Holiday with a Vampire III: Sundown / Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire / Unwrapped

Draicon Werewolves #7

by Linda Winstead Jones, Lisa Childs, Bonnie Vanak

Christmas starts at midnight...And after you've been visited by these sexy men, you'll discover the true meaning of the season in these dazzling tales of love.

Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones
After distancing herself from a very attractive cop, vampire Abby Brown discovers she wants only one thing for Christmas--Leo Stryker. But when a murder investigation endangers his life, she may be the one to give him a present....

Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire by Lisa Childs
Sienna Briggs never knew she had a guardian vampire. But, when she stumbles across the truth surrounding the Secret Vampire Society, her guardian--the handsome Julian Vossimer--has only one solution to save the woman he's loved for so long.

Unwrapped by Bonnie Vanak
Adrian Thorne never expected to see Sarah Roberts again. But she's presented to him as a special gift. The vampire is elated to finally avenge the werewolf who broke his heart... except Sarah may be the only one who can mend it!

Genres: Romance, Vampires, Paranormal Romance, Christmas, Harlequin, Anthologies, Fantasy

288 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 2009

About the author

Linda Winstead Jones is the bestselling author of more than eighty romance novels and novellas across several sub-genres. She’s easily distracted (Look! A squirrel!) and writes the stories that speak to her in the moment. Paranormal. Romantic Suspense. Twisted Fairy Tales. Cowboys. Her books are for readers who want to escape from reality for a while, who don’t mind the occasional trip into another world for a laugh, a chill, the occasional heartwarming tear. Where will we go next?

More information can be found at lindawinsteadjones.com, and www.facebook.com/LindaWinsteadJones or www.facebook.com/LindaHowardLindaJones.

Reviews

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book contained 3 novellas of Vampires and their mates.
Abby is an old vampire that owns a bar in Alabama one of her regulars is a detective, Leo Stryker.
together they find love and a murderer.
Julian Vossimer saves Sienna Briggs when her parents are killed in a car wreck when she is just a child.
The Vampire Society wants her dead so he needs to save her again. His father threatens Julian that either he kills her or they both will die.
Adrian is a Vampire and Sarah is a werewolf. They meet to kill the werewolf Morphs on the beach. Adrian has agreed to help her kill them but the sun is coming up and he is wounded by one of them. He calls for Sarah to help him but she runs away and leaves him. The vampires on the beach make him beg for help. Because he has helped a werewolf and failed to kill all the Morphs, he is banished for 10 years to his home in Maine. The Gremlins give him a Christmas present he can't refuse to like, he just has to add water and his plan for revenge begins.

[Casey Leigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this collection of Vampire themed stories.

[Maura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sundown - Linda Winstead Jones -3/5 - Abby is a 400 year old vampire that runs a bar with one rule - no hunting or killing the customers. But the rule is broken, which brings Detective Leo Stryker on the case. He’s already half in love with Abby, but doesn’t know she’s a vampire. He keeps asking her out and she keeps turning him down...it’s no good getting attached to a mortal. This one was a little strange - here’s Abby who likes Leo a lot and ends up sleeping with him and connecting with him and each time they kind of fall in love a bit more. But then she clears his memory and he keeps coming back for more with no memory of the last time. I would think that Leo would have a really tough time trusting Abby once he found out what she’d been doing. But that doesn’t really bother Leo at all each time he finds out. This author took a darker approach to vampires. These vampires really are dead and I think soulless. They do kill people with little to no remorse about it and that darker edge may work for some people. I prefer a bit more humanity in my vampire romance. Save the darker side for suspense and horror.

Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire - Lisa Childs - 2/5 - When she was 7, Sienna Briggs was rescued from a car accident. 20 years later, after her grandmother’s death (and her deathbed confessions about vampires) Sienna is faced with her rescuer and he hasn’t aged a day. That’s because he’s a vampire and he’s going to protect Sienna from a society of Underground Vampires that wants her dead because now she knows about them. The premise of this story was decent. But the execution was awkward. Sienna is approached by Julian, her vampire rescuer, and faints dead away. She wakes up in the dark and within minutes she’s seducing him, she finds out he’s a vampire and then continues her seduction. All I could think was, wow, that’s quick. There wasn’t even time for chemistry between them because they were having sex after interacting for 15 minutes. And then after it was over, Sienna muses on how she’s fallen in love with a vampire. And it can’t be too soon, since she’s known him since she was 7. Only she’d only met him for a few minutes then and she hasn’t seen him in 20 years. I wonder if the author understands that having met a person once 20 years ago does not mean you’ve “known” that person for 20 years. They’re still strangers. And then when he offers her immortality and he claims it's to protect her, she’s relieved he didn’t try to say it was because he loved her - since it would have been too soon. (Even though she already loves him). Only they find out it wasn’t too soon, because after she rejects him and runs away, they both realize they love each other (after a few hours together) and are willing to sacrifice their lives for one another. And they never even just converse about their lives or anything. In addition to much of this, the story just felt choppy and incohesive, as though trying to read a story in fast forward mode.

Unwrapped - Bonnie Vanak - 4/5 - Despite all the rules in place, Sarah, a Draicon and Adrian, a vampire, become friends and he even offers to stand by her side to fight a group of Morphs that have been after her. But on the day of the fight, as Adrian lay suffering, she ran away and he didn’t see her for nearly 10 years. Then suddenly, Adrian’s guardian demons give him Sarah as a Christmas present and he has plans to use her as bait to lure the Morphs that escaped that day so he can kill them and reclaim a place of honor in his clan that he lost that day. But the feelings between them are stronger than ever and may be worth defying odds to be together.

I liked this one quite a bit. I like the forbidden friendship, the secret longings on both their parts and the little bit of angst that their one moment in the past created. Adrian is bitter but still in love with her and Sarah is struggling to get him to understand her reasons. They just seemed such a nice match together. I’ve always loved a friends-to-lovers story. But as usual with this particular author, there are little rule-breaks in her universe that irritate a bit. Like, how is it that Morphs managed to get in on the Christmas tree that had been in the house for a day and nobody could smell them (not to mention Sarah’s spine-tingling sense) and why on earth did they wait an entire day to attack? Just little things. The gremlins were kinda cute too.

[Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques

If you love vampires and Christmas, than this third installment in Harlequin’s Holiday with a Vampire miniseries is sure to appeal.

In Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones, we meet Abby Brown, a vampire who manages the local bar, that just happens to cater to a very special kind of clientele after dark. When someone with ties to the bar is found murdered, police detective Leo Stryker is on the case. However, his determination to uncover the killer brings him dangerously close to revealing secrets Abby prefer stay hidden.

I loved Sundown with its mystery revolving around the murder victim, and the love brewing between Abby and Leo. Their affair is made bittersweet by Abby’s fears of what will happen to them when Leo learns her secret. Linda Winstead Jones wraps the story up nicely, solving the mystery and the conflict between Leo and Abby in a very believable way. However, I was disappointed that the holiday plays such a small role in this story it might as well have been nonexistent.

When Sienna Briggs has to bury her beloved grandmother during the holidays, she finds a revelation about a community never imagined, the Secret Vampire Society. One of its members, Julian Vossimer, is ordered to kill her. However, ever since he became involved in her life when she was a child, he has been unable to resist the allure of this lovely lady, and wants nothing more than to show her Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire (by Lisa Childs).

I thoroughly enjoyed this sometimes sad, other times heartwarming novella, Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire. Sienna never knew about her mystery protector and how much he has impacted her world, but Julian can’t forget. His inner turmoil as he struggles to balance his emotions with his duty to his people makes for a compelling tale. Lisa Childs does a great job of fleshing out the world of her vampire society with the tantalizing tidbits revealed here.

Vampire Adrian Thorne may have secreted himself away in Maine to escape the memories of the lovely Sarah Roberts, a Draicon and enemy of his kind, but his gremlin friends have other plans. When a Christmas present appears on his doorstep, he is about to find his fate Unwrapped (by Bonnie Vanak), especially when a dangerous enemy arrives at the same time.

Unwrapped was my favorite story in this anthology but then, I love Bonnie’s writing so that comes as no surprise to me. This was also more humorous in tone than the preceding Draicon books, while still holding on to a bit of that darkness that is found in this universe. Who can resist six gremlins dressed up like elves running around casting spells and giving Christmas presents? They came dangerously close to stealing the show every time they put in an appearance. Adrian and Sarah are a perfect example of star crossed lovers. They understand the tension between their kinds, interfering with their happiness. Yet, Adrian and Sarah manage to overcome the odds and prove that vampires and the Draicon don’t necessarily have to be enemies after all.

Holiday with a Vampire III features three powerhouse authors in the paranormal romance and is sure to have at least one story to satisfy most everyone. I loved all three stories and look forward to even more works by these players in the near future.

© Kelley A. Hartsell, February 2010. All rights reserved.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones:
While I enjoyed this novella, I definately think it would have made a better full-length novel. It was almost too short to fully develop the nature of some of the characters, most particularly Margaret. I was left wanting to know more about her, her history, what made her who she was. I almost felt like I was pulled into the story when it was already halfway over with a lot of backstory already past. I liked the story but I wish it had been a little longer. I gave it 3 stars.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire by Lisa Childs
This story had a bit of a creepy factor to it, at least for me. Julian Vossimer, the hero of the story, had a bit of a "bad boy" past, including a prior almost relationship with Sienna's grandmother. That was a little creepy for me, I guess. The story dragged a little for me, with lots of loose ends, and I had a hard time really getting into it. I think the romance came a little too easy in this story, in a situation that should have been anything but romantic. That made it a little too fantastical to me. I gave it 2 stars.

~~~~~~~~~~

Unwrapped by Bonnie Vanak
This was my favorite of the three novellas and I would have loved it to be expanded into a full-length novel. The backstory was seamlessly woven throughout the story without leaving the reader feeling as if they missed something. There were twists and turns and the action never stalled. The gremlins in the story provided unexpected humor and kept the story fresh and light. I gave it 3 stars.

[Melania Ramona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sundown - Linda Winstead Jones - a good story, although Linda can and did better. I like the characters and the ideea, but I think some things should have been further explored and others shortened. 3.5 stars

NSCLAV (awfully long title)- Lisa Childs - I feel sorry for this story. I'm not even gonna say it could have been great. The premise was ok, I suppose. But the romance felt so rushed, that I didn't belive it for a minute. I couldn't care for the characters. It made me sad. 2 stars

PS: another fact that backs up my theory that stories with really long titles are doomed.

Unwrapped - Bonnie Vanak - the best of the bunch. Really liked the story, the characters, the progression of events etc. And, of course, the gremlins, mustn't forget them (I never thought gremlins could make such interesting side characters). 4.5 stars

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones- 3 stars. Okay story. Started out with a lot of promise and then just fizzled out.

Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire by Lisa Childs- 1 star. Sorry, just didn't like it. They make love within a couple of pages and then realize later "Oh I think I love you" and the heroine discovers a "gift" she had her entire life but just didn't know it until the hero came along. Yeah right...

Unwrapped by Bonnie Vanak- 2 stars. Not for me. All these stories are too short to have a good plot AND good characters. If there is a Holiday with a Vampire IV then I’m going to stay far away from it.

[Caro · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good book. I liked all three stories and they kept me interested. I wouldn't mind reading his again, but it wouldn't a search-out kinda thing. There were some great characters, good plots, some action, a little suspense, a good amount of emotions, some smiles, and (of course!) humor. I liked the endings and was glad all three stories were good. My favorite: the little green people! ;) Anthologies mostly seem like a hit and miss. Overall, pretty good and not disappointed, but not blown out of the water. Good for a cuddle-up or relaxing read, and each story could be a one-sitting read. Enjoy!

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Calling this a book about vampires is a misnomer. It is more a book about romances with superpowered humans who happened to sometimes maybe possibly drink a bit of blood. Solving the "how can a dead body have sex" problem is easy when you start out with vampires not really being dead in the first place. Ah, well. Popcorn romance novellas. I can't say it fell short of my expectations since they were just in the realm of a fast, easy, somewhat satisfying read.

[Michele Minor · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book consists of three different romance stories with vampires being the main character. These stories are very different from the popular Twilight series in that the characters do have sex outside of marriage though similar in that the first two books are love stories between a human and a vampire. The last one is a love story between a werewolf and a vampire.

[Judy · Rating 5 out of 5]

June 12, 2010
Read Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones. I enjoyed it.

The 2nd story- Nothing Says Christmas Like a Vampire by Lisa Childs was a good story but more sexual.

Unwrapped by Bonnie Vanak- I enjoyed this one as well

[Deidre]

I have finished:

1. Sundown by Linda Winstead Jones 3 *** Stars

My thoughts: Pleasant enough I guess for a short read but I felt there was way too much left out - Did I miss a series this story goes too? Not that I can find =( Overall = Forgettable

[Darcy · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you like short stories that are full of fun sexy vampires this one is for you. A quick read with vampires getting their best Christmas gifts.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stories, 3 authors liked each

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thery were really good short stories that I really enjoyed reading.

[Rachel-RN · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice, sweet collection.

[Amelia in PDX · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three novellas, three authors, interesting short stories.

[Kjen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a big fan of anthologies unless they are from my favorite series. These were an interesting diversion and better than most.

[BarbaraH · Rating 3 out of 5]

OK, not Great

[Tammy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This particular book had 3 stories included and honestly I had a little trouble getting into the 1st one, though it did get better. The other 2 stories I very much enjoyed.