Aurora Sky (Aurora Sky Vampire Hunter, #1)

by Nikki Jefford

My blood is toxic to vampires . . .

If there's one thing I want, it's go get off this iceberg. I'm thinking college on the east coast. ANYWHERE besides Alaska.

Then a near-fatal car wreck changes everything. Government agents jump in and save my life in exchange for my services as a vampire hunter. Did they just say vampires? Yep. And they're not the kind that sparkle. They're rabid, disgusting, rude . . . and way too suave. Those are the ones I really have to watch out for.

A knife isn't my only weapon. My rare blood type sends vampires into temporary paralysis right before I have to finish the job by hand. Basically I'm a glorified chew toy.

Now I'm stuck with an overzealous partner, a group of suck junkies, and a maddening attraction to Mr. Joe Cool, dresses all in black, Fane Donado. I don't know if I want to punch him or kiss him, but clearly he's keeping secrets of his own.

The old Aurora is gone forever. Destroyed in the wreckage. I don’t know who I am anymore, only that I suddenly have intense cravings and a V.I.P. pass into Alaska’s underworld.

If vampires found out who I worked for it would be lights out forever. In the meantime, I have some undead ass to kick so long as it doesn't kick mine first.

Fans of dark fantasy, undercover missions, government engineering, vampires, and romance will devour this story.

*Recommended for mature YA and up.

• ISBN10: 1939997488
• ISBN13: 9781939997487
• Publish Date: 15 December 2013 (first published 1 December 2012)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Caffeinated Books Publishing LLC
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 284
• Language: English

Reviews

[bookishzelda]

Auora Sky: Vampire Hunter is a different twist of the traditional vampire story. The plot was pretty interesting, a secret world of Vampire Hunters that all have AB negative blood (like me!) that when combined with a virus can be toxic to a vampire. It’s a hidden government project, people might suspect things but it’s not something for public consumption. Even though vampires don’t burn up in the sunlight they seem to prefer the cold and dark climate of Alaska. I found myself speeding through the pages intoxicated with curiosity and did finish this one in a day.
Now normally in a YA book you have an MC that learns they have some superpower of sorts, whether it is moving things with their minds or turning out to be a different species altogether. Then usually the MC freaks out for maybe a day or two and the next thing you know they are up for the challenge taking life by storm. The thing that made Aurora herself so interesting was this was not the case for her. She wakes up to this new reality after a near death experience and is told she is now working for the government as a Vampire Hunter. She had been timid and just trying to make it through each day so that she can get the hell out of dodge and start her life over as far from Alaska as possible. Suddenly it’s all taken away from her and rather than embrace her new role she ends up on a downward spiral and I mean really downward. Aurora completely changes and does not give two cents about what anyone thinks of her. She skips school, she hangs with an interesting crowd, and she even takes on a new slutty persona. I couldn’t keep my eyes away from the pages. She makes a lot of bad decisions but those bad decisions kind of cover up the good changes that are happening. Aurora is no longer the easy going push over; she becomes more charismatic and daring. She finally evens out when she gets involved with Fane and even though the reason she gets involved with him is kind of bad. He turns out to be the grounding that she needs for her life. I just found it easy to imagine Aurora as someone actually going through the experience. I thought she was strong main character.
At first I didn’t like Fane; I was like oh geez please don’t tell me she gets involved with this guy. As I got to him in the book, I couldn’t help but find a soft spot for him. Although he might seem outwardly like a jerk it’s really only others perception that make him that way. You never really think about the fact that she doesn’t actually talk to him and he never really does anything really mean to her. Mostly she just thinks he’s kind of scuzzy. Really just the girl he chooses to associate with at first is scuzzy.
There are lot of different characters and personalities to keep you entertained. We are introduced to the world of Aurora before near life and death experience and then after. Which surprisingly gives the world a whole new look. Much like high school sometimes the people you think are your friends are really not the ones going to stick with you until the end.
The ending left me hanging and wanting more. I can’t wait to see where the story goes and what happens to Aurora. You can tell there is a lot more to the vampire society and the government agency that needs to be explored and I’m definitely curious to learn about it myself.

[inlibrisveritas]

Transfusion jumps into the meat of the story very quickly and stars laying the ground work for an interesting storyline equipped with action, vampires, and a touch of romance.

Jeffords really worked to try and come up with some original ideas for this one, like the fact that only AB negative people can be turned into vampires due to the blood and the virus’ unique qualities. I also liked the idea of vampire hunters being very similar to the monsters they hunt, it adds a bit of moral ambiguity to the whole situation. Which as a whole runs a bit rampant in this book as Aurora is faced with how the situations are no longer black and white, and she’s kind of forced to deal with all of it. The action in this is great and there are some really kick butt fighting scenes, but there are a few moments where I wished the fights had been even grittier or longer lasting. One of the strongest things about this novel was Jeffords ability to describe the world around Aurora and to really paint a picture of Alaska.

Aurora falls firmly in to the ‘does what she has to’ category. She has a broken family and because of her accident things are even more strained with the people around her. The fact that she is forced into hunting is something I enjoyed because we already have plenty of stories about vampire hunters with a personal vendetta, it gives the story a different feel to it and opens it up to different possibilities immediately. She kind of falls into a downward spiral in the beginning and I was worried that she might get stuck in her reckless mindset but as the story progressed she started to make some better decisions. Fane is the attractive bad boy with a surprisingly responsible side, and the nice glimpse into his actual life gives us some great info on his character and made me super curious about his life before coming to Alaska. Aurora’s mentor, Dante, is a nice change of pace compared to the other characters because he’s a bit carefree and pretty funny. He is one of the characters that I really want to know more about, we get a good sense of his personality but he didn’t really reveal too much about his past. The other I’m curious about is Valerie, who isn’t mentioned a whole lot in the novel but she plays a unique part and I’m hoping that she becomes somewhat of a focus in the next book.

While some of the major conflict is solved in this one there are some issues raised toward the end that I’m super curious about and makes me want to read the next book when it comes out.

I received this in exchange for an honest.

[Angie]

The blurb for Transfusion had me at "glorified chew toy"! Aurora Sky has a rare blood type that, when mixed with a cocktail of pathogens, causes paralysis in vampires when they bite her. Of course, the government wants to make use of her in their fight against the bloodsuckers. After a car accident, the government rescues Aurora in exchange for her services, and immediately begin her training. Aurora is of course reluctant, and wants to be a normal teenager.

I really liked the twist on vampirism that the author uses. Not all of it is new, like a virus causing someone to become a vampire, but a lot of it I hadn't read before. For example, the different vampire ailments such as sensitivity to sunlight, garlic, and no reflection are caused by whatever virus they've contracted. And only people with AB- blood can be changed. I always like when there's a scientific basis to the supernatural, and this one is simple but still interesting.

The plot is fast paced and action packed. Aurora gets to kill a few evil vampires with no help from her hunky partner, Dante. There's also a romance blossoming between Aurora and her classmate, Fane. Their chemistry is sizzlin', but they're not without their problems. I can't say more without spoiling it, but it does become quite obvious early on in the book. It was still fun to read though.

I enjoyed this one much better than the other book I've read by this author. Maybe it's just my love of all things vampire, or this book is just better as she grows as a writer. No matter the reason, this is a great start to what looks like it's going to be a fabulous series. I can't wait to see what comes next for Aurora!

Read more of my reviews at Pinkindle Reads & Reviews.

[Kim Deister]

Aurora Sky is the first book in the new Transfusion series by Nikki Jefford, author of the fantastic Spellbound trilogy. Below this review will be a giveaway for some book swag and some books, so be sure to enter that, too! I got this ARC from the author and began reading within moments and couldn't put it down. It is unlike anything I have read, an entirely new twist on the vampire genre. Mystery, intrigue, conspiracy theory, teen angst, horror, and even some humor combine to make this a really great read. The book pulled me in so much that there were times when I realized I just wanted to slap some of the characters on Aurora's behalf! I love a book that draws me in like that!

Aurora opens the story as a fairly typical teen girl, with all the angst and awkwardness that you would expect. But a horrific car accident changed all of that for her, turning her into someone I don't think even she really recognizes. While she was recovering, her mother made choices for her that have lifetime ramifications for Aurora. That theme, that Aurora was essentially being extorted into living a life she wouldn't have chosen for herself, was a big part of the emotional pull for me. While I understand why her mother did the things she did, the fact that Aurora had no choice made me feel all of the frustration that Aurora herself felt. It made her a very real character for me. All of the characters, regardless of their role within the story, were completely three dimensional, whether you liked them or not. And there were definitely several that I truly disliked! Some of the less central characters were so well developed that it allowed the reader to know them, reminding me of people I known in my own life. Of course, most of these were in a negative way!

This is a really great read if you like mystery and intrigue. The vaguley "conspiracy theory" aspect of the government's involvement in saving Aurora adds a different element to the horror of the story. It definitely elicits emotion from the reader, a protective feeling for Aurora. There are lots of twists and turns, horror and action, even some romance and fun. I highly recommend this read! It is also freshly released so go get it now!