The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason (Book one of The Gardella Vampire Chronicles)

Books Completed: 1
Completion Date: January 3, 2007
Publication Year: 2007
Pages: 347
Acquired in 2007

From the back of the book:

Beneath the glitter of dazzling nineteenth-century London Society lurks a bloodthirsty evil...

Vampires have always lived among them, quietly attacking unsuspecting debutantes and dandified lords as well as hackney drivers and Bond Street milliners. If not for the vampire slayers of the Gardella family, these immortal creatures would have long ago taken over the world.

In every generation, a Gardella is called to accept the family legacy, and this time, Victoria Gardlla Grantworth is chosen, on the eve of her debut, to carry the stake. But, as she moves between the crush of ballrooms and dangerous moonlit streets, Victoria's heart is torn between London's most eligible bachelor, the Marquess of Rockley, and her duty. And when she comes face-to-face with the most powerful vampire in history, Victoria must ultimately make a choice between obligation and love.....

What a wonderful way to begin the New Year. This book was very captivating! I bought it online, but then my order did not arrive yesterday, so I am giving that copy to a friend and I bought another copy yesterday. I am glad I did. The last few days have been stressful, as I think I have made clear, so I needed a nice distraction. I have been pointing out on other blogs that I do not normally visit the romance section. Even my breakthrough read last year, J.D. Robb is housed in the mystery section at the bookstore I buy her from, so this would likely be the first time I have ever bought a book from the romance section. If it wasn't for the publicity that other bloggers have been showing, I likely would never have read it because I do not generally browse the romance section.

Anyways, I read the majority of this book last night in one sitting. I read a lot of historical fiction, so the time period was appealing. Adding in the vampires made for an interesting read. We have these prim and proper ladies of society, and this girl in a ball gown kicking vampire butt. I know a lot of people are reading this book, so I am going to be careful and not give anything away. The main character, Victoria, can be a bit naive, but she living in two worlds. She goes to fancy parties and dances with young men, and then she feels a cold draft on her neck and totally switches roles to nineteenth-century vampire slayer. It is an interesting contrast. Venators can be male or female, but females are rare. Victoria has to prove herself to be worthy of the role, and not just another society girl.

The characters in this book are interesting, though. We have Victoria, who if she lived in the twenty-first century would annoy me, but looking at her from a nineteenth-century perspective she is quite exceptional for her times. Then there is her aunt, Eustacia, who used to be a Venator, but arthritis caused her to stop. Her family thinks she is crazy, but she is a compelling character. As to the men, there are three main ones: Max, the skeptical Venator whose past makes him hard put to accept the future; Phillip, a man straight out of Victoria's past; and Sebastian, the man that keeps things interesting.

I started this review this morning, but then my net decided that it was going to stop working. It was all fresh in my head when I started, now, I am trying to find my place. I could say a lot more about this book, but I do not want to give too much away. I will just tell everyone that it was worth a visit to the romance section. Gleason has written a first book that has the potential to be a very interesting series. I cannot wait until the next book comes out in June! In the meantime, everyone should check out this book. It might not be everyones cup of tea, but it is very well-written.

I give this book a 4.5/5. It has been a few weeks since I read a book practically in one sitting, so you know that this book is a good one!

Author Gender:
Female: 1
Male: 0

This author was a new to me author.