Shades of Gray [Mass Market Paperback]

Amanda Ashley (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 2007

Bound by chains, the vampire had slept for 100 years, locked in pain and hunger, until the scent of one woman's blood recalled him to life. Lost in darkness, Grigori finds new sustenance in the light of Marisa's love, and new purpose in his life. Only he can protect her from the evil that stalks the night. Grigori vows to show Marisa that not all the undead are monsters, and that somewhere between the black and white of damnation and desire lay infinite shades of gray.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Amanda Ashley is a masterful storyteller. This novel is so rich in sensuality and imagery that readers will be entranced by this haunting tale of a vampire who finds love too late and the woman who may save him from the darkness. This is one keeper..." --Romantic Times

 

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Amanda Ashley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. She is the winner of numerous awards, including a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award. She has published more than 40 novels in a 25 year writing career. Writing as both Amanda Ashley and Madeline Baker, she has been published by Signet, NAL, Dorchester and Kensington.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Love Spell (April 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0505522438
• ISBN-13: 978-0505522436
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (43 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #252,782 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A VAMPIRE ROMANCE, November 29, 2000

By 

Reema Al (NJ,USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shades of Gray (Mass Market Paperback)

This was my first vampire book by Amanda Ashley and i must say it was a catcher. The romance was wonderful, Gregori really knows how to make a woman feel exrta special. It wasn't just a vampire story but it had time travel, action, and ofcourse love. Enjoyed reading it.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good book unfortunately ruined by an anticlimatic ending, January 9, 2002

By 

L. J Lewis "Miss Amii" (Collierville, TN United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shades of Gray (Mass Market Paperback)

I absolutely hated Ashley's A Darker Dream but the premise of Shades of Gray sounded too interesting to pass up. I must say, the author has definitly improved.
Marisa Richards is an ordinary woman. She never would suspect that attending a road-side carnival would put her life in danger. The carbival's main attraction is Count Alexi Kristov, a dormant vampire of terrifying power. The scent of Marisa's blood awakens the count from his centuries long slumber.
Fortunately, Grigori Chiavari has been tracking Alexi for some time so he may take revenge on him for killing his children and turning his wife into a mindless puppet. Grigori decides to protect Marisa at all costs. He doesn't plan to come to love her. Following Grigori and Alexi, Marisa also gains professional vampire assassin Edward (a common name among vampire hunters) Ramsey as a protector. But will it be enough to stop the deranged monster?
The book had a great start. Grigori was an intriging hero because he's not a 'life-is-a-curse' type which can spoil a book for me. The first half is riddled with great conflict, the anomosity between Edward and Grigori, Marisa dealing with the fact that Grigori is a vampire, and even Grigori being torn between his wife (who he wants to free from Alexi) and his budding love for Marisa.
It's not until after the heroes return from their time-traveling quest that the book starts to drag. The suspence element that exsisted earlier is gone while Alexi licks his wounds. Things get mundane as Grigori and Marisa prepare for their wedding.
Sadly, the nose-dive is the climax or what tries to pass for one. Instead of a big fight scene, Alexi ( who is portrayed as the super-powered mega-evil until this point) is pathetically easy to beat. Edward gets turned into a vampire, says 'I guess I'll be going now' and leaves as if he where going out to fetch the paper instead of being tranformed into what he hates. It's like Ashley decided she needed to wrap everything up in the last thousand words.
Despite it's problems the first half of the book is strong enough to make it feel like it was worth the time and money you put into it. While a feel cheated by the ending, I enjoyed it enough to recommend it others with a word of caution. It's not going to be everyone's cup of tea.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seductive characters, literate writing, captivating story, October 5, 2002

By 

Ann Ferro "Ann Smithwick Ferro" (Marcellus, New York United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Shades of Gray (Mass Market Paperback)

Picture Halloween. Children trick or treating, a crowd of 20 somethings looking for thrills at a seedy carnival. Our heroine, Marisa, is curious about one of the side show attractions, a vampire held by silver chains. She returns to the tent after her friends have left to examine the strange being. She touches his hand. It moves!She stumbles, falls and cuts herself....her blood awakens the long captive Alexi...and so begins a truly exciting novel that carries the reader through the streets of modern day Los Angeles, through time and the the Tuscan hills. Grigori's persona is on point as the vampire who hunts the ancient one who took his wife. Marisa is the twenty first century woman who has to reconcile her knowledge that the man with whom she is falling in love is one of the "undead". Edward, the vampire slayer enters their lives to add a unique "twist" to the story. It is a "I can't go to be until I finish this" book. Strong writing make it a book that evokes equally strong visuals, leading this reviewer to see this one as an easy transfer to the silver screen. Attention producers, here is a book that should be a movie! Its characters are so clearly drawn, its action so exciting and its plot points so vivid, that a movie maker could produce a vehicle that would enthrall both men and women. Who would be the perfect Alexi,Grigori, Marisa and Edward? Readers, weigh in!