Blood Wine and Pale Roses by Denyse Bridger
The Wild Rose Press
Contemporary Romance, Paranormal
Short Story, Spicy
Review by Amaranth

When Sean Rourke finally reveals himself to her, Eden discovers the ghost is a creature of myth and dark dreams. Turned into a vampire by the man for whom his wife betrayed him, Sean is tormented and lonely, and more afraid of Eden's power to make him love than she is of his nocturnal curse. It isn't until the ancient vampire who made him returns to claim Eden that Sean is forced to decide once and for all if he can let go of the shade of his wife, and permit love to heal what remains of his humanity...

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One night, on her way home, she is passing an old abbey when she notices that it is on fire. She witnesses a man leaving the front door and his face begins haunting her. For a year, she returns often to the abbey to draw, usually the face of the man she saw leaving the building. She has never stayed at the abbey over night, but she feels a pull for the place and decides that the one year anniversary of the fire is the perfect time to go at night.

That night, she meets the man of her fantasies, the man that has been haunting her for a year. She is shocked to learn that he is a vampire and terrified of what he may do to her. However, she feels an attraction to him and is unable to run when she has the chance.

Sean is bitter because an evil vampire killed his wife one hundred years ago. Eden has been providing him with entertainment, but he is worried because he is drawn to her. He attempts to scare her off, but the attraction they have to one another keeps her there. He bites her and erases her memory, hoping that will keep her away. After nine days, Eden gets her full memory back and returns to the abbey once again. Now, the evil Evander knows about her and Sean’s feelings for her. Sean must keep her safe, before Evander kills her, or worse, turns her into a vampire.

“Blood Wine and Pale Roses” kept me on the edge of my seat from the first page. I was drawn to Eden and her pain over her life. Ms. Bridger did a wonderful job of filling this short story with well-developed, emotional characters and a simple plot that provided plenty of nerves over what was going to happen to Sean and Eden. The passion between these two was great, but did not take anything away from the story. Evander was such an evil character; I could feel it pour off of the pages. If you are a fan of hot paranormal romance, then this book is most definitely for you; and if you are looking for a new genre and thinking that you may try a little paranormal, I highly recommend this book to get you started!