A big thank you to NetGalley and City Owl Press for the eARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. I believe that this is the first in a series. I skimmed this book. I found the characters annoying. The storyline seemed like it could be interesting, but the romance really wasn't there for me. I felt that Emily just was playing with Sebastian.

I received a free copy from Netgalley all opinions are my own.
DNF at 61%
This review contains spoilers.

I love vampire books and fated mates.
This book I didn't love though. I didn't particularly like or care for any of the characters.

"But she wanted it all with none of the strings attached"
Perfectly describes how annoying Emily is to me.
"It was for her sake that he held back, that he wasn't taking what he wanted without any regard for her future or her freewill. But she refused to see it that way."

Emily annoyed me. I guess I'm just a loser because I love Twilight, and I like when the human wants to become a vampire. So when I read a book where the human is unsure and doesn't want to give up their sucky human life, then it just annoys me.
Especially when they know that their life is going to be really damn hard if they don't just suck it up and becomes vampires.
Emily greatly annoyed me when she was seducing/playing with Sebastian, when he just told her that they would be bonded for life if they had sex. And she doesn't want to be bonded to him but she still "plays" with him.

And Sebastian was so annoying with " I want her to choose it out of her own free will" "I don't want to force her blablabla"
Like come on dude, tell her how dangerous her life is going to be if she refuses to be turned.
Like he really set her up for danger because he didn't want to "force" he.

I mean if I found out I was bonded to a vampire then you bet I would want to know everything. Especially that vampire assasins would be hunting me for life if I decided to stay human💀

Anyways then they end up completing the mate bond because they're stupid. And she STILL refuses to become a vampire. I just can't💀

This part ruined it for me, I just couldn't continue with the book, when ybe characters especially Emily frustrated me so much.

I'll continue this book if someone tells me if she becomes a vampire or not. Otherwise this will be left as a DNF.

oof now this was a fun read. I loved the characters and the plot flowed wonderfully. I can't wait to see what Clayton does next!

I’m not typically a vampire romance lover, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one even if the ending wasn’t my favorite. Sebastian was an easy character to relate to on so many levels, while I wasn’t Emily’s biggest fan by a long shot. That being said I’m curious to see what the next book will bring and who will be along for the ride.

Once starting this book,it gets you sucked. The details of the male character and female character in such detail. Especially its a one of my favorite vampires.

Overall, this was a quick and easy read with a surprisingly complex plot. The writing is no frills a la S.T. Abbey, but there was a lot of sneaky telling rather than showing, especially early on. The plot was unique and not at all what I expected going in, although at parts it read a bit like a Twilight fan fic. I came for smutty romance, and while the action, schemes and twists were enough to keep me reading, the romance was seriously lacking and I was expecting much more spice. The ending was extremely rushed and overall pacing seemed off, with lots of slow build at the outset and intense action ending in what I found to be an unsatisfying end. A breakdown of my reviews for plot, writing, characters, world-building, romance and action are also provided in the linked review below.

Holy crap balls! This book is an amazing read! I couldn't put it down, it made me completely worthless ALL day. LOVED it!!!.

Bond bitten by Christie Clayton.
The bonded vampire chronicles book 1.
Sebastian Blake is a vampire and feels Emily Heart is his. But she is fighting her attraction to him. The more she resists thr more vulnerable he gets. Can Sebastian win Emily's heart before it's too late?
Really enjoyed this book. Great story. What a great debut. Will be looking forward to the next book. 5*.

While full of promise this one missed the mark a bit. Okay, a lot. Things jump right in to the story and budding romance with absolutely no build up. There is little to no world building and its really needed. This take on the vampire genre is new and a bit more detail would have been good. The characters are good. However there is a lot of angst that felt completely unnecessary and just shoved in. The female MC is whiny and a brat. The male lead had a lot of potential and I did like him. Except when it came time to put Emily first. Then Sebastian fell WAY short. I got through the whole book with high hopes for a satisfying ending. Yeah, that's not what I got. If you are going to have a book full of angst to make the reader invested in the romance working out, don't leave things where there's a chance the HEA will be destroyed.