Forbidden: The Awakening [Paperback]

Samantha Sommersby (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 20, 2007

The past two months have been the longest of Byron Renfield's three hundred and seventy-nine years. After almost four centuries of dedicated service to his clan, four centuries spent in the pursuit of redemption, the powerful vampire did the inexplainable and unforgivable. In an impulsive act of passion he claimed the beautiful Violet Deeds, a human, as his mate. When Violet found herself stranded on a remote island occupied by the charismatic Byron she never imagined that she would be saving him, but the fiery red-headed psychiatrist did just that-bringing the immortal to life and introducing him to love. Now, afraid of retribution from his clan and concerned for Violet's safety, Byron takes steps to protect them both. But will it be enough? Irrevocably bound together, as the tie between Byron and Violet strengthens they step into one another's worlds, awakening long buried desires and threatening the balance of society and nature. A kidnapping, an underground world of rebel vampires, an elaborate network of elite clansman led by an ageless prophet, and a rescue mission that will keep you on the edge of your seat all come together perfectly in this thrilling sequel to Samantha Sommersby's Forbidden: The Claim. An erotic romance you won't be able to put down, Forbidden: The Awakening will have you begging for more!

Editorial Reviews

Review

From Chrissy Dionne, Romance Junkies
"Samantha Sommersby tells a kick butt tale...I eagerly read through each and every page and found myself immersed." --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Linden Bay Romance (February 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1602020272
• ISBN-13: 978-1602020276
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,283,792 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Samantha Sommersby lives in San Diego with her husband and fifteen year old son. She is the author of ten novels and novellas including Forbidden: The Temptation, her latest installment in the critically acclaimed Forbidden series. In 2007 Samantha left what she used to call her "real life" day job as a psychotherapist to pursue writing and working in the publishing industry full-time. She now happily spends her days immersed in the world of the Forbidden, a world where vampires, werewolves, and demons are real, where magic is possible, and where love still conquers all.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Revel in the thrilling second installment to the FORBIDDEN series!, February 26, 2007

By 

C. Dionne "Chrissy Dionne" (Cloverdale, OREGON USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Forbidden: The Awakening (Paperback)

Byron Renfield has spent centuries providing for the well being of his clan. He's been on this earth for three hundred seventy-nine years and has finally found the woman he wishes to spend eternity with, a human named Violet Deeds. He did the unthinkable and claimed her. Now, they're in danger. Byron has spent two months arranging for his carefully planned disappearance so that he can begin a new life with Violet.

Violet wasn't looking for a husband or mate when she visited Byron's island. She'd been invited by her Aunt Grace for the weekend and only learned of Grace's passing when she arrived at the island. She's devastated to hear of the loss but can't deny her attraction for Byron. While Byron does everything in his power to keep from succumbing to her charms, Violet is not about to allow him to deny them what they want. Assuming that it's just a sexual encounter, she is stunned when Byron explains that he has claimed her and changed their lives forever.

It's been two months since Byron and Violet last saw or spoke to one another, but they were never out of contact. The bond they share intertwines their lives so completely that there's almost no need for words between them. The long separation is at an end when Byron arrives at Violet's San Diego beach home. He's made the break from his life as a Dominie and prays that there is no retribution for the decisions that he's made. Will his attempt to cover his tracks be enough to protect them? While Byron adjusts to life in Violet's world, he finds pleasure in the simple things and enjoys companionship with both rebel vampires and people he meets. When his clan members eventually track him down it's a fight to protect all he holds dear and requires help from friends he's made along the way.

Samantha Sommersby tells a kick butt tale with her FORBIDDEN series. Even though it's not necessary, I'd highly recommend reading THE CLAIM first in order to get the full impact of the storyline in THE AWAKENING. I loved the whole idea of vampires being part of the community. Vampires in this series do not need blood to survive; they eat just like normal people, which makes each bonding experience - where Byron does take blood from Violet - much more intense. I was fascinated by how Byron discovers for himself that there is nothing wrong in mating with a human, as he was initially led to believe. He becomes a much stronger personality because of his acceptance that as long as he loves and is loved in return then what he's doing and giving up is not wrong. This is a book that I eagerly read through each and every page. I found myself immersed in the battle to save Violet and Byron from the aged prophet, Cain, and the revelations that we find out about afterward. I'm now eagerly anticipating the next story in this series which is aptly named THE REVOLUTION. I'm dying to know what happens next.

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)

2.0 out of 5 stars If Books 1 and 2 were combined into one book, I would give it 3 stars. It's an interesting vampire world., July 10, 2009

By 

Jane (Chicago, IL, United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Forbidden: The Awakening (Paperback)

FORBIDDEN: THE AWAKENING by Samantha Sommersby.

STORY BRIEF:
This continues the story from Book 1 "Forbidden: The Claim." Ren and Violet fell in love during Book 1. In Book 2 Ren completed his work moving and hiding financial assets and creating a false identity for himself. He then moves to San Diego to be with Violet. While there, they meet another couple, Christian and Isabelle. Christian is a vampire who is under the spell of a succubus. His wife Isabelle is pregnant and delivers the baby Sophie. Cain is the leader of the vampires. His henchmen kidnap Violet and Sophie. Cain plans to punish Ren and Christian for mating with humans. Ren and his friends make a plan to free them.

REVIEWER'S OPINION:
I liked what happened at the end with Cain. I liked Ren's plan for what was going to happen in the sequel (Book 3). The rest of the story was ok, but there were some holes. There was not enough description or detail about what happened and why for three events: the succubus and Christian, what happened to Isabelle, and the details about what Ren and his friends did after the kidnapping. I was also disappointed that one must read both books 1 and 2 for a complete story.

DATA:
Story length: Kindle count 3715, a short story. Swearing language: strong. Sexual language: strong/erotic. Number of sex scenes: 3, each a few or several pages long. Setting: 2006 San Diego, California, and BaMidbar (Cain's lair). Copyright: 2007. Genre: erotic paranormal romance.

OTHER BOOKS:
For a list of my reviews of other Samantha Sommersby books, see my 4 star review of "Forbidden: The Temptation" posted 7/2/09.

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Second Book in the Series, September 21, 2008

By 

Emptrix (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Forbidden: The Awakening (Paperback)

Excellent second book in this contemporary erotic vampire series. Heat and lots of it, humor and intelligence. The winning triad for me.

Other reviewers have provided well written story summaries; I won't be redundant. I loved the premise in the first book, "The Claim" and fell into the story line immediately. This second book is a continuation of the first book. I hope that the publisher will eventually combine the first two books into one larger book. They really belong together.

I love the way this author writes and love her new twist on the vampire alpha male. Byron Renfield "Ren" is everything you could want in an Alpha male vampire hero; sexy, very hot, but Ren also has elements of a sensitive romantic nerd rolled in to his character. A "he had me at hello" kind of guy.

The tension and attraction between Ren and his HEA Violet is drawn in a way that raises your blood pressure and occasionally gets one's tear ducts working. Violet's character is also well drawn and developed over the first two books. She is in her way an Alpha female and she and Ren balance each other. There is a cast of characters incorporated into Ren's and Violet's story, with their own stories that follow from the first book to this book, and new characters are added here in the second book, who one hopes will be developed in future books.

I downloaded all three books of the series on the same night from allromanceebooks.com and read all night. I cannot wait for the next, fourth book in the series. I am hoping for a long relationship with this series.