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Wolves of Stone Ridge #29
Driving Borscht Batty
Out of the Cage: Sometimes dealing with unexpected events can drive you crazy…but that isn’t always a bad thing.
Borscht Kuznetsov is the master of his vampire coven. He likes his donors silent, his people obedient, and his life orderly. When an alarm on the northern outskirts of his property alert him to intruders, he leads the charge to drive the humans from his land. To his surprise, Borscht discovers they were chasing an Egyptian fruit bat. Confused by his sudden onslaught of protectiveness, he realizes the little creature is a shifter…who refuses to shift.
With his only memories that of his time spent in captivity, Sekani doesn’t know much. He can’t even understand the words of the people around him after he escapes from his prison. Still, one of them smells really good…and the man saved him from the hunters. When the man finally says a few words in halting English, Sekani learns that his world is so much larger than he could ever have imagined.
Can Borscht handle his beloved’s overabundance of excitement, especially when he learns that Sekani has friends that need rescuing?
Borscht Kuznetsov is the master of his vampire coven. He likes his donors silent, his people obedient, and his life orderly. When an alarm on the northern outskirts of his property alert him to intruders, he leads the charge to drive the humans from his land. To his surprise, Borscht discovers they were chasing an Egyptian fruit bat. Confused by his sudden onslaught of protectiveness, he realizes the little creature is a shifter…who refuses to shift.
With his only memories that of his time spent in captivity, Sekani doesn’t know much. He can’t even understand the words of the people around him after he escapes from his prison. Still, one of them smells really good…and the man saved him from the hunters. When the man finally says a few words in halting English, Sekani learns that his world is so much larger than he could ever have imagined.
Can Borscht handle his beloved’s overabundance of excitement, especially when he learns that Sekani has friends that need rescuing?
111 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 8, 2015
25 people are currently reading
119 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
August 16, 2019
A vampire and a fruit bat..how cute is that? Well, it was pretty cute. This was a sweet fluffy read really. There's a little action/conflict but very minor, imo. I will say, I was a little skeeved out by how quickly Borscht "introduced" Sekani to sex. I mean really...he hasn't been human in a while and he's never been touched or touched himself in any sexual way and the very day he's discovered and changes they're getting each other off. Sekani was way too naive and innocent for that to happen so quickly. But oh well, these books are really just quick fluffy reads.
March 5, 2021
Writing a book about a country/language/name you are not familiar with? ASK. A. NATIVE.
Here is "Ask An Expert" link: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group... . There is a "Regional Experts" thread. Please, use it.
Vampire named Borscht. Borscht! Traditional Russian soup with garlic!
Вампир по имени Борщ-c-чесноком =D *dies laughing*
Talking about names, there is no such thing as a Russian female name Nikita, nor there is such a Russian name as Tullion, male or female... jussouknow.
UPDATE:
Got to 25% and decided to DNF; my patience simply ran out. I have no words for the batty Borscht clusterfuck except for it was a good laugh at times: names, horny childlike fruit bats, scary hairy gentle-soul vampires, very evil yet clueless and harmless guards (IKR?)
2 stars (instead of 1) for good laughs :)
UPDATE #2:
Oh
My
Fucking
GOD!!!
THIS BOOK IS A SPOON MANUAL!!! There is almost a whole chapter on how to use a spoon! @.@
~~~
Peeps and homies, you would not believe it, but I've finished it! Always a sucker for punishment, Me. I am withdrawing a star and a half (ok, in the end it's still one star, since I have to rate it some way) and putting the book on my supermassive black hole shelf.
To all the good and noble GR teamsters out there:
- Please, do consider providing us readers with the option to award books with half stars, since negatives are too much to ask.
- Kindly, read the book first before judging my honest reaction to the horrors that I survived ...or deleting my review ...or sending me nasties. Thankuverymuch.
PS
Borscht is soup (most often with garlic added), not a name. I mean, why not Black Pudding?
Here is "Ask An Expert" link: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/group... . There is a "Regional Experts" thread. Please, use it.
Vampire named Borscht. Borscht! Traditional Russian soup with garlic!
Вампир по имени Борщ
Talking about names, there is no such thing as a Russian female name Nikita, nor there is such a Russian name as Tullion, male or female... jussouknow.
UPDATE:
Got to 25% and decided to DNF; my patience simply ran out. I have no words for the batty Borscht clusterfuck except for it was a good laugh at times: names, horny childlike fruit bats, scary hairy gentle-soul vampires, very evil yet clueless and harmless guards (IKR?)
2 stars (instead of 1) for good laughs :)
UPDATE #2:
Oh
My
Fucking
GOD!!!
THIS BOOK IS A SPOON MANUAL!!! There is almost a whole chapter on how to use a spoon! @.@
~~~
Peeps and homies, you would not believe it, but I've finished it! Always a sucker for punishment, Me. I am withdrawing a star and a half (ok, in the end it's still one star, since I have to rate it some way) and putting the book on my supermassive black hole shelf.
To all the good and noble GR teamsters out there:
- Please, do consider providing us readers with the option to award books with half stars, since negatives are too much to ask.
- Kindly, read the book first before judging my honest reaction to the horrors that I survived ...or deleting my review ...or sending me nasties. Thankuverymuch.
PS
Borscht is soup (most often with garlic added), not a name. I mean, why not Black Pudding?
August 22, 2015
Кузнецов. Борщ Кузнецов.
Аффторы, не пишите о русских, бога ради! Ну правда. Вот есть семья вампиров: Алексей, Николай, Захар, Петр, Наталья - и внезапно девочка Никита и мальчики Туллион и Борщ. Родители психанули? Папа хотел кушать и назвал сына борщом? А потом они хотели мальчика, родилась девочка, но не пропадать же хорошему имени? Туллиона, видимо, ваще от соседа-иностранца рожали.
И да, это слэш. Причем, по ходу книги говорится, что едва ли не у всех мужчин оказались возлюбленные того же пола. Я не буду распинаться о том, что у брутальных крутых русских такое вряд ли возможно - авторская фантазия, паранормал, допустим. Просто слэш слэшу рознь, а этот написан паршиво.
Казалось, что автор весьма назойливо пропихивает идею однополой любви, столько там таких пар было. Ненатурально смотрится. Вдобавок из-за полной неопытности и наивности Секани и стремительности, с которой его завалил в койку Борщ, не могла отделаться от ощущения, что читаю про то, как взрослый дядечка мальчика соблазняет. Финальная глава, где Секани кружится перед милым в сарафанчике, а Борщ заявляет, мол, мы тебе кучу таких накупим, будешь ходить - ну буэ же. Ни разу не милота, просто большой дядя развел наивного пацана.
Интрига высосана из пальца, все скомкано, содержание книги сводится к тому, как Борщ развлекался с Секани в койке. Автор, иди в пень, не умеешь ты про это писать.
Аффторы, не пишите о русских, бога ради! Ну правда. Вот есть семья вампиров: Алексей, Николай, Захар, Петр, Наталья - и внезапно девочка Никита и мальчики Туллион и Борщ. Родители психанули? Папа хотел кушать и назвал сына борщом? А потом они хотели мальчика, родилась девочка, но не пропадать же хорошему имени? Туллиона, видимо, ваще от соседа-иностранца рожали.
И да, это слэш. Причем, по ходу книги говорится, что едва ли не у всех мужчин оказались возлюбленные того же пола. Я не буду распинаться о том, что у брутальных крутых русских такое вряд ли возможно - авторская фантазия, паранормал, допустим. Просто слэш слэшу рознь, а этот написан паршиво.
Казалось, что автор весьма назойливо пропихивает идею однополой любви, столько там таких пар было. Ненатурально смотрится. Вдобавок из-за полной неопытности и наивности Секани и стремительности, с которой его завалил в койку Борщ, не могла отделаться от ощущения, что читаю про то, как взрослый дядечка мальчика соблазняет. Финальная глава, где Секани кружится перед милым в сарафанчике, а Борщ заявляет, мол, мы тебе кучу таких накупим, будешь ходить - ну буэ же. Ни разу не милота, просто большой дядя развел наивного пацана.
Интрига высосана из пальца, все скомкано, содержание книги сводится к тому, как Борщ развлекался с Секани в койке. Автор, иди в пень, не умеешь ты про это писать.
July 17, 2015
Ok, so Borscht's name almost ruined this book for me. I'm Polish, so borscht is a SOUP, not a NAME. Seriously, it's just ridiculous. There's a ton of perfectyly normal Russian/Ukrainian or even Polish names, you'd probably consider quite exotic, so...why, Why, WHY!?
Overall, it's fun, quick read if you have half an hour to spare. If you liked previous books in this series, you know what to expect: instant love, some hot action and a little drama. Enjoy!
Overall, it's fun, quick read if you have half an hour to spare. If you liked previous books in this series, you know what to expect: instant love, some hot action and a little drama. Enjoy!
perhaps
August 13, 2015I may read this just for shits and giggles.
Borscht is my 2nd favourite soup, after all. Nom
And here's a picture of my favourite soup. Nom nom
Borscht is my 2nd favourite soup, after all. Nom
And here's a picture of my favourite soup. Nom nom
June 9, 2015
1.5 stars - Felt weird about Borscht and Sekani. Sekani was just too innocent and naive after being locked in a cage his whole life. Being introduced to sex and a claiming in a matter of days after obtaining his freedom felt kind of icky to me. Although Sekani was an adult, he was too childlike for me to feel comfortable with it all.
July 14, 2017
Okay, I read this purely cos a bat shifter sounded cute
he was
that's about it
he was
that's about it
Read
August 21, 2015My first Charlie Richards book. I saw this title... somewhere, then just got curious because of the blurb. Being a CR virgin, I was unfamiliar with her style. Turned out, the story was quite cute and entertaining, in a simple and silly kind of way.
One MC, Borscht, was Russian vampire (though the only Russian he and his siblings uttered all through the story were "da" and "nyet") with tall, powerful bod and handsome face. Of course. Sekani, Borscht's other half, was a petite, gorgeous twink bat-shifter of sweet nature. An innocence and a virgin. Oh yumm.
Sekani was basically a male damsel in distress and Borscht his knight in shinning armour. He rescued Sekani from mad scientiests who kept him in a cage for years. His captive made Sekani oblivious to normal way of live, like using utensils to eat, variety of food and clothing, beddings, different languages... the list went on and on. Borscht even had to give him sex education!!! The plot was stuff of exaggeration. Well, no wonder Borscht went batty with how the story happend!
But in a way this book served as a cooling down read to me; as in, I didn't need to think and stress over the story. And it introduced me to Ms. Richards' writing. ;-)
One MC, Borscht, was Russian vampire (though the only Russian he and his siblings uttered all through the story were "da" and "nyet") with tall, powerful bod and handsome face. Of course. Sekani, Borscht's other half, was a petite, gorgeous twink bat-shifter of sweet nature. An innocence and a virgin. Oh yumm.
Sekani was basically a male damsel in distress and Borscht his knight in shinning armour. He rescued Sekani from mad scientiests who kept him in a cage for years. His captive made Sekani oblivious to normal way of live, like using utensils to eat, variety of food and clothing, beddings, different languages... the list went on and on. Borscht even had to give him sex education!!! The plot was stuff of exaggeration. Well, no wonder Borscht went batty with how the story happend!
But in a way this book served as a cooling down read to me; as in, I didn't need to think and stress over the story. And it introduced me to Ms. Richards' writing. ;-)
July 20, 2015
Sekani felt too child-like to be having Borscht claiming him within days. It felt off and icky to me.
Although, I do love the bat. So sweet. I loved how he cuddled on Borscht. It was adorable.
I can't wait for Aleksei to get his. Ass.
Rounding up 1 Star for Jared :)
Although, I do love the bat. So sweet. I loved how he cuddled on Borscht. It was adorable.
I can't wait for Aleksei to get his. Ass.
Rounding up 1 Star for Jared :)
June 7, 2015
this is such a adorable book.. Sekani is soooooo adorable!!!! I feel like I would hug him and pinch his cheeks if I ever see him..
August 15, 2015
It was supposed to be guilty pleasure.
Well, I tried and finished. Despite the name of the vampire guy and some other ridiculous stuff.
Whatever.
I don't want to talk about it.
October 23, 2016
Borscht Kuznetsov runs his small vampire coven in such a way that everything is orderly and neat. When his estate alarms go off indicating someone has trespassed, he decides to go out and help teach them a lesson. When he discovers the intruder is a small Egyptian fruit bat, Borscht finds himself strangely protective. He soon realizes that the little bat is his mate and a shifter who does not want to shift.
Sekani has only known captivity in his life. He is not sure what to make of Borscht but knows that he saved him from hunters and he smells really good. But he cannot understand a word he says until Borscht tries some English. Maybe he should take a chance.
I really loved this story. Borscht was so set in his ways and really wanted nothing to disrupt his peaceful existence. Along comes Sekani and disrupts everything. As the two settle in together, Borscht also learns Sekani had friends that are still in captivity. Determined to keep his mate happy, you will be delighted with what he does for Sekani. Pick up Driving Borscht Batty and be prepared to be delighted. This is a fun story to read and enjoy from the beginning to end.
Sekani has only known captivity in his life. He is not sure what to make of Borscht but knows that he saved him from hunters and he smells really good. But he cannot understand a word he says until Borscht tries some English. Maybe he should take a chance.
I really loved this story. Borscht was so set in his ways and really wanted nothing to disrupt his peaceful existence. Along comes Sekani and disrupts everything. As the two settle in together, Borscht also learns Sekani had friends that are still in captivity. Determined to keep his mate happy, you will be delighted with what he does for Sekani. Pick up Driving Borscht Batty and be prepared to be delighted. This is a fun story to read and enjoy from the beginning to end.
December 14, 2015
I think I'm surprised that I liked this. Sekani (weird name) doesn't know much of ANY thing. Borscht has to teach him completely about sex and the relatives help out in other areas. It was kind of funny how Borscht was explaining sex to complete child like innocent.
Plus some cameo appearance from some of the gang. Two biggest mention is Jared and Lyle. Lyle is more solid presence which I liked. And we see how comfortable he's grown and what he's learned to do since his transformation. Nice cameo addition.
Plus some cameo appearance from some of the gang. Two biggest mention is Jared and Lyle. Lyle is more solid presence which I liked. And we see how comfortable he's grown and what he's learned to do since his transformation. Nice cameo addition.
July 18, 2015
3.5
A-Freakin-dorable. Really, Sekani, the little bat shifter was too cute. The story was simple, predictable but also enjoyable to reaD because Sekani is such a cutie. I gave it 3.5 stars just for him.
I wish it was longer and had more plot. The ending left off with Borscht deciding to move to the U.S. and I wish there's another story about this couple. It feels unfinished. I wanna read about Sekani learning new things and him wearing pretty dresses. (Lol, yes dresses)
If you're looking to unwind and read a cute and short story without much angst, than this is it.
A-Freakin-dorable. Really, Sekani, the little bat shifter was too cute. The story was simple, predictable but also enjoyable to reaD because Sekani is such a cutie. I gave it 3.5 stars just for him.
I wish it was longer and had more plot. The ending left off with Borscht deciding to move to the U.S. and I wish there's another story about this couple. It feels unfinished. I wanna read about Sekani learning new things and him wearing pretty dresses. (Lol, yes dresses)
If you're looking to unwind and read a cute and short story without much angst, than this is it.
June 13, 2015
After so many books in this series, this one was a breath of fresh air. It opened up more characters to have future books as well as giving the series the breath it needed as to not become stale. After so many books, one tends to lose interest. This book has definitely renewed my interest in future books! I laughed. I cried. I got pissed and angry because of what the shifters went through. It was great!
July 8, 2015
I don't know why, but Charlie Richards' bad writing is like crack. To be fair, these later books seem to be a bit better written, but the stories are still too light, predictable, and corny to be anything really great. Still, they're fun. Like watching a really bad TV show. Sometimes it's nice to curl up with a short, goofy romance that has very little angst and some action. Serious guilty pleasure reading.
July 26, 2015
Dude! Bat shifter! Yay! (On the other hand, wtf!Borscht? I kept thinking "beet soup" at awkward times. *sigh*)
October 20, 2018
Flying to a new life
Sekani and Borscht are a wonderful pair that come together under bad circumstances. Sekani is one of the shifters out there that has lived his entire life captive to the scientists. He knows next to nothing about the real world or even the paranormal world. Escaping leads him to his mate Borscht (not that he understands that) and the chance for love and family. The story that Sekani has and his endless sunny optimism in the face of it makes a bright counterpoint to Borscht's seriousness and makes them a wonderful couple to read. Really enjoyed this one!
Sekani and Borscht are a wonderful pair that come together under bad circumstances. Sekani is one of the shifters out there that has lived his entire life captive to the scientists. He knows next to nothing about the real world or even the paranormal world. Escaping leads him to his mate Borscht (not that he understands that) and the chance for love and family. The story that Sekani has and his endless sunny optimism in the face of it makes a bright counterpoint to Borscht's seriousness and makes them a wonderful couple to read. Really enjoyed this one!
June 24, 2019
This was so sweet. Sekani, was a fruit bat shifter who had escaped a lifetime of being in captivity. Borscht, a vampire, finds him while he's hiding in a tree and soon realizes that Sekani is his beloved. Sekani had so much to learn, but he was the most adorable student ever. I couldn't keep from smiling when it came to him. The story held my attention and the plot had a bit of danger along with some action. I always love it when the Stone Ridge shifters come to the rescue. This was a cute(plus enduring) and entertaining read. =)
June 20, 2024
On a major re-re-read of the Stone Ridge World. These books, (novellas and short stories in reality) are no more than a 3 - sometimes a 2- as a standalone. They are not only a series, but a series so interlinked that there is only one resolution per book and it is often incomplete. Charlie is on point with her inferred and direct character building, her world is complex and solid, but only if you look at it through the lens of all of her books, and her plots interesting enough, but again only if you are series binging.
February 14, 2018
This was so cute. On to the next...
February 5, 2018
Batty
Vampire and a fruit bat what a couple but not all Borscht siblings are happy with his decisions. Another fight with the scientists
Vampire and a fruit bat what a couple but not all Borscht siblings are happy with his decisions. Another fight with the scientists
October 19, 2019
Egyptian fruit bat Sekani and Coven Master Borscht.
August 2, 2016
Sekani is hands-down adorable, especially as a bat. There’s just something about the description of tiny claws and flappy wings and a small animal’s efforts to open a door and settle in a nice place that smells good that melts me.
Unfortunately his innocence and lack of knowledge of, well, anything result in a rather creepy moment that occurs when he panics about his body’s reactions to being aroused. Borscht – rather than explain anything to such a childlike creature – doesn’t even hesitate to get grabby and bring the kid off. Who still has no idea what just happened and whose first instinct, I might add, was to attempt escape.
This kind of thing just seems wrong to me, no matter how often I encounter it in stories like this one. Or maybe it gets worse with each repetition. It comes way too close to an adult taking advantage of a child.
So the story is nothing new, nothing we haven’t seen by this author before. But I adore Sekani so much that I don’t so much care about the rather brief plot and hurried execution. Although I’d have traded every single sex scene in for more Sekani cuteness in a heartbeat! So yes. Every single rating star here goes to Sekani.
That only leaves one question. Why is the might, centuries-old vampire leader of his coven named after a soup?
Unfortunately his innocence and lack of knowledge of, well, anything result in a rather creepy moment that occurs when he panics about his body’s reactions to being aroused. Borscht – rather than explain anything to such a childlike creature – doesn’t even hesitate to get grabby and bring the kid off. Who still has no idea what just happened and whose first instinct, I might add, was to attempt escape.
This kind of thing just seems wrong to me, no matter how often I encounter it in stories like this one. Or maybe it gets worse with each repetition. It comes way too close to an adult taking advantage of a child.
So the story is nothing new, nothing we haven’t seen by this author before. But I adore Sekani so much that I don’t so much care about the rather brief plot and hurried execution. Although I’d have traded every single sex scene in for more Sekani cuteness in a heartbeat! So yes. Every single rating star here goes to Sekani.
That only leaves one question. Why is the might, centuries-old vampire leader of his coven named after a soup?
June 11, 2015
Um... Not bad just not great. Borscht is a freaking weird name but so is Sekani...especially when Sekani is supposed to be an American apparently. They were a cute couple and at first I thought it was cool the story was set in Russia but then it started to feel a little disconnected from the series in general. Maybe this needed to be a new spin off series? I don't know.... it was just a little confusing. So Sekani has been in a lab all his life... that just comes with too much baggage. .. like he doesn't know basic everyday things and even tho it wasn't said I'm assuming he doesn't know how to read/write. Then at the end they move to America and he wears a dress.... if it sounds a little all over the place. . it kind of was. I think maybe this should be a spin off that stays in Russia and focuses on the Russian brothers finding mates. Bc in the attempt to connect it to stone ridge it made it
just made it more fuzzy.
just made it more fuzzy.
February 3, 2017
I love Sekani! This is a super cute, pretty short ☹, addition to the series. We get another brother from the Kuznetsov Vampires – Borscht (really?) who ends up finding his Beloved when Sekani – a Fruit Bat!- escapes the scientists who have held him and several other “flyers” captive for experimentation.
What makes this great is that Sekani has no real experience in life outside the lab, so it’s really cute how he is shown all the new things the world holds – a spoon, an orgasm, a Vampire, TV, etcetera. He’s also super cute in bat form, and loves to wear dresses!
We also meet some of the next batch of future mates in the “flyers” – other animals who can fly and have been held captive.
This is a pretty low angst story with a lot of fun and smexy times. A nice addition to the series!
4.25 of 5 stars
What makes this great is that Sekani has no real experience in life outside the lab, so it’s really cute how he is shown all the new things the world holds – a spoon, an orgasm, a Vampire, TV, etcetera. He’s also super cute in bat form, and loves to wear dresses!
We also meet some of the next batch of future mates in the “flyers” – other animals who can fly and have been held captive.
This is a pretty low angst story with a lot of fun and smexy times. A nice addition to the series!
4.25 of 5 stars
December 30, 2015
Evelise's Review:
Driving Borscht Batty had a completely different feel than most of the Wolves of Stone Ridge books and I loved it. I was immediately enamored with Sekani, the adorable fruit bat. His naivety and eagerness to learn was well-written without being childlike and immature. Read More. . . http://www.darkdivasreviews.com/drivi...
June 8, 2015
Driving Borscht Batty (Wolves of Stone Ridge Book 29)
Loved it it was good I couldn't stop reading it till I got to the end of this book... Can't wait for the next one . I hope it's soon....
Loved it it was good I couldn't stop reading it till I got to the end of this book... Can't wait for the next one . I hope it's soon....
June 12, 2015
Better
I liked this one better than the last few. The adding of New characters brings a welcoming fresh blood to the series. I enjoyed this book and look forward for the brothers to find their beloved.
I liked this one better than the last few. The adding of New characters brings a welcoming fresh blood to the series. I enjoyed this book and look forward for the brothers to find their beloved.
June 28, 2015
This has been one of my favorites in the series so far. I love plots involving a MC who is rescued and doesn't know much about the world. I hope (and suspect!) we will see more of this vampire coven and the other rescued avian shifters.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews