Stone Masters - A Vampire Reckoning

Stone Masters Vampire #2

by Vanessa Fewings

What if your family held an ancient secret? A secret passed down from one generation to the next. An enigma so great that it would shatter your world, change the fabric of your life. What if the time had come for you to be initiated into that secret life? Lord Jadeon Artimas, heir to St. Michael's Mount in Cornwall, discovers his family belongs to a clandestine order known as the Stone Masters: A collection of brave men whose sole, sacred duty is to hunt down and kill the mythical creatures of the night, known as vampires. Jadeon’s epic journey draws him into the underworld that stretches across lifetimes teeming with coded messages and castles with revelations in each mysterious passageway. He must face his deepest, darkest fears to outlive a journey of seduction, honor, and betrayal. As the sinister truth is unraveled, the foundation of a legacy is shaken to its core, putting the very existence of the Stone Masters in jeopardy. Only by accepting his family's history can Jadeon confront the dangers, solve the mysteries, and truly become a Stone Master.

Genres: Vampires, Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance, Paranormal Romance, Horror, Historical Romance

292 pages, Paperback

First published July 25, 2007

About the author

USA Today Bestselling Author Vanessa Fewings writes both contemporary romance and erotic romance novels.

ENTHRALL has been optioned by Passionflix with the co-director and cinematographer attached from the Netflix hit 365 Days.

Facebook group: Vanessa Fewings' Romance Lounge.

Contact: authorfewings@gmail.com

Book 1: ENTHRALL
Book 2: ENTHRALL HER
Book 3 ENTHRALL HIM
Book 4 CAMERON'S CONTROL
Book 5: CAMERON'S CONTRACT
Book 6: RICHARD'S REIGN
Book 7: ENTHRALL SECRETS
Book 8: ENTHRALL CLIMAX
Book 9: ENTHRALL ECSTASY
Book 10: ENTHRALL SHADOWS


VanessaFewings.com

Instagram: @vanessafewings

twitter: @vanessafewings

Vanessa is on TikTok!

Reviews

[Hazel *Craves the Angst Reviews* · Rating 5 out of 5]

Find This and Other Reviews At Craves The Angst.

I received this eCopy from the author in exchange for an honest review.

A Vampire’s Reckoning is book two in the Stone Masters Vampire series and is a Paranormal, Fantasy written by Vanessa Fewings. Thank you so much to the author for allowing me to read and review this fabulous book and series!

5 Sensational, Vindictive Stars!
Vampires, Vengeance and Fantastic Storytelling! Yes Please!

The Review:
I adore Vanessa Fewings incredibly talented writing. She has a wonderful way of blending factual history and haunting fantasy into a believable, tangible tale. This book is proof of how a well written story can fluidly transport the reader through time, how it can perfectly entice you into a chilling world of intrigue and beguile you completely while doing so. The characters are fascinating yet complex and the story is thrilling with plenty of plot twists and shocking visuals to keep you absorbed within the pages.

The Story...
This is the story of Jadeon Artimas, his past, how he came to be Vampire and the spiraling events there after. But it would also not be a proper history lesson without the hypnotic and long standing Lord Daumia’s (aka Orpheus) interjection. So together, they recount their entwined history and we are ferried through time and history as Orpheus and Jadeon narrate their trials of loss, revenge, acceptance and rebirth, all the while circling the convictions of the Stone Masters and their cleansing rites to rid the world of evil.

This is their story.

Orpheus...

Quote Spotlight...
Your days are numbered. This is where you and I differ.
I am Lord Daumia Velde, a.k.a. Orpheus. The question is, “Who is the hunter and who is the hunted?” I would have no part in allowing Jadeon to write another word if I were not allowed to offer my part. Such is an indication of my character, as it is for Jadeon’s, who permits me this luxury. Therefore, we will leapfrog our way through, each vying for your attention.

In the first book, A Vampire’s Rise we see first hand Daumia’s unfortunate life as it transforms from mundane to fantastical, his rebirth into Vampirism and the suffering he endures at the hands of others. But as time passes, he finds his way, creates a unique family and within that family is his lover, Sunaria. But loss seems to be inevitable for Orpheus and at the end, he’s set on the path of vengeance once again and everything that happens in this book is one well orchestrated scheme to exact his revenge.

Orpheus’s story picks up in correlation with Jadeons as he tells of his search for his Sunaria’s murderers who call themselves the Keepers of The Stone. With only the imprinted images of Sunaria’s last days to go by and the scared faces of two small boys, Orpheus goes in search of those that took what was most precious to him.

These nameless, faceless humans who seemed to snuff out immortality with ease and patience are truly a mystery to Orpheus but he stops at nothing to find them, even as he fears them.

I could see a monumental change in Orpheus, letting his revenge mold him into a different being than the boy and then the man, we first met in book one. He no longer struggles with what he has become. He’s accepted it and is now revered for it.

Orpheus is a well seasons planner. For every step Jadeon takes, he counters, setting into motion an unpredicted outcome. He’s smart, diabolical, patient and intriguing. He enjoys the exquisiteness of the hunt, weather it be to kill or to trick. He’s a most accomplished puppeteer, a master of his realm and their truly seems to be no equal. And though his thoughts, his desires and his moral compass are completely immoral, you can’t help but fall victim to his charms and to his character, enjoying his story as well as his viewpoints.

....

Jadeon...

Quote Spotlight...
My aim is to earn your trust, so that you gain insight and are able to comprehend the unfeasible. It’s important that this is documented. How ironic that I now reveal what I once strived to keep hidden.
....
Therefore, I scribe this for you, in the sanctity of my study, here in St. Michael’s Mount in Marazion.
Travel back with me...

In the year of 1805, Lord Jadeon Artimas was a prominent young man in his early twenties, who had a family legacy laid out before him. However as the formidable Orpheus’s well constructed plan comes to fruition, Jadeon would never fulfill that family legacy, but be forced a new one when his life irrevocably changes as he is made Vampire. His world and the world of his younger brother Alex, open anew and The Artimas family would never be the same as these brothers endure over two centuries of immortality... and at a price neither would have accepted should they have been given a choice.

I enjoyed getting to know Jadeon and Alex. We see them as young boys and follow them into their early adult years. Alex is seduced by Orpheus and introduced to the Artimas family. This was his entry into their lives. We get to experience love and rejection through Jadeons eyes as well as get a glimpse into the ceremonies of the Stone Master. And we also are introduced to new characters that play a significant part in their stories.

Jadeon and Alex as Vampires are different than Orpheus. They remind me much of how Orpheus began, trying to do right with evil on their side. But as their new existence as Vampires begin, their journey across time was both lonely and inconsequential. They were forcefully given immortality but in hindsight, they squandered it, Jadeon both tracking and losing Orpheus through time and Alex captured in the past as he haunted his castle. It wasn’t until they come together two hundred years later that major events unfold, leaving us with a gripping ending that is both shocking and thrilling!

The Wrap Up:
Vanessa Fewings has enthralled me once again. This book was remarkable in every way. What I love most about this series is these Vampires are akin to real people. The have desires, they love, they seek vengeance when their family is harmed, they have dreams and they walk a line between being the demon they are designed to be and being something more, something that has a moral code and the ability to govern themselves with rules. There is a real difference between Jadeon, Alex and Orpheus in all these things, like two sides of a same coin. I enjoyed watching their story unfold and I can’t wait to see what awaits them next in A Vampire's Dominion (The Stone Masters Vampire, #3).

[The FountainPenDiva, Old school geek chick and lover of teddy bears · Rating 5 out of 5]

Firstly, my thanks to the amazing V.M.K. (Vanessa) Fewings who made my day at the L.A. Times Festival of Books by not only remembering me and my review of her first novel in the Stone Masters series, but autographes and GAVE me the last two books in the series for free. I was and still am in awe of such generosity.

In my previous review, I likened Fewings to some of the greats of modern vampire fictions, such as Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Fred Saberhagen and Kim Stanley Robinson and of course Anne Rice. Fewings' vampires are not for the Twilight crowd or those who like their vamps cute and defanged. Her vampires are not nice and they shouldn't be. Even the ones who struggle to maintain their humanity often find themselves giving into their vampiric natures.

A Vampire's Reckoning is a dark tale of revenge served warm and AB positive. Orpheus (Daumia Velde) is a vampire on a mission, to avenge the horrific death of Sunaria, his maker and lover.

[Rosanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another excellent book from this series.

We pretty much pickup right where book one ended. However, this time around we get two different POVs.
Orpheus and Jadeon. Because there are two sides of every story, right? We also get a few 3rd person POVs as well. There was a lot going on in this story as it progresses. I loved it!


We had a glimpse of Jadeon and Alex in the end of book one, and now in book two, we get their full story. Jadeon recounts his days starting at the age of 10 and continues to the present day.


Orpheus... I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around his new villain character. My heart just broke at 50%. I completely understand his revenge, but not to the extent that he took it.

I'm very curious how he handles his new life in book three.

Excellent writing, excellent story!

[Coco.V]

🎁 FREE on Amazon today (7/26/2019)! 🎁

[Theresa · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off I would like to extend another thank you for winning this book from goodreads, it was a very enjoyable read. I actually had to go buy the other books in the series because I enjoyed this one so much. The story is told from two different characters and goes back and forth increasing the excitement of the story. I also enjoyed the historical and religious references throughout the book. Great vampire series!

[Bleumoon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am loving this series! The characters are so easy to believe and the passage of time and how they adapt to changes is very well done. As with the first book the surroundings and people are detailed very nicely making it easy to imagine them. It pains me that these books haven't gotten the attention that they deserve. Really well thought out and written series

[Bernadette Eccleston]

Loved it! I met the author at WonderCon in SF and bought the book from her. She also signed the book for me. It was a very good read and left me wanting more more more!!

[AH]

Kindle free download 7/7/12

[Mendy]

f

[Ted]

"*** I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads ***
** The Giveaway was Listed By V.M.K.**
* I received my copy on *

THANK YOU GOODREADS FIRST READS AND V.M.K.! "

[Carol orr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vampire intrigue at its best

There are some grammatical errors combined with some historical manipulation but in and of itself the second instalment in the series is well worth the read. I will be purchasing the next book in this series.

[Trish Jackson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read!

I am really enjoying this series. Each book is unique and the stories stand out from the crowd. Looking forward to seeing what comes next.

[GUD Magazine · Rating 1 out of 5]

'Stone Masters: A Vampire Reckoning' by V.M.K. Fewers is a vampire novel told from two perspectives, in the form of diary entries. Both of the main characters, Orpheus and Jadeon, start us off with an entry from June 2006 as the set up to tell the story of how they became what they are, several hundred years earlier.

Jadeon’s family history is somewhat… interesting. He and his brother, Alex, accidentally witness their father and a group of men performing a ritual over a woman they at first believe to be a witch. The brothers see the woman carried through the family castle screaming, and calling out the name “Orpheus”. Thus begins Jadeon's journey to discover the truth about his father's involvement with the group–The Stone Masters-whose duty it is to kill vampires.

I appreciate that Laurell K. Hamilton and Anne Rice can only produce so many novels a year, and that in-between times vampire fans need a fix. So, this little niche opens up for the rest of vampire fic to have its turn. Unfortuately, Stone Masters is like a skeleton of an Anne Rice novel, without the real flesh, and more importantly blood, which vampires need. Anita Blake without any of the wit, and a poor copy-cat.

Not long ago I read Gabrielle Faust’s 'Eternal Vigilance'. After reading Stone Masters I can appreciate what Faust was doing - she tried to recreate a genre that is wearing rather thin on new material by injecting as much of her own originality as she could. And as it should be. Stone Masters just doesn’t have that jolt of excitement, or even just enough good old gore-fun to keep the reader interested. There is nothing new here, however hard you look, and hope.

The movement from one narrator to the next is confusing, the diaries boring. There was one stand-out moment, which was the description of a nasty witches' ceremony. I felt excited at this point, and for just a moment relieved, because I thought I was finally going to get the dark and scary tale that was hinted at in the story up until this point. No such luck. One good chapter was not enough to save Stone Masters. Poetic prose can be a wonderful thing, but not when it is the veil used simply to cover a weak plot.

I struggled with the book, right from the uninspiring cover art, to the less than satisfactory ending. I know it is not supposed to be taken as one of the literary greats, but there has to be something–it wasn’t even so bad that it was hilarious.

[Anne (Angel Anne Reviews) Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

WOW.. I would first like to thank VMK Fewings for the honor and privilege to read for review your amazing novel, “A Vampire‘s Reckoning” that I won on goodreads!!!! THANK YOU

~~~ Is it fair for the sins of the father to be paid by the son? Jadeon Artimas lived among wealth and privilege, oblivious to the knowledge that he was born into a secret society of vampire hunters known as the “Stone Masters.” When Orpheus, the world’s most notorious vampire, discovers the Stone Lord who murdered his beloved, he sets his ambition to making Lord Artimas pay the ultimate price - by turning his son Jadeon into a creature of the night.
Follow two centuries of rivalry as both nightwalkers wage a fierce war from SoHo to Stonehenge.. But if Orpheus is punishing Jadeon, and Jadeon is punishing Orpheus, (I know confusing right?) who will justice ultimately serve? ~~~

A man’s secret becomes a man’s destiny

This smooth flowing, fast paced novel will grab your attention from the very beginning and not let you go until your completely down ready to move on to the next book. It’s like reading a journal; You’ll find yourself feeling what they feel, thinking like they do, and seeing what they see, it’s so surreal in a way. I just absolutely love when a book does that to me. Puts me right in the place and time of things as they happen.

A Vampire’s Reckoning is funny, (yes you will laugh as you read parts) sad, (yes your hearts going to ache too) mysterious and very suspenseful.. Plus a whole lot more!!!

Orpheus, a divinely good looking vampire; grieving for his murdered wife wants justice and revenge.. He will stop at nothing to get what he seeks and wants.
Jadeon, who is extremely handsome in his own right, has to figure out how to stop Orpheus once and for all or risk everything that he holds closest to his heart… what will happen as this story of life, love, justice and revenge unfolds across the page?

This spectacular book needs to be in your TBR list for sure!!! What’s stopping you? Go get your copy to see how this book turns out. As I reach to my stack of book for the next book in this series: (I like to read series books back to back) A Vampire’s Dominion , book III of The Stone Masters series.

A MUST READ

I’ll see you soon with my next point of view of The Stone Masters series!!! Happy reading to everyone.

Recommend: 17 and up
Rating: 4/5 angel stars

Angel Anne Reviews

[Kaye Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another wonderfully lush retreat into the adult vampire world of VMK Fewings. I thought I might have had enough after two outings, but I have to say this author is exceedingly canny. I absolutely loathe the growing trend of books that are serialised, where the author thinks this means they can just stop writing when they get a bit tired. You feel as though you have been left in the middle of a chapter, with no narrative conclusion or arc through the story. A serial does not mean you have a single arc through the entire series, each book has to have its own point or the author wastes the reader's time and patience. VMK Fewings does NOT pull this nasty trick. She provides a full narrative, with a juicy conclusion...but does so in such a way that you are still left on a cliffhanger with a desperate need to instantly open the next volume. Naughty, naughty Ms Fewings...you have me hooked.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this book as part of a Goodreads giveaway.

A Vampire's Reckoning was an interesting read. I really enjoyed how Fewings told the story from different perspectives, and how each chapter was a different characters view; this really kept me engaged in the story, often-times surprised at how much I had just read!
I liked the incorporation of ancient vampire rituals, how they were described, and the lead up to the eventual ending of this book. Interested in what the next in the series holds...

[Twin Opinions · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the covers to these books. I found this story much more interesting than the first, however Orpheus lost his humanity. We also seen very little of the previous characters from the first book.
For full review click below:
http://twinopinionsreview.blogspot.co...

[Maria Moonsapha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have had the pleasure of meeting Ms Fewings twice. This book will send you on a journey that will leave you breathless. Do not pass up this book!!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jadeon/Orpheus- in one body wow how is that going to work. Two vampires fighting to save there loved ones. How to get the appart?