BookingIt

I have read several books by Anya Bast and have enjoyed all of them.  This one is no exception.  Set in the future where Earth is grossly overpopulated, a group of planets have become the new home to some humans and the Chosen, a fancy name for vampires.

The story starts with Daria.  She grew up on Earth but has moved off of Earth for a career as something akin to the FBI.  Early in her career, she was in love with Chris, a vampire.  Unfortunately, the relationship ends horrifically:  Chris kills Daria’s best friend.  Daria never recovers from the shock and holds a vendetta against her old lover.

Years later, Daria takes an assignment to track down her old lover and she hopes to put in him prison.  Her partner, Alejandro, is a friend from her past who has since become a vampire.  For Daria to seek her revenge on her past lover, she must become a vampire, the entity she hates most, to infiltrate the cult society built by Chris, her ex-lover.

Daria is a very confused character.  She thinks she knows what she wants, although that is not necessarily the case.  Also, she is very stubborn.  The author did a very good job of making her character full of depth, exhibiting her confusing and questioning of herself.  Alejandro new what he wanted:  Daria.  I understand his past but his character is not as deep as that of Daria.  But, I think it is that way because he is more secure with his life.  Overall, the characters are intriguing and well planned.

The plot moves slowly at times but the story is edited well.  No part of the book is completely unnecessary.  I liked the mystery of the story, an attempt to find the bad guys before the bad guys find them, but by the end it is not a surprise.  I know this is a turn off for some readers but I am not bothered. I do not need to be surprised with plot twists as long as I enjoy the journey.

At the heart, this novel is a romance but has a depth that many romances do not have.  As I mentioned, the characters are definitely three dimensional and are not simply skins of each other.  Also, the romance is not the complete story but is intertwined with the other mystery part of the plot.  Be forewarned the romance is steamy since this is erotica publisher, Heat, but I consider the romance still within mainstream standards.  Therefore, do not be turned off completely by the publisher.  What is unusual as a paranormal romance is that this novel seems to be stand alone and not part of a series.  The world is interesting so Anya Bast might write other books tied to this world but nothing is unresolved in The Chosen Sin.

Overall, The Chosen Sin was a good read.  Not a spectacular book but worthy of the trade paperback price and a spot on my bookshelf.

BookingIt Grade: B

Tags: anya bast

This entry was posted by katie on Sunday, January 25th, 2009 at 9:11 pm and is filed under Paranormal Romance, Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.