Reviewed by: Book Addict

Blood by K.J. Wignall

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Published September 27, 2011 by EgmontUSA

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Will of Mercia has lived for seven hundred and fifty years. Attacked and turned when he was sixteen, he has seen the centuries come and go, bringing with them great change. He has lived apart from humanity, a lonely solitary existence. Until now...

Eloise is a runaway with a sharp tongue and beautiful eyes. Will knows she is somehow linked to his future, to his destiny. He also knows he can never be with her the way he wants, but that will not stop him from protecting her. You see, there is evil infiltrating the city and all events are leading to a great reckoning... one which Will and Eloise may not survive.

For a complete review which may contain SPOILERS, please click 'Read More' below:
Will, the rightful Earl of Mercia, has seen everyone he loved die. As a vampire he he has watched his beloved lands change and change again with time. He ventures out to slake his thirst and hibernates for long periods. It is a lonely, solitary existence. Thus has he lived for seven hundred and fifty years. His latest victim leaves behind a notebook full of mad ravings, indecipherable scribblings and... prophecy? Will comes to believe that nothing is happenstance. Meeting Eloise sets him on a crash course with destiny.

Eloise is a sixteen year old runaway. At first, she is surly and unapproachable but after Will saves her from a gang of boys intent on doing her harm, she warms to him. Together they will set out on a quest to find Will's maker and find answer this question once and for all: Why? Along the way they will face dangers both familiar and foreign. One thing is certain: they must trust each other if they are both to make it out alive.

Blood is a great first part of the Mercia Trilogy. The entire back story is laid out and you come to really know and appreciate the main characters Will and Eloise. It is also unlike most other vampire stories I have read. Will has lived for more than seven centuries, and has yet to meet another of his kind. The tone of the story is brooding and gothic and the descriptions of the church where Will lives add beautifully to that.  This is not a love story. It is a story about two people who are set upon the same path of destiny with little of a roadmap to guide them. They are both misfits of a sort, lonely outsiders looking to fit in. They find acceptance with each other. Will is such a tortured character that you cannot help but hope that a bit of Eloise's sunshine will find its way into his heart.

The action is quick and exciting, and there are plenty of twists to keep you guessing. I am intrigued to read the next installment, to see where Will and Eloise's adventures will take them.

Blood releases September 27th, 2011.



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