Velvet by Temple West Review #89

Author: Temple  West
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Pages: 386
Source: Amazon Canada
Buy: Amazon/ Barnes and Noble / Book Depository/ Chapters
Rating: 5/5

First rule of dealing with hot vampire bodyguards? Don't fall in love. After losing both her parents before age seventeen, aspiring designer Caitlin Holte feels like her whole world has been turned upside down, and that was before the terrifying encounter with a supernatural force. Then, she learns that her hot bad-boy neighbor, Adrian—who might have just saved her life—is actually a half-demon vampire. Suddenly Caitlin is stuck with a vampire bodyguard who feels that the best way to protect her is to become her pretend boyfriend. Trouble is, Caitlin is starting to fall in love for real, while Adrian can never love a human. Caitlin trusts Adrian to keep her safe from his demon father, but will he be able to protect her heart? Image and Synopsis from Goodreads

GAHHH this book was A-MAZNG!!! I loved it!! It was so addicting and I could not put it down nor stop thinking about it when I actually did put it down.
So I bought Velvet off of Amazon since my local bookstore did not have it in stock. The first thing I noticed when I received it in the mail was : WHAT A BEAUTIFUL PAPERBACK!!

 Honestly, the book is a) nice to hold in your hands b) smooth c) has little hearts dotting the page numbers :D My favourite paperback to date. Also the cover, just, basically, screams for anyone attention (it'd haunting and beautiful at the same time).
I have not read a vampire book in a LONG time. I actually almost forgot they existed but Velvet pulled me back. When I first read that it was a vampire book and there is a vampire family....I was like OMG this is going to be identical to the Twilight saga. HOWEVER, IT IS NOT  (not that I am against that series or anything but I was looking for originality)!!

Velvet is definitely an original take on paranormal subject of vampires and honestly I adored that.


Yah, they drink blood. Yah, they are technically immortal. However, the myth varies a bit from other YA vampire novels in my opinion. It steers clear from vampires naturally becoming what they are do to vampire bites and moves more in the direction of how vampires are created. Am I making any sense??

Also the vampire love interest is actually TEENAGE AGE!! HE SPEAKS LIKE A NORMAL YOUTH :D NOT A 100 YEAR OLD MAN XD He is also a cute, intellectual and a dork XD
The romance and interaction between the characters are what made this novel so enjoyable. The witty banter and also the plain interaction between Adrian and Caitlin is super adorable (ex; Dead Canadian, little spoon/big spoon)

The first novel spends a lot of time on these two characters going from friendship/bodyguard relationship to having a romantic interest for one another.

The world building is definitely well built and the novel leaves the reader at the end with A LOT OF QUESTIONS that will hopefully be answered in the next book. What is the point of the nightmares??
I liked that there was no love triangle. The novel focuses on one relationship :D The side characters (Trish, Jenny, Stephanie etc;) all have their own personality and they brought Stony Creek to life. The Victoria Secret scene had me laughing out of my seat. And will we see more of Mark in the second novel?

I did not like Caitlin's character for the first fifty pages. I just could not connect and she was so whiny and childish. However, I believe that the reader is suppose to feel like that. Why?  Because Caitlin is not in a very good place when the readers meet her. She is very sad and angry. Sad about her mother's death and angered at her aunt and uncle. Put it blankly: she is not very fun to be around.

Overall I LOVED this book and cannot wait for it's sequel. Adrian is definitely one of my favourite fictional, vampire characters.

And yes...I decided to give gifs a go :D