I was not at all interested in vampire novels, or urban fantasy novels, or paranormal-romantic novels, etc. I was taking a class on the topic of classic monsters (vampires, werewolves, etc) and had to read one of these types of novels. I checked out a bunch of them from the library and one by one was either bored or disgusted by page 3. I checked out more. Same thing. Repeat. And repeat again. I was so frustrated, and then I got this book in my hands. I was captivated immediately, from page 1. I liked the way the main female human character talked, I liked how she thought, I liked the way she spoke about her job and the customers and her co-workers. When things begin to happen with the vampires, there's such suspense! It was so easy to feel her fear and her shock. It was so easy to visualize everything. It was delightful to learn that some of the things she spoke of as matter-of-fact in the beginning weren't actually true. The main vampire himself was so compelling. I liked him so much! I can't put my finger on it, on why I was so attracted to him, but he is written beautifully and subtly. There is so much emotion there but he's always described as monotone and stony-faced. It's magical to realize that there is so much under the surface. He is afraid, worried, surprised, nervous, and unsettled just as the main female human character. While she expresses it in action and words, he expresses it ... in some sort of feeling that comes across not in action or words. I have never run into any character like him. I fell in love with this book. It nearly broke my heart several times. It was beautiful, utterly beautiful, and I never wanted it to end. When it did end, it was painful. There's so much more there to be written, but perhaps the ending is perfect - it wasn't a cop out, no unrealistic dramatic shift in storyline, no sap, no surprise ... it was just like the rest of the novel, subtle and beautiful with so much emotion packed into one tiny sentence, one tiny gesture. This is an extremely romantic book in all meanings of the word "romantic." It's written with class, yet it's not ponderous or bogged down with extraneous details. It's not cheapened with gratuitous sex or endless dwelling on lust. I can't praise this book enough. I can't recommend it enough. I shudder to think that it took me this long to discover such a jewel. What if I had never found it? I can't imagine, in hindsight, now living without it in my life. Yes, it was that good.
