Vampire Dawn

Vampire for Hire, Book 5

By: J. R. Rain

Narrated by: Dina Pearlman

Length: 4 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Six years ago, federal agent Samantha Moon was the perfect wife and mother, your typical soccer mom with the minivan and suburban home. Then the unthinkable happened: an attack that changed her life forever. And forever is a very long time for a vampire.

Now, in Vampire Dawn, Samantha Moon tackles her most frightening case yet. Someone is leaving victims drained of blood, and all signs point to the killer not being a vampire. Meanwhile, Sam can't help but notice the changes coming over her son... fantastical changes that will leave her searching desperately for answers. As Sam tracks down a ruthless killer, and as her own humanity slips further and further away, an ancient relic holds a secret that will rock her world - and open up a whole new one.

©2012 J.R. Rain (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Good story but too short

This is a good series. The only thing about this book that I don't like is that it's too short. Not that I want the book to drag on and on, but I think the author could combine a couple of books instead of making them short and leaving a cliffhanger at the end. In each book Samantha's character grows as she learns about her new abilities and how to relate to humans. The way that she interacts with her children, sister, and ex husband is realistic. I can tell that the author is leading up to something big, but, I wish he would get to it and stop writing short stories.

Samantha Moon ~ Vampire PI Extraordinaire!

This series just keeps getting better and better!

Vampire Dawn is one of my favorites in the series, not only does she solve the case, but she finally triumphs over the sun! The plot and characters really develop throughout the series, so this one I would recommend starting from the beginning as you will learn a lot about the characters and the multiple plots. These are not your typical vampires and Samantha is not your typical mother!

Each story is definitely worth a credit and time well spent!

Favorite from the entire series!

If you could sum up Vampire Dawn in three words, what would they be?

Page turner. Listened straight through. Couldn't stop listening.

What did you like best about this story?

More plot lines with more characters.

Which character – as performed by Dina Pearlman – was your favorite?

Sam

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The way she loves her children more than anything else in life. The faith she has and the want to be with them again without the limitations of the sun.

Any additional comments?

You should read "Christmas Moon" (book 4.5) before this book. It has details in that book that pertain to this book.

J R Rain & Dina Pearlman have me hooked

Would you listen to Vampire Dawn again? Why?

I would and have listened to the entire series again, it is a great story, with a completely different view of "Vampires"

What other book might you compare Vampire Dawn to and why?

I can't compare to any, except it has humor like some "Sookie Stackhouse", Except the concept it totally original, not like any other "Vampire" genre.

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

Dina Pearlman is wonderful at voicing the characters and their moods. (even the children) I hope she continues to voice this series

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

SPOILER ALERT: The very last chapter when Samantha goes out to watch the sun rise, hoping the "Amulet" that she found will allow her to walk in Sun light like normal humans, so she can enjoy her time with her children.

Any additional comments?

This has been a great series so far and each book has gotten better I only hope it will continue along in this fashion

All the vampire positives, less of the negatives

At least this book brought back a mystery procedural to go along with the Diary of a Vampire Mom side. My favorite parts were Sam and Det. Sherbet investigating all the bloodless bodies, which combined with the sale price, made this enjoyable listen.

I’m liking the mama-drama side of the story less and less as Sam becomes more and more of
a Mary Sue. In previous books we learned of her super strength, ability to fly, and psychic sixth sense. Here, we find out she’s already got more special skills than your average vampire (flying, for instance isn’t something all vampires can do) and she’s going to develop still more powers. On top of all the good vampire traits, both Sam and her boy Anthony are conveniently released from several of the downsides of being a vampire. Anthony in particular has doesn’t crave blood and is just peachy in the sun.

The indifference to nurturing supporting characters, and only letting them reappear to move the story,
is beginning to annoy me because books this short could benefit from an interlude or two where,
for instance, we could see Sam spending time with her sister or see how her ex-husband is handling his son’s new nature. After all, her ex’s devotion to his son was huge in the previous book.

My biggest annoyance, however, is how Sam is surrounded by ancient beings, none of whom ever give a straight answer about how vampires, werewolves, or magic works. Really?! Her boyfriend is a werewolf with some sort of internal demon- that he doesn’t explain. He also knows several vampires, yet only grudgingly introduces one to Sam. Magical Max doesn’t explain what kind of creature he is, doesn’t instruct Sam on the common traits of vampires (even though he’s an academic that works in a Library), and says stupid, cryptic things like “that amulet’s super magical, but you just need to have faith you’ll figure out how to use it.” Sam communes with some sort of Gaia-like spirit of the freaking cosmos and the only guidance she gets is to envision it and just be. Ugh! This pattern of ridiculously forced magical mystery, just so the author can end each book on a cliffhanger magical reveal is getting old. Even on sale, I’m not sure it’s worth it to get the next one.

Weird everything is just weird.

I’ve listen to all the series as well the next 2 book. I started out very much enjoying the storytelling. I enjoyed the humor and her sassiness. The farther I get the last humor there is in the storytelling And her personality has changed in a negative way. For such a short book the constant repetition gets very old. I have to agree things just get weirder and weirder but, her constantly saying she’s weird is annoying. I feel I would’ve enjoyed the book more if a lot of the reputation was taken out and made the last few books into one. Not sure I will continue after the last two I bought.

another hit for j r rain!!!

i already have the next book downloaded and ready to play ~ this is one of The Best series ive come across!

Another homerun!

I love Sam's character..her personal integrity goodness, sense of erhics/morals and how no matter what..she stays as true to herself as possible wven thru her ever changing world. I love these stories and as my son lay asleep in the crook of my arm at 9:31pm...im excited to start the next chapter!!

I am vampire mom

This book is private eye meets vampire and finds ancient mysterious medallions that changes her life. Fun and enjoyable!

might be starting to go off the rails

I'm going to hang in there with this series a little longer but it does have some troubling aspects. First of all Sam is becoming too powerful. Heck, she can already leap tall buildings in a single bound (actually it's leap off of cliffs and then fly off just before hitting bottom). She was a much more engaging character when she couldn't solve all of her problems with a new superpower. There are a lot of interesting characters but they don't get their due because the books/novellas are short. It looks like Anthony is going to be a superhero too with all the superpowers and none of the pesky blood drinking or sunshine avoiding annoyances. It's starting to look like that's what will happen to Sam also as she overcomes these obstacles with much sought after magic medallions that keep falling into her lap. The book is titled VD for a reason. I still like the premise and the characters so I will continue the series though I will be taking a break from it. There are references to what occured in the short story Christmas Moon, so it might seem like something is missing if it hasn't been read.

Disappointing

This is short with no ending, just a teaser for the next part. I am sorry i paid for it.