Reviewed by Jen
TITLE: Claim of Blood
SERIES: Blood Bound #1
AUTHOR: Mira Lafontaine
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 469 pages
RELEASE DATE: July 18, 2025
BLURB:
He was sent to surveil the monster.
He never meant to crave him.
Leo von Rothenburg has always been the obedient son. A hunter from a bloodline older than the Vatican itself, raised to track, report, and destroy. No questions. No hesitation.
Adam Matthews is the prize his family has hunted for centuries: an ancient vampire draped in power, hiding in plain sight behind glass towers and a thousand aliases.
But the moment Adam’s dark gaze meets Leo’s, something inside him shatters. A pull, raw and undeniable, binds them in a connection he thought could never exist.
When Leo’s family suddenly cuts him off and leaves him stranded among their enemies, he doesn’t understand why. All he knows is that the people he trusted most have abandoned him without a word, and he’s alone in a world he was raised to fear, claimed by a creature he was born to kill.
Adam’s possessive touch awakens instincts Leo doesn’t understand—and doesn’t want to. And he isn’t the only one. Lander, a born vampire bound to Adam for centuries, feels the same impossible pull.
No vampire has ever claimed two companions. No hunter has ever survived such a bond. As the solstice approaches, the lines between enemy and lover blur beyond recognition, and Leo must decide what he’s willing to surrender.
His family.
His duty.
Or himself.
Content Warning: Dark MM+ romance with possessive behavior, blood drinking, dubious consent, and explicit content. HEA across the series.
REVIEW:
I always love finding a new paranormal series to sink my teeth into. This story is exactly what I look for – a new world with interesting aspects, characters and storyline. Here, we have Leo, a young man who has been raised to believe vampires are bad and must be eradicated and has been trained his whole life on these principles to hunt them. In this capacity, he is basically pushed by his family into the path of Adam, the oldest, strongest vampire “alive.”
It doesn’t take long before Adam claims Leo and it is thought that they share a blood bond claim, although little is known about the rare phenomenon. Leo feels the pull to Adam and as they get to know more about one another, Leo learns to question everything he was taught about vampires and the others. There is another complication to their relationship though. Adam also seems to be feeling the same pull to Lander, another vampire who has been a trusted member of Adam’s Court and one of Adam’s reliable allies. When Adam claims Lander, there is quite a bit of pushback as Lander fights the bond and his feelings of inadequacy and hierarchy, especially with Leo being Adam’s actual bonded mate. Lander’s parents are one of the few other claimed mates in this world, so once they arrive, more is learned about what they are all going through. There is the added dynamic of how Adam is with Leo compared to how he is with Lander, i.e. there is a vast difference in the dominance and submission, and I enjoyed how they were both different, yet similar.
Meanwhile, Leo’s old family seems to have set him up and basically ditched him. Leo came to the conclusion pretty quickly that this was the case, especially as more evidence is brought to light. He realized that he now has the opportunity of a new family and a meaningful purpose in life by helping keep them safe against the hunters. It takes some time to win over everyone into trusting an ex-hunter, but Leo’s actions and the backing of those who already believe in him help pave the way.
So, the von Rothenburgs have left town and the movement of other hunter families has put everyone on high alert. With Leo’s help, the shifters, witches and vampires have made agreements to help each other and have shored up their security systems. Things are ramping up rather quickly, but there isn’t any indication of what the hunters actually have planned.
So, between everything going on with Adam, Leo and Lander, and navigating their intricate relationship and how that plays out with regard to the bigger picture (Leo, being Adam’s claimed mate, is now second only to Adam), and what may come of the hunters’ actions, this story keeps you on your toes. I found myself turning pages and scrambling for reading time to watch it all play out. This is a long story, but it sure didn’t feel that way. I was so invested that I really didn’t want it to end. It feels like there is so much left to learn about this world with regards to Leo’s real background, they dynamics among the 3 groups now working together more than ever, and even with the evolution of the claimed bond relationships which appears to still have room to grow. Needless to say, I was not ready to say goodbye, even for now, and I really hope we don’t have to wait too long for the story to continue.
RATING: 
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