The Rising Dark by Celia Thorn

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This is my first Celia Thorn book, and I had no idea if I’d like it or not. I don’t read a lot of paranormal romances, but I wanted to give it a shot.

The Rising Dark is the first book in a new urban fantasy series about a Sisterhood of sword-wielding vampires defeating an evil that is threatening to overpower vampire society.

Michelle’s perfectly ordinary life is thrown into chaos when she’s attacked one night by a terrifying monster straight out of a horror movie. The only thing that stands between her and her demise is tall, gorgeous… and a vampire.

To keep Michelle safe, Lavinia whisks her away to stay her band of sword-wielding vampire warriors. Every day they strive to find out who is trying to kill Michelle and why; and every day, Michelle’s feelings for her chivalrous rescuer grow. But Michelle is just a regular nurse, and Lavinia is a beautiful, centuries-old Sister of Twilight with a vow to protect the innocent. To get their happily ever after, they’ll have to navigate their differences and slay some demons in the process.

The Rising Dark features a fresh take on vampires, found family, action, mystery, and a closed-door slow-burn romance.

I don’t have much to say about The Rising Dark. It was fine. It was sort of superficial where the characters are concerned. No one had any real depth, and I wanted to know more about Michelle and Lavinia, as well as several other sisters. Also, I have no idea what slow-burn romance is being referred to in the blurb because Michelle and Lavinia fell in love within weeks and had sex within the same time frame. That’s not slow.

Yes, I know this is the first of a series and I’d like to give the next one a read but so much more foundation could have been laid or at least more background for our MCs.

This wasn’t an unpleasant read or anything like that. I enjoyed it. I even liked that the sex was all implied. It didn’t feel like it should have been more explicit since the story was about catching a rogue vampire. I mean, yes, we did get some background on the history between witches and vampires, but I guess I just wanted more. I suppose I’ll have to wait until spring of 2026 to see how the next one turns out.

Big thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read a new-to-me-author!



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