Ancient Blood: A Novel of the Hegemony By Brian Patrick McKinley

My review for Ancient Blood: A Novel of the Hegemony By Brian Patrick McKinley

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Carrie Perkins-Cunningham

I received this from the author in return for an honest review and I am so excited I got the chance to read this wonderful novel!

A book that only intensifies the reasoning why so many believe in the supernatural, this novel fascinated me beyond belief. Written as an untitled manuscript, with journal entries from his love, Caroline Ludlow, it felt as if I was seeing inside Avery Doyle's life, walking each step and learning each hard taught lesson he had to endure through this trial.

Avery Doyle is a role playing, fantasy loving, book reading nobody who just happens to be in the right place at the right- or wrong, depending on how you look at it- time, when a beautiful, mysterious woman enters the book store he works at asking for information on the Chinese Vampire Jiang-shi. Finding someone who shares his fantastical beliefs, they hit it off and end up spending one night together talking about myths, debating about the truths, and sharing a passion the likes of which Avery has never known.

Then she's gone.

Avery knows she is the being he has spent his entire life fantasizing about, and searches for her for two weeks relentlessly, and needless to say, he finds his mystery love and gets everything he's ever wanted.

Or so he thought.

We follow Avery and Caroline through their journey of freedom, capture, Vampyr Politics, twisted relations and evil minds, and I can't tell you how very intriguing the whole process is.

We see the relationship and growing madness of Sebastian, and in him something we all can relate too. I found myself feeling sympathy for the feral beast that Sebastian had become, secretly rooting for him even as he played his twisted and dark games with Avery and Caroline. We see how the world would work if these powerful beings were more than a work of fiction, how their reach would be limitless, their power far stronger than any would have us believe.

There is so much information in this book, it will have you second guessing all you know- or thought you knew- about the mythological beings we all love to read about.

Yes the chapters are long, but I couldn't honestly see how it would work any other way. Plus it gave me a longer time to read when I did the famous, ‘One more chapter’ we're all so famous for.

I would give this book far more than the five stars they limit us reviewers if I could. I can't recommend this novel highly enough! If you want something more, something that will have your mind reeling, your emotions storming, your heart breaking... If you want a novel that pulls you in and refuses to let you go, well, you've found it!

Brian Patrick McKinley Amazon Page