Jabril Book Review

Title: Jabril
Author: D.B. Reynolds
Series: Vampires in America

Synopsis:
Houston, Texas-Cowboy boots, baseball and journeys to the stars . . . right? Wrong. Because Houston is also home to Jabril Karim, one of the eight powerful Vampire Lords who control all of North America. And as Private Investigator Cynthia Leighton will soon discover, not all Vampire Lords are created equal. For Jabril is the face of evil in the new world, a vampire who values no life but his own, who enslaves those he desires, steals whatever he covets and destroys anyone who stands in his way. Running from L.A. and its seductive Vampire Lord, Raphael, Cyn sees the Houston job as a welcome refuge, a place to get away and heal her broken heart. But Texas will be no vacation. For in Jabril Karim, Cyn will confront a true enemy, one who will go to any lengths to satisfy his lusts, enrich his coffers and expand his power. Fighting for the lives of two young sisters, Cyn's journey will take her through the streets of Houston and back to L.A., where the human police are determined to bring Raphael down for the murder of one of their own. But the danger doesn't end there. For Jabril has set his sights on Cyn, and he will stop at nothing to have her.

Review:
Imagine my surprise when I find out that Jabril picks up right where Raphael leaves off! That squealing noise you here is unfortunately me doing my happy dance over here. Once again we see my favorite characters Cyn and Raphael in this book, along with another Vampire Lord, Jabril Karim. 

Sadly, Jabril is nothing like Raphael. He is quite the sadistic little bastard, I instantly took a dislike to Jabril. Not only for how he treated Maribelle, Elizabeth and Cyn but his higher than thou attitude. I know, 'but Lizzie he is a vampire'. Trust me, it's not even a likable higher than thou attitude. 

The best part of this book is we get more of Raphael and Cyn's relationship AND it gets better! 

“So, having at last met a foe I could not defeat, I fled,” he said in disgust. “Rather than face you in my weakness, I thought to leave you behind, to forget about you, which I thought was surely possible. After all, how could one human overwhelm me with feelings in such a short period of time?” He smiled bitterly, shaking his head at his own foolishness.

In this book we get to see their relationship develop past just intense feelings. We get to see the softer side of Raphael and Cyn. I wasn't expecting Cyn to melt a little the way she did and it was a pleasant surprise.

"He smiled then, as if she'd once again said something he expected and it pleased him. He pulled her against his body, holding her firmly within the circle of his arms. "I'm thinking of chaining you to my bed from now on," her murmured against her hair. "I'm tired of waking up and finding you gone."She snorted. "You can try."He swept her up and into his arms. "I can do better than try, lubimaya. There are many kinds of chains."

 In brutal honesty, I wasn't fond of Jabril or his minions in this book. The way they treated women and used Maribelle and Elizabeth. The fact that Jabril kept a harem of blood slaves in his vault should have been clue enough that I wouldn't like him but the way he treated them was even worse. He was probably my least favorite character in the first two books. He ruled by fear and hatred, preyed off of them even. He was a jerk.

What I thought was great about Jabril was the fact that we get a closer look into D.B. Reynolds vamp world in this book. We get to see how the territories work, what can and cannot happen, and how they go about certain things. Each writer writes a different world for their vamps and its nice to get better clarification and insight into new worlds. D.B. Reynolds vampire world is built on tradition and their ceremonies and protocols are all based off of that tradition.

I thought that the plot and story line were unique and well written. I wasn't expecting the book to end the way it did but I was thankful that it did. It needed to happen. This book was just as great as the first one. Filled with suspense, romance, violence, intrigue and joy. Jabril was the perfect compliment to Raphael and I can't wait to keep reading this series!