her circumstances and deals with them without a lot of angst or internal dialogue. This also fits well with a person who is grieving, traumatized and in fear for her life... miring oneself in pity, fear and bewilderment is a good way to end up dead. I don't see this as a big plot hole.
As to other "believable" points let me just say that if you are willing to let the plot unfold without demanding every answer and every detail _right now_ the questions you have building in your mind get answered as the book progresses. Lissa is, as I said, very naive in some ways, and very hardened in other (not unusual for someone with a lot of trauma in their past) -- she is also very, very desperate with few options, which explains why she doesn't spend a lot of time dissecting why she gets her job, or why she is accepted so easily... the combination of the two also explains her rage and depression when she gets the answers to the all the building questions along with the reader. I actually ENJOYED this approach as opposed to many books I've read where the main character has exhaustive internal dialogue and every plot point and unusual occurrence is explained in almost excruciating detail.
Further, as to the discrepancies in the vampires & vampire counsel vs. female vampires being very rare: actually I felt this was also well written. If you look at the characters who are the most powerful vampires they are all warriors from time periods and cultures where mercy is not a common occurrence. Their views are that the good of the race as a whole always outweighs the needs of the individual. Their laws are very strict and inflexible, and their answer in dealing with other vampires who have the power to endanger the entire species is harsh and swift. While there are few female vampires the value of one doesn't automatically outweigh the security of the entire race. That's pretty darned realistic in my view and works with the entire world. Supernatural beings in this world are not warm fuzzy creatures who have the ultimate goal of love and romance... their all about survival, and self preservation.

This is the weakest of all the books, which is not unusual being as it is the first. That said it is NOT a weak book at all. It improves at it progresses but I was not even once tempted to put it down. When I was done I immediately bought the other four books in the series (and they are an excellent price... I was thinking initially they would be novellas but they are all full length books). I did give this book four stars because I genuinely loved the characters, plot and change of pace in the vampire/werewolf/paranormal world combined with the potential for the series. And the rest of the series delivers in spades... each book improves and becomes stronger in plot as well as character development.

I understand the author plans 9 books and I can't wait for the other 4!!!

There are plenty of reviews here that do a good job of summarizing the plot of the book so I won't repeat all of that. What I will say is that despite being self-published this book has just as much polish as any other book out there and the plot, world building and story line are absolutely fabulous. Ms. Suttle has said in her website that if you are looking for a series where the heroine has just one love interest then you won't be happy with this series. That said, having read through the first 4 books - this is NOT an Anita Blake book where Lissa falls into bed with every guy who wants her. The introduction of other men into Lissa's life is handled extremely well (she doesn't fall into bed with every guy who is interested in her) and her honor and good heart comes through really well. I really am enjoying this series and cannot wait for the next book to be released.

Have you ever gone through some of your favorite authors and their books are now 9.99 or even 12.99 and you start to read the book and you wonder why did I waste my money? Then other days you find an author for .99 and you can't believe how amazing the book is and you think WOW!

This is the author. I am now on the 3rd book in the series and I can't put it down. Rich world development, I care about the characters and I can't wait to find out what is next.

Pick it up and read it, you won't be sorry.