Absolutely amazing! I was a little hesitant at first to read. I am a big fan of urban fantasy, but find first person novels hard to relate to. That was not the case this time. Harper did a wonderful job right from the get-go. Emma is a strong female character and I loved the suspense. The ending was amazing and I am fascinated by the secondary characters the the relationships that developed with Emma. I highly recommend this book.

I received an ARC of Brimstone Bound, Firebrand #1 by Helen Harper from #BookBuzz.net through #NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Due to be released September of 2020, #BrimstoneBound is an Urban Fantasy set in an alternate London, England that has vampires and werewolves, along with other supernatural creatures, living within their own city inside London.

This story is a first person from the perspective of Emma Bellamy, who is within weeks in becoming a detective, but instead of being sent to cyber-crimes, for her last two weeks of training, she is sent to the Supernatural Squad, the small department that is looked down upon, and considered the place to send the unqualified trainees. It is within her first 24 hours that she is murdered, but comes back to life in the morgue. Thus, while trying to solve her murder, there's another, someone who she knew., and the disappearance of two werewolves.

I almost didn't read this book because the kindle e-book formatting I received was bad, with 3 to five spaces between words, and all that space was very distracting and unprofessional, but since it was an ARC, I am hoping the formatting will be fixed. I shrunk the size of my font, which helped a little, so I could read this story. (If I do pick up another book in this series, and the formatting is just as bad, there won't be a third.)

This was a nice story, flowed along great, and while I had my suspicions on the outcome, the story kept my interest with a few twists to keep reading. And while I can already guess upon where future books in this series will head, it could be a series I'd keep track of. There wasn't an overload of descriptions, so the story wasn't a 'page filler', and it kept the story moving along.

The violence wasn't too descriptive and there was no sex, so anyone 16 and over can enjoy this book.

I would recommend this story to those who enjoy Urban Fantasy. And while it was a good story, I'm still neutral upon my connections to the main character.

So, ignoring the font issues, I give this story 3 stars.

I received a free copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Emma Bellamy is on her way to becoming a detective, and near the top of her class. All that is left is her last two-week rotation that she hoped would be with cyber crime. However, when she gets her assignment, it is for the dreaded Supernatural Squad, a place where only disgraced officers are sent. Not knowing why she was sent there, she decided to put her full effort into this. What she did not expect was to be brutally murdered on her first day on the job. Yes, murdered. After waking up in the morgue, Emma’s single desire is to find the person responsible for her death and bring him/her to justice. However, this means working with the supernatural community, a group she knows barely anything about.

The book does start off slow and the depiction of the Supernatural Squad at the beginning was almost a turn off, but once Emma is “un-dead,” it starts to take off. I liked her fierceness and how she refused to let anyone (or thing) stand in the way of her seeking justice. Lukas is an intriguing character as the vampire assisting in her investigation. This was a good start to a new series by the author.

4 stars

What a charming first book in a new series. Having read, and loved, other books written by this author I decided to give 'Brimstone Bound' a chance.

I was not disappointed.

This book has a delightful mix of genres; fantasy, suspense, mystery, crime, supernatural. No romance so far, but there is potential.
The romantic aspect, if done right in the following books, could be really good.

Our protagonist, Emma, went through a lot in this book. She has to face mysteries, betrayals, new alliances and enemies, deceptions and her own death.
Honestly that's the main reason why I started this series. A heroine that dies and comes back to life and doesn't know why. Amazing.
And it took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out what she's supposed to be. The clues were all there!

Emma has lots of potential. She's smart, ambitious, not a dumb teenager and open-minded. I liked that in important situations she's so confident and doesn't let people walk all over her.

I can honestly say that I didn't know who the killer was. It crossed my mind, but I didn't really expect it.

I think this book is an awesome start to the series and I can't wait to read more. This could possibly become one of my favorites series if the next books are this good.

9/10 would recommend

A placement away from making detective, Emma is horrified to be assigned the Supernatural Squad. It is a place that cops careers go to die. Emma wasnt expecting that it wasn't just her career that would die. Thankfully, she was resurrected. Now she has her murder solve, to figure out what she is, and solve a few other murders along the way. With the help of an oh so friendly (and hot) vampire, she is hot on the trail of a killer who isnt afraid to murder cops and werewolves. Will she make it in time to prevent another death?
I enjoyed this book. It offers a fresh take on vampire and shifter relations. I also like that we dont know what the make of Emma's abilities. At times, the boom was a bit predictable but that did not stop me from enjoying the book. I look forward to reading the next in the series.

It's been a while since I read any Urban Fantasy, and Brimstone Bound was a great re-introduction to the genre. Harper handled the world building aspects well; I always had enough information when I needed it, to understand how the fantasy elements functioned. Emma Bellamy is a great UF heroine--gutsy yet relatable--and I enjoyed followed her story as she plunged into the world of supernatural investigation. Lukas is a perfect counter for her, and I am keen to see how that relationship will develop during future books. All up, this was a fun and imaginative read that ticked all the UF trope boxes while still feeling fresh and original, and I would certainly be keen to read future installments in the series. A solid 4.5-star rating from me.

This was an excellent paranormal murder mystery. Emma, a Detective in training, is assigned to the dregs Supe Squad. Werewolve deaths, vampire lord, and Emma is murdered on the first day on the job and comes alive 12 hours later. No being a vampire for her, nope. Unknown non human and now looking for her own killer. This was really good. Twisty's galore. I would recommend this new series to anyone. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book from Netgalley.

I really enjoyed reading this book.I loved the world that has been created and the main character is fab as are some of the other characters.I couldn't read it fast enough,and can only hope the author writes fast as I can't wait for the next book in the series. Best urban fantasy I have read in a while.I love reading thrillers and throw in some supes and you are onto a winner for me for sure. Loved it.

This book is, in a word, riveting. Such a smooth read with a great plot. The characters were well developed. I read this book in a few hours because I couldn't put it down. I loved it. It was beyond intriguing reading about Emma and trying to figure out how she could do what she does. Highly recommend this book.

I was not ready for this to end. If you are a fan of Anita Blake and any of the Darynda Jones novels, you will ABSOLUTELY LOVE this book. The story builds with twists that you do not see coming. I hope to learn more about Lukas and Emma. There are so many ways this series can go so I'm committed to the ride. Just amazing you will not be disappointed.

Emma is a young detective-in-training with the London Police, just entering her last rotation before the final exam. She is assigned to the 'Supe Squad' for two weeks instead of her coveted Cyber Crime, but she overcomes her disappointment and goes to report to DC Anthony Brown. And she gets herself killed that same night.... only to awake the next morning in the morgue!

Determined to find out who killed her Emma starts her own investigation. Not easy in the territory of werewolves, vampires and other supernaturals but fortunately she is assisted in her quest by vampire Lukas.

The book reads like a cozy mystery but then with supernaturals. We follow Emma when she uncovers clues and we get some (minor) world building and explanation.
I had an inkling who was behind it all, but the story was quite enjoyable. I look forward to reading the next in the series and getting to know more about Emma and how she will fare!

You can’t beat a good murder mystery!

I was a bit iffy with this one for the first 2 or 3 chapters. It was pretty much nothing but world building that I found pretty boring to read. I even contemplated dropping it but I’m so happy I stuck it out cause this book was so good! Once I got to chapter 5 the ball was rolling and I was well and truly invested in the story.

It’s one of those unputdownable whodunnit stories with vampires, werewolves and mystery beings thrown in. It’s a lot of fun and it’s refreshing to read an urban fantasy not set in the US.

*Review will be posted on blog www.elainehowlin.com on September 1st

Before I begin my review for Brimstone Bound by Helen Harper I would like to thank Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in return for an honest opinion.


An incredible and intriguing tale of a trainee detective as she works with a venerable vampire to solve her own murder in the supernatural London of Brimstone Bound by Helen Harper. Prepare for a shockingly exciting murder mystery as we become acquainted with Harpers’ supernatural world in the introduction to The Firebrand Series.


Brimstone Bound features, but is not limited to, the following themes:
○ Paranormal London
○ Vampires and werewolves
○ Supernatural creatures
○ Murder mystery
○ Detectives
○ Supernatural detectives


My overall rating for Brimstone Bound is…

4.5 stars!

Let it be known here and now that I don’t typically do the whole murder mystery shenanigans, but holy vampire babies this book was incredible! Prepare to be sucked in from the get go with this fast paced story of vampires, werewolves and other supernatural beings living in a paranormal London. The journey to solve the case was exciting and shocking and I can’t wait to continue with this series. I believe we may even see some heated vampire romance on the horizon.


Brimstone Bound will be available on Amazon from 3 September 2020. The author has also promised all pre-order proceeds will be donated to the following charities:
○ Refuge (Domestic Violence in Uk)
○ Medecins Sans Fontieres AKA Doctors Without Borders (international humanitarian medical organisation)
First Book (USA education inequality)

I really enjoyed reading this book. For me, the paranormal aspects took a backseat to an interesting, well written mystery.

I have read much of Ms. Harper's work and find she is an adept writer in all the genres she writes.

This was a solid, well written book and I anxiously await the next one.

I am glad I had the opportunity to receive an ARC. I am leaving my honest review.

Thanks to netgalley for the ebook copy in exchange for an honest review.

CW for my review: discussion of police brutality

I'm really struggling with how to review this one. I've enjoyed Helen Harper's work a lot and that's why I excitedly requested Brimstone Bound. The premise of waking up in a morgue, supernatural mystery, and a pesky vampire who will inevitably be the love interest? Totally my thing.

Not my thing? All the gross cop shit and ableist language that the book opened with. I literally wanted to DNF it within the first two pages. I only stuck it out to give it a proper review.

So, CW for description of police violence...the opening scene of the book we find the protagonist gleefully recounting and acting out her takedown of a perp as a police trainee. In and of itself, this is pretty gross to do and she uses ableist language to justify her actions. Most disturbing is how the description of her actions as a police trainee--which she so proudly recounts--are very similar to the police murders of George Floyd, Eric Garnet, and so many others. She talks excitedly about "patrolling the mean streets." When she is annoyed that she's assigned to the supernatural squad, her silver lining is she'll have access to cooler/deadlier weapons. It's a whole lot of police propaganda and it's wholly unnecessary to the book. This mostly tones down for the rest of the book, but then there's brief reminders through throwaway lines/thoughts that show Emma thinks cops are unimpeachable heroes.

Cop propaganda aside, it read like a typical, enjoyable Helen Harper novel with a new cast of supernatural characters and intrigue.

All this to say, I don't know how to rate this book. The end note mentioned that covid will not come up in the series and preorders will be donationed to covid relief charities. Harper writes, "I use writing as a form of escapism from reality – but that doesn’t mean I can pretend that reality doesn’t exist." To not mention police brutality as part of this reality is incredibly short-sighted, especially given that her protagonist is a cop. It's not like police brutality is an issue exclusive to the US. I think that made my issues with the book's beginning all the more stark.

I'm reluctantly giving the book 2.5 stars, rounding down to 2. If it weren't a review it would have been a DNF. This is a Harper series that I will be skipping.

A different twist on the typical murder mystery. Non sparkling vampires, not so friendly werewolves and lots of red tape.

This was a lot of fun to read! I see that the author has several other books out and I’m going to have to read something else by her.
The story is a fairly straightforward one of solving a murder. The main character is new to the supernatural world and you see everything fresh through her eyes. She’s a sympathetic and likable character. The strength of the book is in its fast pace and interesting characters. If you like your urban fantasy light and without too much romance (there’s certainly romantic possibilities hinted at though) this would definitely be one to try.
My only regret is not having tried this author sooner!

I am not really into Supernatural series but this cover screamed read me!! Yes I do judge a book by their covers at first glance.

Sorry. But hey I am honest back to the review!

Helen Harper creates feisty, likable characters have a need to fight for what is right no matter what and a desire to be normal. Emma Bellamy was normal until something happened changing her forever!

I will be honest this would be a 5 star review but the ends had me scratching my head because it didn't match with the actions though out the series even when Emma spells it out for readers it still doesn't make since.

I love the author decision that using a persons name as the power to control another person. It was a interesting twist!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance copy of Helen Harper Brimstone Bound

Well I liked that this was set in London as so many paranormal stories seem to be set in the US. Whilst the author does mention certain London landmarks she didn't make the mistake of trying too hard to create a contemporary London and rather just set her story there. Emma is so close to being made a detective and her final placement puts her in the run down, often overlooked supe squad but from her first day things go from bad (brawling Werewolves) to worse when someone slits her throat !
I liked Emma and enjoyed the mysteries that helped to shape this story. I won't go into what actually happens too much but will say it was a wholly unique take on Werewolves and Vampires living amongst Humans. I did have my suspicions which proved to be correct but as to the motivation in play here that was a huge surprise. I did however feel that Lukas the Vampire who keeps popping up didn't really strike me as particularly menacing and I hope that in the next book we get a lot more of his dark side. So if you fancy reading something a little different than this new series might just surprise and hopefully delight you.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

I received a copy of this book to review from Netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity.
This book was great! It pulled me out of a reading slump with its fast paced action and interesting characters. It is full of twists and turns with sharp writing and dialogue. The action continues to the last page.
I can't wait to read the second book in the series later in the year