Bloodshot

Cheshire Red Reports, Book 1

By: Cherie Priest

Narrated by: Natalie Ross

Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

Raylene Pendle (AKA Cheshire Red), a vampire and world-renowned thief, doesn’t usually hang with her own kind. She’s too busy stealing priceless art and rare jewels. But when the infuriatingly charming Ian Stott asks for help, Raylene finds him impossible to resist - even though Ian doesn’t want precious artifacts. He wants her to retrieve missing government files: documents that deal with the secret biological experiments that left Ian blind. What Raylene doesn’t bargain for is a case that takes her from the frozen outskirts of Minneapolis to the mean streets of Atlanta. And with a psychotic, power-hungry scientist on her trail, a kick-ass drag queen on her side, and Men in Black popping up at the most inconvenient moments, the case proves to be one hell of a ride.

©2011 Cherie Priest (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Vamping Blooded Goodness ! Suck it!

What did you love best about Bloodshot?

Responsive to humanities needs with attitude and conviction.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Our hero Vampress and her client. Because of their patience with humans

Which scene was your favorite?

When she fell for her client.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely !

Any additional comments?

Would love to see her covered in a twenty book series

interesting!

I think this could become a really fun series. As a first book it introduces the characters just enough that you like them, but sadly not well enough that you can't wait for the next book. I like the fact that the main character is no-nonsense, not sorry to anybody, I can do anything I want, sort of type gal. She doesn't feel quilty nor wallow in self pity much. I however could not understand the abrupt turn in the little romance/sexual attraction to one of the character in the story. It really did not fit her profile at all. I can see her physical attraction to the ex marine(SEAL?) turned drag queen but not really to her client. Maybe things will be clearer in the sequal.

Her non sequitar narrative might be off putting to some people but I found it enjoyable, especially in audio format. I think I will put this series in the same category as the Druid series and the Dorina series, although it lacks the punch the other two have. I have high hopes for the next book!

nice vampire story

wasn't in the mood for a vampire story but this one changed my mind. it was refreshing although the end was a bit rushed. probably could have used anther 5k worth of words as opposed to executing loose ends. anyway, a nice bit of lite bit of vampire fiction. enjoy

Cherie Priest shows some humor and class

I've read some of Ms.Priest's other books, and they had a heavier theme. "BloodShot" had humor, and showed a different kind of vampire than we are used to in many of our current venues. I enjoyed this story, however it did leave you open to the next book in the series "Hellbent". I just finished book two, and I think that it might have worked better as one book. I thought "Hellbent" gave more closure and still made characters enjoyable. If you get "BloodShot" you'll want to get "Hellbent". You won't be disappointed, this may be the start of an excellent series. (ie Sookie Stackhouse)

Intriguing

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I would change the authors tendency to overexplain things.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Good ending, I assume it will tie it in with the next one.

What three words best describe Natalie Ross’s voice?

A good performance of the characters in a book can bring it alive. I think Ms Ross gave it a good shot, made the book good. A little flat in places, and her cuban/mexican accent needs some help.

It's Alright.

The book itself was okay. The main character I could have liked, although I had a hard time believing her character. She was supposedly a bad ass, but every time you turned around she was having panic attacks and was screwing up her hide outs. I didn't quite understand the part in the beginning with the intruder at her warehouse. First off she didn't find out what he wanted, then she drank him to death like she had no self control which she had been professing she had in abundance during the beginning of the book. I didn't like how she killed him and then it was like it was no big deal. I had thought earlier in the story the author was trying to convey how much Raylee secretly cares about people but with an I don't care attitude, then she pulls this crap. I also didn't believe the drag queen/navy seal character. Really? Even if I believed there was one actually in the world (which I don't) I think this character was just in the story for convince without the research there to be believable. There was plenty of action, but yet I was still not pulled into the story overly. The second half is better than the first. So while this story was good enough to finish, I won't be reading the next. Narrator is good, I have enjoyed her in the past.

Great book...

Would you consider the audio edition of Bloodshot to be better than the print version?

For me...yes. I am very busy and I love having the option of listening while doing other tasks.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Bloodshot?

I liked the part when Cheshire went to her building after the intruder came in. It kind of puts you on edge because you don't know who they are or what they are looking for.

What does Natalie Ross bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She puts feeling into the characters so that they seem like real people. You are able to connect to the characters better.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Hmmmm... this is hard. There are so many dynamics. There is action, dysfuncton, romance (very little and not erotic but it works), suspence etc. that it would be hard to put all of that in a tag line.

Any additional comments?

I need the next book ;0)

Bloodshot

I loved loved this book. The characters are great, I loved the way they were developed through the story. Reader was fantastic, made the book very hard to put down. I will definitely be buying the next one.

Panic-attack plagued vampire - fun!

Cheshire Red is a vampire and an acquisitions expert (thief). Raylene likes that many people assume Cheshire Red is a man and she’s not about to dissuade them, enjoying working in the shadows as she does. Ian, another vampire who is oddly blind, has hired her to track down his medical records from his enforced stay at a secret government complex. Yet before she can dig into this case, things start to unravel in her cushy little life in Seattle – someone breaks into her warehouse and someone else blows her well laid cover. She drops it all to follow a thin lead in Atlanta. As Raylene continues to snoop into Ian’s affairs, things get more and more risky. Before you know it, her best defense is a military-trained drag queen and her best offense is one seriously ticked off blind vampire.

This book was a lot of fun. Raylene definitely has a fluid sense of morals with few hard sticking points. She takes pleasure in her work – removing the priceless and rare from the rich and pretentious. She’s used Seattle as the base for her operations for a few decades now; hence, the warehouse where she stores (or hoards) some of her collection as a financial safety net. There’s also two homeless kids, Pepper and Domino, who she lets live there. She doesn’t really like kids but for some reason keeps the heat and electricity on in one section of the building for them. Oh, and makes sure they have a cell phone to call her. And she checks in on them regularly. Perhaps she brings them food. Not that they’re pets or anything. As you can see, Raylene has this tough exterior and this gooey caramel soft center. I really liked all the snark and Ray’s enjoyment of her own sexuality and being a vampire. I also like that she’s prone to panic attacks and that her powers don’t make her invincible – just really hard to kill.

Ian is a bit of a quandary. It’s very unusual for a vampire to have any debilitating injury that becomes permanent. So Ian’s loss of sight is disturbing. If it can be done to one vampire, it can be done to another. He also uses a ghoul, Cal, which Raylene doesn’t like. However as she gets to know the two of them a bit more, she starts to reconsider her views on ghouls. Cal obviously still has a mind of his own and Ian treats Cal with respect and it’s obvious he needs some amount of help being blind. Still, there are plenty of unanswered questions surrounding Ian and he is indeed very reluctant to elaborate on what little he has already told her.

Then we toss in a military-grade highly driven mad scientist and a large number or highly-trained military ‘acquisition experts’ that want Raylene and perhaps even want Ian back and everyone has to scatter to the four winds. Raylene ends up in Atlanta chasing down a lead. This is where my second favorite character, Adrian (aka Sister Rose), comes into the picture. Sister Rose is a drag queen and great at her nightly performances. Adrian is ex-military and has some specialty training. He initially becomes Raylene’s unwilling ally. Adrian was great with all the glitz and fringe and yet muscle and sensible behavior. I like that we never find out whether he’s straight, gay, or bi, or celibate. Raylene is too polite to ask.

There’s plenty of action and interesting characters in this urban fantasy. The ending was solid. We lose a little and gain a little and have a ton of questions for Book 2. Ian definitely has some some things to follow up on. I’m hoping Adrian will continue to be a part of the series. While Raylene and crew took out several of the questionable military bad guys, I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of them.

Narration: Natalie Ross did an awesome job with this book. All the characters are distinct and her male characters are great. She does this remarkable thing with Adrian’s two personas (Adrian versus Sister Rose). There’s also various accents that she does well. It’s just a very, very good performance.

Suspenseful and fast moving - very entertaining!

Starring a vampire thief who is subject to panic attacks... what's not to love! The story races from one thrill to the next, and Cherie Priest is in her element when the fangs are flying. Fun stuff, if not very deep -- and the narrator is excellent!