Reviewed by Dan

TITLE: More Than This

SERIES: California Obscura Series

AUTHOR: Alexa Land

PUBLISHER: Self-Published

LENGTH: 212 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  October 24, 2019

BLURB:

So, apparently I’m a warlock.

That’s what I’ve been told by a mysterious stranger who broke into my home and claims to be a vampire. He also says my powers are going to activate in two weeks, on my twenty-fifth birthday. Oh, and by the way, that just might set me off like a nuclear bomb. Since something inside me is starting to build to almost unbearable levels, he might be right about that. He also says he’s willing to help me, as long as I do a favor for him in return.

But can I trust him?

And why does this have to be happening now, right after I met the man of my dreams? Ari Bloom is everything I’ve ever wanted, and there’s no way I can tell him about any of this while we’re just getting to know each other. What would I even say? Oh hey, turns out magic is real, I might be the most powerful warlock on the planet, and there’s a chance I could go supernova in a few days.

Yeah, I don’t think so.

My name is Griffin Vale, and this is what I have to do: survive my birthday, help a vampire in need, and keep pretending everything is perfectly normal for Ari’s sake, even as my world starts spiraling wildly out of control around us.

Piece of cake, right?

This light-hearted, M/M paranormal romance is part of Alexa Land’s California Obscura Series. It features an inept warlock, a sweet cinnamon roll of a barista, an annoyed bulldog, and an assortment of vampires. While characters throughout the series make cameo appearances, each book is written as a stand-alone.

REVIEW:

Anyone who has followed my reviews will know that I LOVE me some Alexa Land. This woman can write, and I love all her characters. While I love all her books and locales, I’ve always said that the books Feral and The Tinder Chronicles were my favorite books by her. They are set in a world just slightly different from ours. One where magic is real, and there are vampires, werewolves, and other supernatural beings. Now we finally got another book in that world!

More Than This is billed in the blurb above as a standalone, but I wouldn’t recommend it that way. Start with Feral, the story of how a lonely young man ended up falling love with a vampire. Then move on to The Tinder Chronicles, where we meet the next couple… this time a vampire hunter and another vampire. Then you can move on to More Than This. The only reason I say that is because the characters play rolls in the next books as they go along. Nate and Nick from Feral are important side characters in The Tinder Chronicles and they, as well as Tinder and August from that second book all appear in this third book. August, in particular, has a fairly large roll in this one, so follow my advice and binge read all three, back to back. Trust me you won’t be sorry and think of it this way… the story is even longer!

So now that I’ve given you some background, and my opinions, let’s talk about this new book. In More Than This, Ms. Land takes us back to her alternate world as I mentioned above. This time we meet this quirky young man named Griffin who has been raised by his aunt, a formerly famous movie star, who raised him in virtual seclusion, home schooling him and hiding him away from world. We learn along the way that Griffin has some sort of power that causes him to build up an electrical charge that he has been going out into the desert to discharge on a regular basis for years. The aunt has passed away, but Griffin still lives in her house, which is now his along with the rest of her estate. My favorite part, he drives her car, a purple 1959 Cadillac convertible.

But I digress. Sorry, I love 59 Cadillacs as well… did you see those tail fins? I believe they were the biggest ever put on a production automobile….

Back to the story. Griffin sleeps in the library of his aunt’s former home. How cool a bedroom would that be? His bed is tucked away in the turret of the old Victorian style home, surrounded by books. My kind of room.

Griffin is lonely though. He has his trusty dog Fig by his side. Fig is a very odd sort of bulldog. One that enjoys sitting in front of the television, seemingly watching those Spanish language soap operas, and he also wears goggles when riding in the car. He has also been with Griffin since Griffin came to live with his aunt. An oddly long lifespan for a bulldog.

When Griffin goes to his favorite coffee shop one day, he drops all his writing notes and everything else he has with him onto the floor, and a very cute young man comes over to help him pick them up. The young man, Ari, turns out to be very interested in Griffin’s writing and they spend some time putting Griffin’s notes, etc. back into order. When Griffin leaves the shop, the young man chases him out with a folded napkin. Griffin, the adorable geek, thinks he must have something on his face, so he uses the napkin to wipe his mouth and then puts it in his pocket. It is only later when Fig the dog picks up the note and brings it to him that he realizes the young man has written his number on the paper. Griffin is a virgin. He has no experience with men, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t want any. He nervously calls Ari and they plan a meet up.

But then a man shows up in Griffin’s house when Griffin gets home the next day. The man professes to be a vampire… like those are even real Griffin thinks as he humors him… and then he tells Griffin he is a warlock. Griffin assumes the man is delusional at first, but it isn’t long before he finds that the man, August, was telling the entire truth. And there is more. If Griffin can’t get his magic under control, he will literally explode on his upcoming twenty-fifth birthday when he comes into his full powers.

But where can Ari fit in if Griffin is unwilling to tell him about the danger?

I loved this story. I loved Griffin and Ari, I loved that August and Tinder played parts and I liked that the other characters I’ve gotten to love in the series were also around.  The story was a light-hearted romp which pulled me and made me stay up until 2AM finishing the book. I didn’t want to… I wanted to keep some for this morning… it didn’t work.  I kind of hate Ms. Land. Her stories always do that to me. I always want MORE! I will say that I was very happy with the last couple paragraphs. I was afraid something wouldn’t happen and was a little sad about it, but then Ms. Land turned right around and left me happy! And best of all, thankfully it says at the end of the story that there is more to come in another upcoming book. This time it will be the further adventures of Fig (No spoilers there).

I very highly recommend this book, as well as virtually everything this woman has ever written. If you haven’t read her books, you should have. Get reading!

RATING:

BUY LINK: 

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