Not for me, unfortunately. 2.5 stars.

For the most part, a quick and easy read, but the writing and characters are kinda shallow and underdeveloped. It felt like there was an interesting premise somewhere in there, but the straggling plotlines and relationships buried it.

The style of prose was too casual, too online, for my liking, but I'm sure it would work for some people.

3.5*

We‘re on vacation!

This was a fun little novella filled with weirdness, lust and beautiful writing.

The characters were mostly well fleshed out, i just feel like it could’ve been more. Heaven and Rebekah are well written. You could really feel inside Rebekahs mind and feelings. However, Hughs character should’ve been more thought out. The plot could’ve also been a bit more. There were some parts left unexplored that could’ve still been written without erasing the mysterious feel that i think we were supposed to be left with.

This is my first read and review for NetGalley, I had no idea what to expect when I started reading this, but I absolutely devoured this book. It was queer, vampires and smut? I found it be something very unique. Although, I predicted a couple of things, the details and the way it all turned out did surprise me! I will definitely be recommending this book to people when it gets published!

This book was too fast paced for me to really enjoy, and the smutty parts were almost too fade to black. Could definitely use more fleshing out as a story.

Rating 1.5 rounded up.

When I first read the premise I was excited about this read. I do enjoy a good vampire story. But right out of the gate I realized that this was just not for me. The story is well written its just not what I thought it would be. If you are more into contemporary versions of vampire stories then you may enjoy this. I never really feel any attachment to our married couple Rebekah and Hugh. There is nothing about them that I can become emotionally attached to so I found myself loosing interest. Overall the story just gave me a party club kind of vibe and that is not what I am looking for in a vampire story.

1.5🌟

An utter disappointment, which is such a shame because I was so excited for it. It wasnt horror and it wasn't funny. All the characters were thoroughly dislikeable and where was the lore behind any of the creatures? By the time anything of interest actually happened, I didn't care. The only positive thing was the queer representation. Disliking a vampire novel hurts me to my core.

Please just call this what it was: smut with a tiny bit of plot.

This book was decidedly not for me.

As a reader, we all have preferences. Mine is and has always been third person narration—but some of my favorite books are first person, and I have liked discovering them as much as I have loved re-reading them at times.
What poses a recurring problem to me with first person narration is typically what happens with this novel. I feel like the narration is overly simplified, the thoughts of the main character a little too intrusive at times because of the style that’s been chosen for a novel that would in any other circumstances have much a deeper tone than the one that’s used there. This is, however, a personal preference, and i do recognize that.

When it comes to the story itself, I found it a little.. clinical, if that makes sense? The writing made it very factual; but there was little for me as a reader to work with when it comes to beginning to like a character. We barely learn about our main couple before we’re thrown into their relationship and are supposed to care about them drifting apart. “I don’t have to show him what i’m wearing, he already knows” (p. 18) is a good example of that.
The reader is supposed to know and care about those two’s relationship because it is described as such, not because we know anything much about them—and throughout the pages, we’re not given much more to play with.

The story itself is confusing at times (what’s with the war? What war? Where?) and many scenes felt like they were not finished before we moved on to another one, making it hard to follow those characters around on the ship. The very title of the book is about the only explanation we will get about them being vampires—it does not really weight into the story itself, and I couldn’t really find it in myself to find a reasoning behind them being inhuman save for the recognition of another magical being.

I did not connect with the story, neither did I connect with the characters. Maybe this story simply wasn’t for me!

2 ⭐️

The copy I read seemed very unfinished. At first, I thought the writing was not my cup of tea, but I fear that the writing is just not where it needs to be for someone to read it. The first section spits out information at you for the sake of spitting out information, and some attempts are very clumsy. The narrator's thinking is alllll over the place in a way that is not intentional, even though it's clear that the author is trying to create one of those unhinged female characters that work well for other authors. The narrator talks to the general "you" but then immediately jumps into talking about characters in the story as if they were the same person. The husband speaks entirely in Spanish the first two times he talks to the narrator, and then only when he calls her pet names. Both the story and the writing need more development.

So were they vampires? I still don’t know after 200 pages. What I do know is that Rebekah and Heaven were both insufferable- “I’M hOT sO nOtICE MEEeee!”

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley
for the eARC.

Vampires at Sea invites readers to join Rebekah and Hugh aboard a queer cruise ship.

Told through the hilarious perspective of Rebekah, we follow her and her husband Hugh on their 14 day vacation.

The only thing is, they are vampires.

They felt reminiscent of Nadja and Laszlo from What We Do in the Shadows, Rebekah’s witty comments specifically. She is narcissistic and I loved her.

A couple of days into the cruise they meet Heaven, a non-binary influencer, Rebekah is both fascinated and wary of them as Rebekah suspects that Heaven may be something otherworldly.

If smut, comedy and vampires is your thing, Vampires at Sea is the perfect combination.

I was promised a messy, sexy romp and I got exactly what I wanted! Rebekah was a horrible, excellent, supremely fun character to get into the head of. Probably not for people who don't enjoy reading about terrible people doing terrible things and experiencing terrible things being done to them in turn, but I certainly enjoyed it! A lot of fun and a bit more heart than I was expecting.

Thank you to Netgalley and Creature Publishing for this advance copy!

Look, I wanted to love this. Emotional vampires on a chaotic queer cruise? Count me in. But in the end, I think this one just wasn’t for me.

The writing style? Genuinely unique and fun—kind of like if your favorite sardonic friend narrated your vacation but made it horror and horny. I actually really liked the voice of the book; it had flair and personality. But plot-wise? It felt like someone tried to cram a whole buffet of weird and wonderful ideas into a tiny appetizer plate. Under 200 pages just wasn’t enough time to really build the tension or give the story some bite. (Pun absolutely intended.)

I didn’t hate it! It was a solid little palate cleanser between heavier reads, and sometimes that’s all you need. But it didn’t sink its fangs into me the way I hoped. Still, if you like smut, satire, and ships (literal and relationship), it might be your thing.

Just not mine—and that’s okay. Not every vampire gets invited in.

In the beginning I was confused on what was going on, but once it clicked it was a good vibe! It’s a quick, vibrant and fun read about queer vampires on a cruise and I liked how the main character Rebekah got challenged in her own ways (and she cracked me up).

The ending felt a bit rushed and disappointing to me, could have expended it a bit more. Overall it was still a fun read and definitely a recommendation for people who like the serie What we do in the shadows.

The writing style worked well for me and I liked how the chapters were split into each day.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an arc for an honest review

This is a quick and fun read about a vampire couple at sea. I enjoyed their relationship with all of its intricacies. This would've worked better as a longer novel in my opinion, but this size makes for a quick binge read.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“Vampires at Sea” is a campy, queer, and smutty horror novella that centers the immortal lovers in an open relationship-Rebekah and Hugh- that go on all inclusive queer cruise. They’re there to feed and fuck. Things go left when the non-binary influencer Heaven, who was supposed to be just a threesome partner, begins to alienate Hugh from Rebekah.

It’s a weird little novella that has a specific little niche of people who would absolutely love it. I do not think I am in that niche, however, I still thought that it was an interesting little read. I liked the take on emotion vampires and shapeshifters. The characters are both narcissistic yet insecure, the narrator is snarky and sharp with her humor. The horror element came at 60% into the novella. While I really enjoyed the style of writing, there were things that never got resolved or were never brought up again when it seemed like it was going to. It just kinda left me with questions (the war???). I did enjoy this novella, but I do think that it suffered from pacing issues.

This is a modern twist to vampires. The writing to this is immaculate, you can feel the character spiraling towards the end. There is lots of different sex scenes in here, talks of death, suicide, and war.
Thank you to Netgalley and Lindsay Merbaum for allowing me to read this early.

3.25/5
Thank you to NetGalley and Creature Publishing for an arc. All opinions are my own.
This book is very strange and very queer, and I love those things. However, this book didn’t really land for me. I thought the characters and plot were good, but not great. I feel like this could have been a short story instead of a novella and it would have been a lot more punchy.

This was a sour-sweet cocktail, a siren's lullaby, a dark and lingering mist, of queer joy. I felt engulfed from beginning to end. My only note would be that it's a specific taste and I'd recommend it only to my most ~specific~ friends...the best ones. One of those wonderful stories that changes my internal monologue to that of the main character for days after. Put simply- Devoured.

This book needs a lot of work. I really didn't enjoy it.
I applaud the gender neutrality of this story, but the writing is not very good, and I couldn't get into it.
The sex in this book is supposed to sound like a good time, and I found all the scenes to be pretty blah in description.
Too much sex with too little description I suppose. Shallow characters who don't have anything interesting or worthwhile to say.
Huge pass. Sorry y'all.

3.5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC for review purposes.

Taking clear inspiration from What We Do in the Shadows, Vampires at Sea features two emotional vampires embarking on a cruise that their long, long, long term relationship may not survive. When Hugh starts showing favour to a non-binary influencer, Rebekah begins to wonder if there is something more magical happening at sea.

Starting with the positives, this book has a very strong concept, supported by an enjoyable writing style. I am sure this book will enchant a certain audience that unfortunately I am not apart of. The characters are simultaneously narcissistic yet insecure in a way that I found uncomfortable to read from. I enjoy an unhinged character, but not when their actions are motivated by relationship drama, which was the driving part of this plot. While we follow the characters at sea, the book hints at something happening on land that I think would have been a more interesting plot line to follow.

A well-executed book, but not the tropes/stories I enjoy. It may find its fans among those who enjoy toxic relationship dynamics ala Laszlo and Nadja from WWDITS.