The Vampire's Protector

Summer's a Vampire and a Retriever for Acquisitions for the Greater Council and her mission is to find and collect the infamous cursed 'black violin' said to be the Devil's instrument to raise Demons from Hell when played. So whatever she does she should not play it... simple right? wrong... she just wanted to confirm that it was indeed the black violin that she'd found. But, in doing so, it allowed Fate, Destiny, Magic, bad luck or worse to quickly seize its chance and Summer accidentally raised the long dead Nicolo Paganini who had been a famous Italian Composer/Violin Virtuoso. However, when their paths crossed, he would turn out to be much much more.... desperately wanted by Summer and demonically wanted by the Devil himself.

And this starts a cat and mouse game of avoidance.... avoid the cursed black violin that kept appearing no matter what and was musically tempting and taunting Nicolo, avoid calling up the Dark Lord himself, avoid Summer's boss who is demanding Nicolo's imprisonment.... and avoid anything that challenges their new relationship. But unfortunately absolutely nothing they did was going to stop Nicolo's pre-ordained dark legacy.... or the path that would lead to a heartbreaking crossroads.

There was instant everything... but this is a fantasy world where Fairies, Werewolves, Vampires, Demons, Witches and Warlocks live so if you like this type of book then you're really not going to care. The charismatic loveable Hero really made this listen for me - Nicolo had a second chance at life, a second chance to mend his gambling, whoring and partying ways of old and a second chance to make things right.... but that also gave the Devil a second chance to tempt him. Nicolo was so naive and innocent about the world's technology - now 175 yrs since his death - and this made for some very amusing scenes, witty banter and alternative amusing names for things.

Michele Hauf did a really great job at world-building, sowing the seeds of the plot, setting the scene for romance and injecting the tension and suspense as to what will happen when the Devil decides to make his move. She merged historical facts, rumors and legends and created an addictive fight between good and evil. There's drama, some sex, humor, danger and tender times as the Soul Piercer and The Dark Prince fall in love and fight to stay together. Dual POV's and the narrator was good.

Worth a credit? It was a really enjoyable and very entertaining Fantasy listen that was character driven as Nicolo and Summer fought for answers, fought for each other and fought together to save Nicolo from an eternity spent in servitude to the Devil. So, if that's what you're looking for, then this is definitely creditworthy.... and I've got no complaints.

All I could do to finish this audio. Narration was fine, the story line not so much. I'm a fan of PNR, there was just so much missing.