Reviewed by Tara
TITLE: Blood in the Water
SERIES: An Act of Piracy # 1
AUTHOR: Tami Veldura
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 101 pages
BLURB: Kyros Vindex, treasure-hunter, has a problem. He’s carrying a torch for a fellow pirate with the sexual awareness of a teaspoon. Rumors say the man has killed hundreds. He’s determined to knock some sense into the work-a-holic that captains the Midnight Sun, but damned if he knows how.
Eric Deumont has more pressing concerns than the treasure-obsessed Kyros. There’s a creature inked into his chest that no witch in the seas will lay hands on for all the gold in the world. He knows it gives the Midnight Sun a cursed reputation and that doesn’t make living any easier. He has heard stories of spirits trapped for lifetimes inside spelled puzzle jars. Eric tracked down three of the pieces for such a jar with a lead number four. The fifth is still out there.
Even then, the spirit of vengeance that lives in Eric’s skin has no intention of giving up such easy access to the mortal realm. It craves blood and the light of the moon allows it to wreak unchecked havoc. Cursed is an insult. This is madness.
REVIEW: This was an interesting tale. No cutting corners this is a book about what I imagined pirate life would have been like would a huge splash of fantasy thrown in. Kyros Vindex has a huge crush on fellow pirate of the seas Eric Deumont. Kyros has gone out of his way to make Eric notice him but so far he has failed. Eric brushes him off like a gnat. But Kyros won’t give up and continues to follow Eric around. Eric Deumont has way more to worry about than a guy with a crush. After an unfortunate incident when he opened something he wasn’t supposed to, Eric now has a murderous spirit etched in his chest named Ghalil. The spirit is hungry for blood, and when the light of the moon hits his chest, Ghalil tears free and wreaks havoc. Eric is tired of being ruled by the spirit and is tracking down a jar that can remove it from his chest. He has the three pieces and is on his way for the fourth. Unfortunately for him Kyros stumbles upon what he is doing, and in an effort to win Eric’s attention he puts himself right in the middle of his quest. Eric finds himself giving in to Kryos actions, and gets more than he thought he was looking for.
I was pleasantly surprised by how good Blood in the Water was. When I think of what life at sea must’ve been like, this book definitely fit. I loved the fantasy elements in it. You have a demon spirit, two handsome pirates and their crew, and an epic treasure hunting quest. There are of course twists and turns and a bit of sad ending to the tale. Kyros was quite funny to me. He was a treasure hunter and his oldest friend/ quartermaster Araceli accompanied him on his many forays of following Eric. He would not let go of his feelings for Eric and was willing to do everything in his power to get his ultimate prize. Eric you just feel bad for. He opened something he stole and got Ghalil as a tattooed prize on his chest. Since had the spirit on his chest he basically put everything else aside and just focused on getting it out of him. He wasn’t planning on falling for Kyros but it happened. They were definitely made for each other and the sex was hot between them. I would classify this as a HFN kind of book. There are a lot of things left open and I hope that the author is making a second book very soon. This is worth a read for sure especially if you looking for something a bit different or you are into fantasy like I am.
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