I was only fifteen the first time he found me. I say he found me because I hadn't been looking for him... yet there he was when I closed my eyes. When my mother was declared insane, the only person I had left in the world was Granny Louise. Even though she was good to me, I was a target for bullies, ones that were convinced that the apple never fell far from the tree. I was tired of my life, tired of a world that fostered such heartache and pain.
Rafe changed things.
He salvaged what was left of my will to live. Those six years became my lifeline. He opened my eyes to passion, shared a world with me that was so vivid that I could still hear his words in my ears, and the ghost of his touch on my skin when I woke up.
Now that my world has seemingly fallen apart, the only place I can think of going is where my dreams took place- New Orleans. Rafe and I have walked those streets in my fantasies. Somehow, I feel like that's where I can find my salvation, my purpose.
What frightens me is, now that I've stepped in Tears of Crimson, a part of me is starting to believe that some dreams are meant to be lived.
"Blood-Tingling Romance!" This is a book you will want to read time and time again!. I read the first version of this book to , but this New Revamped version is Amazing!. Michelle Hughes has out done herself with the new Twist she put on this book!. In this book you will find all that you need Spine-tingling suspense, action, humor, Red hot Romance, and Sexy characters with provocative sex scene's!. The Men in this book will have you drooling!. The Women will have you envious and laughing your butt off!. Cara and Rafe's story is so touching!. For years Cara had dreamed of a sexy mystery Man her one true love. What Cara did not know is her mystery Man is real. After Cara's Grandmother dies Cara moves to New Orleans to start a new life. Here she meets a group of spunky women. The first two are Roxie and Angela who talk Cara into applying for a job at the bar they work for called Tears of Crimson!. This is where she meets the owner Rafe who turns out to be the mystery man in her dreams. This is where their eternal love story begins. This book puts a whole new twist on the concept of fallen Angels, Vampire,and Werewolves. If you want a book that will sink its claws into you ( pun intended) then you need this book! It is so mind-blowing you will be hoping the next book comes out soon!. If you do not buy this book you will be missing out on an amazing reading experience!
This book was absolutely horrible. It takes a lot to make me want to quit reading a book, but this was just bad enough. The author either did not have anyone else read this, or just genuinely believes these mixed up, typo filled sentences are awesome. Either way, I didn't care about any of the characters, there was no real plot twists or development, and I was just glad when it was all over. Thank god it was free.
It is unlike me to find nothing redeemable in even the worst book, perhaps if I had read the illustrated copy of this it would be one thing I could have found positive. But I read it on a Kindle Two; literally forcing myself to finish it so I could review it. I've though long and hard about this review.
The story started out tolerably, I didn't think it was going to change my life but I didn't think it would be awful. The story line had potential but storyline alone doesn't cut it. And, that also went awry with too many tangents. Perhaps if the editor had bothered to edit, or even proof, the book it would have been vaguely tolerable.
But, the following combine to show a remarkable lack of respect for the reader and leave the poor story line standing in the corner all by its lonesome.
Many typographical/grammatical errors, Many errors of what I think is best explained as "taste" (subjective, I know but there are some things that are just gauche), Wording derivative of Charlaine Harris' Eric calling Sookie "lover," and Inexplicable switching between first and third person Point-of-View [even with a editor]
Examples:
"This was definitely nice for an employee area, she thought to herself as she looked around....There were two ladies dressed similar to me sitting at the table,..."
"Do not ever think of yourself less than another?"
"...her head in confusion, she didn't even know what questions to ask him this was like something out of a bad b-rated movie."
"The smile that found her face took his breath away..."
A character in 384 BC named Eduardo (derived from the English "Edward," derived from Old English).
And, finally, Gak! and Ow! "Biting her lip as his words shook her to the core, she lowered herself slowly onto his steel sword."
Written with a voice sometimes more appropriate to the Victorian classic erotica, THE PEARL, and at other times with a voice appropriate to nothing, there is no question in my mind about why this is self published. Some books are rejected by publishers because they are badly conceived and written. Freedom of expression is great but when work like this appears it damages the potential for all self-published work through association.
Using the trope of the talented girl who goes to the big city to find fame only to end up debauched; this story goes from trope to tacky and confused in a matter of pages. The story makes leaps in emotional responses and action that often don't follow. The audacity of ending on a cliffhanger and asking for money for the next installment is remarkable.
The only possible redeeming note was the separate dimension into which vampires cross. It's novel and interesting rationale. However, it just pops up as needed, without explanation of the mythos nor for the appearance of a large dragon as the ruler of said vampires.
It is rare that I am this harsh in a review; however, the degree of disrespect for the reader presented in this book is beyond the pale. Inexplicably, A NIGHT AT TEARS OF CRIMSON is accompanied on Amazon by a sea of reviews proclaiming the book as wonderful. I cannot fathom anyone proffering a positive review of this when I found it to be pretty much the worst book I have read in my blogging career. I guess it shows the subjective nature of reviewing.
My Thoughts - 4 out of 5 Unicorns - I really liked it!!! ***Received the ebook for an honest review, but I have already pre-ordered this book to own it :)
The cover is beautiful and mysterious; it is what attracted me to want to review this book :)
This is definitely a new take on Angels, Vampires, Werewolves, and so much more. I thought it was very intriguing and new. I think this series is going to get better and better at least to me :) I think as I get more involved with all the characters at Tears of Crimson it will be impossible to not fall in love with this series. Michelle’s writing style and characters are easy to connect with. I was sucked into the story and rather upset when I had to put it down to get work around the house done that my mom was calling me to help with.
Cara has had a tough childhood and some tough loss, but she was a trooper on continued on though I think Rafe had a lot to do with that :) Rafe is sexy and brooding, but I’m not sure what to think of the rest of the men at Tears of Crimson yet. I think as the series goes this is definitely going to change, but Cara and Rafe’s story was beautiful and I can’t wait to see more of them though I’m not sure if the next book will follow them or be another couple’s story like maybe Michael who definitely intrigues me :)
I recommend this story to anyone who wants something new but definitely wants a paranormal romance which is my most favored genre :) If you like Angels, Vamps, Weres, and so much more, you want to read this :)
I am one of the lucky ones who discovered Michelle in the early stages of her writing career. I stumbled upon this book called Tears of Crimson. I read it and was hooked. How do you describe meeting your book soul mate? This woman wrote the things that I wanted to read and wrote it in a way that drew me in and kept me hooked. I never looked back.
Rafe is that man that you can picture clearly in our heads. We all have one--that one man that could convince us that being single might not be a bad idea. He is sexy, dominant and mysterious. He comes in an immortal package that would make most of contemplate forever.
Cara has been drawn to the man in her dreams but who knew she would literally find him? New Orleans is a mystical place and the people are too. This story is sensual and passionate. I read the original and the revamp and I can't wait for you to discover the secret of Tears of Crimson. Michelle has managed to capture all the original steam and roll it into a sexy package that is on my permanent read again list.
P.S. Say hello to the wait staff. Those girls have a little something special...
If you love vampires like I do you will probably like this too.
The setting takes place in NOLA. A girl, Cara Donovan leaves her home looking for a way to earn money just to survive. She's a normal, down to earth girl, who takes a job in a vampire bar as a waitress. Although she's more of a singer.
At Tears of Crimson, the name of the bar, she meets new friends and becomes attracted to the owner. His name is Rafe and from the description, sounds like your hottest fantasy come to life!
Rafe falls for Cara too, but both try to fight their feelings for the longest time. Cara finds out Rafe is a vampire and has to get over that shock. Rafe has never had these kinds of feelings for a human either. He takes it upon himself to protect her because humans finding out about vampires is a sacred sin to the vampire world.
Cara finds out how the vampires came to be. They can read minds and make humans do whatever they want. They all have to answer to Eduardo, who has been their leader since their beginning.
The vampires are fascinated by Cara's blood because (although this book doesn't really get into the reasons why) it tastes amazing to them and they have troubles stopping themselves from draining her.
Rafe introduces Cara to his maker, who hates humans.
I won't get into any more details about this book, because you'll have to read it yourself! I highly recommend it! If you like good vampire stories with hot sex scenes, you'll like this one! ;)
Oh, one more thing...it ends with the nastiest cliffhanger EVER and after chatting with the author, Michelle, I found out we have to wait until June 2012 for the next book! :(
All in all...it's great summer reading for you vampire lovers out there!
My Thoughts - 4 out of 5 Unicorns - I really liked it!!! ***Received the ebook for an honest review, but I have already pre-ordered this book to own it :)
The cover is beautiful and mysterious; it is what attracted me to want to review this book :)
This is definitely a new take on Angels, Vampires, Werewolves, and so much more. I thought it was very intriguing and new. I think this series is going to get better and better at least to me :) I think as I get more involved with all the characters at Tears of Crimson it will be impossible to not fall in love with this series. Michelle’s writing style and characters are easy to connect with. I was sucked into the story and rather upset when I had to put it down to get work around the house done that my mom was calling me to help with.
Cara has had a tough childhood and some tough loss, but she was a trooper on continued on though I think Rafe had a lot to do with that :) Rafe is sexy and brooding, but I’m not sure what to think of the rest of the men at Tears of Crimson yet. I think as the series goes this is definitely going to change, but Cara and Rafe’s story was beautiful and I can’t wait to see more of them though I’m not sure if the next book will follow them or be another couple’s story like maybe Michael who definitely intrigues me :)
I recommend this story to anyone who wants something new but definitely wants a paranormal romance which is my most favored genre :) If you like Angels, Vamps, Weres, and so much more, you want to read this :)
This was the first time I have read Tears of Crimson. I hadn’t realized that it had been published before, so I can’t compare this version with the previous. But I can say that I enjoyed the storyline. There were a few editing errors, but it may have been the copy I received and a couple of spots in the story that kind of threw me: 1) Cara said that something hadn’t happened to her before, but if I recalled correctly, it had and 2) I don’t recall if the two choices she was faced with was really explained to her (if it was, I somehow skipped over it). That being said, for me, those issues did not take away from the storyline. This series is one that I look forward to reading more of and learning about some of the other characters and their backgrounds. This is the second book that I have read by this author and I look forward to reading more from her.
I received this book in exchange for an honest review.
Smexy reading at it’s best. Cara dreamt of a sexy man from New Orleans for years. After Cara's Grandmother dies she moves to New Orleans to start a new life, I believed it was her way of being closer to her dream and boy did she make the right choice. The man of her dreams Rafe, is closer than she thinks. The love story was amazing and I found myself stuck to my kindle, flipping page through page until I finished. I cannot wait to see more on this story.
" A book you will enjoy reading time and time again!" This book is so amazing! . Yes I maybe a little biased as I am a character in the book :) , But that stop it from being a incredible book!. I read the first version of this book but Michelle Hughes has put a whole new twist on this version that you can not help but fall in love with . In this book you will find all that you need in one book. Suspense,action, humor, Romance, sexy characters with amazing sex scenes lol. The Men in this book will have you drooling :) . The Women will have you envious but laughing your butt off :). Cara and Rafe's story is so touching!. For years Cara has been dreaming of a mystery Man her one true love. But little does Cara know her mystery man is real!. After Cara's Grandmother dies Cara moves to New Orleans to start her life over. There she meets a group of women and Roxie and Angela talk Cara into applying for a job at the Bar they work at the Tears of Crimson. What Cara does not know is the owner Rafe is the Man from her dreams :) .Cara gets the job and Rafe and Cara's story starts. This is a story of true and lasting Eternal love!. this book puts a whole new concept on Fallen Angels, Vampires and Werewolves . If you want a book that will sink its claws into you (pun intended lol) then this book is for you. It is so fantastic that you will be hoping that Michelle Hughes will turn it into a series! . And with all the fantastic characters it could easily be done lol . If you do not buy this book you will be missing out on a most fantastic reading experience!!!
I absolutely loved this story. Cara is a confused girl living in her dreams and when reality and her dreams collide she is more confused than ever. All she wants is to find her way in life, a purpose, and when she steps into a bar with two women she has just met she's not sure what to make of all the beautiful, sexy people that are there. Then she steps in front of the man she has been dreaming of for a very long time and her mind is not sure if it wants to except what is in front of her. Then reality takes a whole new meaning not long after. As I watched Cara and Rafe's relationship grow I found that they are truly made for each other. My favorite character out of them all is Rachel, she is strong for all those around her but deep inside she is hurting. She seems to keep the peace between those that matter and pays dearly for it on the inside. I feel Michelle Hughes took this book to a whole new level bringing these characters to life and grabbing my attention from the very first page.
When I went into this book I was thinking New Orleans & vampires, it's going to have a Sookie Stackhouse type feel. WRONG!! While there's vampires and werewolves, the author put a unique little twist on them. You think you know? You have no idea. Tears of Crimson is the story of Cara & Rafe. She's seen him in her dreams since she was sixteen. Fast forward into the future where Cara is twenty one. She heads to New Orleans where her eyes are opened to a brand new world where she must pay a price to be with the man of her dreams or face death. I loved how the story flowed form one page to the next with something always happening. It held my interest. I didn't want it to be over and I'm honestly excited to know there will be more in this fantabulous series.
I hardly ever read books about vampires, and then came the Twilight saga, and I got hooked. Maybe because they were written for YA, they stayed in the realm of being 'sweet'. But when I read A Night at Tears of Crimson I realized what I had missed. This is an adult story written for women. About a young girl whose faced with making choices for her future with a man who could take any female alive into the twilight zone. It was so good that I passed it on to a friend with the words – you just have to read this!
This book took me by surprise! I enjoyed it immensely. It is a different take on Angels, God, and Lucifer! Very entertaining and sensual. The Angels are very sexual creatures. Which makes for some steamy reading. There is a bit of a surprise that gets all the macho hairs up, actually several that make things very interesting. Of all the characters Rachel was my favorite. I really look forward to more of this series!
this person has no business pretending to be a writer!
The most cliche ridden, poorly written ( grammer errors and misspellings abound) piece of drek ever written! Was there no editor involved? Clearly this woman never completed the sixth grade.
At the beginning, the story resembles a fairy tale. The heroine, Cara Donovan, suffered in her youth from a lack of maternal love. Yet she grows up and becomes a charming, shy, voluntary young woman full of life. Due to her own determination, she found job as a waitress in "Tears of Crimson" that gives her a financial stability but also the affection and protection of a family. Her handsome boss will prove to be a prince charming a bit peculiar.
If Rafe is a true gentleman concerned with the well-being of the woman of his heart, he also keeps from her a lot of dark secrets. So Cara discovers that love is not always enough and that dating a vampire is a risky business. The bloodthirsty beast plunges our Little Princess in a gilded prison with many rules to follow with only pain and punishment for the one who fails to follow them.
I admit I did not enjoy the possessiveness of the males in this story, especially Eduardo and Gabriel, who play with feelings and manipulate women to satisfy their desires. Although I appreciated the author's honesty who portrays the powers of vampires by avoiding the clichés of the romantic bloodsucker who does not abuse of his superiority.
To be real, if somebody possess the gift to submit people with his thoughts, I do not see how you could not use it. There are no good or bad answer: it's just a matter of common sense. I also liked the realism with which the author represented her idea of a vampire. Even if she was only interested to depict the male, in this first volume, as arrogant, possessive and calculators human beings.
The end of Cara's adventures is in stark contrast to the innocent image of the princess of pure and chaste fairy tale. And it's not because she sold her soul to the devil that she must necessarily be a whore ... So the bestial scenes sex at the end left me doubtful...
Do I want to read "Eternal Crimson" and follow Cara's further adventures? Yes, out of curiosity and for the "happy ending" but there is a "but" ... The last pages have cooled me a lot ...
Cara Donovan is a country girl in New Orleans looking for a job. She'd love to find a job as a singer, but beggars can't be choosers, so she ends up applying for a job as a waitress in a goth club called Tears of Crimson. It isn't until later that the club is actually a vampire club. Which means, the man she's been lusting over, her boss Rafe, is also a vampire.
Rafe knows he should stay away from her, but he can't. Now that she knows about the existence of vampires, she'll need to be protected, and Rafe appoints himself to that position. When her actions get her into trouble, Rafe will have to decide where his loyalties lie – with the human girl he's just met, or with the elder council of powerful vampires who could end both their lives in a heartbeat.
This story was quite good. These vampires aren't your usual tortured heroes or those with a good heart. These are some mean bloodsuckers who do see humans as cattle to be used as sustenance and to be manipulated. While I liked the building anxiety as the story and the relationship moved along, I couldn't warm up to Cara. I give her props for following her heart when it came to Rafe, but all the times she defied him only to endanger herself and him in the process – I wanted to slap her silly and talk some sense into her. There were quite a few dark scenes in this book. Normally I could do without those, but since the author started out her story with the darker sides of vampire nature, I felt that the scenes seemed exactly like something that vampires with a superiority complex would do. With that said, here's a fair warning about the end – it shocked and angered me that I nearly threw my eReader across the room. I never saw it coming and I felt a little betrayed, but I can't deny that my curiosity is getting the better of me to read the next book so get some closure.
As to some reviews complaining about typos and such, I don't remember seeing any in mine, but maybe the author has since corrected the mistakes and updated it.
Michelle Hughes is a amazing writer because when you feel you're right in the story with the characters thats a amazing writer. This story is a new twist on Vampires, Werewolves and other paranormal . Cara has been through a tremendous amount growing up/ she had the man of her dreams to keep her going .Extremely handsome Rafe a vampire owner of a bar . Cara is a very withdrawn person but decides to step out of her comfort zone and introduces herself to two of her neighbors in her building that take a liking to her right away cara happens to mention she is looking for a job and they suggested she come and fill out a application for the bar they work at Cara thinks why not boy does she get a shocker when the owner is the man in her dreams even hotter in person is it fate? Is Rafe for real cant be could he? Rafe may have been apart of her making it through all her toil and tribulations through life without losing her mind. Rafe can't believe his eyes is it really her in his bar his Mate looking for a job.Rafe gives her a job and tries to keep his distance when all he wants to do is claim her as his own, but he dont think its time yet or that she can handle it but the fates seem to be stepping in making decisions faster that Rafe had planned. This book is loaded with humor, action, steamy romance,erotic scenes,suspense i mean what more could you want this book is loaded . Make sure you have everything you need before you start reading the book and make sure your drink has plenty of ice in it. You are not gonna want put this book down till you're finished it. Its that good.
This book although not very long tells a very good story. It's a well planned out story , well written and very interesting. After reading the authors thoughts afterword it really made sense to me why the book is so good. I'd love to see a sequel to this bok if there isn't one because I haven't looked. Other then Raph and Cara I'd like to know more about all of the fallen little group . It seems to me they're all archangels but I'm not sure, I o my get that impression. I'd really like to know what happens with Cara too since she's been gifted with seriously amazing gifts after her and Raph join. I've really enjoyed the book and I'm giving no spoilers. If it was longer I might but then I'd be giving all the good stuff away and I feel after reading this that it needs to be read fully by the reader and not me giving you any info before hand. I'll just say it's a great read and I'm glad I read it cause I really enjoyed it emencely. The is nothing more intriguing then fallen angels and their curses and then you add a halfbreed. Just read this book you won't regret the time it takes and you won't want to out it down. It's a true 5 star. Well deserving.
Tears of Crimson – Michelle Hughes Book Review by C.T.Todd –Author of the Neesa Vampire Series.
Michelle Hughes first book in the series A Night At Tears Of Crimson draws the reader in from the very first page. The beautiful main character Cara, a small town girl from Alabama goes for a life change and moves to the big city of New Orleans with a dream of making a career out of her love of music. She then finds out just how hard life can be in the city and is forced to take a job at a night club that will change her life forever. She discovers the forbidden knowledge and secret world of vampires. Michelle Hughes takes the reader into a unforgettable romantic paranormal world that will keep you reading till the last page. You just can’t put it down, needing to find out what happens next. I myself anticipate the release of her next book in the series Eternal Crimson this spring of 2012. I don’t want to give too much away; anyone who loves a good paranormal book should read it. You’ll love it. Be sure to visit her web site at www.tearsofcrimcon.com Follow her on Twitter @MichelleHughes_
I like paranormal books. It has to be hard to find new ways to tell a vampire tale and this story line is pretty good.. Unfortunately, I was distracted by the multiple grammar and punctuation errors. I find it hard to believe anyone proofread the manuscript. Spelling errors were in evidence, including the use of incorrect synonyms. Maybe these faults are artifacts of moving the book to electronic format. Since the author notes that she spent 6 years on this idea, I certainly hope that is the case. I already downloaded the next book and have to decide if I want to read the story badly enough to endure the errors
Wow! another hot new vamp {Rafe}"Ishould`t want you Cara", his hand moved to grasp her chin and he spoke the words looking deeply into her beautiful chocolate eyes. "I shouldn`t want to undress you now and take your beautiful body in ways I can`t even begin to describe", he spoke the words, then hated him self for being so weak.His hand tightened its hold on her chin,"if I had any common sense I would walk away from you", he lowered his lips to hers and kissed her with a passion that refused to be denied. RAFE RAFE RAFE you had me right there:)
LOVED the settings! New Orleans, a vampire bar, and a waterfall, need I say more? It was nice to have such focus on the two main characters and their developing relationship - quite refreshing actually to have secondary characters remain secondary. I truly enjoyed the plotline and how well it moved.
There were just a few grammatical errors but nothing to detract from the story. I quite look forward to the sequel....mmmmm....Rafe....mmmmm.
New Orleans, young woman trying to make a living, brooding vamp who owns a bar...what could happen?
A tale of almost mythical proportion! A love so deep that maybe Death could not even snuff it out? Loyalty to each other that binds them as a sort of family? Passion that so fiercely burns it makes ordinary flame pale in comparison? All that and more.
First in a series. Sexual situations. Mature readers.
Where do I start for this book. First off Michelle is a new author for me and so Tears of Crimson is my first read. And it was the best read I have had. It was one of those books that i wanted to read every waking hour of my day. I have fallen in love with Rafe there is no denying that. He's words are like melting smooth chocolate and I ate up every bit he spoke. Even his dirty talk was sophisticated and turned me on. I will be adding her to my list of authors to look out for.
I am so delighted to have read this book. I am looking forward to more stories and hope that the heroine of this book is included in future books. I would love to watch her learn her new role.
This novel has a wonderful plot and dangerous but fun characters. I enjoyed the world Michelle Hughes created and hope to have many more books to read in the future.
I would rate this as R for adult themes and sexual encounters.
I've always been a fan of vampire books. Lately they have been less than enthusiastic in their portrayal of my favorite type of undead. It's great to see a new series from a new author that offers more than a little hope with getting away from the emotional messes that they have been turning into lately. Great work Miss Hughes, Keep em coming!
Excellent plot and well thought out characters. This book is not a stand alone and will leave you wanting to read the next in the series. 4 out of 5 stars because there were some inconsistencies (Cara's height in the beginning was 5'4 then somehow became 5'9, for example) and the author frequently inserted first person narrative into the story that was in third person.