Kiss of Pride: A Deadly Angels Book

I couldn't even get to the second chapter wishing this was over. What a bunch of yuck. I have read some of Sandra Hill's other books and thought her to be a good writing but this is so over the top terrible. A Vampire/Angel/ Viking I could even go with, but the story is just too much to be believed. At first I thought it was going to go all Christian on me with the whole God thing and then describing torture of things being put up someones anus, really? The VIK brothers are stupid, stupid stupid. I was so upset to pay for this book on my kindle and have it go so wrong. I couldn't finish it and I always read a book to the end. I just couldn't put up with the stuff. Yuck Double yuck.

Over a thousand years ago when Vikings were at their most powerful, God could no longer ignore their many sins. One family in particular, the Sigurdssons, caught his attention when they raided Lindisfarne, a Saxon monastery. Each of the seven sons in the family had "offended God by committing one of the Seven deadly sins in a most heinous manner." Just as God was handing down a judgement that would condemn the men to an eternity in Hell the archangel Michael intervened to his everlasting regret.

"I agree that these Sigurdsson men have gone too far, but maybe they would change if given a second chance..."

And so a different judgement was handed down...

"This I say unto you, the Viking race will dwindle off into nonexistence, but not by death. No, they will blend into other cultures, losing their identity. Their pride is too great to stand alone. Hereafter, no one will worship Norse gods ever again."
"As you say, Lord, "Michael paused before asking, "And the seven Sigurdsson sons?"
"These seven sinners must prove themselves sevenfold. By sins they were judged, by grace they will be saved. For seven hundred years, they must roam the earth doing good works. If they fail, Satan may have them for his unholy domain."

And so Michael's and the Sigurdsson's fates were sealed. To make sure their penance was a little more difficult, the seven brothers were turned into Vampires, and so the first Viking Vampire Angels (aka Vangels) were created. Their mission to thwart the plans of Lucifer's Vampires (aka Lucipires) whose goal was to collect the souls of sinners before they had a change to repent. Because Michael was the one who suggested they be given another chance, they were put under his guidance.

As the years passed more and more years were added on to the Vangels original sentences because boys will be boys and Vikings will be Vikings. Perhaps by the grace of God, however, they lived in virtual obscurity until the Vangels masquerading as pretend vampires in the small town of Transyvania, Pensylvania caught the eye of a reporter from the World Gazette. Alexander Kelly who had once been nominated for a Pulitzer was being assigned a puff piece in an attempt to gently ease her out of her grief. Two years prior her husband and child had been murdered. She was still grieving, and this was her boss' way of trying to ease her out of her misery and get her back to writing. Little did she know this assignment would change her life.

This book made me think Ms. Hill was trying to capitalize a bit on the current popularity of angels and vampires. The series had a hint of Nalini Singh's Guildhunter series because of the Angel and vampire connection, but whereas Singh's series is a fairly serious paranormal romance series, Ms. Hill decided to slant her series toward humor. To tell you the truth, the humor just wasn't my cup of tea, but even so I still had to laugh despite myself. Nothing against the author, it was just a tad bit too silly for my taste. I just kept shaking my head and thinking, "Oh, no she di'int.", but oh yes she did. It was an okay read for me, I didn't hate it, but I definitely didn't love it. Now, I know there will probably be some who will absolutely adore this series, so I'll try to give you a taste so as not to discourage anyone whose sense of humor may be in sync with this series. First off, the Vikings are supposed to refrain from sin which they are finding very difficult (hence the added years to the original sentence). So you have a bunch of horny Viking males doing their best to abstain from sex and many other sinful indulgences. Secondly, they are living in a town dedicated to monopolizing on the recent Vampire craze. It is the perfect place for Vangels to blend into the background.

The two main characters are Vikar and Alex. Vikar's sin is Pride and he struggles with it daily. Described by Alex, Vikar was "the most gorgeous man she'd ever seen" with "dirty blond hair down to his shoulder blades, with pencil thin braids framing each side of his face...He had the most beautiful eyes and almost perfect facial features." Even though Alex's initial thoughts are that Vikar is a couple of fries short of a happy meal, she slowly starts to believe his crazy story and starts falling for him.

Here are some of my favorite Quotes/ Lines/ Moments that give you a taste of the book:
- 'Now she'd met all seven brothers. Vikar. Trond. Cnut. Harek. Ivak. Sigurd. Mordr.
"And she is...?" one of the brothers demanded to know, and not politely.
"Mine," Vikar said.'

- "I saw what you were doing in the storeroom, Vikar. That was Sex. Believe you me, if anyone knows sex, 'tis me," Ivak persisted.
Vikar's face was probably turning as red as a sunexposed Lucipire. "Near-sex," he repeated.
His brothers burst out laughing including Cnut, who felt the need to share, "He told me and Harek that selfsame story. 'Twould seem Trond gave him the idea that near-sex was not real sex."

- "Vikar?" Mordr prodded, "Where is the wench?"
"Taking a bubble bath."
Silence reigned then as five male minds went haywire imagining the frothy scene.

- 'In the window were displayed the covers of several pornographic videos...
"Ah, but I'm in the mood for good literature," Ivak said with a grin, "How about these? A Tale of Two Vampyres. The stakes of Wrath. Or that one. " He pointed to the left. "Great Neckspectations."...
Vikar worried that they were embarrassing Alex, but then she said, "My favorite is Vlad Really Did Impale Her."
His brothers glanced at him, then Alex, and burst out laughing.' (And no I didn't list all the titles.)

Overall, I gave this one 2 out of 5 roses. There were parts I liked and I did laugh, but it was just an okay read for me. On the Lisarenee Romance Rating Scale, this one scored a FAN rating - the temperature in the room seems to have suddenly gone up a couple of degrees and a fan would be nice.

When the Sigurdsson Viking family viciously raid the Lindisfarne Saxon Monastery, God had enough with the race. He condemned the Vikings to cultural assimilation extinction and the seven Sigurdsson sons who committed the seven deadly sins at Lindisfarne to roam the earth for seven hundred years performing good deeds; failure means their souls belong to Lucifer. Archangel Michael suggests they fight the Lucipre vampires. God assigns a chagrined Michael to lead his angelic vampire soldiers.

In Transylvania, Pennsylvania, Count Vikar Sigurdsson purchases a twelve decade old dilapidated castle with plans to convert it into a five star hotel in thirty days. With the centennial Reckoning coming soon for all vangals like him, Vikar is in a sour mood as he has no had sex in a century and the last time was not only crappy, Mike (as the VIKs call Michael) it added two hundred years to his penitence.

World Gazette Managing Editor Ben Claussen sends reporter Alexandra Kelly to Transylvania to interview Vidor. He wants her out of DC as the Mercado brothers go on trial for killing her husband and daughter. Alex and Vikar are attracted to one another while she stays at his dumpy hotel helping him renovate it. When he realizes her obsession with killing those who murdered her family will condemn her to hell, he intercedes. However, the celestial hierarchy gives him a choice if he can control his pride.

This Deadly Angels urban fantasy is an action-packed satirical good and evil thriller that contains the usual suspense and jocularity expected from Sandra Hill. Fast-paced from the moment Vikor and his brother Trond exchange sins and never slowing down, fans who enjoy an irreverent look at angels will want to read this entertaining thriller.

Harriet Klausner

I am being really hard on this new series because if it is to go anywhere Sandra Hill has change her approach. The idea of Viking Vampire Angels is a good premise to base a funny paranormal romance on, if it is funny and romantic, which this story was not. The characters came across stupid and silly, the action was barely there and the love story was almost non-existent. It was also so preachy with its religion, which is an approach that adds absolutely nothing to a paranormal romance. There was no depth to the story, no character buildup, no real emotion and the ending fell flat. I found Vikar's unwillingness to have sex with Alex for fear of Michael's punishment, absolutely ridiculous. Vikar has had 300 years of punishment tacked on to his original penance, does anyone really think another hundred or so would have meant very much at this point? The ending fell completely flat. After all the trouble to get Alex what she wanted and what Vikar could not give her, she did not even seem happy just resigned. What was that all about?

I doubt very much that I will read any more books in this series if the humor continues to make the characters completely unbelievable and comical and if Hill continues making religion as a primary focus of this book.

Yup, Vangels. Viking Vampire Angels, what's not to love? I was a little leary of this book but the combination intrigued me so much I had to give it a shot, and boy am I glad I did. It was a little rough getting into the story but once there I could not put this book down. I fell in love with Vikar, and his brothers; and Alex is my kind of heroine, strong, savvy, snarky, take no prisoners tough. The two of them together is an unbeatable combination that made me laugh, scream, and cry all the way through the book.

The humor in this book is very reminiscent of a Molly Harper or Lynsay Sands and I loved it. It flows smoothly through all the characters and agitates your funny bone over and over again.

This is the first book in this series, so there is a lot of background information and character introduction, laying the groundwork for the rest of the series. It gets a little overwhelming at first, but once through that the story flows beautifully and you can't help but connect with the characters. This is a series I will definitely be keeping up with and I am hoping that each of the Sigurdsson brothers will get their own story along with an Archangel or two!

I started reading this book and was fascinated with the new vampire twist. After getting into this book, I felt like I was committing horrible unforgivable sins. I could relate to Alex sin of vengence towards the men who murdered her child. As a mother myself all I can say is you better hope the police get to you before I do. I found it disconcerting that she was not allowed to have these vengeful feelings. Then young Armond who was trafficked as a small child and was a Victim and he was punished for axting how he was taught. Then the scene where Alex is basically sexually assaulted in front of other sex starved men by the supposed man that loved her then shes blood raped. These tones in the book made me so angry I wanted to scream at the author and the characters.

I did love the idea of viking vampire angels and that idea has so much potential. Its a new twist on vampire romance but i could not get into this book because of the religious overtones. I also loved the scene of the babies arat the end and found myself quite teary eyed over that part. Great story line idea just executed in a direction I would not be interested in.

Kiss of Pride is an unusual novel. Usually when I read these paranormal style romances I kind of know what to expect before I even start the first page. This book surprised me by how funny some parts were. The romance angle was pretty much what I expected it to be, but the rest of the book was a pleasant surprise.

I liked that the author was witty, although I found some of the dialog to be a bit cheesy and dated. There were times when I shook my head wondering if the author were to read this book now if she would have regrets about some of the choices she made while writing the dialog.

The thing I really did like about this book is that the main male character never got soft and wimpy even when the romance angle came in. He stayed the same over the course of the book, and it made me happy that he has room to grow and change throughout the rest of this series.

If I could have changed anything about this book it would have been the mixture of Christianity and sexual themes. I just felt wrong reading it. Not to be a prude, but there were parts of this book that made me think the author should have been struck down with bolts of thunder from heaven...blasphemy makes for an interesting read apparently. All in all, it was interesting and I've never read anything quite like it.

I have always loved Sandra Hill's Viking books and these are no different. Vikar and his six brothers are as bad as vikings come each on committing one of the seven deadly sins. When God decides to rid the world of vikings the Archangel Michael steps in and intercedes on their behalf. In doing so we now have Vangels which are vampires who are trying to earn their angel wings, something that is easier said then done for each time they commit a sin years are added to their penance. The job of the Vangels is to try and stop the Lucipers from claiming a soul before it has a chance to repent for its misdeeds.
All is going well for the Vangels until Alex, a reporter who is looking for a story walks into Vikers life. Can he save her from the sin she is thinking about committing without committing more on his own?

This book is written in the traditional Sandra Hill fashion with all the humor you have come to expect in her writing. I found myself chuckling several times as a thousand year old viking had to deal with a modern woman. I often couldn't put this book down staying up late just to finish it.

I ordered this book right after I finished reading "50 Shades of Grey". I wanted something different. Boy, did I get it! I've already read the first two of Sandra Hill's Viking time travel novels, and really enjoyed them. I expected to enjoy this book just as much as those. I did not.

This book seemed like a story one might conjure up after eating too many tamales and then going straight to sleep. While there were a few humorous moments in the book, it lacked the creative weaving of the story and character development that I've come to expect from Ms. Hill. Except for the sex scenes, which were mild in comparison to her other books (and especially after 50 Shades), this almost seemed like a story written for kids. I felt as though I kept waiting for something to happen in the story.

I didn't dislike it, but I can only recommend it as VERY light reading.

Long ago God created "good" vampires to fight the dark ones that roamed the earth. Vikar Sigurdsson and his six brothers are all Vikings who have disappointed God with their many sins. Ready to banish the race from the Earth altogether, Archangel Michael stepped in and came up with a plan for "good" vampires to be created. And so the "Viking vampire angel" was born. They are actually more angels in training. For seven hundred years, Vikar and his brothers have to do penance, doing Mike's (yes, they call Archangel Michael just Mike) bidding against the evil Jasper and his bad demons. Of course, over these 700 years, Vikar and company haven't lived saintly lives (although they try) so years and years have been added to their sentence. While Vikar was suppose to be free in the 1500's, it is now current day and he still has a few hundred years to work off. Vikar's sin is his vanity.

He finds himself in Transylvania, Pennsylvania. In another month, The Reckoning will occur, a central meeting for hundreds of "vangels." In order to prepare, Vikar has been instructed to turn a ruined castle into a working mansion in order to house all those that are coming into town.

Alexandra Kelly works for the World Gazette magazine in Washington, DC. Two years ago her husband (they were legally separated) and her young daughter were murdered by a drug cartel. (hello - this isn't lighthearted and fun) Two of the cartel members were headed for trial soon, but rumor has it they might get off on a technicality. So Alex has been thinking in her mind of murdering them herself. (Yes, I was eye rolling at this point) Her boss sends her to Transylvania to cover the story of weird vampire sightings up there, which is how she ends up on Vikar's doorstep. Once inside, he can smell the sin or the future sin upon her, and he knows she must be cleansed or more demons will start hunting her. He wants to save her. Alex wants to stay to get the story, although she soon realizes the truth of the situation she is in.

I am not super familiar with Sandra Hill's work, so when I heard about this new series, and read the crazy blurb and saw the interesting cover, I had to try this one. While I tried to read it and go with the silly, campy feel of the book, by the end I just didn't enjoy it. I'll try to explain why.

First of all, Alex lost her husband and five-year old daughter only two years ago. And while we are told she wallows in self pity and fury, I never saw that. Apparently she is also set on revenge if the killers walk free. Her sin is that eventually she wants to murder these men - again, her character never came across that way. To me, she was this happy go-lucky, laid back woman who pretty easily believed in vampires and angels and felt safe living with all these huge, strong men. All of that just didn't sit well with me.

Next up is Vikar. I never once thought - damn, Vikar is sexy. He came across to me more as a goofy oaf, than sexy. I get that this book is lighthearted (even though that clashes with the heroine's backstory) but even in the more funny books I read, I still want to have a romantic feeling while reading. And I never did in this one. It's all so cutesy. Vikar is a lovable dude, as is all his brothers. They are all friendly and warm. There were a few times I smiled, but it was all just too much. Even the demon was cracking jokes, and making pop culture references and it just didn't appeal to me.

There was also a young vampire named Armod, who before he was turned, was used as a prostitute, spreading AIDS and other diseases to all his bed partners (Gross). There is a moment in this book where he asks Vikar what it is like to lose your virginity - and Vikar questions him because Armod is no virgin. But Armod meant his "heterosexual virginity." (as he was forced to have unwanted sex with men). Which was really sad if you think about it. That combined with the murder of Alex's daughter only two years ago - is an odd pairing with the very lighthearted tone of this book.

At the end, I wasn't convinced of their love. Why did Vikar really fall for Alex? I wanted to see more emotion from Alex concerning her lost daughter too. This book and I'm guessing this series is not for me.

The last few years have been tough for Alex. Two years ago her husband and daughter were murdered. Since then she has been living one day at a time waiting for the day the murderers are brought to justice. Luckily her boss is also a close friend and, for the most part, he has been taking it easy on her. One day he has had enough of her depression and tells her she needs to start living again. He has the perfect assignment to help with that. She is to go to Transylvania, Pennsylvania and interview a "vampire" that is renovating a hotel.

Vikar is actually a viking vampire angel, AKA vangel. He is exactly what I expect in a 1000 year old Viking, which is both domineering and condescending. Those qualities make it all the better when he is brought to his knees by Alex.

This is my extremely simplified explanation of Vikar's world:
Lucifer had his army of vampires, Lucipires, and Michael the Archangel decided he needed his own army of vampires, hence the birth of the vangels. The lucipires tempt sinners in order to get more souls in hell and the vangels try to save those souls.

Before I get into my thoughts on the book I have to confess something, I avoid Christian themed books. They generally require belief and at least general knowledge in a base theology which I don't subscribe to. That makes them difficult for me to enjoy. I have read a lot of fallen angel types of books and this has never been an issue for me until this one. I had no idea what I was getting into when I picked up this book. All the religion talk was a turn off for me and something I struggled with throughout the story.

The book begins with a prologue which explains the birth of the lucipires and vangels in detail. It's dry reading and pretty religious. I made it to page 12 and was seriously considering giving up on it. I pushed on, despite my initial reaction, and I'm glad I kept reading. Once I reached the present day story and got to know the world in which Vikar lived, I was hooked.

The romance between Alex and Vikar was believable and entertaining. Alex is a non-believer and Vikar is a vangel so that created a few issues. Vikar gets punished when he commits sins, no cursing or premarital sex for vangels. Watching Alex and Vikar walk the fine line of not having actual sex and limiting themselves to near-sex was entertaining and creative. They also have inner dialogues with themselves which were funny. It took a while for me to get the author's humor, it's quirky and a little corny but I enjoyed it.

I was surprised at how interested I was in the war between the lucipires and the vangels. I liked that aspect of the book just as much as the romance. I loved the interactions between Vikar and his brothers as well as the vangels working under them. It had a frat house vibe with everyone picking one each other and pulling pranks. My only complaint about the storyline is that it got a bit monotonous in the end due to the romance stalling out and the battles taking over. I can overlook that though because the rest of the story was so good.

This wasn't an easy book for me rate. I absolutely loved the characters, the romance and the war but the constant talk about sins and religion was irritating and at times if came across as preachy. It's difficult for me to reconcile the two in order to come up with an overall rating for the book. Hill has an interesting take on a common paranormal theme. If you like Lara Adrian's Midnight Breed series or Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series you might like this one, give it a try. I figure if I could like it despite my aversion to the religion, then most readers who enjoy this genre will probably love it.

Overall: 3.25
Sensuality level: 3

I almost stopped reading after page 16 that was umm just a tad much too soon, however, Sandra Hill has been one of my faves so I stuck with it. This was a so-so start to this new series for me. It was a little too religion heavy and seemed almost disjointed in parts but I am sticking with it to see what book 2 brings. I loved the mention of Cage and Ian in the sneek-peak of Kiss of Surrender (love them Navy SEALs!)

Ms. Hill has turned her favorite theme of irreverent and sexy Vikings and sent them on a journey no Viking was ever meant to go. The result is an amazing array of characters who battle the ultimate evil all the while entertaining readers with that unique sense of comedic timing Ms. Hill has honed to perfection. It's not as light and fluffy as I'm used to but there is an awfully good reason for that. Ever hear of Viking vampire angels in training? No? Then get settled in a comfy chair because this adventure is going to astound fans of paranormal romance with its freshness and interesting interpretation of a few Christian beliefs all wrapped up with a hero with attitude and a heroine who isn't afraid of his teeth.

First off, I want to give credit to Ms. Hill for making St. Michael the Archangel funny. Ironic that I've been aware of his role in religious history, but that's where he remained - sort of forgotten and I never gave him much thought. He did his job, played his role and that was the end of it. Not according to Ms. Hill. And I adore her for it. It's like she brought him to life; teasing readers with the possibility that there is a vital role he could be currently playing somewhere on this Earth even in this day and age. He's personable, snarky but loving, extremely alpha and commanding when he has to be and he never loses focus. He's a good one to have at your back and on your side, provided you stay on his good side. And that's where the heroes of the story come in because in the beginning, they are totally not on his good side. In fact they're so bad it's insulting and yet, there's St. Michael's belief that they are redeemable. It's the whole question of how to get stubborn macho full of themselves Vikings redeemed that makes not only this story line work but is enough to base an entire series on.

Early on, the author made it very clear to readers and in fact draws the line in the sand as to who and what, was evil. She did that by taking readers to a scene of torture. What I found most fascinating was the intent and level of the sexual violence. It's not a long and drawn out scene; it's akin to having a tooth yanked out. There are a lot of romance books out there that have BDSM elements and it's considered erotic and a bunch of other stuff. What Ms. Hill did was take that and debase it; had the bad character twist it as only a minion of true evil could do. It made me uncomfortable because I have read a few stories with BDSM and enjoyed them but seeing it in this different light made me feel twitchy. The author got her point across. The bad guys are really bad.

Finally, I can get to the hunky hero, Vikar. I thought he was yummy, exasperating, but delicious. His emotions are all over the place for the heroine, Alex, but he can't figure out why. He has to save her but she fights him all the time. The things he has to do and say to convince her had me laughing many times. He certainly is very manly, dedicated and very tempted. Wait until readers get a glimpse of `near-sex'. I alternated between fanning myself over the very sensual and satisfying relationship scenes and laughing out loud at his gullibility. He can't seem to resist her not matter what he tries and there's a very good reason for that. I enjoyed his internal conflict and the various facets of his personality. In no way is he perfect, but he's certainly the kind of man who is close to being it.

Alex is a woman who has a lot of learning to do. Not just about the war between the good and evil vampires but about herself as well. Her journey is full of emotional growth and facing the truth. She has to forgive, to go on and embrace what's really important and to do that, she has to let go. Of what, only readers will know. It's a pretty heavy burden. It starts off innocent enough but it quickly spirals into a war of trust and love against temptation and hate. It doesn't help her case that the heroine is more stubborn than a mule and as sneaky as a fox. She makes it very hard for Vik to earn his wings because she's pure temptation and she likes him, a lot. I enjoyed her dialogue but one of the funniest aspects was her journal entries. Actually they were pretty hysterical because in each chapter she gathers more information that skews what she thought she knew and she has to rewrite the intro to her story every time. What makes them worth reading is a reader can see her understanding and perception advance the more she learns. In the beginning she's cynical and dark but there's a complete 180 degree turnaround by the time of the final entry. It's its own happy ever after.

Secondary characters are seductive. I'm not referring to sex although there were a few that it certainly could apply to. What I mean is Ms. Hill introduced each man who will either play an integral part in helping the protagonists reach their happily ever after in Kiss of Pride or will eventually have their own story. The author teased me with bits of information that made these men worthy of interest and curiosity. How is the author going to cure a Viking vampire angel of sloth or rage? All the men have their crosses to bear and some are lengthier than others because, being Vikings, sometimes they just can't help sinning, just a little. Of what I saw of the men who helped fight the battles, save their friends or ate tons of food with gusto, I imagine their stories are going to be as exciting and thrilling as this one was.

Jasper is the mega-villain. He has his favorite evil minions and when he is displeased with any of them, he does bad, deviant and horrific things to them. The author left me with no doubts - not only is he evil, but killing him is the best idea, ever. In addition, what he does with his `collected souls' is quite inventive, in a sick, psycho sort of way. Again, visualizing it might give a reader the heebie-jeebies, so be warned. Thank goodness the author had those incidents occur few and far between - they were so dark they could have easily overshadowed the tone of the story. I'm glad Ms. Hill kept it on the brighter side of things...like the pre-dawn hours.

Truly, this book has so much going for it that it's hard to know where to stop talking. I really enjoyed the struggle between Vik and Alex to build a relationship, I was fascinated by the whole concept of Lucies versus Vangels, I was impressed by the descriptions of the foul demons, and I got a kick out of how regular life, like shopping and eating, were smoothly worked in. You know, it's life, "mushroom and cheese omelets, it's no big deal, `Oh, look, there's a great deal on sheets ..."see you later,gotta go kill a demon" -- normal Viking stuff.

If readers enjoy a little dramatic action and bite with their laughter then Kiss of Pride will have you clamoring for more. Ms. Hill has created a truly special and enthralling world that makes Vikings sexier than ever. Be still my heart. The fact that these vampires are the good guys makes enjoying their toothy attentions so much easier. They are all hunky action heroes who have to earn their wings. They brawl, argue, fight and have honor with a capital "H". They are worth redeeming and each and every one I was introduced to in this book proved it. The question is, how? I can't wait to find out. Kiss of Pride was an awesome read.

Originally posted at LAS Romance Reviews

Review Courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales

Quick & Dirty: An intriguing new twist on vampires and angels. Quirky humor that will have you laughing but really slow pacing hinders the story.

Opening Sentence: Out of the barren glaciers and snow-capped mountains, fjords emerged like shimmering snakes, and a god-like race was created.

The Review:

Viking vampire angels or vangels as they call themselves are a captivating new "species" in Kiss of Pride. The seven sons of Sigurd have royally angered God by their defiance of the seven deadly sins. The Vikings have rejoiced in their evil and vile ways. They don't care at all for their fellow man. God has decided they should be punished but the archangel Michael intervenes with an idea to create an army that will help fight off the demon vampire army created by Lucifer, called Lucipires. The seven Sigurdsson brothers are cursed as vangels for 700 years. They must redeem themselves by saving the souls of the damned. The brothers are good at saving others but not themselves and they keep getting years added on to their sentence.

Vikar Sigurdsson suffers from the sin of pride, hence the title name. He has been a Viking vampire angel for over one thousand years and he can't complain too much about his time served except for not having sex in over one hundred years. Sex adds a lot of time on his sentence. Vikar has been tasked by Michael to renovate a hotel/castle in Transylvania, Pennsylvania (yes you read that right) into a place for vangels to stay when they are not on a mission or for gatherings.

Alex Kelly is sent to the vampire tourist trap of Transylvania, Pennsylvania to write an article about Vikar and the castle/hotel. Vikar doesn't agree to an interview and tries to send her away until he realizes that she has been compromised by evil and must be saved. Alex's husband and daughter were killed by a Mexican cartel two years before and she wants revenge in her daughter's death. Vikar decides to take it upon himself to save Alex and basically imprisons her at the hotel. The Mexican cartel also have it out to kill Alex if she travels back home to Washington, D.C so staying at the hotel is really in her best interests.

The hierarchy of the world in Kiss of Pride is well thought-out but confusing at first. There are different levels to the vangel and demon society. Everyone has their own rank and skill within their society. The vangels can also time travel but it is more of an unneeded side note since they are told they are no longer going to travel back in time. They will be working in the present time to help save souls.

I enjoyed Sandra Hill's hilarious and quirky writing style. Although at times it did make it hard to take the characters seriously. Transylvania, Pennsylvania is a mecca for living like a vampire. This town has hit the jackpot due to the craze of Twilight and True Blood. All the businesses have vampire-like names. Employees and customers alike all dress up like vampires. Comparisons to other vampire fiction are brought up throughout the book.

Kiss of Pride's character driven plot leaves out quite a bit of the action that would have added to the suspense of the story. When Vikar and a couple of his brothers race off to fight some Lucipires the story just skips over it to when they come back from the fight. Even some seriously dramatic plot points just kind of fizzle out and it never really explains why.

Vikar is a likeable guy even though he likes to hide it behind his rough Viking exterior. I just found it very hard to believe that he would pass up sex with Alex because he didn't want to extend his sentence. Vikar and Alex do participate in some near-sex that is quite hot.

Read Kiss of Pride just for the Viking Vampire Angels. Now that the world has been established I am really looking forward to the next book in the series, Kiss of Surrender, which I think will follow the story of a Navy Seal vangel.

The Deadly Angels Series:

1. Kiss of Pride

2. Kiss of Surrender

FTC Advisory: HarperCollins/Avon provided me with a copy of Kiss of Pride. No goody bags, sponsorships, "material connections," or bribes were exchanged for my review.

Loved your first Deadly Angels book can't wait for book 2!! The fact she gives a new twist to the handsome vampire, she makes her Vangels seem more human even if it is in the Viking barbarian way, makes them even more sexier!!!! The females she gives her men are strong and able to stand up to the neanderthal part of the man and go toe to toe with them, without making the female sound like a whinny child or a b*tch something that is hard to pull off. I say one more time I loved the first Deadly Angels Book and I so can't wait for Trond's book in December which I have to say is just to long to wait!!!!!

So, I usually hate reveiws on books, because I don't feel like your decision on whether or not to buy anything should be based solely on what other people say about it, but since the top three reveiws were negative, I decided that I should try to give people something else to read about this book.

I personally loved it. I love the writing style, the way that the writer truly gets to know her characters, and by the end of the story you know them too. She doesn't go too far into description (which annoys me, so I loved that there was just the right amount of description.) She lets you know what's going on, where the story is based, a background on the characters, and paints a vivid picture, without going overboard.

Yes, the love-story is a bit rushed, but, hey, it's a romance novel. I, personally, liked the fact that she didn't waste time, and she got right into the good parts. And believe me, the steamy parts are steamy. If you don't want a steamy, sexy, wonderfully naughty book, don't get this one. If you do, I'd say give it a shot!

I have to admit, time traveling Viking vampire angels is a first. This book was several firsts for me. It is the first and certainly not the last Sandra Hill book for me. This is also the first Viking book I've ever read. I'm also not sure what I expected going into Kiss of Pride, but it is definitely not what got. What I got was a book that mixes so many different elements that are extremely popular in paranormal romances at the moment, a group of highly entertaining vangels, a cynical/sarcastic heroine, great plot, and a surprisingly humorous story. I easily see myself telling all my booky friends that they must read this book. They must all read it now!

Vikar Sigurdsson has been a bad bad Viking. Actually he and all 6 of his brothers have been overly indulging in the seven deadly sins. God has decided they must pay for their transgressions. He appoints the archangel Michael to oversee their penance. The Sigurdsson fellas have a hard time completely breaking all of their a-Viking habits and their 700 year penance just keeps growing.

Alex has lost the most important thing in her life. This loss has changed her for the worse. She is not a happy person. She is contemplating doing very bad things to the people who took from her. Alex has misplaced her beliefs. Divine intervention sends her on a new assignment. She has been tasked with seeing what the story is behind Transylvania, Pennsylvania.

As soon as Vikar sees Alex he knows that he has to save her from the evil that has tainted her. Alex is struggling with trying to figure out how surfer guy plays into an entire town going vampy. She will get the story though, even if she must go along with his craziness to get inside his castle. Once inside she discovers there is more than just a story about an overly vampy town. Alex and Vikar also discover they can't and don't really want to keep their hands off of each other.

There are so many awesome aspects in the pages of Kiss of Pride. I loved the characters. They are numerous and individually distinctive. I loved the VIK, the seven Sigurdsson brothers. I am hoping that Hill plans on creating a book for each of them. I enjoyed the "near-sex," it was amusing to see Vikar and Alex and the way they bent the rules just to be together. I was not expecting humor and this book is hilarious at so many times. I liked the religious/biblical aspect. The Viking vampire angels are out there doing God's work. They're saving individual souls and battling the evil Hell vamps.

book received from publisher for the purpose of an honest review

Sandra Hill combines her signature humor with racy romance in this love story between a contemporary heroine who is just itching to commit mortal sin and a hero, a Viking Vampire angel, whose mission it is to save her before she falls into Lucifer's clutches. The attraction between the two is hot and heavy and hilarious in Ms. Hill fashion, but being an angel with a thousand-plus year penance, the hero can't consummate what he'd like to consummate, not without the sacrament of marriage. And oh, boy, would he like to consummate. Wow! Who knew near-sex could be steamy enough to curl your hair? If you like Vikings, paranormal elements, quirky characters, a fabulous setting, Sandra Hill humor, and the promise of six more deadly angels (all those deadly sins . . .) you will love this book.

I loved the storyline and direction but as much as I love a good romance there is just too much pushing this towards an x rating. That being said I will continue to get the series and just skip some pages.

This author has never yet let me down. A powerful beginning to a new series that is going to become an addiction for me, and I think for a lot of other readers. You're gonna love it. I promise you, you will absolutely not regret this. Best 5 bucks I ever spent, that's for sure!

Just finished "kiss of Pride" and loved it! It was funny, romantic and the story was fantastic! Love those Vangel's! Can't wait for book two "Kiss of Surrender" I would definitely recommend this book!

Sandra Hill has been my favorite author for many years. I have read her Cajun series & all her Viking books many, many times. I'm going to throw this in the garbage & I will not be buying any of the other books in this series. I was totally unable to suspend my disbelief & did not enjoy it at all.

Sandra Hill has three (to date) of the "Deadly Angels" series and I applaude her ingenious writing of a very unusual 'paranormal' romance novel series. I have a lot of favorite books/series and authors, but, this series if my favorite of all time--so far. If you read one, you will not be able to stop before devouring all of them! Thumbs up to Sandra for a real winner of a series!

This book was very entertaining and funny. I enjoyed it very much. I normally don't like modern and supernatural because it doesn't work, but it worked very well in this book. Read this book you will love it.