Title: The Vampire’s Protege
Author: Damian Serbu
Genre: Paranormal/Horror
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay/MM
Publisher: NineStar Press
Pages: 367
Blurb:
A sinister vampire offers Charon a choice he can’t refuse: play a deadly game of winner takes all, losers die.
Charon relishes the competition and molds himself into a sexy vampire who defies vampire law, savoring his power and embracing the role of villain. He also loves surrounding himself with hot young men. But when an alluring vampire stalks him and threatens to turn him into the Vampire Council unless he helps with a seemingly impossible task, will Charon risk his perfectly narcissistic life on the challenge? Does he have any other choice?
Review by Maz:
Charon is a fiend.
A man who takes what he wants, no matter who is in his way, and always cheers for the bad guys.
When an ancient vampire approaches Charon for a chance to not only live forever but an opportunity to be a constant thorn in the side of the Vampire Council, it sounds like the perfect opportunity for the self-proclaimed villain. Armed with immortality and warlock style magic, Charon is unleashed into the world to do as he pleases. While the man seems to have no moral compass right away, as the story progresses, you learn that there is more depth to this once frat boy now vampire then one would imagine.
It’s easy to fall in love with Charon, even though you probably shouldn’t. Bordering on sociopathic, it seems like he has zero empathy, a willingness to kill anyone who upsets him in any way, and adores causing chaos and mayhem around him. For anyone who has read and enjoyed Anne Rice’s Vampire Lestat, Charon reflects the mischief and evil yet charming qualities of the Brat Prince himself. Unlike Rice, however, these vampires not only have the ability to have sex, but Charon seeks it out every chance he gets. The sex scenes are very fun, always a little different, and keep the heat going throughout the story. Without giving away too much, I will say that Charon’s first Christmas gift in his castle was truly fantastic and I ended up giggling quite a bit.
The world building was slow, but not overly so. Since Charon knows little to nothing about the Vampire Council, he tends to be testing the waters about what he can get away with without causing his immediate doom. It will be interesting to see how they manifest themselves in later installments since the story ends hinting at some major trouble brewing.
Any fans of vampires, magic, charming villains with intense sex drives would definitely enjoy The Vampire’s Protege. I look forward to continuing the journey and watching Charon unfold into the true evil mastermind he was born to be.
Maz is a long time m/m romance and sci-fi enthusiast who always has her nose buried in a book. When she’s not reading about love and adventures, she enjoys writing, paleontology and all things geeky.