Review of The Vampire Next Door

The Vampire Next Door

Ashlyn Chase

Sourcebooks Casablanca

ISBN 9781402236631

   Vampire Sly devotes his undead life to keeping the neighborhood safe. He has no desire for anything else since he lost the love of his life many years ago. Unfortunately, on one of his nightly escapades, he chips a fang and loses his confidence. He seeks out the aid of a neighbor witch to help repair his fang. It appears, that which he thought was lost, just might be resurfacing. What, you ask? His desire for a woman, of course!

   Our heroine witch, Morgaine has spells to cure everything except for what ails herself, her fear of the dark. If anyone can help her overcome her fear, it would be Sly. Tall, dark, and brooding, Sly is someone she can trust.

    On a quest to find a cure for Sly's vampirism, they go off on a search for an acquaintance of Morgaines only to encounter more then they bargained for. Will they find what they are looking for and find the hope of a "normal" life?

   This is the third book in The Strange Neighbors series. I did not have the opportunity to read the first two books in the series. After reading this one, I have to say, sadly, I will not be checking them out. Anyone who knows me is well aware that I love vampires; but this has to be the strangest paranormal/fantasy read I have ever read. Generally speaking, the story is okay and is pretty good in and of itself. The characters, however, are just so strange that I actually had a hard time finishing the book. I am certain the book is supposed to be amusing; but I really did not find anything funny in it. We have a merman who swins in a tank in his living room. A woman dragon in another apartment who sneezes fire if she doesn't get sex on a regular basis. A cousin of Morgaine, another witch, who has a strange southern drawl that says y'all about one to many times. For me, this story was just to way over the top.

   I wish to thank Sourcebooks for providing me with an ARC to review. I was not required to write a positive review. I was not compensated in anyway except for receiving the book to read.

I give The Vampire Next Door 2 out of 5 stars