Novel Review: Bitter Blood (Morganville Vampires, #13) by Rachel Caine

Genre: YA Paranormal/Supernatural Romance

Rating (Out of 5): ~4.5

Publisher: Penguin (New American Library)

Spoilers?: Yes to previous books, somewhat minor/hints to this book.

Goodreads Synopsis:

For years, the human and vampire residents of Morganville, Texas, have managed to co-exist in peace. But now that the threat to the vampires has been defeated, the human residents are learning that the gravest danger they face is the enemy within…

Thanks to the eradication of the parasitic creatures known as the draug, the vampires of Morganville have been freed of their usual constraints. With the vampires indulging their every whim, the town’s human population is determined to hold on to their lives by taking up arms. But college student Claire Danvers isn’t about to take sides, considering she has ties to both the humans and the vampires.

To make matters worse, a television show comes to Morganville looking for ghosts, just as vampire and human politics collide. Now, Claire and her friends have to figure out how to keep the peace without ending up on the nightly news… or worse.

Available on Amazon.

Review:

I love this series. I have said this so many times, but I love this series, you guys. I love it.

And I know that it’s going to have to end at some point, and that it’s probably, or should be, getting close to that point, but I still just never want it to end. I love every (well, most?) book(s), and I always want more, and I’m always pleasantly surprised when a new book comes out and it’s just as good as the last one. A huge part of me never wants this series to end, but another part knows that the series is getting bigger in number and it should be happening soon. I’ll probably accept the ending rather well, but want to cry because it’s over.

This book was so good. After the draug plot line in the last book, and Amelie’s almost dying, this one has a bit of politics, because the town needs a new mayor. Hannah Moses, the previous mayor, has gotten kicked out of office, and they need someone else for it. Claire ends up campaigning a rather surprising candidate, with a not-so-surprising rival. But while all this is going on, Amelie is kind of starting to change the rules into a dictatorship against the humans, and there’s something wrong with Amelie, but no one knows what.

The whole vampire/human rivalry is just plain frustrating, and Amelie’s change didn’t really take me by surprise, it more exasperated me, because things like that have happened before. Although the reasoning behind it was a bit of a surprise, and the person behind it all was a tiny bit of a surprise, if only for the fact that I never really paid all that much attention to the character. I loved the resolution for it, though, what Amelie decided to do with the town and to each person involved. Particularly, I loved Claire’s taking a stand. I always love it when Claire sticks up for herself, and sometimes she needs to do it more often, and it always excites me when she does it. She did it to Oliver at one point, along with the bit near the end with Amelie. It was fantastic, I really didn’t see it coming as I didn’t think it would actually happen unless the series was ending or something, but I am super excited for the next book now (as I always am, really).

Some interesting things happened between Eve and Michael, and I'm interested to see what is going to happen with their relationship now, and it was definitely nice to see Michael stick up for their relationship after everything had happened. I'm hoping that maybe Amelie won't be as harsh to them anymore, seeing as what the new rules of the town are. I'm also intrigued by what Amelie did to Oliver, which is a bit sad, but I very much respect and like her decision to keep it all fair.

There was also a fight between Claire and Shane in this book, and it was so good, even if it was a bit illogical. Shane just needs to trust Claire more; I understand why he has a hard time trusting people, but after a certain point, you need to get over that with certain people, and Claire is one of those people. I have a tiny bit of a hard time believing that Shane would buy into what was happening so easily, although he does tend to act very much like a dramaqueen sometimes, but I also am upset that Claire didn’t get mad at him. And it didn’t make sense to me, there wasn’t much continuity with how at first she said sorry and that she’s broken his heart, and yet she told him later that he hurt her and needed to trust her. I think there just wasn’t enough of a change shown to how she was upset and then she was angry, there was a tiny bit where she got frustrated with him, but I don’t think there was enough.

My favorite parts of all these books is when Claire and Shane are together, whether they’re serious or fighting or making out. It’s the best thing, and I love them both so much, whether together or not (presence wise, not relationship wise; they have to be together relationship wise, or I would not be okay). 

I had a bit of a hard time in the last book, and maybe the one before it?, with all the point of view changes, if only because I didn’t enjoy all the other characters as much as Claire, but that was much better in this book. A majority of the book was in Claire’s point of view, which was nice, and there were only a couple of other changes, in order to get in Oliver/Amelie/Michael/Myrnin/Shane’s head, and only when it was necessary to see what was happening with them, which I mostly liked. My favorite point of view is always Claire’s, but I also really enjoy Shane’s, and Myrnin was very fun to be inside the head of as well.

The next book is going to be so good, and I am so excited for it. There’s going to be a rather big change, and I’m looking forward to seeing what Claire is doing and what Shane is doing with her, and to make it all up to her, and I’m hoping to see Claire and Shane visit her parents, and maybe seeing Myrnin calling her often (because he's going to miss her, right?). As well as the troubles that Claire is going to get into. I’m just super excited, and it cannot  get here quick enough.