Book Reviews

Book Blurb

In this sequel to Banpaia, Feng Li has returned to his earthly life, going through the motions of each day. But something is missing…something, out there, just beyond his reach.

Feng and Russell have made a life together in LA’s Chinatown, except that Feng has no memory of the centuries-old vampire, the imperious, mysterious Banpaia, who abducted then returned them and dozens of other men to their everyday lives.

Feng had fallen in love with Banpaia, who also fell in love with Feng, only to allow the man he’d chosen to be his life mate to return to Earth and try to live a human existence. As Feng’s happiness and very life force ebbs away each day, Russell is growing stronger. He remembers the great vampire and uses his memories to great manga. Time may be growing short for an increasingly despondent Feng unless he can remember his one true love and go to him willingly, before the next Halloween…

 

 

First edition published by eXtasy Books, October 2011.

Second edition published by Mojocastle Press, February 2014.

Third edition published by Ai Press, October 2017.

Book Review

I have to start by saying that the original wait for this sequel to ‘Banpaia’ seemed endless, but with the rerelease following so quickly, my second time reading it was much closer to the first book. Even though I knew (mostly) what would happen, finding out what was behind all of the mysterious hints toward the end of the first book was just as much fun the second time around. I wasn’t disappointed. Except – as is fairly typical for AJ and DJ – they still left me with just a few more questions at the end of the second book which, no surprise there, make me hope for a third! I am just such a sucker for a good vampire story. And the vampires of this series, and the rules they live by, are something special, slightly different from other vampire stories and kept surprising me.

Feng having gone back to his life on Earth seemed like almost the right thing to do at the end of the last book. It still made me mad because I thought ‘what about poor Banpaia’? Well, by page thirty or so of this book I was really mad. How could he have forgotten his greater love? Why was he telling himself he loved Russell? Why the hell do people settle when they can’t be with (or think they can’t be with) the person they really love? Because that is what I think this story is really about.

Banpaia, whose real name we find out as the book progresses, suffers in silence because he doesn’t want to interfere with Feng’s choices. He also has some issues of his own, and he is severely tested before he’s given another chance to get a chance at what he really wants. There is some real tragedy and suffering here and it adds a lot of texture to the story.

If you love mysteries, hot vampires, and love stories that make you cry, if you want a book that gives you all of that plus a great imaginary mystical world with a logic and history all its own, you’ll like this book as much as I did. Definitely read the first one before this one though and, oh, if you don’t want to die of suspense? Make sure you have both before you start. They will give you one hell of a ride!

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by the publisher for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novella, 80 pages/22441 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	30-October-2020
Price	$3.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.extasybooks.com/ghost-flower/