Once Burned

In this rambunctious series debut, Frost (One Grave at a Time) introduces sassy heroine and circus performer Leila “Frankie” Dalton, who accidentally reveals the psychic spying powers she acquired in childhood. These powers attract vampire kidnappers, from whom she is rescued by rival vampire Vlad. He sweeps her off to his Romanian castle, where passion and peril develop alongside overwhelming subplots of vampire romantic rivalry. Amid spirited sparring, the predictable growth of Leila’s initial impulses culminates in steamy scenes. As her attachment to Vlad deepens, her character acquires greater understanding and depth; though she never loses her initial archness, it becomes intertwined with other emotions. Leila’s increasingly romantic vision of Vlad leads to readiness for self-sacrifice in a showdown with the hostile vampire who directed her initial kidnapping. Frost sustains the reader’s interest by channeling the action through feisty Leila, and though a lavish use of would-be witticisms begins to grate, determined fans will appreciate the transition to stereotypical sensuality. Agent: Nancy Yost, Nancy Yost Literary Agency. (July)