Blue Blooded Vamp (Sabina Kane #5) by Jaye Wells
Urban Fantasy
May 22, 2012
Orbit

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “It’d be super embarrassing if you got eaten ten steps away from your destiny“

Blue Blooded Vamp is the conclusion to the wild ride of Sabina Kane, vampire assassin and mage extraordinaire. An addicting noir urban fantasy blend of horror and humor. This series has led me on an intoxicating roller coaster ride of infinite proportions. Deception and lies are the sediments this series is based upon and Ms. Wells wields her pen like a fine double edged sword. She cuts and slices her characters down to the bone; allowing no quarter. Yet, from the carnage she rebuilds them and us; allowing for truth and courage to shine through. Throughout this series you will laugh, groan, shudder, cheer, and weep as you follow Sabina through her trials and tribulations. Yet for all the pain Ms. Wells’ puts Sabina and the reader through, she never allows Sabina to make herself a martyr. She places Sabina time and time again at odds with her humanity; never letting her forget her monster side. Sabina makes mistakes and bad decisions and she pays for those, but you never get the feeling that she doesn’t learn anything from them. The good and bad balances perfectly and it what made me a convert of this series.

From the first book, Red Headed Step Child, we have followed Sabina Kane through hell and back as she learned, embraced, and then altered her destiny. Born of a mage and vampire, her mother’s family made Sabina pay time and time again for her mixed blood heritage. Taunted, tortured, and raised to be an assassin, Sabina knew nothing of her mage father or her dual heritage until she meets her lover Adam and her twin sister, Maisie. Politics forces her hand time and time again and she eventually frees herself from her mother’s family’s influence and pursues a relationship with her sister. When Cain, the father of the vampire race, uses Maisie to break his imprisonment which results in her death, Sabina finds herself once again both prey and predator. But this time, Sabina’s not going down without a fight. She’s already lost her family and friends to Cain and she refuses to lose anyone else she loves.

Sabina has only had four days to deal with her sister’s death, but evil doesn’t wait for you to stop grieving. Cain is planning to enter Irkalla to kidnap his former lover, Lilith, the Great Mother, and needs Sabina’s help. Sabina decides to go on the offensive and that is going to require the whole gang to find Abel. Abel was the original mage that imprisoned Cain. With Cain free, no one is sure if Abel is alive or dead but they need him if they are to defeat Cain. Finding Abel brings more controversy and pain to Sabina’s life, but as Adam reminds her, they have been through so much and survived. They will survive this too.

Though the trope and characters used aren’t unique, the world itself is a vivid, evolving landscape that blends the magical with the mundane. Simplistic in its design yet complex in its overall execution. Smooth writing and fast pacing keeps the storyline fresh and flowing till the end. Hard action, enticing suspense, and funny, snarky dialogue play a huge part in the overall enjoyment of the series.

“Bael’s balls, it suddenly smells like cupid farted up in here.” Giguhi yawned and stretched. “I’m gonna turn in before you two scar me permanently with your sexings. Try to keep the grunting down.”

I raised a brow. “You too,” I shot back.

Seriously G,” Adam said. “One of these days you’re gonna sprain your claw.”

“Don’t talk about Darlene that way.” He flexed the digits of his claw. “She’s a gentle lover.”

As we follow Sabina into her final battle, we watch as her layers are peeled back and the true Sabina Kane emerges. Finally. This is what has been led up to in the last four books. Sabina is finally free to be who and what she is without any artifice. Without excuses. She has friends who love her flaws and all. She begins to understand and accept that she can fail without being considered a failure. The action scenes are enlightening in that Sabina has to embrace her demons in order to survive this last battle. I like the choices Sabina makes and the lessons she learns in here and the end results more than satisfy this reader. I did get tired of her combativeness at times though. She is always on the defensive and that interferes with her ability to see the big picture.

All our favorite secondary characters are alive and well in here. Adam has Sabina’s back no matter what and his love for Sabina is epic. Giguhi is hilarious as usual and keeps you rolling in here. Two words-anal itch. We get to see some older characters from early books and meet some new characters whose strong personalities and storylines makes this finale go out with a bang. My only disappointment was Cain. I found his character more pathetic than evil. I also expected more interaction and fight scenes between him and Sabina then what we got. This part of the storyline disappointed me considering the huge build up to it.

Part of me is sad this is the last book. I have found Sabina’s world and the characters who inhabit it to be a delightful absorbing fantasy. The thought of not visiting again is a bit disheartening. Ms. Wells does a wonderful job is wrapping it up for us. Somewhat predictable; questions are answered, plots and subplots are wrapped up nice and tight, and we are left with an acceptable ending for Sabina and the series.

I would recommend this series to everyone who enjoys a dark humorous Urban Fantasy. A word of advice, if you have not read the first four in this series, than you will not understand this last one. This is a convoluted series that builds upon itself with each new book. The arc is long reaching with minor recapping. Characters evolve and bleed over into to each story with no pause in between.

Rating: B

Recent Reviews:
Under the Covers – 4/5
Mel’s Random Reviews – 9/10
All Things Urban Fantasy – 5/5
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