When I saw that this was about LGBT+ vampires I just had to jump on this! This was difficult to put down and it was beautifully written.

The story begins with the protagonist, Constanta, writing a goodbye love letter to Dracula. Going through the first few years with him alone, traveling, and receiving constant love and affection from Dracula. Then, eventually Dracula brings in two more into the relationship, Magdalena a powerful woman from Spain and Alexi a young starving artist from Russia. Though Constanta wasn’t thrilled at first about bringing others into their relationship, she eventually grew to love and the want to protect both Magdalena and Alexi. Constanta doesn’t believe Dracula has been completely honest with her and notices how she is constantly being gaslighted by him. She began to fear for their well-being.

ARC provided by Netgalley and Nyx Publishing for an honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Nyx Publishing for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Sometimes, you begin reading a story and from the first page, it carves out a special place in your heart. A Dowry of Blood was one of those rare instances where a book managed to touch the deepest parts of my soul, making me devour it in one sitting and then jumping straight back in to read it again.

The writing style in this was nothing short of stunning. Beautiful imageries, combined with lyrical expressions really managed to draw me in. This is exactly the style I adore in books - if you're not into flowery and introspective writing, I completely see why this wouldn't appeal to you, but it checked all the boxes for me.

At the center of the story, we have Constanta, writing a letter to her vampire lover, reflecting on the rise and downfall of their long romantic involvement. The main theme that was explored is emotional abuse in relationships, which is something that I personally can relate to all to well. The way these actions were conveyed touched me deeply, and I loved the way it was addressed throughout the story.
All of the characters were incredibly compelling, their relationships complex and heartfelt. I especially appreciated the polyamorous relationships within their little "family unit" - that's something you rarely see in fiction, and that I'd love to read more of!

So, if you're into lyrical writing that deals with difficult topics - be sure to check this one out!

Thank you to NetGalley and NYX Press for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

I wish I could put into plain words how enamored by this book I was. From the first paragraph to the very last, it was like pulling teeth when I had to put this book down. It’s been a long time since a book was so different from what I normally read, but was still able to catch, hold and keep my attention until I finished. What a twist on a retelling! A damn good one I might add.

From Constanta, Magdalena, Alexi to the ever looming “you” figure, each character was complex, well rounded and so intriguing. I loved Constanta and her growth, her resolve and her ability to stand on her own. The relationship between Magdalena and Constanta was probably my favorite. The way they knew but continued to develop between themselves was a complete joy to read. I loved every second of it.

This book is flowing, lyrical genius & I don’t think I’ll be able to stop thinking about it anytime soon!

Thanks to Netgalley for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinion.

A story within a story about a young vampire navigating through her new eternal life with a rag tag group of vampire family and dracula? Consider my interest piqued with that description.

I finished this book in a short four days and upon finishing my final thoughts were that this book was...interesting. I'm conflicted with my review of this because I'm not totally sure what I thought of it upon completion. I think I just liked it, not hated but I didn't love it either. I'll be honest that I read this because the descriptions/reviews that I was seeing was promising me a prominent sapphic vampire story, and I don't think that is what I ended up getting which was a little disappointing. I always appreciate LGBT vampires, but man, I wanted more.

Listen, it wasn't a terrible book, but I definitely didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would.

The narrative of abusive relationships was probably the best written part of the book and having Constanta as the narrator and subject of said abuse made it much more real and compelling to read. I appreciated that Constanta was a layered character, and a self admitted flawed one. The way the book chronicled her life from her death to becoming a vampire made you really get to know her on a deeper level so that when the finale of the novel happened you felt vindicated and joyous with her when she got what she wanted. Hurrah for justice!

I have to mention one thing in particular and that is that the prose was beautiful! There were so many well written moments that even if the plot wasn't interesting me I was always impressed with the prose. It was almost poetic at times. It took me a little while to get used to the way the story was written, as a letter being written and the switching tenses, but once I did I enjoyed it. It was fun, and not something I have read before.

If you're a fan of vampires, and complicated mess that is eternal love and devotion then you just might like this book. It's a quick and easy read so it won't take too much time to devour it once you start.

LGBT+ vampires??? Um.. yes please!
I enjoyed every second of reading this! It was such a dark, atmospheric, powerful read. The writing is beautiful, and all the characters were intriguing. It was also nice to see some polyamorous representation that wasn’t just sex. Everything about this book is amazing!

An extremely imaginative plot, one that I haven’t seen before. The characters were fully fleshed out and realized, and the story was well written.

Serving us a a sensual and splintered narrative that pulls you in with powerfully poetic prose and a subtly queer poignancy that holds you spellbound, S.T. Gibson renders it ragingly evident that there's monster and then there's monster, and love in all its renditions - or lack thereof - has an unerodable role in its ruling. Meaningfully etched with muted historical references and modest religious motifs to its very end, a dowry of blood deftly strings together a story of dreamlike delirium that slowly unravels to be nightmarishly noose-like, and Constanta's extreme emotional calisthenics across the centuries spent in the clutches of her captor are recounted with a voracious candor that is both electrifying and engrossing, right through to her violent emancipation.

Cover? stunning
Concept? STUNNING
Execution? SSSTTTUUUNNNNNIIINNNGGGG

I knew I wanted to pick this up solely based on the beautiful cover, but after reading that it's a queer (f/m/m/f polycule) reimagining of Dracula's brides... I knew I NEEDEDDDDD it. This story is told in such a beautiful and lyrical way. I was absolutely captivated by the writing style and felt instantly connected to the characters. A very easy 4.5 star read for me. One of the only things I found disruptive to my full enjoyment of the story was that I did feel some of the characters, Magdalena in particular, were inconsistent in their development and personalities. I kept finding myself envisioning Magdalena differently throughout the novel and it threw me off quite a lot. Regardless, I still can't recommend this enough. It was everything I wanted and more and I will certainly be picking up a final copy!

Thank you to Netgalley and Nyx Publishing for an advanced copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

***eArc provided by NetGalley & Nyx Publishing in exchange for an honest review.***

Sometimes you find the exact right book for your sensibilities completely by accident. That's what happened with me and A Dowry of Blood. Queer Brides of Dracula certainly sounded like something I would like, and boy did S.T. Gibson deliver. She toes a wonderful line of being poetic and of the time the story is set in, while being thoroughly modern. THIS is the queer vampire content I've been absolutely craving my entire life and I'm excited to shout at people about it.

A Dracula retelling with sapphic main characters? Sign me up! I was so into this that I read it in a single day, and while it's not a super long book it still took a couple hours but once I picked it up I didn't want to put it down. Does a really good job representing an incredibly controlling and abusive relationship and it was nice to see Dracula's brides take center stage in a way that is actually about them and their feelings and not just like ~lady vampires hot~ [although lady vampires are indeed, pretty hot ;)] One thing I did find a little bit weird was the writing style which was in first person but addressing Dracula as 'you' throughout the whole thing, as if the narrator was saying all of this to him afterwards. A bit weird but overall the language is very compelling and I quickly got used to this quirk.

actual rating: 3.5★

what a wonderfully crafted book. the writing was exceptional, simple and written in second pov in the form of a letter. it was effortless yet hit hard, and i applaud the author for that.

however, i did expect more from the plot (?) or maybe i would have enjoyed the story more if it weren’t a vampire romance. so this rating is definitely due to personal preference.

i’d read more books by s.t. gibson, no doubt about that. a dowry of blood just wasn’t my favorite, although i enjoyed a lot of aspects about this book!

I have heard great things about this book, and I was very excited to find that I could request A Dowry of Blood on NetGalley - and even MORE excited when I was given access!

I think A Dowry of Blood was the first polyamorous relationship (m/f/f/m) I have read, and it was done so well. The author, S. T. Gibson, spent a good amount of time focusing on each of these relationships, and it showed. I really liked reading about the dynamics between each of the different characters and how they related to each other, and ultimately, how they were able to forge a new life after the death of their creator (not a spoiler: Constanta mentions that she killed their creator on the first page).

I also think the format of the book worked really well. It was written in epistolary form, with the main protagonist - Dracula's first bride, Constanta - writing letters to her deceased former creator about their life together and why he ultimately had to die. It was a very interesting format, and reminiscent of Bram Stoker's Dracula, which is also told in a similar epistolary form. I also enjoyed the small interludes that were beautifully written; some of these shorter sections were poetry written by the author, and I think they added another layer of depth to the story.

It was a beautifully written book that combined elements from fantasy & horror & romance genres, which I enjoyed.

Thank you to NetGalley and Nyx Publishing for a copy of this eARC in exchange of an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

𝑫𝒐𝒘𝒓𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝑩𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑏𝑦 𝑆.𝑇.𝐺𝑖𝑏𝑠𝑜𝑛
🅢︎🅨︎🅝︎🅞︎🅟︎🅢︎🅘︎🅢︎:
Vampire's life is very solitary. Without some company it can turn into a hell. Because of that an old monster took three brides into his eternal life. Constanta, Magdalena and Alexis shared their bed and their love with the old vampire in exchange for eternal life. But nothing is perfect and there are all kind od ways to love somebody, and sometimes love can hurt.

🅣︎🅗︎🅞︎🅤︎🅖︎🅗︎🅣︎🅢︎:
This is a magnificent story told by Constanta, the first wife of a vampire. She tells us how her life slowly changed from a lovely days with a man she loved, to the days of frustration and pain given her by the same vampire.
The book is divided in three parts. In each part we find the story about a new bride that takes the vampire.
I loved the writing, it's delightful. I loved the way Constanta told us the story from her point of view. It's charming, magical and transmits all her feelings to the reader. I suffered with her, I was excited when she was, I was angry when she was, and I was happy when she was. And that's awesome when you can feel the story in your veins.
I loved how the author show us this toxic love, and try to tell us that it's a wrong way to love someone.
I loved Constanta, how she changes through the story, how she finally dared to face the vampire.
I highly recommend this book. If you a fan of Dracula or Anne Rice Vampire Chronicles, you must to read this book.

This book is a romance not a mystery like I suspected which is what ruined it for me. It's too overly sexual, which are books I tend to avoid.

A Dowry of Blood is a well-crafted novella with a powerful story of abuse at its dark, bloody heart. The story is told from Constanta’s point of view in an open-letter form to her abuser, the ancient, mysterious vampire who found her at the brink of death as a young woman after her village was raided and killed. Though it’s a letter, the descriptions and Constanta’s ruminations are beautiful, the prose lush and lyrical. Constanta never names her husband, never gives him that power, but instead the reader is meant to understand he is Dracula through subtle hintings, such as mentioning the Harker incident during the Victorian era. Through the centuries, Constanta and her husband add two more to their relationship, Magdalena and Alexi. We see through Constanta’s recounting the emotional, verbal, and occasionally physical abuse that Dracula doles out to his beloveds, and how each one copes to survive. The final part of the story is cathartic, and emotional release, as we learn how Constanta, Magdalena, and Alexi finally exacted revenge and found freedom, ending on an optimistic note. A Dowry of Blood is a heart-wrenching exploration of abuse, vampirism, and love.

What can I say about this story? One word...AMAZING! A reimaging of Dracula's bride? Such a fresh and chilling story. Constanta...what such an interesting character. Her character arc was quite unique. Dracula... dark as ever. The emotional journey of Constanta will keep you on an emotional roller coaster.

I first heard of this book because of its GORGEOUS cover art by Marlowe Lune, so I jumped at the chance to read an ARC. As a content warning right up top, this book is about emotional abuse, and although the book contains fantasy elements, the descriptions of it are incredibly realistic.

This book is so uniquely narrated, in a second person point of view, and it lends itself to being so much more emotive than anything I’ve read in a long time. I very much fell for the narration of this one from the very beginning (“It was a sturdy name, warm and wholesome like a loaf of dark bread fresh out of the oven,” are you KIDDING ME?! GORGEOUS). It is heart wrenching story of a polyamorous family, told from the perspective of a victim to the abuser, that was hard to put down, even when it was hard to read. I loved the dynamics between the characters because you see them, very specifically, through the narrator’s eyes, and it made them so much more intimate than if it were written from any other perspective or point of view. While the story is sometimes predictable because it is a reimagining of stories of Dracula’s brides, it’s so original in its tone and queerness.

As an aside, there were multiple points in reading this where my brain just went “oh no, this book is sexy,” and I think that sets the vibe very well. It’s dark and intimate, it’s different from a lot of the Dracula-adjacent books I’ve read because it’s scary in a very real-world way, and I loved it for that.

i absolutely loved this book! a dowry of blood is a beautifully written story about sapphics and poly vampires. i really liked how complex the relationship between the characters were, i read this book in one sitting, even though we know how it ends from the beginning i couldn't put the book down. it also gave me deathless vibes (another book i love) so yes i definitely recommend it.

Thank you NetGalley and Nyx publishing for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“You did not let me keep my name, so I will strip you of yours. In this world, you are what I say you are, and I say you are a ghost, a long night’s fever dream that I have finally woken up from”

A Dowry of Blood is a modern retelling of Dracula’s Brides, told by Constanta to her nameless lover and sire.

Filled with some of the lushest most swoon worthy writing I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading, truly a lyrical masterpiece, my inadequate words do not do justice to how fantastic this book was. I wanted to savour ever word and let them sink into my soul.

“We’ve waltzed through a hundred tiny apocalypses, you and I, walked unharmed through the ash of countless crumbling regimes. We feast on the ruin of empires,“

This was the vampiric tale of desire, obsession, and strength I have always wanted and with polyamory added in!

Ugh I loved this so hard, I’m off to go buy myself a copy.

I knew I was going to like this going into it, but I had no idea how much. This is my first five star rating out of 50 books this year because it was just stunning.

The book follows Dracula's brides (and groom) through a tumultuous relationship. The story unfolds as Constanta addresses Dracula with an explanation of why she disobeyed him. What follows is an incredibly dark recounting of the love she shared with him as he turned her, their second bride Magdalena, and their groom, Alexi.

Over centuries and across Europe, Constanta follows Dracula in awe and fear as he promises her love. While she is confused and frightened when he controls her and their partners, she ultimately believes he is good until things start to unravel.

There was nothing I didn't love about this book. I found it so unique in its writing style as Constanta addressed Dracula in the long explanation of why she ultimately murders him. The characters were all extremely captivating, Constanta and Alexei were my favourites.

The portrayal of the toxic relationship was extremely powerful in this book as the power hierarchies were mapped out. The ultimate freedom that was gained when Constanta organized the sires was excellent and delivered in a great crescendo.

I couldn't put this down, but I will be ordering a copy to put on my bookshelf.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.