Forbidden: The Arotas Trilogy

This book was pleasantly surprising, it pulls you in deeper and deeper with every page you turn. The characters are wonderfully written and were very relatable. The relationships of the characters were so emotional and dynamic that I couldn't feeling sad or happy when they were sad and happy. The author really knew what she was doing when she wrote this book. The relationship between the two main characters wasn't rushed and bam head over heels in love it was slow and sweet and I liked that the main character was resistant and didn't just immediately jump in bed with the guy. The author really took the time to make her characters as believable as possible and without characters that are believable the story would just fall apart. I'm excited to see how the relationships of the different characters plays out in the next books. The only complaint I have for this book is that there were a few things that weren't explained to much but hopefully will be explained in the other books in the series. I would recommend this book more for teenagers than adults but if you're and adult and you feel like you want to read this book no one could blame you because it really is a great book. Anyone looking for a bit of the paranormal and some romance all rolled up into one great story should definitely check this book out, its totally worth the time it takes to read it. All in all I really enjoyed this book, it was an awesome read.

Rosaline was taken brutally from her family by the horrible evil that is Vladimir Enescue, aka Dracula. We don't know much about Rosaline's three hundred years with Vlad other than he was a cruel husband. Rose escapes to Chicago, and disguises herself as a high school student where she meets her friends, and a potential love interest Gabriel. Rose's life is turned upside down when an old friend shows up at the dance. Then her ragtag group of friends must rush to her rescue learning about who and what she is along the way. Sometimes you fall in love with a mythos, and sometimes the thing you fell in love with becomes the defining thing for that world. Such is the case with me. Not a fan of Bram Stokers it took until I read the gothic horror novel Tale of the Vampire Bride by Rhiannon Frater before I even cared about the Dracula myth, or learned anything about it. TotVB is my defining book on the Dracula myth. I'm a zombie girl, not a vampire girl. I don't want to and cannot compare FORBIDDEN with TotVB because they are two very different works. FORBIDDEN is not a horror novel. It's a Young Adult Paranormal Romance. And read as such it is an excellent novel. The story is gripping, it's hard to put down, it has suspense and romance and pretty much all of the criteria I want from a YAPNR. The characters are kick butt, and it was great that Gabriel is not an Alpha Male. He's actually a little emo. Which was sweet and refreshing. Rose is the perfect heroine. The only thing I can say about the characters is that they are a bit underdeveloped. Rosaline's time with Vlad is rushed and glazed over. I think I would have liked to see more of their dynamic to see why she stayed for so long, and to be able to feel why he was terrifying. Of course, to explain why I wanted the gore of that relationship to be shown you have to realize that I am first and foremost a horror fan, so this isn't really the fault of the author. I also think that the characters were left a bit underdeveloped because it is the first in the trilogy. If they are fully formed in this work then they have no room to grow in the next work. Rose's friends William, Sadie and Nicolae are a great cast of B characters they round out the story nicely and give us some comedic relief. Nicolae is not what he seems, but I am guessing if you pick up the book you will figure out what he is before the big reveal in the book. The real mystery is what Gabriel is? And we don't know the full answer to that one by the end of the book. So be warned CLIFFHANGER. All in all Forbidden was a great escape, a fast read, and fulfilling. I will definitely be looking to pick up the next book very soon.

Roseline has had a rough past and she trying to escape it. She flees her country to try to start over but it's not as easy as she hopes it will be. There is so much she didn't account for but being free from her bad situation was all that mattered in the beginning. Roseline has traveled to Chicago to start over. Since she looks like she is 17 she enrolls in high school to try and find her way. What she finds in that school is things she would never have imaged. She meets Sadie who is quite the unique girl but turns out to be a very great friend and ally. Things take a crazy turn when Roseline finds herself drawn to Gabriel a random guy at the high school. She can't figure out what is happening or why it's happening. Things take a crazy turn for the worse and there's a bunch of people involved. Can Roseline keep away from the one she is running and hiding from? What will happen with Gabriel? This is a great read for anyone who loves a good paranormal/fantasy book. There is some humor, tragedy, action, and romance. This book has a little bit of everything.

This book was great. I loved all 4 of them

So far it has made me want to turn page after page. I look forward to more in the series.

Vampire books are my thing. There is nothing more entertaining than the blood sucking creatures, and Amy Miles delivers them in fine form in the first book of the Arotas Trilogy. Forbidden is the kind of book that thoroughly takes you on a journey and leaves you hanging right at the end, craving the next book (which I have done: downloaded books 2&3). The vampires in this book aren't sparkly, they are more traditional, in the Bram Stoker sense, and their history derives from Eastern Europe - again a HUGE plus in my opinion. The writing is simplistic with easy reading sentence structure; the syntax is perfect. Which makes for an enjoyable reading experience. I was easily hooked on Roseline, our heroine, and had an instant disdain for Vladimir - God, I wanted to punch him so many times. My heart ached in the first part of the book, when poor Roseline witnessed the gruesome slaughter of her entire family. Once she was turned, her life became something she never imagined. Fast forward 300 years and we're in modern USA and Roseline attempts to live out her eternity, hidden as a high school student. For obvious reasons, I won't go into the whole "spoiler" thing, but I warn you, there is a cute hight school guy, conflicting drama, and an ending that....well, annoyed me, but in the good sense. All in all, this is a great little novel. It's exciting, full of drama and the love twist is lovely. If you like your vampires, you will love this.

I previously hadn't read any of this authors books, but am pleased to say that after reading this one, I will continue on with the series. The story revolves around Rose, a vampire who has escaped from her vicious husband, Dracula himself, and sets herself up as a teenager in a school in America. The other main character is Gabriel, a high school lad who is unhappy at home because of an overbearing father. Rose forms a bond with Gabriel, unlike any she has ever known, and up until now thought that it wasn't possible between an immortal and a mortal. Other characters are Sadie and William who are Rose's best friend and her brother. Also a guy from her past Nicolae also takes a big part in the story under the guise of a foreign exchange student. To her horror, he knows who and what Rose is, and vows to protect Sadie and anybody else that he believes she is a threat to. She is more concerned about if he is somehow connected with Dracula and will reveal where she is. If she is forced to go back to her husband he will torture her. I must admit that the first few chapters of the book were a bit slow, but I am happy that I persevered because they story certainly picks up, and in the second half of the book I was totally caught up in what was going on and couldn't put the book down until I finished it. I would definitely recommend to readers to not give up on the book if they too find it slow going at the start. It is definitely worth reading the whole thing. There are some editing errors and a few hiccups between the 'tenses' but they certainly don't spoil the book. It's just a shame that they weren't picked up by the beta readers/editors because books do seem a bit unprofessional when they contain silly errors.

I enjoyed the story line and character in this book. Would be well suited to a young adult reader. 😉