THE LOST VAMPIRE

An ancient vampire looking for his mate finds his beloved in the form of a soul-stealing fae being kept in servitude by a powerful mage.

Middle Eastern vampire Saeed Almasi leaves the safety of his coven to find his mate. It’s a race against time, as the longer he remains untethered to his mate, the closer he comes to losing himself in madness. Visions from a cerebral network of past vampires known as the Collective have shown Saeed that his mate is in Seattle, is fae, and has red hair. He knows the moment that he finds her their souls will tether to each other and the Collective’s pull on his mind and the voices in his head will stop. There’s only one problem: his mate lacks a soul. Cerys Bain is an “enaid dwyn,” a soul-stealer, making her reviled and feared among the supernatural communities. She’s the personal bodyguard and assassin of Rinieri de Rege, a well-known mage in the Seattle area. Saeed’s presence makes waves, as vampires are rather rare, and he quickly gets information that if he wants to get anywhere in the city, he needs Rinieri’s help. It brings him directly before Cerys, his mate, but he’s confused and dismayed when he feels no uniting of their souls. Add in the detail that Cerys is technically Rinieri’s property, and Saeed’s desire to be mated to Cerys becomes increasingly more complicated. Baxter’s (The Untamed Vampire, 2017, etc.) paranormal characters feel very real despite their heightened, otherworldly abilities. They are complex and exciting, maneuvering alongside their human counterparts in modern-day Seattle. With Saeed trying to learn more about Cerys, finding ways to get the two of them alone together, the romance takes its time, but it’s truly worth the wait. Some of the mythology can be confusing, however, for newcomers to Baxter's Last True Vampire series. New readers should be able to work through the unfamiliar terminology or at least find answers with cursory Googling, but expect to do a little homework.

An incredibly fun paranormal romance with a heroine who gives as good as she gets.