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Gypsy’s Blood (All the Pretty Monsters – Book 1)

by Kristy Cunning
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

slow/medium burn rh, urban fantasy

Available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited

Down and Dirty

READ IT!

What is it about?

When Violet’s mother died, she left her everything – including a Gypsy supply shop in a mysterious town with four rich, yet equally mysterious, client families. Knowing that her mother would never willingly put her in danger, Violet takes it as a sign and moves in, setting up shop, establishing customer lines and generally trying to avoid the truth of her bloodlines… and what she is running from.

Unfortunately, Violet is far from a normal girl in a normal town. Instead of peace and quiet, she soon finds her newly acquired BFF, a ghost, fading and the affluent not to mention handsome clients she is supposed to provide for, privy to secrets no one should know. After all, no good Gypsy wants that much attention… and Portocale Gypsy least of all.

Thoughts

I’ve heard about this book in book group after group book I am part of… yet I held off reading it since the second book wasn’t out yet. Now that it is, and since it ALSO keeps popping up in my recommendations on kindle, I took a chance and jumped on the bandwagon. Holy Freaking Smokes!! First, it’s hilarious. Second, it’s complex. Third, I still don’t even know what’s going on!!! 🤩😂 I’m in love.

Violet is a Portocale Gypsy in hiding in plain sight, tweaking her identity just enough in order to claim her dead mother as her dead aunt instead – and resolutely denying any Gypsy blood at all. Being a Gypsy isn’t a bad thing, but being a Portocale Gypsy, one of the most powerful families in the Gypsy world, can be a very dangerous thing… and Violet is tired of running from danger. Yet all good plans must go awry, and Violet’s don’t survive 24hrs in her new hometown of Shadow Hills. Not only is she suddenly surrounded by three very large, powerful and imposing men, but they seem to know more about her than she does!

The mystery of this book slaps you in the prologue and continues to wrap around you all the way to the cliffhanger (!!!!!) end. Who is Violet, really? More to the point… WHAT is she? It’s a conundrum, and beautifully done – drawing out the allure of the story as the plot slowly builds.

Perspective

First Person, Multiple POV

Ending Type

Cliffhanger

Pros:

• Rich world building that alludes more than it explains.
• Characters! Seriously, I don’t know who is my favorite! Oh, who am I kidding? it’s Anna.
• The mystery of the town, the alphas and the gypsy’s are paramount, with lore reworked to fit and stabilize the narrative.
• Violet: we know who she is, and we ALMOST know what she is, or rather, SOME of what she is capable of.
• Fantastic editing.
• Flows well from scene to scene without overburdening the text or conversations.

Cons:

• Cliffhanger!
• You end with more questions than answers.

Favorite Line

Maybe their parents didn’t love them enough and it made them stabby? (1%)

Verdict

This book exceeded all my expectations and then some. I would highly recommend that you either read it now, or put it on your TBR list.

Published: December 14th, 2018

294 Pages 

If you enjoyed this review, please be sure to check out a few of my other articles!

• The Wayward Sons: Starlee’s Heart by Angel Lawson – A Book Review
• Ivory’s Familiars by Montana Ash – A Book Review
• What do my Star Ratings Mean?

Your Turn

What are you reading today? What new and fantastic books have you discovered so far this year? Leave a comment, throw me a message – let’s talk!!!