SOLD TO THE DEMON PRINCE

A demon and a fairy find a complicated connection in Crowne’s debut erotic fantasy-series starter.

This novel posits a world shared by humans and several other supernatural cultures. Fairies are known for their stimulating magical touch and for their blood, which others turned into a recreational drug called Dust. Vera, a 21-year-old captive fairy, is auctioned off, along with her fairy pals Rob and Lydia, to the demon Prince Leo Vronsky—an inventor with chiseled abs, black wings, and silvery eyes. The trio’s initial anxiety is allayed when Leo frees them and enlists him in his project of finding a synthetic version of Dust, which he hopes will lead to the abolition of fairy slavery by undercutting the market for their blood products. Helped by his sarcastic, gay cousin Rand and shy human assistant Marcus, Leo finds that Vera’s blood is so potent that contact with it gives him an enormous boost of power and speed, along with heightened sexual desire that Vera enthusiastically requites. Further adventures—including sparring exercises and an expedition to capture wild fairies and protect them from evil human hunters—furnish pretexts for Leo and Vera to get together, with Vera’s magic getting them hot and bothered. Alas, their love faces obstacles, including the machinations of Leo’s father, the king of the demons. Crowne’s yarn, the first in her Sins of the Blood War series, creates a teeming fantasy world. She also limns the BDSM-tinged relationship between the two main characters in evocative, atmospheric prose: “His bright blue eyes seemed to sparkle as if he knew a joke we didn’t.” Vera and Leo’s banter has a feisty, energetic friction—Leo: “You’ve been here one day, and you ate my muffins.” Vera: “Your name wasn’t on them’ ”—that eventually works up to some real erotic heat.

An entertaining and often playful magical romance set in a dangerous world.