Lick

Blooded and Bound #2

by Nikki Clarke

With a best friend who's a vampire, Simone isn't a stranger to the fanged life, but that doesn't prepare her for meeting her new boss or what happens when he mistakes her for his dinner.

Lick is a standalone but has spoilers for Taste: A Vampire Quickie, so you may want to read Taste first.

Genres: Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Fantasy, Vampires, Smut, Novella, Interracial Romance

58 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 29, 2020

About the author

Nikki Clarke is a poet and writer who’s always loved a good love story in books and on film. Her favorite on screen love declarations in no particular order are: Darius and Nina under the viaduct, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth in the field (Knightley and MacFadden version), and Dwayne and Whitley at the wedding. Nikki doesn’t mind a little weird (or raunch) mixed in with her romance and hopes to contribute to more happily ever afters of all shades and styles.

Reviews

[myo ⋆｡˚ ❀ * · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was so good, wish the cover was so damn ugly so that i could buy it but damn this author can write!!!

[Toya (thereadingchemist) · Rating 5 out of 5]

My biggest complaint with this novella is that it is not a full length novel. I absolutely loved Simone! She's a force to be reckoned with on her own. Couple Simone with the sexy cinnamon roll that is Zeshaun, and you have a fantastic story. The banter was top notch. I also really enjoyed the business that Zeshaun deals in since it's not something that you see a lot in vampire canon.

Definitely a must read!

[Syd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting. I’m not entirely how I feel about this novella, but I think I enjoyed it?

[JazzReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good

Quick good read. I like this book. I will be reading more books by this author. Overall I like the fact that it.is short and straight to the point.

[tonya porter · Rating 4 out of 5]

More

I wish there was more, but this is a good read. Oh how I want more like this to read.

[caitlin ✧･ﾟ · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was fun i guess? some parts were kinda questionable but it was a quick read

[CLorraine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lick: A Vampire Quickie by Nikki Clarke is the sequel to her first book in this series and features Li’s best friend, Simone. The book is quite funny with equal offerings of passion and angst and a bit of suspense. Simone works for a company without really knowing what her job description is, her boss is annoyingly vague and dismissive. When she presses him for answers, his BOSS directs her BOSS to fire her. Upset over what she considers an unfair dismissal; Simone fortifies herself with liquid courage and goes to the big boss’s house to give him a piece of her mind only to become his evening dinner! The situation is a comedy of errors and Zeshuan has a perfectly good reason for his mistake but now he must fix this catastrophe. His solution is to turn Simone so that she too becomes a vampire and his mate. Zeshuan immediately feels a connection and love for Simone, but she isn’t sure if this is the (eternal) life for her. I really enjoyed the playful banter and emotional angst in this short story. We also got to catch up with Li and Noah from Taste and I would happily read another story in this series if Ms. Clarke presented one!
https://theretiredreader.com/f/lick-a...

[Crystal · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.25 rounded up for GR.

This was a great quick, spicy read. I loved that this continued with Simone, a character from book 1.
While it sucked that she got turned against her will, I'm glad that she already had a bestfriend who was a vampire so she knew a lot of how things would be.
And she couldn't have met a better maker. Z is not only rich AF but the man is out here getting blood in a smart way! He helps terminally ill patients end their life in a way that is similar to euthanasia while vampires get to feed at the same time. Oh AND he gets criminals like r@pist$ to feed on for the vampires who want to chase a meal.
Noah was annoying me with his little side eye towards what Z does, but I'm glad we got to see that Z actually wasn't shady with his business. I'm all about the vampires eating the bad guys.

[Midnight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just love the work of author Nikki Clarke! I enjoyed this second installment of her "Vampire Quickie" series. Like the first book, I wish this could be a full novel because it was so interesting. Nikki really knows how to create an intriguing story in just under 100 pages. I highly recommend reading the first story before this one, as those characters make an appearance here. The FMC, Simone, in this installment is Liana's best friend from the first story. Since these stories are quite short, I can't say too much without giving away important details. However, I absolutely loved the MMC in this one and would have appreciated a more fleshed-out story due to the type of business he ran. The FMC, Simone, was witty and fearless, and her banter with the MMC made me laugh out loud. Lastly, this story was very steamy, and the MMC was "ten toes down" when it came to Simone!

[Christi (christireadsalot) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was another fun addition to the Vampire Quickie series. These are novellas on KU and it’s best to read them in order (but they’re real short). In this one, the heroine brings up at work that she is getting paid (a ton) for something she has no idea what’s even going on. When she starts asking questions, she gets fired. Pissed, she finds her boss’ address and shows up at his house…only he’s secretly a vampire and thinks she’s his dinner. He figures it out just in time to turn her and then once she’s a vampire she finds out exactly what her job has been the whole time.

This was fun, steamy, and short! The ending felt a bit rushed and I kind of wanted more lol You do meet the couple from book 1 in this and I just find the vampire lore interesting in these reads.

[Peace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought, “Seriously, how good can this novella be? It’s only 58 pages. The story and the characters are probably bland and superficial.”

I’m so pleased to be wrong. The storyline was fresh, imaginative, and stimulating. The characters were intense, full of spirit, and passionate about their beliefs. The sex between Zeshaun and Simone was fire!!!

To be able to compose a complete story with all these elements in so little pages is a true testament to a great author.

Great short read. Of course you can’t compare it to a 500 page novel, but for what it was, it was great. 4.5 Stars.

[Cydney Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting Short Vampire Story

Interesting story, I do love the business aspect of their form of vampire-ism. I do wish it were a longer book, this has potential of being a really good series. Wish I could see Z and SiSi in the future books.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surprisingly good

I actually enjoyed this story. The story is not fantastical. Actually believable in a way. Zeshaun is commanding which is why his reaction to Simone's declaration of love is so funny. Unexpected and endearing.

[Avid Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sigh

My only complaint is that it’s not longer. These quickies just make me want more and more. I was worried when Noah was suspicious because Noah is bae, but Z ended up being a good guy.

[Weekend Reader_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mistaken dinner

Simone crashed her bosses dinner plans after being fired from her sketchy job and she is bonded to him literally. This was a fun vampire short. There were some errors throughout the book but other than it was fine. The timeline bounced around a bit too but lots of sex which apparently is a thing with your maker. Who knew 😂

CW/N: terminal death, sexual assault/serial killer inference, attempted assination, mercy killings

[Sonya Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another unusual direction

This was another unusual direction for a vampire book compared to others read in the past. Simone and Z had an unusual meeting and there were some misunderstandings before getting to the HEA.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wrong Place - Right Time

That’s all it takes to change your life forever. Nothing happens by accident. I enjoyed how the MC ‘s stayed true to themselves. Recommending this novella is easy. Finding your place in this life - isn’t.

[BooksChaosandTea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely ending

I enjoyed the conclusion of this world and lore. Simone and Zeshaun are a cute couple, and I enjoyed their story. Also, happy that she has her best friend for life, literally.

[Alexis💛 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whats for Dinner? 😂

Okay so this where Si Si a$$ went in the first book 😂 I was wondering why she wasn’t in the ending of book one..but this was good 😌 she got her own HEA and so glad it all worked out on both sides 👏🏽👏🏽Spooky Season 2025 continues 👻🧛🏾‍♀️🧛🏾

[genette]

Cute quickie

Super cute and short. I’m happy that we were able to get more about vampires. I hope there is another installment. Maybe we can see it from Guys perspective. Great job!

[Sheena Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Story was wayyyy too short but still a great read. I felt as if it complimented the short story theme, but would've enjoyed a bit more.

[Jacqueline Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mmmm

A delicious bit size read. This short was so well written that I wouldn't mind reading more about this couple.

[Robin Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute story

I liked the story and its premise but needs editing. I wish it was more than just a quickie, but s little longer. Still good though.

[Cass K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish it were longer

Very short, good book... wish it were longer tho. Would like to learn more about their backgrounds etc. seems random.

[D.H. Woods · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this quickie

Yeah I wish it had been longer, but I really like this couple. Z is the the stuff of fantasy. Great read!

[lene bean · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interracial vampire couple? Yes please!

[Gemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great novella. Sad to see that there aren’t more in this series. I’ve been kind of disliking most short romance novellas recently, but the two in this series are perfect.

[Vira · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nuevamente no hay expectativas por que es una novela corta pero man un Emperador de China de mas de 600 años habla como el man random no entiendo, ósea el MC no me dio el feeling de Emperador.

[hea booktubes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vampire fated mates novella. Sequel to Taste. Their communication was crap lol.