SPOILER ALERT! I'm not in the business of ruining books, so if you haven't read this book yet, turn back now!
Author: Geneva Lee
Series: Filthy Rich Vampires Series book #1
Category: Paranormal Romance
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
"I wanted the world at my fingertips, and I knew experiencing it with Julian would be beyond my wildest fantasies." - Thea
From the first page, I was completely enthralled by the rich and immersive world of Filthy Rich Vampire. Who doesn't love a forbidden romance, family drama, and a bit of biting on the side? This book gave me romantic Twilight vibes, plus a healthy dose of spice and tension.
Julian was a charismatic and enigmatic vampire with a sinful allure but an emo vibe of exhaustiveness. He was clearly tired of the world, enough so that he would rather sleep away his eternal life than put up with his status as a prince and the egotistical vampire culture he couldn't seem to get away from.
I disliked how he leveraged his wealth to corner Thea into doing what he wanted several times, and the fact that he didn't think it was a bad thing to do. A product of his upbringing for sure, but it skewed their power dynamic and made me question if he truly was that different from the vampires he claimed to not like.
"'I don't care how much money you have. You don't send someone a half-million-dollar present just because.'" - Tanner, Thea's roommate
Thea's life was hard, but she had a great attitude with enough optimism to get her through trying times. I liked that she took things in stride, more so than most people would have been able to deal with, and was open-minded enough to accept that the world she knew wasn't entirely true. She was a pushover, especially when it came to Julian, and almost empathic to her own detriment. Some of the situations she got herself into, in order to prove something or because she went along with what someone else wanted her to do, boarded on TSTL territory.
"Usually, I liked to consider myself a fairly adaptable person. Why fight change when you can run with it?" - Thea
The forbidden romance element added an extra layer of tension and excitement to Julian and Thea's taut relationship, as they tried to navigate the complexities of their different worlds and struggle against their undeniable connection. Julian's attempt at aloofness was hilariously adorable. I love it when a male character tries to reason their actions away - bro you aren't fooling anyone!
"'You are exactly the person I want by my side. You deserve the world. Let me give it to you.'" - Julian
Maybe I am reading too many paranormal romances as of late, but this is the fourth book with virginity as a main plot point. Are we in a time loop, when did virginity become important again? I thought we were done putting virgins on pedestals. While Thea was "young-ish", I found it hard to believe that she knew nothing about her own sexuality and had never made herself orgasm.
Without penetration, there was a good dose of spice in this book. Nothing fancy, unless you count fangs, but enough to keep my interest and expectations high for the next books in the series.
There were some inconsistencies in the world-building that needed some editing. At one point, it was mentioned that vampires don't have sex with humans, but didn't Julian do just that when he woke up in the first chapter? The vampire/familiar relationship was also murky, somehow vampires held all the power even when they required familiars to keep their species alive.
As a fan of the paranormal romance genre, Filthy Rich Vampire is a must-add to your TBR pile. It was a seductive and thrilling tale whose cliffhanger left me immediately picking up book two. With an irresistible blend of passion, suspense, and supernatural allure, I can't wait to see what happens next with Julian and Thea.
"'I'm your mate, Julian. I am yours. All of me. My body. My blood. You can have both. You can have everything.'" - Thea
Tropes and Themes: Vampire, Forbidden Romance, Urban Fantasy, Billionaire, Cliffhanger.
Blurb
Julian Rousseaux has a problem. He’s single, and for the world’s wealthiest vampires, the social season is about to begin. Julian would rather stake himself than participate in the marriage market. But as the eldest, eligible Rousseaux he’s expected to find a wife before the season ends—whether he likes it or not.
When cellist Thea literally stumbles into his life at a gala, he knows she's the last person he could ever fall in love with. She's too innocent, too kind, and way too human. But now that she knows about his world, she's also a walking target. She needs protection. He needs a fake girlfriend to discourage overzealous vampire matchmaking.
So, Julian makes Thea an irresistible offer: pretend to be his lover and he’ll change her life. For one year, they’ll attend the season’s social events together in exchange for his protection and a way out of her mother’s crippling medical debt.
She can’t say no. But the vampire world is impossibly decadent and darker than Thea ever imagined, and Julian’s filthy rich vampire family wants her out of the way. But with each moment they share, new dangers emerge: a desire as forbidden as their stolen touches, an awakening of a long-dead heart, and secrets that could tear them both apart.
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