Review: Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey

Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey-Fitzhenry

Pub. Date: December 2009
Publisher: Walker & Company
Format: Paperback, 256pp

On Solange’s sixteenth birthday, she is going to wake up dead. As if that’s not bad enough, she also has to outwit her seven overprotective older brothers, avoid the politics involved with being the only daughter born to an ancient vampire dynasty, and elude Kieran Black—agent of an anti-vampire league who is searching for his father’s killer and is intent on staking Solange and her entire family.Luckily she has her own secret weapon—her human best friend Lucy—who is willing to defend Solange’s right to a normal life, whether she’s being smothered by her well-intentioned brothers or abducted by a power-hungry queen. Two unlikely alliances are formed in a race to save Solange’s eternal life—Lucy and Solange’s brother Nicholas, and Solange and Kieran Black—in a dual romance that is guaranteed to jump start any romance-lover’s heart.Even fans of the genre who’ve seen it all will find a fresh read with kick-butt characters and family dynamics that ring true for all brothers and sisters—vampire or otherwise.

Hearts at Stake is full of exciting characters with romance, wicked humor, and non-stop action packed into a spellbinding world of danger at every turn.

When I first read the synopsis for Hearts at Stake, I couldn’t wait to read it and I’m so thrilled that it lived up to my expectations and then some. This book is one of those page turners that had me captivated with the world that Harvey created. I love the mythology of the different species of vampires that Harvey introduced in Hearts of Stake. No matter how creepy I found some of them to be, it just made this book more exciting because you never knew who was lurking around the corner to get a piece of the Drakes whether it be by drug induced pheromones to court Solange or bounty hunters set on destroying them.

There are so many exciting characters in this book that have become some of my favorites. Solange is the only girl with a house full of 7 older and overprotective brothers. Nicholas, Logan, and Quinn are my favorite brothers. I found myself crushing on Nicholas, he’s gorgeous and always somewhere brooding. Logan is the pretty boy full of charm and was constantly cracking me up. Quinn is fearsome and laughs in the face of danger. Lucy, Solange’s best friend is just crazy awesome. She’s just as protective of her best friend as the brothers. Lucy speaks her mind and she’s had her fair share of being around Solange’s annoying brothers. Nicholas and Lucy’s flirtatious encounters made me love these two characters even more. Lucy constantly had me laughing out loud when it came to anything Nicholas. Solange, the vampire princess has her own drama to deal with especially when rumors of power plays threaten the Drakes’ existence and on top of that she has to fight off the outrageous things her suitors are doing to get her attention. How can you blame her when there’s blood and gore involved? Solange and Lucy are two great heroines and I’m so glad they lived up to my expectations.

With unexpected turn of events at the end of this book, I can’t wait to see what Blood Feud - the next installment in The Drake Chronicles has in store for us. The synopsis says it will be Logan’s story and since he’s my second favorite brother, I can’t wait to read it.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars