My Familiar Stranger (Black Swan #1) by Victoria Danann

Minutes ahead of inevitable assassination, Elora Laiken is forcibly transported to an alternate dimension similar, but not identical, to her own. She is stranded. Alone. Far from home. A stranger in a "strangish" land. 

Of course a girl could suffer worse problems than having gorgeous suitors. Perhaps more importantly, in the midst of an epidemic of vampire related abductions, can she stay alive long enough to choose between an honor debt, true love, or the breathlessness of single-minded passion? 

Type: Paranormal Romance, Elves, Vampires, Berserkers, alternate universe
Heat: 2.5-3
Rating: 3

Alright so I was really digging this one until the heroine picked the wrong hero. That landed My Familiar Stranger firmly in the eh category for me and made for one pretty grumbly cat herder.


There were definitely some things I liked about the book though. It was my first time reading Danann and I absolutely love the world she created. A slightly alternate universe, a worthy cause with danger, betrayals and fierce Warriors as they try to keep vampires under control. I loved that the vamps weren't in the "good guy" category. It was interesting as a whole and kept me reading on.

And I loved all of the characters...individually. The heroine and the group of men who were teammates. Even a deliciously sexy vamp who might be on their side. Maybe. They're all awesome people and easy to fall in love with. Elora, the heroine, is tough and survives so much and has such a good heart. And the men are all brave and loyal to each other. And they each have a personality that makes you more curious about getting to know them.

Now, my problem was the romance. Grrr, arg and damn. I just wasn't feeling it at all. There's a bit of a love triangle involved and I thought she ended up picking the wrong blasted guy. Couple that with the fact that I didn't feel that spark at all with the one she chose and it was a disaster for me. They worked as friends but I never felt the heat and physical chemistry between them. But I liked him so I couldn't even hate him for stealing her away from the hero I liked. Oh my god. Do you know how frustrating that is? LOL  I had a lot of choice words being used along the way with this one.

So. Kinda torn. Loved parts of the story, especially the drama and action involved in their fight against vampires, and really didn't care for other parts which I think made the book drag a bit for me. I'm totally giving Danann another read though. I want to see my hero of choice get his happily ever after. Maybe then I won't feel that little twinge of hostility towards Elora for leaving him behind.

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