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Veena’s review of Bad Blood (Goddess with a Blade, Book 7) by Lauren Dane
Urban Fantasy published by Carina Press 26 Sep 23 

Every time humanity or the status quo of the world we live in is threatened, Rowan Summerwaite stands as a shield.  Every time she thinks she’s defeated the threat and will have a chance to rest on her laurels, a new one pops up. Clearly there’s more to come. despite the exciting events in this book. which include vampires posturing for more power, magic users wanting to manipulate humans and the Fae, and God knows what role they’ll be playing.

Witches have been going missing for some time.  Rowan and Genevieve thought they had solved the problem and ended the threat, but, apparently, witches are still going missing.  In addition, someone is seeking to stop the collaboration of vampires, hunters, and witches to create teams to stop supernatural threats.

The vampires are posturing and writing memos, and Rowan is going to nip this nonsense in the bud, if the vampire nation won’t take care of its internal problems.  In the meantime, witches want to manipulate humans ostensibly for entertainment purposes. Genevieve has a stalker who has no qualms about using compulsion spells.  In the midst of this chaos, Genevieve’s romance with the dare-devil leader Darius is flourishing, as is her bond with Rowan.

The werewolves or the shifters come out to play for the first time in this series, so I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of them as the series progresses. Well, that is if they survive, since they came out to play on the wrong side and attacked Rowan. So their existence is probably in question if Clive, Rowan’s vampire mate, has anything to say about this.

All in all, this is a great story to revive the series and keep it going. Can this book be read as a standalone? I suppose any book can be read out of sequence, and I am often guilty of this, but I had read the series and actually went back and reread the entirety of it, which I personally think helps with all the subtext and relationships. I absolutely hope the next chapter comes soon.

Grade: A

Summary:

After spending the last two years locked in one deadly struggle after the next, Rowan Summerwaite deserves delicious meals, excellent sex and uninterrupted sleep on high-quality linens. But when two separate investigations converge in unexpected ways and a new threat to the Treaty blows into town, there’s no rest for the wicked.

And she’ll need help.

Genevieve Aubert, a seven-hundred-year-old witch from a powerful familial line, has become more than a formidable ally. To Rowan, she’s become a friend. To Darius, a Dust Devil from the Trick, where she’s now a priestess, she’s the key to unlocking his magic. The pretty flower to his motorcycles and bruised knuckles.

Soon, the dangerous reality becomes clear. It isn’t just wayward witches. It isn’t just egotistical Vampires. What’s brewing in the desert will take a witch, a Dust Devil and a human vessel to a goddess to save those they’ve sworn to protect.

No excerpt.

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