The Vampire Queen's Servant (Vampire Queen, Book 1) (Paperback)

~ (Author) "LYSSA wanted a meal..." (more)
Key Phrases: vampire queen, human servant, vampire world, Lady Lyssa, Sir Vagabond, Council Gathering (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Paranormal erotica from an award-winning author who stands out in a genre known for its out-of-the-ordinary love play." (Romance Studio)

Lady Elyssa Yamato Amaterasu Wentworth is a centuries-old vampire who's been given a new servant-Jacob, a total alpha male unaccustomed to submitting to any woman's wishes. What really binds Jacob to her are not her sensual midnight hungers, but something far more provocative. It stirs her blood, renews her life, and awakens her soul like only true love can. The passion between Elyssa and Jacob yields something else unexpected-a shared history that reaches back through the centuries and is fated to challenge their destiny like nothing ever will again.

About the Author

Joey W. Hill's numerous Ellora's Cave titles have won her many awards, nominations, and five-star reviews from erotic romance review sites. She is also a Romance & Beyond Magazine Grand Prize winner.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Berkley Trade (July 3, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0425215903
• ISBN-13: 978-0425215906
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #30,952 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Vampire Queen's Servant, September 2, 2007

By	M. Nix "Joyfully Reviewed" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Jacob Green has spent his life searching for purpose, but the day he saw Lady Elyssa Yamato Amaterasu Wentworth he knew he had found his destiny. He disregarded the fact that he was a vampire hunter and that he had no way of entering her world. Jacob would find a way to fulfill his destiny and spend his life serving Lady Lyssa. However, when his dream becomes reality, he finds that his life is now a constant struggle within himself: Jacob must renounce all he considers as "himself" and exist only as an extension to Lady Lyssa or he must walk away.

Lady Elyssa Yamato Amaterasu Wentworth is the last remaining vampire of royal blood. Her life is spent protecting herself from attacks from other vampires and keeping the façade of indifference to all the posturing of lesser vampires. The day she lets her guard down --even for a moment-- it could mean her death. However, these last years she has been fighting a foe that can't be defeated and must be faced alone, or so she thinks. When Jacob enters her world, Lady Lyssa has no idea how to take what he is clearly offering her; not without condemning Jacob to death. However, if Lady Lyssa does accept Jacob as her human servant, she must mold him to survive within the vampire world, something which might drive Jacob away form her.

When I was first offered this book for review I was delighted, as I had enjoyed books by Joey Hill in the past. The Vampire Queen's Servant is a book that is very well written and it evolves in the complex world of vampire society which is interesting in a horrifying way. However, I have to say that this book was difficult to for me to read for several reasons. The relationship that develops between Lady Lyssa and Jacob goes beyond your typical BDSM explored in mainstream erotica. In The Vampire Queen's Servant, we see Jacob struggle against becoming not much more than an obedient dog capable of performing complex tricks and providing sexual pleasure when Lady Lyssa demands. It also bothered me that rape was considered a spectator sport serving to arouse the watchers and physical torture (read broken bones and the like) was something utilized as easily as a hanky for no other purpose than proving who held the power. Jacob's thoughts at times seemed, to me, to reflect what we typically hear from abused spouses: it hurt, I don't like it, but I deserved it. I was completely unable to live the story from the character's perspective in order to understand their motivations. It was these things that made it very hard for me to care one way or another if Jacob and Lady Lyssa got a Happily Ever After. Also, the plot of the book moved so slowly that I found myself looking for reasons to put it down and at the same time I was desperate to finish it and therefore put myself out of my misery. I don't suggest that you pick up this book unless you are not squeamish and you enjoy extremely hardcore BDSM and senseless violence. The Vampire Queen's Servant is not a book for the faint of heart or those who enjoy fast paced books.

Sabella
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

28 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4.5 Klovers! Courtesy of CK2S Kwips & Kritiques, July 17, 2007

By	Jennifer Ray "Reviewer for Wild on Books (www... (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

As a born vampire who has lived more than a thousand years, Lady Lyssa is one of the most powerful vampires alive, if not the most powerful. Her power makes her a target for other vampires eager to seize her territory. Having contracted a mysterious and debilitating disease, it is the worst time for her to be without a human servant. Yet, still reeling from the loss of her beloved servant Thomas, she is reluctant to accept a new servant, much less train one.

But the dearly departed Thomas has taken matters out of her hand, by leaving her with one last gift - a new manservant in the form of Jacob, trained by Thomas himself during his final days.

Lyssa finds herself unable to reject Thomas outright, but recognizes that his alpha nature will never give her the true submission that a vampire requires in their servants. Yet Jacob is relentless in his bid as her vassal, and Lyssa comes to depend on him more and more...

Having read and loved several of author Joey W. Hill's digital books previously, I thought I knew what to expect with her new print release, The Vampire Queen's Servant, at least regarding the general tone and feel of the story. Hill managed to surprise me in more ways than one with this new story, and I am in no way disappointed - far from it!

With her previous releases, she proved herself as an entertaining writer of erotic romance, with a flair for the slightly wicked side of the sensual. In this book, she takes her writing to a whole new level, penning a tome that impressed me by the complexity of both the story and the characters.

I normally prefer the hero of a story to be dominant in the bedroom, but the idea of a man with strong alpha tendencies forced to submit willingly to the woman he loves, a woman who can normally protect herself better than he from her enemies intrigued me on several levels. This story taught me that there is as much strength of will in the act of submission as there is in domination - perhaps more so for those with naturally dominant predilections. For that is what Lady Lyssa requires in her servant - willing submission. And Jacob soon learns that this concept is much more difficult than it seemed.

The Vampire Queen's Servant is laden with vampire politics. Indeed, it is these very politics that make Jacob's submission to Lyssa so vital if he is to exist in her world and not undermine her power, inviting attack by enemy vampires in the process.

I will be frank - Jacob's training seems harsh at times, but it is the way of the vampire world, and necessary to both his and Lyssa's survival. The story is rife with darkness, and some readers may find it hard to fathom certain aspects of the vampire/servant relationship if they apply the rules of the real world to this story. However, Ms. Hill engenders total acceptance of these practices for those readers who allow themselves to immerse their imaginations in the harsh world of this vampire society.

This book will be continued in a forthcoming sequel, titled The Mark of the Vampire Queen. Note that I say the book will be continued, for this story is very much a `part one' to an ongoing story, rather than a typical edition in a series. I would compare this to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings books, which are one story split into three separate books. The Vampire Queen's Servant is merely the beginning to Lyssa and Jacob's story, and while some of the story is wrapped up in the end, readers will be very conscious that there are storylines to be continued and more fully explored in the next book.

For those who enjoy a great paranormal tale with strong BDSM content, Joey W. Hill's newest release is one you won't want to miss!

10 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Breathtaking, August 2, 2007

By	Freyjaonline ".1% Minority" (San Diego.) - See all my reviews

I've read plenty of books, but never have I read a book that I've totally devoured, closed and open back again to savor it.
Be warned this books is not for the faint of heart.
If you are not into BDSM, truly into it, it's not for you.
If one has preconceived notions of paranormal erotica; i.e. willing docile human servant, soft touch slap and tickle or mealy mouth submissives this book will not be your cup of tea.

I picked this book up based on the cover alone.

The first lines grabbed me.
Lyssa is an enigmatic force to be reckoned, she is the Vampire Queen.
What came as a shocked to me was that she is willing to take risks with her own life.
She not portrayed as some decadent brat/vixen propped on a pedestal using everyone else as her claws.
A vampire queen with a past filled with intrigue, true love, some regrets and pain.
More so a vampire queen who realized that she is a woman with a heart that is broken and she's afraid to allow anyone else in it.
Her servant is a true ALPHA, as in "Joey DOESN'T share food!!!"
He gives her just enough hell to make her realize he will bend backwards for her but never forward.
That despite her species political standings and social graces, he is an Alpha and as such his job is to protect her.
I will have to stop there, so many have given a summary of the story, that I do not wish to take away from the pleasure of discovering the story for yourself.