A Cruel Thirst is a historical fantasy novel about a newly turned vampire who falls in love with the daughter of a family of vampire hunters.

Lalo is determined to destroy the vampire who killed his parents, but he underestimates her power and is turned into one himself. Horrified by what he has become and racing against time before succumbing to the thirst, he travels to northern Mexico, where he believes the monsters originated. However, his plan to lay low and research their source is disrupted by a beautiful young woman, Carolina, who dreams of joining the men in her family to fight the vampires that have plagued them for generations. Reluctantly, she agrees to help Lalo with his scheme to kill the first vampire and wipe out the entire bloodline before it’s too late.

This book fell a little flat for me. There wasn’t anything particularly adult about it, and it could have easily fit into the young adult section. Although the cover suggests there will be a lot of tension and chemistry, there wasn’t much of that on the page. The couple shares sweet moments and fun banter, but that’s about it. In terms of action and thrills, the violence is limited to a few vampire battle scenes, which weren’t very exciting.

I also found Carolina inconsistent in her skills. I was hoping for a strong, dynamic main character, but instead, I got another beautiful young woman whose family just wants her to stay safe and get married. I didn’t feel like this book brought anything new or exciting to the genre.

🎧 Audiobook Notes:

The audiobook was narrated by Diana Bustelo and Gary Tiedmann, who do an excellent job voicing Carolina and Lalo.

An advanced copy of A Cruel Thirst was provided by PRH Audio for review purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.