Cover Image: Blood Visions

Blood Visions

Pub Date:   |   Archive Date:

Member Reviews

A well-written story filled with action and romance. I loved the main characters and can't wait to see what the author has in store for us next.

Was this review helpful?

The story showed promise but clearly the author didn't know how to deliver. The story needed smoothed out and some depth. I highly doubt I'll follow up with this author.

- - Received copy through NetGalley - -
L

Was this review helpful?

3.5 Stars!

I went into this not really remembering what the book was about. I've been pretty sick and my head has been a bit muddled. So I went in this knowing little and in the enjoying it. I found the story to be really interesting.

Ronan is an ex-cop now PI who investigates paranormal cases. He left to force in order to take on these cases that other cops were willing to dismiss. But he is still close with his ex-boss and him and his team is often called on to help with cases that can't be explained or have a supernatural element to them. With this case there are woman being kidnapped and blood of the woman who was taken before is being left behind at the crime scene along with claw marks. Ronan takes on the case and in doing so runs into an unlikely ally.

Dustin has been having visions since he was a young child. He recently started having visions of the woman who was recently taken. He tries going to the local police and tell them about his visions but is ridiculed and tossed out. So he decides to investigate on his own to see if he can get another vision that might help find the missing girls. In doing so his and Ronan's path cross that begins a partnership that neither knew would change their future.

Ronan is a believer but still has his walls up around Dustin not sure how to work with the man. He has a team of people who work for him but he is use to being on a case by himself. He's not use to having a partner especially one he finds attractive. He is a pretty straight laced kind of man who likes to be in control so these feelings he's having are unwanted and are unnerving him. Dustin wants to break down the walls Ronan surrounds himself with and find a partnership, a friendship, and even maybe a romantic relationship with this man. Soon their mutual desire to find these woman bring them closer and both men start to reveal more of themselves and the connection between them becomes stronger as the story goes.

I liked that it was a build up. All of it. The working relationship, the friendship, and in the end their romantic relationship. I liked that the author took her time in letting us get to know the characters as they got to know each other. They both have pasts they are a bit heartbreaking and that have left pretty alone in the world so it was nice that they found each other.

What I struggled with was the writing. It was a bit stiff at times and lacked emotion. It wasn't like this the whole book, but it was enough that it bothered me. I also was put off by how much the MC's names were used as the author explained what they were doing. I needed more emotion and passion.

I definitely would read the next book.

Happy reading dolls! xx

Was this review helpful?

3.5 Stars

This was a great story that had an interesting take on urban fantasy. Instead of government cover ups or illegal experimentation or separation of the paranormal from humanity, thus leaving them without our laws and citizenship, in this world the paranormal is simply ignored—an inconvenience that prevents justice really getting served. It’s this blindness that caused Ronan to start his own PI business to really help those people affected by the supernatural.

Ronan is called into a case where ten women have been kidnapped, and he’s given the pressure of trying to find them alive and get them home. One of the first people he meets is Dustin who has no background in policing or PI and is simply trying to help the people he sees in the visions he’s sent. Ronan’s scepticism in Dustin’s psychic abilities surprised me, as who else would be a believer than the man fed up of people not talking about the supernatural elephant in the room? Yet as he continues to question his abilities, I could also start seeing how he might have encountered a lot of cons and hoaxes during his time that would make him hesitant.

It’s also a natural extension of the wall he surrounds himself with to ensure that people can’t hurt him.

The story is slow to start as Dustin and Ronan get to know each other, something that is further bogged down with the author’s detailed description of what is happening. It felt like each individual step the characters were making was told—from which hand they outstretch to open a door, to searching through the phonebook in their phone and then bringing the number up for dialling. This keeps us that bit distant from the characters and makes it harder to empathise with them. None of what they are feeling or experiencing really impacts us as it should have. I really hope the author continues this series, however, as I can’t wait to see more of Ronan and Dustin growing as a couple and as a paranormal crime fighting duo.

Was this review helpful?

Ronan is a private detective hired when a number of women started going missing under mysterious circumstances. Given his specialty is magical cases, he knows he's the best option to find the answer. Then he meets Dustin, whose visions might be the key to solving the mystery, but who might also distract Ronan and leave them all dead instead.

Overall I liked this start to a new series. Dustin's visions and abilities were interesting and I liked seeing how he and Ronan, a regular human without any special abilities, were able to work together so seamlessly. Their characterizations just worked and that made the book that much more enjoyable to read.

I didn't appreciate the overall plot. I won't go into too much detail to avoid spoilers, but every conclusion they came to and every step forward they made in solving the mystery was a bit of a stretch for me. Even Ronan's being hired by the police didn't quite work. Given the police were forced to ignore magic's existence, I just don't see them reaching out to Ronan even thought Ronan is friends with the chief. There needed to be something more in the world building that allowed for all the stretches to work.

Was this review helpful?

*Sigh* This was a moment where it pays to read the reviews first. I would be lying and be extremely harsh by saying this was the worst book I've ever read. By no means of the imagination did I love this story. There were grammatical errors throughout the entire book and it could have used an editor. That being said, it wasn't anywhere near the best book I've read either. Most websites don't do half-star ratings, but this is really a 2 1/2 star review. Ronan and Dustin were likable enough characters, but there was just something about the writing which made them feel stilted. The progression of the story was rather slow for it to be a small book and it wrapped up rather quickly. The synopsis is intriguing, but the execution was lacking, which is unfortunate.

Was this review helpful?

The premise of this book was really interesting to me hence why I asked for a copy from NetGallery and from the start it held my interest, but sadly as it progressed I found it more and more difficult to read. I found I couldn't connect with the characters as much as I should have done and the plot ended up not really working for me. I wish it had, or that the characters were more developed along the way. Not all books are for everyone so this might be right for you so if you like this particular genre then definitely give it a go.

Was this review helpful?

I really wanted to like this book. I thought the premise was promising and there were things to like about each character. The plot had promise as well but the execution was stilted. I had difficulty with the writing style -it was very choppy. It was distracting that the MC names were used over and over in paragraphs. It made for an unusual delivery- I almost didn't finish it. There are so many mundane details regarding meals and getting ready for bed that it slows the pace of the book down to a crawl- the same can be said for the development of the relationship between the main characters. I do believe the author has potential but can benefit greatly from a competent editor and proofreader. I received a copy of this book from Netgalley for an honest, voluntary review.

Was this review helpful?

I unfortunately can't recommend this title but I did think the concept was very interesting. It is very difficult to follow the pov because it is present tense and third person limited but doesn't differentiate between which character the pov is limited to. The plot was also extremely convenient. Without spoilers it can be difficult to explain but I felt that the ending was very rushed and also unrealistic. The concept of a psychic paranormal investigator is pretty interesting though, so I'd be willing to continue the series if the author changes the pov or tense.

Was this review helpful?

1.5 Stars. I really liked the idea behind this book and the concept was really interesting. However, the execution was really lacking. The flow was incredibly choppy and the dialogue unrealistic. The author gives us too much information about small details and does a lot of telling versus showing. The name of the MC's is repeated over and over again further throwing the flow of the book off. An example of the way the writing bugged me:

<blockquote>Ronan wants to start by checking out the building Ann Beth was taken from. Ronan read in the police file that there were some drag marks.</blockquote>

However, despite the writing style I kept reading and I did like the characters and the plot. However, even ignoring the grammar mistakes and editing issues the writing style just didn't work for me.

Was this review helpful?

I love Urban Fantasy and the blurb for this one had me excited to check it out. It has such a promising premise and the idea is a good one - a private detective who specializes in the paranormal, a psychic with visions of a missing girl, and a big bad that is kidnapping women. Paranormal, mystery, and a steamy romance, a combination that should certainly grab my attention. Except, it didn't. The premise is sound, but the problem is that I never became invested in the characters or the story. The writing is a bit stilted and while I appreciate details to give me a mental picture of everything going on, too many nonessential details that don't lend anything to the actual story quickly become a distraction. That includes the number of times that a character's name is in a scene. If they are the only person in the scene, using their name over and over becomes an irritation and starts to feel like they're thinking about themselves in the third person. The biggest issue for this reader is that there's way more telling than showing. From the search for the missing women and the baddie that is taking them to the steamy scenes between Ronan and Dustin, I was never drawn in or invested enough to feel much, one way or another, about the outcome. Even the conclusion, which should've been a heart-racing scene, just didn't have that oooph that it should have. It was more like I was being told about what was happening rather than being drawn into the excitement of the scene. I did manage to finish the book, hoping that things would improve as the story progressed, but try as I might, I was never able to connect with the characters or the story and sadly, this isn't one that I can recommend.

Was this review helpful?

Unfortunately, there just isn't a lot to recommend this book. The writing is incredibly awkward and difficult to get into, mostly because such random, mundane details as the main character packing or the number of bathroom breaks he takes on a car trip are described in excruciating detail. The dialogue is stilted and unrealistic and the repeated use of dialogue tags after every single line (even when there are only two people in the scene) is beyond grating.

I gave two stars rather than one because the premise and the characters are interesting and should have made for a good story. Unfortunately, the execution just wasn't good enough to bring the story to life for me.

Was this review helpful?

I’ve just read the prologue and I’m struggling.
I have a thing about a person’s name being used repeatedly, it drives me nuts I mean seriously use a pronoun.
The prologue to this book is probably the worse case of this I’ve come across, it’s only 4 pages long and Ann Beth is used 24 times.

I took a break and continued on and I came to the conclusion that basically life is too short for me to bring myself to finish this book. I’m not going to rate it since I didn’t finish it and I’m disappointed that I haven’t finished it because if I request a book I feel I should at least complete it and write a review but here I just can’t and that should give you some idea of just how bad the writing is.

Over the years I’ve received 147 books from NetGalley and this is only the second one I’ve not been able to finish. I say finish I hardly got started, I liked the idea and the blurb but the writing is just dreadful, the conversations are stilted and it doesn’t flow.

I voluntarily read (well started) a review copy kindly provided by NetGalley and Less Than Three Press.

Was this review helpful?