Customer Reviews

The Vampire Shrink (Kismet Knight, Vampire Psychologist series)

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

When Dr. Kismet Knight meets the vampire of her dreams, she has a hard time believeing she's not in a neverending nightmare.

Kismet is a wonderful character, with the unique ability to have the open mind a practicing psychologist needs and yet the practical, "let's be real" attitude of a woman in the twenty-first century. She doesn't believe in boogey men or vampires or anything like them until she meets them in a series of escalating adventures that challenge our heroine to survive. The fact that an 800-year-old wealthy, powerful, stunner of a vampire has fallen hard for her goes far in convincing her that vampires, maybe, just might exist. Maybe.

This is an involving, fun read, and I loved the author's sassy voice and her insights into psychotherapy, insights made more realistic by the author's own background in the field. Kismet provides a running internal commentary much as our own might be while counseling her patients. For example, she struggles between the objective desire to unjudgmentally advise a teenage wanna-be vampire patient about her blood-drinking practices and unsafe sex, and wondering if her license would be taken away if she locked her client in a closet until the girl grows out of this phase. Kismet is sympathetic and yet strong, tolerant and yet with definite lines she will not cross. She's a wonderfully complex character and more than a match for the two suitors--one vampire, the other an FBI agent--who want to call her their own.

I'm not a huge fan of the vampire genre, but I'm glad I read this one. Whether one is or is not a fan of the genre, every reader will find something to like here. If you like hot triangle romances, chick-lit vampire, or psychological thrillers with some of the scariest bad guys imaginable, The Vampire Shrink is for you.

Despite initial misgivings, I really enjoyed this book. Although I like paranormal romance, I often find myself gagging at all the wrong times. Not so with this book. I felt a strong kinship with the Vampire Shrink, Dr. Kismet Knight. An unusual name, but it doesn't get in the way of the story. Told from Dr. Knight's point of view, the reader only knows what she knows -- which isn't much. As the title suggests, the book is about Dr. Knight's journey and not necessarily about vampires. Don't get me wrong, vampires are a very large part of that journey. However, I could just imagine how I would react if someone showed up in my office professing to be a vampire. I'd laugh, loudly, and then go in search of the hidden camera. From the initial revelations to the final showdown, the story makes a logical progression that felt true to the characters involved. I can't imagine it was easy for the author to maintain that integrity, but it pays off in a tightly written narrative. I won't go into all the story details since I think that other reviewers have done a nice job. I will say that Dr. Knight isn't a superhero, she's a woman who finds herself thrust into some interesting, and terrifying, situations and has to find out the truth for herself. Of course no woman is an island, and she has help from a super-sexy FBI agent, a surprising police detective, as well as compelling vampire coven leader, Devereaux. Along the way there's some sizzling sexual tension, interesting therapy sessions with actual vampires, and a very, very nasty villain. I enjoyed this book. It's romantic fantasy without going way out over the rainbow. I hope that there will be more to come.

One reviewer unfavorably compared this book to those of J.R. Ward and Kresley Cole, but I don't think that's a fair comparison. Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark series is a favorite of mine, and I also enjoy the Black Dagger Brotherhood. However, I would be more likely to compare The Vampire Shrink with Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld Series, especially Bitten (Women of the Otherworld, Book 1).

Kismet Knight,PhD , is a rational scientist who doesn't believe in the paranormal. She especially doesn't believe in vampires, so when she begins counselling Midnight a young girl who seems to be obsessed with vampires, Kismet just presumes it is some strange fantasy the girl has made up to cover up other problems in her life, however Kismet soon begins to wise up when she is introduced to a handsome (drop dead gorgeous, pardon the pun!) man named Devereux who claims to be 800 years old! Kismet doesn't buy into his vampire story, but she then also can't quite explain why she has such odd reactions and strange powerful feelings when he is near to her. Then another client introduced to Kismet by Midnight turns up almost completely drained of blood staggers into her waiting room and then two angry men force their way into her office, causing her to consider the possibility that she really has run afoul of a vampire mafia style underworld. Next to enter this ever increasingly strange reality is the handsome FBI profiler Alan Stevens, who warns her that vampires are indeed very real, and one is a murderer,......a murderer who is after her!


I love, love, loved this book, I cannot recommend it enough, its vampires but not in the usual glittering, sugar coated teen way. This is Vampires for the mums! I truly would put this book as better than the Vampire Diaries and The True Blood Series. Part of me would love to see the book made into a tv programme, though I would want it to be totally accurate to the book, unlike some tv adaptations I could mention. Kismet is no young stupid girl, she's a common sense approach kind of woman who finds herself wandering deeper and deeper into this dark vampire underworld. Kismet ends up in a kind of love triangle, at the beginning of the book she has no male interest in her at all, then she ends up with the gorgeous, immortal, strong, magical Devereux (phwoooaaar) and the vampire obsessed FBI agent, Alan who isn't lacking in the looks department either (Hmmmmm). Kismet also has magical/spiritual gifts of her own that we only briefly explore maybe we will explore them more later in the series. YES there's more in this series.....I can hardly wait. The book is brilliantly written, the descriptions of the emotions so good you can almost feel what the characters are feeling. I would point out there are very mild sexual references in this book (probably no more than they will see on tv). I feel there is plenty of scope for more adventures for Kismet, Devereux and Alan. So to some up......go buy it/order it now!

Denver psychologist Kismet Knight believes in what is tangible. Kismet relies on facts, data, and evidence to let her know what is real. When a new client confides in Kismet that she wants to be a vampire, and that there is a secret world of vampires in their town, Kismet initially believes that the girl must be crazy. When she is visited by Devereux, the leader of a coven of vampires--and the love interest of Kismet's new client, the psychologist believes the man might be pale and delusional, but there's no way that he actually drinks blood. However, as strange things start to happen in Denver--bodies turning up drained of blood with puncture wounds in the neck--and Kismet gains a name for herself as the "vampire psychologist," she begins to accept that their might be aspects of the world that she doesn't understand. With the help of Devereux and an attractive FBI agent, Kismet decides to put herself on the line to try and figure out who is causing all the strange occurrences, and to put a stop to the killings before they put a stop to her.

I'm used to reading paranormal romances where everyone involved knows that the supernatural beings in question exist. So The Vampire Shrink was a change in that sense. Kismet stubbornly refuses to acknowledge the existence of vampires for at least half of the book. Her steadfast refusal to admit that she is wrong, even in the face of evidence to the contrary, got old a bit quick. Also annoying was the fact that every five minutes she's about ready to hop in bed with a new guy, including Devereux, the FBI agent, a doctor she meets at a hospital, and her ex-boyfriend. Then she has the nerve to call herself a feminist while at the same time chastising herself for behaving like a harlot. It would have been nice if she had exhibited a bit more consistency. The Vampire Shrink was by no means great, but it wasn't so bad that I couldn't finish it. It'll do the job if you've got nothing better to read, but if you do I'd suggest some great paranormals like the Kresley Cole Immortals After Dark series of J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood.

First of all - I want to hang the cover of this book up in my bedroom - maybe I'll enlarge it to poster size! YUMMY!
Devereux is really HOT!

BUT that's not the point in this book - ahem :)

I really enjoyed this book - I thought it was going to be another sex obsessed Vampire book - well ok - it was in a way - but it's not what you think!!!

Kismet is a Physchologist - She believes the facts - and humors the rest - She has a witty sence of humor - and you are constantly in her thoughts during this book - she had me laughing - and when she realized that the Vampires can read her thoughts .. ummm it just got a lot funnier!

One day , out of nowhere - a new client comes in... Midnight (not Devereoux : Midnight is your typical 19 year old goth who runs with vampires at a Night Club and wants to become a Vampire - Her parents are worried about her so they send her to a "shrink"

Kismet doesn't really belive in vampires - but she does know how to deal with delusional people.

A few days later - one of Midnight's friends stumbled to her house and Midnight got worried - She brought her to Kismets office and they took her to the hospital - turns out her blood was drained and she was barely alive.

At the hospital, FBI's Special Agent Alan Stevens picks up the trail and starts asking questions - questions a Physchologist can't answer due to patient confidentiality

WELL that doesn't go well with the FBI Agent - by the way He is a true believer of Vampires - but Kismet is still skeptial - Not to mention he is Sexy - and has a little thing for Kismet :)

Enter The Hottest - sexiest - most powerful 800 + year old Vampire - Devereux *sigh* Midnight had told Devereux about her parents making her go see Kismet and Devereux because curious.

Bruce - the big bully vampire who wants to take everything away from Devereux to make him miserable - comes to Kismet's office - He tries to attack her and Devereux saves the day -

Another Vampire - takes Kismet away from the club and when she wakes up - she's in a crypt!
Slowly things start to add up and she starts to believe Vampires are real!

I could go into this review and explain everything I liked that happened - but it would give too much away -
Pretty much each chapter has different things happening - and together they make up one AWESOME story!

There is action - there is love - there are things that make you want to say "Awe" There is jealousy - there are secrets - wow - there is just a LOT :)

SO now you know - this book is great! I'm off to start Dark Harvest - the 2nd book to this series :)

Despite a whimsical name, Dr. Kismet Knight is as practical as they come. So, when a young woman walks into her office needing counseling on how to deal with her vampire lover, Kismet thinks she's just dealing with an extreme Goth, someone who is pretending to be, or believes themselves to be, involved with a vampire. Even when she meets vampires, she does not believe. Then, she has no choice to but to accept the truth. Vampires are real and one is a serial killer, with her name on his list of upcoming victims. Fortunately, there is a very powerful, very hot vampire who has been in love with her for much longer than she has been alive.

**** Ms. Hilburn has created a world filled with intriguing twists and turns. Watching the skeptical doctor's conversion into a believer is as interesting as the murder mystery. Kismet has a unique voice, both practical and cynical, and retains that quality even after she believes. I encourage those who love vampire stories or a good mystery to discover this gem of a novel. ****

Amanda Killgore

In Denver, the patient insists her name is Midnight and that she is friends to vampires especially the charismatic eight century old handsome master Devereux. Dr. Kismet Knight assumes she is dealing with a new form of psychosis as Midnight is extremely graphic in describing the underground vampirism lair as if a society of undead lives without humans knowing it.

To her shock, Devereux arrives at Kismet's office claiming to be a vampire. Hiding her disbelief behind her professional visage, Kismet thinks it is too bad he is a nut because he is a sexy hunk. Devereux begins to show her his strange powers leaving Kismet to begin to believe in vampires. After a client arrives at her office almost totally drained of blood, FBI Special Agent Alan Stevens, who works the vampire beat, questions Kismet. As Devereux binds her to him insisting she is his kismet, Alan tries to bind her to him through the power of love. Confused, Kismet is not sure who to trust even as someone, perhaps one of the two males claiming she is their destiny, tries to kill her.

Kismet Knight's conversion from cynic to believer makes for a fun paranormal thriller as the heroine becomes the VAMPIRE SHRINK. Readers will understand her transformation from scorning skeptic with dreams of fame and fortune to psychologist to vampires as the story line is told in the first person mostly from Kismet's perspective. Adding to the satirical entertainment is the odd romantic triangle between the Fed, the vampire master, and the shrink. Lynda Hilburn writes an enjoyable biting frolic that will turn skeptical readers into true believers of her talent.

Harriet Klausner

I picked this up because the author is local, and I'm a Buffy fan so paranormal fiction interests me. Normally, I read a chapter or so before I buy a book, because writers work HARD on the first chapter (or they're supposed to) but I was in a rush so I just plucked it up. I wouldn't have bought it if I had read the first chapter.

On the plus side, there are great bones in this story. I'd love to see a series about a shrink who sees (to steal Jim Butcher's term) Nevernever clients. (Heck knows, Buffy and Angel both needed one...) The story itself is a little thin, a little easy, not at all complex. Beach material, or getting over the flu material.

The big issues I had were both technical and with the story itself, and would probably have been resolved with the assistance of a good editor. The technical issues may seem unimportant to the average reader, but they detract from the experience of the book when they're present. Misspellings, bad word choices, and an utterly passionate romance with the verb "to be" made it had for me to get into the story. Since the author displayed places where she wrote beautifully, I think the book needed another draft to track down and eliminate all the passive verbs, all the unnecessary description (no reader puts a book down in disgust because the action hero's wardrobe isn't discussed, but a lot of us do when it is!), and to tighten the plot and check for consistency. I see she's been contracted for a second one; I hope she gets a good editor for it, or there may not be a third.

I also had some problems with the characters. I don't have my doctorate, but I do have an MS in clinical psych and experience in both public mental health and private practice. Kismet is a little naive for someone in private practice, and not nearly the skeptic she claims to be. She reminded me a lot more of someone in residency/internship than someone in private practice.

The author also makes a point of saying vampires retain their essential personalities, but then she goes on to describe individuals who aren't people. Devereaux -- too good to be even remotely real. The villains are equally too bad, too evil. That was a disconnect to be resolved with revision.

The plot is a little thin, resolves way too easily. Without spoiling it for anyone who reads this and still wants to read the book, I can't give details, so just don't expect you'll need to do mental gymnastics for this one.

I did give this a second star because it has potential, and I hope that at some future date, the author can change houses to one with in-house editorial staff that actually know their stuff. When that happens (or when the author takes a mechanics of fiction class), I think we'll see some better stuff out of her.

In my humble opinion, Lynda Hilburn has created a wonderful storyline as an opener for her series. The juxtaposition Hilburn created between Kismet Knight and Devereaux (this vampire protagonist will knock your socks off), the vampire who becomes her lover and possible soul mate is extremely well done. There is also a mortal FBI agent who is vying for her affection, which adds to the romantic plot (and Kismet's confused feelings for Devereaux).

In addition to the romance, the story has humour, suspense, intrigue and horror woven in to plot twists and turns making for a great all around read.

"Kismet Knight", is a strong minded, intelligent heroine who is forced to cope with the "paranormal world" that "Devereaux" draws her inexorably into.

I am really looking forward to 'Dark Harvest', the next book in Ms Hilburn's series.

I thought The Vampire Shrink was well-written and a fun book to read! I enjoyed it very much because it had just enough sex, just enough blood (for a book about vampires), and a splash of humor. The main character, Kismet, like most of us, cannot bring herself to believe there are actually vampires living amongst us. When she comes face to face with the handsome and charismatic Deveraux, she gladly discards her previous doubts and willingly believes in vampires! I liked the subplot with the FBI agent and the cast of characters created by Ms. Hilburn. Most of all, I enjoyed getting to know the character of Kismet and the peek we were given into her thought processes! I cannot wait for the sequel, Dark Harvest!