Review--Revelations by Bella Higgin

 

Truth comes at a cost.

Ever since Renie Mayfield survived the merciless attack on Belle Morte that killed donors and vampires alike, she is forever changed. Now a vampire, the agonizing transformation of her body and mind is rivaled only by uncovering the horrific truth about her sister, June, who has escaped the mansion in her rabid form, adding even more chaos to Renie’s reality.

As the vampire responsible for Renie’s change, and now her distress, Edmond Dantes remains in his own desperate place. He’s confined in the secret cells of Belle Morte, awaiting the arrival of the council and the subsequent punishment for his actions. Edmond questions if what he did was right and deeply regrets what has become of his home.

Desperate to free Edmond, find June, and bring justice to whoever is behind the recent violence, Renie is out for blood in more ways than one. The smell of corruption is embedded in the walls of Belle Morte, but behind the walls are even more secrets that may lead to the truth and to justice.

 

 

Bella Higgin's Revelations was an exciting and thrilling installment in the Belle Morte series and picks up right where we left off in Belle Morte! It's always interesting to see when a series continues if they'll pickup right where you left off or have some time roll by and I have to say I much prefer the former as it makes you feel like you haven't missed out on anything.

Picking up where we left off, Renie is a newly turned vampire and after a harrowing few days of transitioning, she has made it through the worst of it. Only to wake up and learn that Edmond has been imprisoned for turning her, as it's consider a crime in the vampire world to do so without getting permission first. Ysanne had given Edmond the okay to help Renie through the first few days but now must follow the rules she had helped established.

Meanwhile, Etienne and her rabid sister, June are MIA. No one knows where they have went and that will be another issue to be addressed by the Council. When the council arrives to discuss what had happened when June attacked the house and what led to Renie's change, things take a drastic turn. In that, Etienne makes an appearance with a very different story to tell, one that the Council members believed as the truth. Naturally, Renie is outraged! As I was I! Nothing makes me madder when people believe the liar and their lies and take it as truth! So I was raging right alongside Renie but Etienne masterful wove his lies into a believable truth, one that painted Ysanne as the villain.

It's not long before chaos ensues, one that makes Renie, Edmond, Ysanne, Ludovic, and Renie's friends Roux and Jason run for their lives. There are traitors among Ysanne's vampires and they are set to believe in Etienne's lies and turn everyone against the motley crew and paint Ysanne as the ultimate villain. Naturally, the group of vampires and human feeders will have to work together and come up with a way to get Ysanne her House back and expose the truth so that the world at large knows what really happened.

This was definitely an entertaining read for sure! Although, I was fully enraged when everyone just seemed to believe Etienne's lies. Nothing makes me madder when everyone willing believes a liar and won't listen to any other side of the story. I can't explain it, but I feel full on Hulk anger! Lol.

I also enjoyed watching Renie adjust to her new life as a vampire. It's always interesting to see how authors write their vampires as they are all different. Renie has a tough road ahead of her, but adapts fairly well to her new circumstances. The pacing was done very well too as we move seamlessly from one problem to another and all the continuing conflicts that roll along with it.

Renie and Edmond's romance continues to develop. I guess the problem with binge reading is that things seem to move along at a rapid pace relationship wise. While it took a little time to develop in the first book, the attraction was running rampant between them. Now the fire's even hotter and since Renie is running at vampire stamina, well you can imagine hot and heavy things get between them!

I was also really surprised by how this one ended! Things seem like they are at a nice pause and I really ought to not read onto the next book and have to wait another year for the conclusion, but who am I kidding? I'm going to pick it up to discover what the next conflict is and end with a killer cliffhanger! I can feel it! Lol. Things are relatively resolved for now, the main conflicts at least. There are lingering results that will need to be addressed and life as Renie knew it even after becoming a vampire have been irrevocably changed. So yeah, I am definitely looking forward to seeing where things will go from here!

If you're looking for a classic YA Vampire love story rife with action and mystery then I would strongly recommend picking up the Belle Morte series! It's been a delight so far and has such a great vampire storyline going on that I can't help but breeze through the pages.

Overall Rating 4/5 stars