Book 2), Vamps and the City (Love at Stake

So well written that it flows like a silky stream of decadent cream. Before you know it, you have drank every last drop!!
The characters and situations they find themselves in are often highly comical and sometimes a little scary. It is a perfect blend.
Kerrelyn Sparks 'Love At Stake' series has made it to my top 10 Series Following file!
And this was only the 2nd book in the series.
Vamps and the City (Love at Stake, Book 2)

Most of the fun characters from the first novel in the series are back. This story is about Austin Erikson from the Stake Out team and Darcy (one of Roman's ex-harem female vamps). Austin is sent to DVN to spy on the vamps in hopes of locating Shanna, the head of Stake-Out's daughter. He spies on Darcy and at first site falls in love. But he can't quite figure out if she's a vamp or human. So the fun begins.

This was a very quick but great read. The book was fun with lost of humor. The Malcontents have less of a role in this book. We get updated with Roman and Shanna. What disappointed me was that Darcy wasn't comfortable with being a vamp. She hated it and that turned me off. I was even more turned off that (SPOILER AHEAD) Roman was able to turn her back to human. Overall it's still a pretty good read and yes, it's worth the read

Since Shanna married Roman Draganesti, Roman has given up his harem of vampire girls including Darcy Newhart a woman who hates being a vampire. Getting a job at vampire television which allows new techology of Digital TV to be seen on camera and create shows like The Sexiest Man on Earth. As the show leggy blonde director Darcy decides to include humans in the line up of the vampire's idea of The Dating Game. That includes vampire slay Austin Erickson who takes order from Shanna's C.I.A. Dad. Only problem is that Austin never wanted any woman dead or alive more than he wants Darcy. They have to keep their romance a secret for the stake of the show or it could be both their necks. What comes off at the end is a surprise that you'd loose your soul if you were to place a bet.

I loved "How to marry a millionaire vampire" the first in the series. It was creative, sexy and im my opinion well written. This sequal follows Darcy who has been a vampire for 4 years, and Austin a secret agent who kills vampires. He is competing undercover as Sexiest man alive.
I just didn't like the main characters. They were boring and ill-described. The shorty also lacked action. There was nothing really interesting going on. The author threw their "rushed-love" down our throat. They fell in love in a week? I know it's fiction, but come on. I also didnt like how the ending was so quick to turn darcy human. The author never really gave closure. I have high hopes for the series, so I hope I will learn more about this interesting group of people.

I thought How to Marry a Vampire was hilarious, this one was terrible. The dialogue was simplistic. Coming from a Reading teacher, I would say it was at the MOST a fourth grade level. For a while in the beginning I was waiting to start reading, "See Dick. See Jane. See Dick run." I mean really! The characters were definately not likable. What wusses! What I don't get is why does Sparks bother to paint the vampire characters in a good like, only to make all the lead characters try to not be vampires? Even Roman from the previous novel is trying to discover a way to be human! And Darcy from this one is miserable as a vampire and even cringes from Connor--who saved her life! How can you hate yourself? It's not like you have to bite anyone! With the new synthetic blood, you basically have all the pluses with none of the minuses ( a win-win situation) yet all her characters want to do is not be one. It just doesn't make any sense and because of that it causes the book to be lacking in any substance. Then there was the falling in love crap. "I love you! I love you, too!" When they only had met two weeks previously, hardly spent any time together, did not have sex, and barely talked to each other. Yah, yah, I know you don't have to have sex to talk to someone, but goodness, they hardly said two words to each other! Also, I didn't laugh once in this novel. I found nothing funny. Over all! Just plain corney!

The anticipated sequel to HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE VAMPIRE is even more hilarious than its predecessor!

Austin Erickson believes all vampires are evil and must die. As a member of the CIA's Stake-Out team, the vampire slayer agrees to go undercover at the Digital Vampire Network (DVN).

Darcy Newhart, former television reporter and now one of the undead, has devised the perfect program for DVN- The Sexiest Man on Earth contest. Vampire and mortal men will compete against one another for cash and to be master of Roman Draganesti's ex-harem (all of whom are temporarily residing with vampire Gregori and driving him absolutely nuts!). No one will know who is vampire and who is mortal except for Darcy and her staff. Austin gets a berth on the show but what will happen if he actually wins? And how will Darcy cope with her growing attraction to a mortal who detests vampires?

From start to finish, Kerrelyn Sparks has written a story that will have readers laughing at scenes long after finishing the book. She again demonstrates her ingenuity with the portraits of the candidates on the reality show and the manner in which the candidate is revealed as mortal or vampire.

Darcy and Austin are very strong characters who are polar opposites when it comes to their beliefs about vampires. Darcy is still struggling with the vampire lifestyle and dreams of seeing the sun again while Austin is torn between his growing love for Darcy and his loyalty to the Stake-Out team. Their love story is one readers will relate to as they must learn to accept one another's differences.

The harem is the true highlight of this novel, however. Between Cora Lee and her ridiculous hoop skirts and Lady Pamela's snootiness, the harem kept this reviewer in stitches with their antics. Darcy drags the reluctant harem into the modern world, helping them develop not only their sense of style but also teaching them that they are intelligent women capable of making their own decisions. Overall, this is a novel that is sure to delight readers!

COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

I was looking forward to this sequel like crazy. I absolutely loved How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire, but I'm afraid that this book didn't come close to that first book. In fact, I still haven't finished VATC. I didn't get into it right away, but hoped that I would. I never did. Something just didn't click. After thinking about it, my conclusion is that I like it when the guy is a vampire (Roman, in HTMAMV, was absolutely delicious. He is in my Hall of Fame), but when it's a vampire woman and mortal man, it doesn't work for me.

The minor characters that I loved in the previous book weren't as wonderful as I remembered them.

I will eventually finish this book. I will have to re-read it to finish it because I can't even remember half of it. I hope Ms. Sparks re-reads her first vamp book and gets inspired for the next. I still have hopes for Connor and Ian. (I hope they weren't killed off in this one. I didn't get that far).

This book was too cheesy and superficial for my taste. There aren't a lot of vampire world things. I find it ironic that Darcy (the heroine and lady who did from the world for 4 years in an harem), wants to teach the harem ladies to be self sufficient and less superficial, yet all she sees is the superficial in the hero. All she thinks about is Adam/Austin's looks. She forgives him trying to kill ALL vampires, including a list of her friends, because he is pretty. Not only that, but the harem ladies were not al all charming or interesting. I heard that they were interesting in the first book. I was pretty turned off by the fact that the "hero" started snapping pictures of Darcy's body parts when he was staking out the vampire TV studio during the first few chapters. STALKER VIBE! The end of the book wasn't very impressive either, but ssshhhh.... You might still read this. Some parts were amusing, but they were fleating.

It's been four painful years since Darcy Newhart became a vampire. She thought that after her transformation, she'd never be happy again, never feel warm again, and never see daylight again. But then a mortal, Austin Erickson, with his golden hair, tanned skin, and hot body "burst into her life like a brilliant sun." Just as Darcy had resigned herself to giving up her old world-her family, friends, and career in journalism-and making the best of her situation by getting a job at the Digital Vampire Network, Austin shows up and tempts her with all that she can't have. Their relationship could never work, and she knows too well the pain of giving up a mortal life to ask that of him.

But Austin only looks like a gorgeous surfer-dude. He's actually an undercover CIA agent charged with tracking and killing vampires, deemed terrorist threats by the government. Austin's assignment is to infiltrate the Digital Vampire Network and become a contestant on Darcy's new reality TV show, sort of like "The Bachelor" for vamps. While he's supposed to be gathering as much intell as possible, Austin finds himself falling for the show's beautiful, sad director. Someone as vibrant, compassionate, and sweet as Darcy couldn't possibly be a vampire. Right?

Convinced that she is mortal, Austin sets out to save Darcy from the evil vamps who must be holding her hostage, and ends up having to confront his own prejudices and stereotypes about these creatures of the night. Will he learn that, like humans, "vampires could be good or evil. They could love or hate," before it's too late? Will Darcy allow herself a chance at love despite the seemingly insurmountable obstacles that separate her from Austin?

VAMPS AND THE CITY, the follow-up to Sparks' HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONAIRE VAMPIRE, admits readers into a Harry Potteresque world full of magic and wonderfully eccentric characters drawn with heart and creativity. Sparks' witty, intelligent story deftly walks the line between laugh-out-loud humor and sweet romance. This book will leave readers dreaming about the sanctity of true love and the risks Austin and Darcy take to be together long after the book ends.

Darcy Newhart has created a show to turn the vampire world upside down. The Sexiest Man on Earth--the first reality TV show where vampires and mortals compete.

However, one contestant, Austin, keeps distracting Darcy making him her vote as the sexiest man on earth. Can she produce a winning show and remain a professional where Austin is concerned?

Austin's beliefs are turned upside down when he enters the Sexiest Man on Earth contest. Working undercover never bothered him before but he's no sure who is right and who is wrong.

Ms. Sparks continues to to delight in this novel. A thoroughly enjoyable read for those who like the lighter side of vampires.

Bravo, Ms. Sparks! I look forward to your next book.

This second book the Love at Stake series almost put me off of the series completly. I could not relate to the herione and her constant whining of becoming a vampire when the alternative was to die was just too much..as well as her anxiety toward Connor the vamp who changed her. She made you want to throw things at her for most of the book. Oh just buck up and shut up already!! Lucikly the next installment "Be Still My Vampire Heart" recaptures the magic of the first book "How to marry millionare vampire". I say skip this book...some small things happen with Roman and Shanna from the first book, but nothing you can't grasp in the next book.

I loved HOW TO MARRY A MILLIONARE VAMPIRE very much! I enjoyed finding more about Shanna, Roman, and Romantech. Darcy's antics were very funny at times(imagine a vampire not wanting to explore all the benefits until she must)FUNNY!! Autin a.k.a. Adam was funny at times. But overall, this was a BLAH story. The hero and heroine didn't have much depth. It seemed to drag through most of the book, but it finally got interesting at the end.

Any book that makes me smile after reading the last page is one way I gauge a good read! This book not only made me smile throughout the story, but I hated to see it end and leave me hanging as to where the characters would go from there. I hope in the next book, the author will bring back not only Roman and Shanna again, but also Darcy and Austin! Wow! This book really has it all! You can't help but be pulled in to each and every character and look forward to the next one, hopefully, in this series! There HAS to be a next one!!

I thought the book was pretty silly actually. The love conflict between Darcy and Austin kept enough of my interest to finish the book but there were times when I was ready to be done and move on to something better. I absolutely hated the "Holy Seduction", "Holy Moley", "Holy Crap", "Holy Sexual Tension" phrases....they really got on my nerves. I honestly don't think I would recommend this book to anyone.

This book started out innocently enough, but I didn't find the hero all that likeable. He seemed like a stalker who only had lascivious ideas in mind with regards to the heroine. Likewise, I didn't understand why the heroine liked him. She knew nothing about him. Her attraction was all based on how he looked and visa versa. I put the book down after around 200 pages.

I read the entire book with no problem only because I am a fan of the series. The humor is great and as was the story HOWEVER Darcy really got on my nerves. I found her to be a whiner. Yeah sure, she didn't want to be a vampire, but seriously its been FOUR years! Get over it!! Maybe if she spent less time resenting her natural she would not have been so unhappy. Way to negative. She just rubbed me the wrong way with her constant boo hooing.

I know it seems wrong for a paranormal romance fan to say a book is cheesy, but this book was just silly. A reality show with vampirettes who find their independence and self confidence. Are you kidding me? Way too contrived for me! I tried to read the next in the series but the bad Scottish accent was just too much. Try Katie MacAlister or Lynsay Sands. Still what I consider "chick lit" but won't insult your intelligence.

the love at stake series are good.....each book tells about a certain vamp and they keep you going I just love all the highlanders and the scotish vamps... if you want a good series to read get them youll love them new ones come out in sept and the new one about conner comes out but havent found out when yet there great.....

A new look at old vampires. What happens when you are used to being looked after and you suddenly find yourselves without a benefactor?
How can a reality show help?
I loved this story and gave it 5 stars; it is well written, light and funny and we get to revisit old friends and make new ones.
I need to read the next book to find out what happens next.

I was looking forward to reading this book since I enjoyed the first one so much. I found myself laughing out loud several times in How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire and was hoping Vamps and the City would be as entertaining. Sadly, that wasn't the case. I couldn't find any reason to like either hero or heroine and since I enjoy reading these books because they ARE about vampires I was also disappointed in the ending. I will read Ms Sparks third book since the first one showed so much promise.

I was looking forward to reading this book since I enjoyed the first one so much. I found myself laughing out loud several times in How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire and was hoping Vamps and the City would be as entertaining. Sadly, that wasn't the case. I couldn't find any reason to like either hero or heroine and since I enjoy reading these books because they ARE about vampires I was also disappointed in the ending. I will read Ms Sparks third book since the first one showed so much promise.