Once Bitten

Javier Coven, Book 1

By: Jayda Marx

Narrated by: Eddie Herrera

Length: 8 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Dante.

For over 300 years, I’ve waited for fate to deliver my soul mate; the person I’d love for the rest of my life; the one I was destined to protect, to treasure and to cherish. The one to complete me. I never expected to find him dancing like an angel in my nightclub. The moment my eyes gazed upon his beauty, my heart was gone. The most mesmerizing thing about him were his eyes; he had the biggest, roundest doe eyes I’d ever seen. They were an enchanting shade of blue; the exact color of the Mediterranean Sea. When I looked into those eyes, I was home.

The problem? Ben is human and knows nothing of vampires or our culture. His anxious nature and pure heart give me pause in divulging my true identity. Will he believe what I have to tell him? Can he ever accept what I’ve done; what I need to do? Can someone so sweet and innocent ever see me as anything but a monster? Time is running out for me to claim my mate as I grow weaker every day.

Ben.

The nightclub really isn’t my scene. I’m more of a book-reading, star-gazing nerd at heart. However, I allow my best friend to drag me out one night (at nine o’clock, I might add) because I can’t resist his puppy dog expression, and he knows it. There, I find the sexiest man I’ve ever seen; tall, strong, and with a sultry Spanish accent that turns my insides to goo. We hit it off immediately, but I’m worried; how can this wealthy, powerful man be attracted to boring little me? The most exciting thing about me is that I know how to ballroom dance, and that’s only because I took lessons with my grandma! I’ve got no experience with men, and hundreds of different worries are always battling in my mind.

Can Dante accept me as I am and maybe bring a little excitement into my life?

This low angst, instalove M/M paranormal romance has danger, lots of steam, no cliff-hangers or cheating, and a very happy HEA. It contains a sexy Spaniard vampire, his anxious little love, and a hilarious (if not insufferable) best friend.

©2019 Jayda Marx (P)2022 Jayda Marx

Uber-romance, ok plot, meh.

If you like insta-mates, overwhelming overflowing hearts and flowers with the most overtly romantic vampire in the world, this book is for you! There was a decent plot that went along with the romance, however the way it was written was very basic and almost made me get annoyed. Someone is trying to kill off the Prince and his beloved. There were so many blatant hints that I felt like smacking the characters and saying ‘duh, you idiots, it’s that guy’. I don’t like books that are so obvious that a fifth grader could figure it out. Could have been fantastic, but I found it seriously lacking. Again, I’m not really into the Uber-sappy romance thing, so although it wasn’t my favorite, you may like the story.

Good story

I really love Jayda Marx. I haven’t read a bad story yet. I really liked the narrators performance I loved the accents.

One of my faves!

This is one of my favorite Jayda Marx series. I can say with 100% confidence that Eddie Herrera is, hands down, the best narrator she has used to date. I hope he does the rest of the series, too! I always hate when narrators make the bottom boy sound like a girl and I am always thrilled when that doesn’t happen. All the voices were great, including Dante’s seriously sexy Spanish accent. It’s almost slow burny in storyline, but deliciously squishy in love. I recommend this series, as well as the Duff Coven spin-off if you’re looking for low-angst and OTT insta love :)

Cute and sexy

Very good Narrator and the story was pretty cute to read. I recommend this and I am buying the next book

Swoon

Wow! This is one of my favorite Jayda Marx books. She has a unique perspective of vampires and fated mates. The story sucks you in and you can't help but fall in love with sweet Ben and fierce Dante. Eddie Herrera did an incredible job bringing these characters to life. This may be my new favorite accent. Swoon!

Had a blast

The story was pretty much perfect in my eyes. (Not perfect bc MCs tearing up and shedding tears non stop are a pet peeve of mine) It blended perfectly the sweetest romance and chivalry with goofy humor in the family & friends interaction (I loved mischievous Sam!) and an interesting urban fantasy secondary plot. I also enjoyed the author take on the vampires trope and the narrator accent.

Once Bitten

Nice love story…fun characters including side characters 🥰 Narrator was new to me. Overall it was a nice listen💜

Not for me, I guess

I found Ben a bit too innocent and naive, and Dante too bland and worshipful and subservient for a 300 year old vampire prince. Like it was a little embarrassing.

But mostly, I found Ben’s vampire best friend Sam extremely irritating. I get he was supposed to be irreverent and spunky but I got tired of his constant picking on Dante and some of things he said and done seemed super inappropriate for a best friend. Then there was when he had a three way with the other bodyguards at a party when he was supposed to be protecting Ben… yikes. And Dante just lets everything go when it comes to Sam because he’s Ben’s bestie. Ugh. No.

Insta-mates, true love 💖

there's very little mystery, I like a good Romance Novel but it there should be some mysteries to it. It just seems like there was to no mystery at all.

Different

I loved this book by Jayda Marx. Jayda Marx is known for her fast-pasted stories, speedy romanaces, and comedic relief. This story following Danté and Ben is more detailed than her other stories, making it one of my new favorite series by her. The book balances well with the comedy and the more serious topics. Story Plot is 4/5 stars for me. I would listen to again.

Narrator Eddie Herrera, SIR, yes sir!! I loved his performance. He had me immersed in the story. I have no idea how he could play so many characters so well, giving them all their original personalities, voices, and life-like quality. I was shocked thinking all these characters were voiced by the same person! I need more stories by him. He narrates extremely well. Definitely up their as one of my favorite Narrators. Performance is 5/5 for me.

Overall Performance and Story Plot: 4.5/5