Just meh for me. I wanted to love it but thw main character was beyond annoying. 

Ok I’ll start off by saying I ate this book up. The writing is kinda bad and the author’s choices took me out of it from time to time, but I found myself really wanting to know what happened, which I think is what’s important. I’ve read tons of well-written books that I did not care about. 

It’s choppy and jarring sometimes, the way the characters interact with each other is really inconsistent. Also the constant mentioning of how tiny the FMC is got super annoying, but that’s a personal problem. 

I didn’t go into this knowing it was YA, so I was wanting more from the romance that I was never going to get. Now that I know it’s YA it’s fine but I was definitely frustrated at the end. That said, I loved the characters and would prolly read more if there was more.

💬: N/A

📖Genres: historical fiction, vampires, romance, historical

📚Page Count: 368

🎧Audiobook Length: 11:06 

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️ - 2/5

The Dangerous Ones takes place during the civil war, where vampires are working with the confederates to continue enslaving Black folks. Jerusalem is a Saint and Satins have demi god strength and power and they use it to fight vampires. She is a former slave who fought against her slave master and killed him resulting in what she believes to be her whole family being slaughtered. Jerusalem gets word that her brother might be alive so now she's searching for the vampires from her past because they might have him. Alexi is a 300 year only vampire working with Jerusalem, a group of Saints, and the union to fight against the confederates. This definitely reminded me of Ring Shout but I don't think "The Dangerous Ones" reaches it's full potential. 

There were a few problems with this story; including confusing time jumps and flashbacks, to misplaced romantic banter, little to no world building and character development, and one dimensional characters. The time jumps were continuously confusing, I don't think they were very helpful in terms of story telling, they actually seemed to detract from the main story. I know that love is supposed to be part of the plot but it really felt like it didn't fit right in the story. It felt like I was reading two different stories, one where the main characters were in an enemy to lovers romance and one where there's action and the civil war with death and vampires. The two genres didn't really mesh well.

Overall, the audiobook narration was okay but, the pacing felt off, the flashbacks were more confusing than anything, the characters were one dimensional, there was little to no character building, the romance didn't really work in this story,  little to no world building, and the author used current and modern language instead of historical language from the times (seeing as this is a historical novel). I'm giving this 2 stars out of 5.
⭐️⭐️ - 2/5 Stars

Thank you [NetGalley.com], Lauren Blackwood (the author), and Macmillan Audio (the publisher) for the arc audiobook (advanced reader's copy.)

The premise of The Dangerous Ones is an intriguing one: in the midst of the Civil War, a young Black woman named Jerusalem has spent a year working alongside Ancient Vampire Alexei and their other allies known as “Saints,” against the Confederate Army. Mentioned in the papers as “The Demon Saint,” Jerusalem possess remarkable reflexes and strength akin to a demigod, a powerful spear that she utilizes to dispatch her enemies and a desire for vengeance against the monstrous vampire who enslaved and murdered her family. 

Told from the perspectives of Jerusalem and Alexei and shifting between both of their pasts and their presents, The Dangerous Ones does a great job at presenting their motivations and depicting the depths of their emotions. Given the nature of the setting and the histories of the characters, there are moments of brutality and abuse depicted and the content warnings in the beginning of the audiobook should be given proper consideration. 

The narrations from Angel Pean and Jay Ben Markson are captivating and they do an excellent job at infusing Jerusalem and Alexei-as well as the other characters-with the believable anguish, vulnerability, teasing and menace that reflects the novel’s writing. Jerusalem is headstrong and fearless in the face of adversity, but more uncertain when when navigating her complicated feelings towards Alexei and while Alexei is charming and steadfast in his adoration of Jerusalem, his carefully hidden fear relating to his own past trauma is also understandable. 

In regards to aspects of The Dangerous Ones that I was not as fond of: there are moments when modern dialogue is used and it is jarring in relation to the historical setting. Alexei also refers to Jerusalem by a nickname relating to her diminutive stature excessively, as though the listener may possibly forget that she is very petite.  

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for providing access to this audiobook. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Thank you Wednesday Books and NetGalley for this gifted review copy!

A compelling reinterpretation of traditional vampire lore set against the backdrop of the American Civil War. The narrative explores dark themes and depicts the cruel torments people can inflict upon each other. The central characters, Alexei and Jerusalem, share a deep bond forged through shared trials, providing an emotional depth to the story. The book stands as a testament to human endurance, the power of love, and the spirit that allows us to rise above our circumstances.

This book is told from dual points of view; some chapters are from Jerusalem and others are from Alexei. Something I found a little jarring is that the chapters would start as one POV and shift to another throughout the chapter. The author does indicate when the shift is happening, but I just prefer it when POV shifts happen with chapter changes. In addition, part of this book is told through flashbacks. I thought the flashbacks were a little messy. For the most part, I thought that Jerusalem's time enslaved and Alexei's time being tortured could have been better told either as separate chapters interspersed throughout the novel or in order at the beginning of the book.

I really loved the magical realism of this book; the writing style reminded me a lot of Dread Nation by Justina Ireland. Jerusalem is a fierce main character and Alexei was just kind of okay. I felt like there was not enough between them to really warrant a love story. Almost all of their conversations are surface level, and that's just not enough for me. I think the language used in the book was also just a little too modern. I do like a good revenge story, and I enjoyed reading this book.

This was a fast read for me and had some really interesting elements, but for me, it was a little jumbled and just an okay read.

Thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

In a world where vampires exist and some humans have special powers that make them Saints, an epic confrontation takes place against the backdrop of the US Civil War. Jerusalem is a Saint and an escaped slave from a plantation run by equally horrible humans and vampires. Alexei is a vampire, but he fights on the side of the Union. They must work together to defeat the South and the vampire that they both have history with.

Vampires in the civil war is a great concept. The author instills this book with her trademark banter between love interests and antagonism that yields to something deeper. Fair warning if you are a historical purist—while the author has clearly done her research, in tone the story owes much more to urban fantasy than historical fiction. Sometimes that annoys me, but as I’ve read her other books, I expected more of that voice from the characters. I think it best to think of THE DANGEROUS ONES as a paranormal/urban fantasy set in the past rather than historical fiction with supernatural elements.

But I mean, Jerusalem fights with a spear. That’s pretty neat.

CWs for lots of language, and slavery and death and blood, and more things that have slipped my mind, but the author has a list on goodreads and her website.

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for this ARC. The Dangerous Ones comes out May 14, 2024.