Vamps: Fresh Blood by Nicole Arend.
Welcome to VAMPS, an elite academy in the Swiss Alps for the children of the wealthiest and most powerful vampire families. Dillon is an outsider, a dhampir – half vampire, half human – sent to VAMPS to learn to nurture his vampire side. Thrown in at the deep end, he must embrace his fangs if he is to survive. But blood never lies and there is something special in Dillon’s veins that the others do not have. And as his power grows, so does the target on his back . . .
A really good read. Great story and characters. Well written . 4*.

There's a lot of potential and I liked the idea and the blurb. The book didn't met my expectations and found it a sort middle grade.
I wasn't a fun of characters even if there's good ideas.
Not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

What I Liked

Some of the characters were interesting, and I wanted to know more about Dillon and his background.

The setting was also intriguing, but once again had vampires living in their own little world separate but not quite from the humans.

The plot, while basic, was interesting enough for me to keep reading. Would I enjoy reading the next one? Probably not. Would I like to just to see where the author takes this? Kind of 😅

What I Didn’t Like

None of the characters except Dillon had any depth or development. I wanted to slap Cora 90% of the time, and Celeste 100% of the time! Bram drew the short straw as the “antagonist” and was one of the only other characters I actually liked… then again, he was one of the few other characters to actually have a back story and some minute development.

The novel read like a middle grade/young YA book, but the characters were all 18 or over and there was semi-explicit sex? It was all very confusing

Other Impressions

Overall it felt very 2D and shallow. The characters had minimal to no depth, there was no chemistry between Dillon and Cora (or anyone to be honest), and the reveal of Dillon’s vampire mother was entirely unsurprising yet stilted. The writing style is very juvenile.

This book had a rocky start, and never really recovered. The premise is exciting - a Vampire school, something that often leads to excellent (if not particularly high brow) books. However, too many characters are introduced with no distinctive traits in a very short amount of time and zero world building. That makes the first few chapters very hard to follow and I didn't manage to get into it properly after that!

Thank you to the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I don’t know what I was expecting going into this one, maybe something light and entertaining. I can confirm that this book delivered, and I will be waiting impatiently for the continuation of the story. If I had to give you a comparison I would say it is somewhere between Harry Potter and Twilight, as in we follow a teenager who knows nothing of his true origins, mainly the identity of his mother, and is thrust into a ‘magical’ school for elite vampires. He learns he is special in many ways and the fun begins.

I mean, nothing new and ground-breaking, but I had a great time reading this story, and would recommend it if you are into young adult fantasy with a chosen one trope, and a bit of competition, betrayal and romance.

In darkness we shine…

Located in the Swiss Alps stands VAMPS, an elite academy for the children of the wealthiest and most powerful vampire families. Dillon is a dhampir; half human, half vampire. He’s sent to VAMPS to nurture his vampire side but is treated from the very first second he arrives there as an outsider. There’s something special in Dillon’s blood and everyone wants a taste. The more his power grows, the bigger the target on his back…

The plot grabbed my attention immediately. Think Hogwarts for vampires and you’re on the right track. Moody, rich, spoilt brats with killer looks, superhuman strength and abilities- it’s the recipe for the most drama-filled school! If you’re a fan of Vampire Diaries and Twilight, I think this book will interest you.

The start of the book introduces you with break-neck speed to the many characters of the story. Dillon is a lost soul at the academy and struggles to find his place in this new strange world of vampires. He’s Irish and comes out with some fantastically Irish statements and phrases so kudos to the author for those!

Fast-paced, plenty of sub-plots to keep the reader entertained, I enjoyed it. Some of the twists were pretty obvious and I guessed who Dillon’s mum was early on but it was a quick, easy read and I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Vamps is out the 5th of October. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for the arc.

I really wanted to love this book but unfortunately it was just okay. The concept of the story was what really drew me in but I think the writing was too immature for me which meant I couldnt connect to the characters.

Thank you to Netgalley as well as Simon & Schuster publishing for allowing me to review this ARC.
All thoughts & opinions are completely my own.

🩸Vamps: Fresh Blood 🩸

Vamps is a prestigious school in the Swiss Alps where all the vampire elite go to school to learn there vampire skills..

Dillion is a dhampire, half human half vampire, he’s sent to Vamps by his father where he learns that’s he’s a vampire.

While Dillion and the group of Vampire elites try to complete different challenges they find out that Dillion has special blood, which makes him a target. Can he trust his new friends?

I felt initially at the start of the book it was very rushed, as there is a lot of characters to be introduced, but once you get passed that the story becomes fast paced, with interesting sub plots. It was a nice easy read, a great YA book. If you like the twilight series and The vampire diaries you will enjoy this.

4/5 ⭐️

Thank you Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for considering me to review this book. All opinions are my

🩸🧛‍♀️ Vamps: Fresh Blood by Nicole Arend 🧛‍♀️🩸

I was really expecting to to love this! It has all the elements I like - vampires, dark academia - but sadly I just couldn’t connect with the prose. The character descriptions seemed very simplistic and generic.

But that’s just me! I am sure a lot of people would love this.

When Dillon is sent by his father to an elite vampire academy in the Swiss Alps, he knows he will not fit in. First of all, he is only a dhampir— half vampire, half human. Secondly, all the other students at VAMPS come from ancient, respected, wealthy vampire families. Moreover, during a traditional ceremony, he discovers that his blood has unique properties, uncommon for vampires...⁠
⁠
VAMPS reminded me of teenage TV dramas about rich and spoiled kids. I believe we all have seen some of that. A kid gets a scholarship to attend an academy, where he becomes an outsider, observing the rivalry between his peers. He is disregarded by some and supported by others. The only added feature is the supernatural, the existence of vampires. I found this novel quite schematic. There are some original ideas and intended plot twists, but nothing surprised me in this book. Even the social scene within the VAMPS walls reminded me of other stories for teenagers, as all the students looked for friendship and love.

Really enjoyed this book a nice easy read. Great YA book and it felt like Harry Potter but with Vampires, I liked Dillion as a Character and loved the world building. How the booked ended made me feel like this will be a series so I look forward to more from this world. Thank you for this Arc
I gave the is book 4 stars.

4.5*
VAMPS follows Dillon - a dhampir - through learning about his vampiric abilities and how to control them, whilst attending a prestigious academy.

The book started off slow, with the initial trope of rich privileged teens turning their nose up at someone who isn't from their world. I felt that the initial introductions to the characters was rushed and rather confusing (it took me till halfway in to realise that Asta was related to Aron and not Angelo and was not in fact performing blatant incestuous acts *facepalm moment*).

With this said, the story became very fast-paced and easy to read, the more we learnt about Dillon and his power, the more he bonded with his classmates was an adventure I couldn't detract myself from. This is definitely aimed towards the Young Adult audience, perhaps more so those that don't mind a book that borders on erotic at least once a chapter.

The love triangle was great for the plot points it developed, but I don't believe it was entirely necessary, and I'm 100% team Sade. I really hope we get to see more of this in a sequel.

And without spoiling the entire book - I had guessed early on about who Dillon's mother would end up being revealed as, whilst my guess was incorrect - the book definitely lead you to that assumption and it was a great twist at the end to find out - I really cannot wait to read more.

Thankyou NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for considering me to review this book. All opinions are my own, I swear by the sacred rock.

A good romp! Most likely best for younger YA readers as it suffers from shallow characters and plot twists you can spot a mile off, but fun nevertheless!

3.5⭐️
Great concept, I felt like this would have been Harry Potter if he was a Vampire rather than a Wizard going off to vamp school!
The ending was really good and I think the story develop really well!
The main character is likeable and you want to find out what happens next for him. The chosen one troupe is done well.
Thank you for the ARC.

Review added to goodreads.

I am probably too old for this book, I felt it was aimed at a younger market. I didn't really connect with the style of writing, or the characters. Sorry.

I found Vamps to be a fun read and I enjoyed the way it made good use of tropes in YA fiction . Little bit spicy for younger teenagers but nothing too graphic and I didn't want to put it down once I started reading, it was so entertaining. Good underlying themes of being yourself, teamwork and friendship with plenty of drama liberally sprinkled in.

I liked this book, it was great fun nothing too serious. I felt like the author knew her stuff and I would love to read the next in the series.

I went into this book without any expectations and I liked it. Obviously it wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read and maybe better for a younger generation but nonetheless I enjoyed reading it. It was a quick and fast read. I’d recommend it especially when you’re in a reading slump or inbetween other books.

I’d give it 3 1/2 stars

I loved this book and read it in one sitting. It is well written with a gripping storyline and well developed characters that I loved. The world building was also amazing.

I didn't enjoy Vamps: Fresh Blood as much as I had hoped. I didn't mind the writing style, but the story itself did not grab my attention