The Rest Falls Away
Colleen Gleason
Historical Paranormal
Beneath the glitter of dazzling 19th century London Society lurks a bloodthirsty evil…
Just as Lady Victoria Gardella is preparing for her debut into London Society, she learns the shocking and impossible truth about her family legacy: she is one of the very few who has the power–and responsibility–to hunt and slay the evil vampires that infest the city.
With infinite questions (where will she hide her stake? how will she know a vampire when she encounters one? how will she sneak out at night?), Victoria agrees to shoulder the responsibility and carry the stake–despite the societal restrictions and expectations of her as a female.
But as she moves between the crush of ballrooms and dangerous moonlit streets, juggling the expectations of her mother and the requirements of her obligations, Victoria’s heart is torn between London’s most eligible bachelor, the Marquess of Rockley, and her dark, dangerous duty.
And when she comes face-to-face with the most powerful vampire in history, Victoria must ultimately make a choice between duty and love.
Uncaged Review: The author has deftly combined the historical London society with the paranormal world of vampires and the people that hunt them. In this book, the vampires are not romanticized, they are truly creatures that kill and are unknown to most of society. There are a few people that are either born into, or become Venators, the ones that are gifted with special abilities, such as strength, speed and being able to find the vampires. Victoria was born a Venator, as a legacy of her family. Even though she’s making her debut in Society, she is trained and learns to be a Venator from her aged aunt and another Venator, named Max – who although was not born into the legacy, earned his way to being a Venator. Along the way, Victoria is courted by a Marquess, and even though she’s warned about being in a marriage when the spouse cannot know about her activities is not a good idea, she falls in love with Phillip, and believes she can do both.
This has a lot of intrigue, and action along with a bit of heartbreak and angst – and Victoria will come to realize her worth and her strengths. Being part of the vampire slayer world and part of Society will have it’s advantages and disadvantages, and eventually, Victoria will need to choose. A very good start to a nice original historical.
Reviewed by Cyrene
4 Stars
