Blood Mercy: A Fantasy Romance (Blood Grace) Paperback – January 8, 2022

Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Spice: 🌶️🌶️As a reader, there's no better feeling than reading something new and knowing, with certainty, that you've found your next bookish obsession. Less than ten chapters in, and I already knew the Blood Grace series would earn a cozy spot among my favorite series."Look at me, Cassia. Just one glance. I’ll bargain that glance from you for one of mine, and I will look upon you as no one here ever has."😍😍😍This book has it all:🌹Forbidden love🌹Furry best friend and protector🌹Caffeinated vampires🌹Court intrigue🌹Vampires but cuddly🌹Cinnamon roll MMC🌹Slow burnHere's the thing: when people ask me how good this book is, I'll tell them the author gave made-up names to male and female bits, and it didn't even faze me. Vela could've called them "meat curtains" and a "pork whistle," and I'd still be obsessively turning the pages. If that's not a glowing endorsement, I don't know what is.I loved the juxtaposition between humans and Hesperines and how it underscores humanity's potential for, and often gravitation towards, monstrosity, framing those who are different as the "true" monsters. I also very much enjoyed Vela's take on vampires; it's so outside the norm of what I'm used to, and I'm a fan of any author who can successfully put a new twist on something we've seen a thousand times prior.“Hespera’s Gift is what makes us what we are. That is our name for her blessing of immortality and the ability to survive on living blood, rather than dead flesh.”“Ah. So your Gift is what humans call your curse. Insatiable bloodlust, banishment from the sun, and eternal exile from the afterlife."Vela executed her world-building with just the right touch—neither overblown nor burdensome—and the character development flows effortlessly from start to finish. I lost count of how many times it made me choke up or cry (not that my husband catching me sobbing was embarrassing or anything 😅).This book is brimming with fantastic characters; from the heroes to the villains, each one is so well-developed that I found myself either loving or hating them. (And trust me, I hated some of them. I'm looking at you, Tenebran Umbridge 😒)Cassia's transformation from a broken illegitimate daughter to a badass princess masterfully moving lords around the chessboard is a joy to watch. And as for Lio? Absolute ✨ perfection✨.If you're looking for a new obsession—I mean, a new book to enjoy—look no further. With the intricate politics of Tenebra, the captivating relationship between Lio and Cassia, and side characters so compelling you'll wish they had more page time, "Blood Mercy" has it all and more.

I was recommended to read this book on Booktok and I was pleased to find out that it is in fact a good book. The characters grow and change right in front of you. Twists and turns you don’t see coming. A forbidden romance that makes your heart throb. Heartbreak that you might need tissues for. The first 30 percent of this book is getting to know the FMC and building the world. It starts to get really good at 50 percent and then you will not want to put it down.

Where to even begin?? This was an amazing story!! I love that the author kept a lot of mystery which added to the world building and kept me guessing time and time again. I enjoyed the medieval setting and writing and the forbidden meetings to trust to romance between Lio and Cassia gave me Romeo and Juliet vibes. I liked the authors reimagining of vampirism with the Hesperines as well as tying in the catastrophic damage of hatred and discrimination.Cassia, wow, her character growth by the end of the book was phenomenal! She is such a defy all the odds fmc with her bravery, intelligence and strength. Lio, might as well be the knight in shining armor, I adore him, he is perfection.That last 100 pages?!?! OMFG!!! I was *stressed*, that was insane!!! Fantastic story, cannot wait to dive into the next book!!

I would probably dnf this series if based on 65% of the book. The first half of the book gave me little, it was slow and quite dragging. FMC and MMC isn’t my cup of tea, their characters bored me. The world building is quite hard to believe (I mean vampire nation seek only to care for children and consume blood only on consent party?)SPOILERS AHEAD!!!As half of the books goes on and on about Vampire ambassadors joining the rare event to negotiate peace with FMC nation. In this peace treaty include allowing the Vampire (there is another name but i think this will be easier to understand) to took orphan or unwanted children to their land and to be adopted in vampire lovey dovey couples (surprise!!! Vampire can’t have baby) however, Cassia (FMC), daughters of villain king got here plan to contact with the Lio (MMC vampire ) to ask smth and the smth lead to other and yayyy they fell in love. And that’s where spice begin and that goes on for another 25% of the book (no complaints there) and some action happen in the last 5-10% of the book.I might not into this book very much, but the ending trigger my curiosity enough I want to read another book. I hope next one will not be as slow and more action

The world Vela Roth builds is one of a kind. I've come back to this after reading all of the series released so far to say YES! READ. IT. If you're on the edge and unsure, just know that what you went looking for when searching for heart-throb complicated romance, thrilling adventures, individual personalities and emotions. a very complex (but well explained) magic and belief system, and SO much more. This series is it, truly has it all. Now although I have found other series I've loved even after reading this one, this is entirely unique. To the level of, I finished it the tail end of last year and cannot stop thinking about the continuation!

This book.This book is a stunning fantasy romance, filled with human plots, court intrigue, mythology, religion and the most unique depiction of vampires I’ve encountered.This book is the story of Cassia, human bastard daughter to the king, tangled in the web of court intrigue, and determined to stay alive to honour her dead sister. It’s the story of a young-ish Hesperine on his first diplomatic endeavour, with all and somehow also none of the life experience needed for the momentous event. It’s a remarkable tale of an encounter between a human and a Hesperine, and strikes notes of Romeo and Juliet in the sense of Cassia and Lio being from two opposing sides of a prejudice long existing. And it is deliciously, gloriously spicy.This book is, quite simply, the most beautifully written book I’ve ever read. From the machinations of a woman desperate to protect herself, to the Hesperines, and their comprehensive descriptions of smells. To the alluring heat and tension that builds between two people as they discover each other. To the dry and often gallows humour of Cassia. To the incredibly detailed world building Vela Roth achieved. I only needed to listen to a few chapters before I found myself purchasing this book because I wanted to see all my favourite passages in print.This audiobook is perfection, and what a task it was for Kale Williams and Caren Naess to perform it. Their performances carried me away with each chapter - their voices, their cadence, their intonation and their pacing - all in line with the tone of the book set by the amazing words of Vela Roth.This book is intimidating, to be sure. In print, it is a whopping 634 pages, and the audio is an incredible 11 hours and 22 minutes. But it is a story worth reading - worth hearing!

The Goddess made miraculous creatures everywhere, and Tenebra was no exception.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5So i started new series and i have no regrets. It was so good and captivating.We have a lady who is a bastard daughter of a king. And her only purpose is to be a pawn in king’s political game.But what will happen when said pawn decided to take her life into her hands and change course of actions? Why she is so determined to meet immortal Hesperines (local variant of the vampires)? Will peace treaty be renewed between their people? Is it possible that King has his own hidden agenda, agenda which will tear the world apart?Cassia and Lio (our Hesperines boy) were so cute. Their Lady-Champion relationship was so heartwarming. I couldn’t put the book down, and i lost count of times when i had blushing cheeks and giggled like school girl. And I finally understood this medieval/Victorian reaction on peeked ankle and thoughts about freckles in unseen places. 🤌🏻In this story we have a lovely loyal Knight - a dog with a hunting Hesperines speciality - who brought lots of funny, warm and cute moments to the story. Knight is the best protector for Cassia and their bond made me jealous.I started second book the moment i closed this book. I’m so invested in this world, magic, politics and love.

Amateurs de fantaisie et de romance, je ne peux que vous recommander de lire cette pépite du genre. Ce livre est une pure merveille.Quand j'en ai entendu parler, j'étais intriguée mais aussi un peu sceptique (j'ai du lire Dracula cette années, et ce livre ne m'a pas plus DU TOUT). Il fallait donc que je sois touchée par les vampires (les Hespérines) pour aimer cette histoire. Et comme mes attentes ont été dépassées. Un vrai coup de coeur, je ne pouvais plus le lâcher.Cassia m'a plût dés le début, et elle a une évolution merveilleuse tout au long de ce premier tome. Elle ne se laisse pas marcher sur les pieds, elle est déterminée et pleine d'un sens de ce qui est juste, le tout avec un coeur gros comme ça.Je ne vous ferais pas l'affront de vous spoiler quant aux Hespérines, je vais vous laisser le plaisir de les découvrir. Mais sachez juste qu'ils sont merveilleux et plein de compassion et de gentillesse (j'aurais aimé le savoir quand j'ai commencé cette histoire).C'est une fantaisie politique si bien construite, je ne pouvais plus lâcher ce roman. Si vous aimer tout ce qui est complot et secrets, vous aller adorer ce roman. C'est un réel plaisir de découvrir ce nouvel aspect et d'y plonger tête la première avec les personnages, un vrai régal.Tous les personnages sont attachants (sauf le roi et ses sous-fifres, bien entendu) et bien construits. Perita est très intéressante et attachante. Et les Hespérines sont comme toujours exceptionnels.Pour ce qui est de la romance.... SWOON! Incroyablement bien construite, progressive... Le désir, l'amitié, la confiance et l'amour vrai et profond qu'ils créent ensemble sont tout simplement magiques. C'est d'une beauté à couper le souffle. Et les scènes plus intimes sont juste phénoménales.Et vous passerez par toutes les émotions possibles et imaginables en lisant ce livre. Vous serez vraiment happé par l'histoire, et une fois commencé, on ne plus refermer ce roman.En bref, tout est absolument parfait sur tout les plans. Maintenant, si je ne vous ai pas convaincus, voici une petite liste de trope pour achever mon argumentaire: High fantaisie, slow burn, romance interdite, fated mates (âmes soeurs), grumpy-sunshine inversé. A oui, j'oubliais, cette série va compter 10 volumes au total. Donc une aventure épique vous attend.J'espère vous avoir convaincu de découvrir cette petite pépite littéraire, et de vous avoir transmis mon enthousiasme. Attention, soyez prêts à avoir le tome 2 sous la main, parce que j'avais besoin de savoir ce qui allait se passer ensuite.17-18+ (TW: agression sexuelle, parent négligent/maltraitant)

This book, and the book cover, sucked me in, and I found myself at court with enemies at every corner. Blood Sacrifices are made that makes your blood run cold. In all of that conspiracies and pain there is beautiful Cassia. Her survival instincts are admirable to a point where I am in awe. Lio, a Hesperin who meets bold Cassia, has his own secrets and is smitten with her from the very first moment. It was so nice to read how Cassia slowly but steadily opens up to Lio and he in return learns more about himself. Blood will be drawn and peace has never been an option! Vampire romance lovers! Your call! Read it!

I speed-read the 650 pages of this book, coz It.Was.So.Good 😭So first - it had a literal day by day kinda storytelling? I loved that so much, we literally get to see the steady progress of the relationship and the overall political plot.Also the MCs and their relationship? SO wholesome. It's a proper mild friends to really good friends to love trope, and it was freaking amazing.Andd the vampire plot? This was a totally unique take on vampires (nope, these vampires are NOT blood-hungry, out of control vampires, they are really good and have very cool powers). I was fascinated by the world building of these magical creatures and I look forward to knowing more about them.I loved how Cassia went from a meek, scared girl to a bold, assertive one; from fearing for life to deciding that SHE owns her life and deciding to live it to the fullest. The ending wasn't a huge huge cliffhanger, not really, but I can't wait for book 2 to see them both again😭