The Lady Is A Vamp: An Argeneau Novel [Mass Market Paperback]

I really think Lynsay Sands is getting back in the swing of things with her latest, The Lady is Vamp. I'll be honest and admit the last few didn't spark my interest like the first few in the series and I was starting to get a little worried. Well, let me tell you Ms. Sands brought it back and in a big way. The characters were highly enjoyable and the story line brought a sense of 'reality' to the fantasy land of vampires.

What wouldn't we do to ensure the survival of our children?

Paul Jones is in that exact dilemma. While working at Argeneau Enterprises he's introduce to the world of the immortal. They don't get sick and live forever. When he first finds out it's nothing more than scientific curiosity that gets sparked but when his daughter is diagnosed with a life-threatening brain tumor he knows what he has to do. Even if that means forcing someone to change his daugher.

Jeanne Louise doesn't know what to expect when she wakes chained to a bed, but it sure wasn't being greeted by a man that she can't read. And those of you familiar with the Argeneau clan know what that means. YEP! It's life mate-time. But Jeanne Louise has more than just being kidnapped to deal with. Paul is a widower which leaves her in the challenging position of competed against a ghost in the love department, not to mention that pesky rule about only being allowed to turn one human in her lifetime. Knowing Paul will never agree to give up his daughter, Jeanne Louise has to come up with a solution and FAST. The enforcers know that she's been kidnapped and they aren't taking too nicely to the fact that a mortal has taken one of their own.
Make man fall in love
Save daughter
Outrun enforcers
Sounds easy enough...............right?

I greatly enjoyed The Lady is a Vamp. I know a lot of hardcore romance readers are put-off by children in books, but I found Livy's character adorable and endearing. Jeanne Louise has spent the last 100 years without a 'real' family so I think an insta-famly of Livy and Paul make her happily ever after that much better :) If you're looking to indulgence yourself with some sweet and sexy check it out.

*Even if you haven't read the previous installments in the Argeneau series I feel that you can still enjoy The Lady is Vamp. There are appearances of characters and family members from previous books, but nothing so involved that you'll find yourself lost.

The Lady Is a Vamp - Lynsay Sands
This long running series was getting stale and tired, but I found that with this book and the last one "Under a Vampire Moon" Ms Sands seems to be taking the series in several new directions. These directions are ones that I am whole-heartedly happy for. The last book was quite humorous as is a lot of Ms Sands novels. The "Lady is a Vamp" takes a bit more serious approach to what it means to be a vampire who falls in love with a mortal. It also delves into what a vampire can do for a mortal that is dying before her eyes.

Jeanne Louise Argeneau has been kidnapped---that is it may be kidnapping only until she realizes that the kidnapper may be her beloved life partner. This is the most pleasant kidnapping I have ever read about!

Paul Jones who has worked for the Argeneau Industries is in need of a vampire. That is, he is in need of a vampire to help his daughter who is dying of cancer.

Now the Hunters are after them, Jeanne Louise is trying to slowly get Paul into a position to fall in love with her and while they are running, they must keep Livvy (Olivia) Paul's daughter, from sliding anymore into her cancer.

As I said this is a first for me with Ms Sands books. I don't think I have ever read one that allows us to see anything but the best sides of being a vampire. However, Ms Sands pulls no punches with this book and I am quite glad she didn't. I think I would have felt cheated if she tried to make anything less of a bad situation.

This book contained some quite steamy sex scenes. I think the more books she writes the steamier some of them get. That is a very good thing. However, just because it's steamy doesn't take away from the romance and desperation of this novel. And desperate Paul certainly was. I mean why else would he risk kidnapping a vampire and facing the Hunters if he wasn't truly desperate? Nevertheless, out of this desperation comes a truly unique, romantic and deeply felt love story.

I hope you will enjoy this book as much as I did.

*ARC SUPPLIED BY PUBLISHER*

Hoping to save someone he loves, Paul Jones kidnaps Jeanne Louise Argeneau to try and convince her to help him in a way only an immortal can. He thinks he's prepared, yet the one thing he never planned on was falling in love with the woman who has become much more than his captive. Jeanne Louise should be furious with Paul but she understands his motives and soon realizes that he's more than just her abductor, he's her lifemate. But lifemates or not, laws have been broken and Jeanne Louis and Paul are in a race to find a way to make things right before they're torn apart forever.

Paul has had to watch as someone he loves suffers in pain and is dying. He's aware that immortals, vampires but don't call them that, exist and hatches a plan to kidnap one in order to convince them to help. For him, his coworker and the woman he's gotten to know from a distance is his only choice. I was a little put off by how Paul got to know Jeanne Louise while watching her when she didn't notice. Though the behavior and methods were kind of disturbing, I probably would've done the same thing if I was in his position. He's a caring and devoted family man who treats Jeanne Louise with respect so I forgave him for his slightly creepy behavior in the beginning.

I had no strong feels going into this story either way for Jeanne Louise because up to this point she's played a minor role in the series. She's very understanding of Paul's situation and does everything she can to help him while hiding from the Enforcers, immortal police, who are looking for them. I can't say there's anything to her that makes her my favorite character or even heroine from this series but she kept me entertained and I was happy for her in the end. Even if I didn't think their relationship was all that spectacular.

Paul and Jeanne Louise are lifemates, or destined mates. Relationships between lifemates come on fast and intense. Their relationship progressed really quickly but I wouldn't call it intense. They had a lot in common and they should have made a great pair but that connection never seemed to happen.

This book has a darker story than previous Argeneau books. The humor that there was and the uniquely Argeneau wackiness doesn't ever really shine through the dark cloud hanging over Paul and Jeanne Louise. The story wasn't bad, it was actually interesting and different but it just didn't feel right for this series. With the exception of Born To Bite and Hungry For You, this series just isn't as good as it was pre-Rogue Hunter and I'm not sure how much longer I'll stay with it.