Beautiful Forever

by Diana Copland

Brady Duncan has been indulging the whims of best friend Tessa McNeil for years. When she announces in the middle of a vacation in New Orleans that she's managed to obtain an invitation to a notorious local Vampyre Haven at the historic Maison Bertrand, Brady reluctantly agrees to accompany her. He's never understood her fascination with "the lifestyle," as Tessa calls it, but complete in Gothic makeup and black Victorian garb, he goes with her to the mansion in the bayou for what he believes amounts to an elaborate Halloween party.He couldn't be more wrong. Brady almost immediately realizes he's in over his head: he's not put off by the decor, or even the drugs, but when they stumble across rooms where blood play is on display, he decides it's time to leave. But Tessa isn't ready to go, the doorman Gerard keeps referring to him as "the offering," and some of the more insistent guests have chosen him as a party favor when he is rescued by the enigmatic Lucien Bertrand. Or is he only getting into deeper trouble?

Part of Dreamspinner Press's Daily Dose 2010: Midsummer's Nightmare.

Genres: M M Romance, Vampires, Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, M M Paranormal, Adventure, Gay

50 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 2010

About the author

Diana Copland began writing in the seventh grade, when she shamelessly combined elements of Jane Eyre and Dark Shadows to produce an overwrought gothic tale that earned her an A- in creative writing, thanks entirely to the generosity of her teacher. She wrote for pure enjoyment for the next three decades before discovering LiveJournal and a wonderful group of supportive fanfiction writers, who after gifting her with a "Best New Author" Award encouraged her to try her hand at original gay fiction.

Born and raised in southern California, Diana moved to the Pacific Northwest after losing a beloved spouse to AIDS in 1995. She lives in eastern Washington near her two wonderful adult children and her surprisingly supportive parents.

Reviews

[Mandy*reads obsessively* · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5*
Brady is dressed up and taken as an 'offering' to a vampire by his friend ( use that term loosely) Tessa.
The problem is, Brady has no idea that's what happening, he thinks its a weird and scary costume party.
He is saves from a very unpleasant experience and there is an instant attraction.
This is where the story sort of lost me.

Why was it so important for Lucien to change Brady right away that night, why not get to know him a bit more, give him time, get to know him, prepare him.
And really getting someone all worked up and then say he can come if he says he wants to be beautiful forever ..yes, that is SO MUCH better than the way Tess treated Brady!
Why after he changed him, can't he at least call or write his parents and give them some story !
They deserve that much, not some story Tess decided to tell, and just my opinion, if it were my son, I wouldn't give a flying care what Tess or anybody else said, I would move heaven and earth to find my son if he goes on a trip and never comes home or is heard from again, I think there had to be a better way.
Then, why not give us a few of the conversations between Lucien and Brady while Brady was still pissed and mad, and when he finally made peace with his circumstance and show that they really fell in love..not just tell me that after a few years he did. No we just get a bit of Brady and the butler guy ...a total let down for me!
So the first part was interesting and promising..the rest just left me wanting and disappointed.
And the telling off of Tess at the end, didn't make me feel any better about them, it just seemed cruel and that time could have been spent trying to convince me there is something between the MC's.

[Serena Yates · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good story about the things people will do when they're driven by need. Tessa wants to be 'beautiful forever' and Brady is her ticket to get what she wants (or so she thinks). Brady is a victim - so he believes. Lucien is lonely and desperate for a companion and not too worried about how he gets him.

I found it hard to like any of them. Tessa is the least likeable and gets her come-uppance in the end. Brady is just naive, and I guess I sort of felt sorry for him, but really - he should have known better! And Lucien - while I definitely felt sorry for him, his method of getting Brady to do do what he wanted was less than admirable.

All in all: a good story about human nature that most definitely rings true. What I wanted was more insight into the change in Brady's attitude as well as his relationship with Lucien. It's almost as if this story is the beginning to a longer novel and I missed the positive emotional payoff I was hoping for at the end.

[Heller · Rating 3 out of 5]

A wonderful creepy book to read just in time for Halloween. This had a few time jumps and I think as a longer story it would have been so awesome but still very eerie, gorgeous descriptions in this one. I really liked the chemistry between Brady and Lucien and the ending just rocked it. Good little read!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved all the descriptions in this book, they are so gorgeous and make you feel like you are right there standing in the house. I can't do justice to the layers of the language, just amazing. And then Lucien on top of all that, it's just great.

[Susan65 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was looking for something different, something to get me in the Halloween spirit, and this was perfect. I didn't expect the ending at all, but it was awesone.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really 4.5 stars.

Beautiful Forever is a short story that packs a lot in it's 71 pages. Diana does a wonderful job pulling the reader into the scenes and making them care about a character (Brady) they hardly know. There were moments in the story that I felt genuine concern for Brady because he didn't realize just how serious and real his situation could be. Most of that concern stems from the fact that throughout the story you don't know if the situation he is in is real or if it's all pretend...especially considering the fact that he was dragged into the situation by a friend who may know more than she is letting on.

[Candice · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This was a good read, just it is a shame that this was so short. I think this could have been such a good story if the timeline didn't jump and we got to see these two together and working through the issues and how they got their HEA.

[Betryal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This read was nifty. :snorts: Not the right word, but it's late so be it as it shall.

Lucian is really smooth and cunning in the way he gets Brady to be his, but he does it with class to my way of seeing it. Tessa, is a deceitful biatch in the way she uses Brady as a meal on a plate to try and obtain what she wants which is? You got it... to be beautiful Forever only to have it backfire on her sorry ass. I really liked how it played out and I wished it had been made into a longer story to fill in some of the fifty year time leap that they took, but it's a great short if that's what you're needing and you can't resist a hot vamp and his life partner that is one you'd only love with his blond good looks and blue as sin eyes.

A very refreshing read.

[Kelly (Maybedog) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Looks like this is out of print. It's not even listed on Copland's website, although it's mentioned briefly on her blog.

** spoiler alert ** VERY raw notes, may contain spoilers but probably nothing major. I write my reviews on my smart phone so autocorrect sometimes does interesting things. You've been warned.

1.5 stars

Brady's an idiot. He's got vampire mythology in the forefront of his mind and yet the owner of the house's behavior doesn't strike him as odd at all. The man was clued in to the lingo and "played along" and bus says he will have Brady in all ways.

Not knowing if your your son is out there alive or dead is not necessarily easier than "knowing" he's dead. Parents of missing children disagree on that and go back and forth even after the bodies are found.

The structure was odd. The first part was done well if scary yet predictable but then came a long sex scene followed by a sudden all summed up fast like it had been decades ago sort of thing. Then back to a brief scene 6 months after the initial story.

Why can't people ever go back to their families? Why can't they have closure and then disappear or fake their deaths or something?

Only woman evil of course.

He talks to him for less than an hour and decides he's the one?

Of course vampire is the tall big one (why is that--people used to be smaller so ancient ones should be tiny).

Ugh. Really played on the old is ugly. No comments about not having aged well even. I got the point but it really was rather offensively done.

[Angel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brady allows his lifelong friend, Tessa, to take him some place, he never expected; a Vampyre House. Brady doesn't understand the creepiness inherent with this lifestyle, and wants nothing to do with it. Despite being uncomfortable the entire time, he continues to go along with her, ignoring his discomfort until he's nearly raped.

Brady is rescued by Lucien, and through sexual coercion, he is changed into the very thing Tessa brought him to the party to seek herself; a vampire.

I lost all respect for Tessa within a few minutes of their arrival to the house. I felt for Brady, being overwhelmed and all, but he did say yes. Also, I gotta say, I love that Lucien was as monstrous as he was. Vampires, while admittedly sexy, are still predators and this was awesome to see. Lucien's guilt afterwards for changing Brady as he did was an interesting side bit.

All in all, a creepy, telling tale about human nature that I wish had been longer. I understand the art of anthologies and short stories, but I was a bit disappointed at this tale because it seemed rushed. BF has Copland's fantastic description of place and character and all the feels in place, but it felt incomplete. I would have liked to see more of the vampire verse and Brady's adjustment, because even after 50 years, he still wasn't all that thrilled despite coming to love Lucien, and while I felt Tessa's comeuppance at the end was justified, it seemed as if it came just a little too late.

[Mandi · Rating 2 out of 5]

2-2.5 stars. I enjoyed most of this story until the last part. Suddenly time skips forward 6 months to a year (and how dare Brady not get over being turned into a vampire in that time! /sarcasm) and a few paragraphs or so later, it's fifty years into the future!

I think if this was a longer novel, that time could of been fleshed out and made the whole story much better.

[Kath · Rating 3 out of 5]

not much to say that hasn't already been said.
this was an ok read I was hoping for a bit more details when it came to the making up and Lucian and Brady fixing their differences but it seems it wasn't meant to be. I don't particularly agree when it comes to the way Lucian did things, Tessa was just plainly a horrible person, while Brady seam to be too innocent and a bit weak but then he wasn't in the best type of situation..... any way all in all it was kind of good.

[Silent · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was so much crammed into a small word count that the plot was left feeling rather under developed. Also there was a lot of detailed description within the book. Personally I don't like this however this is a personal opinion and I do respect that other readers/writers do enjoy it. On the other hand the sex scene was creative and made intersting reading.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 Stars
I liked this book but the story was too rushed, specially at the end. It gave me the feeling of the author trying to stick to a set word count and realising the story couldn't be told in the allocated time, so forced to jump ahead in quick spurts to reach the finish line with a reasonable ending.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good short paranormal m/m romance about a young man who goes along on a trip to New Orleans with his best friend, but is very unhappy when she drags him to one of her vampire wannabe parties at an antebellum mansion out in the bayou.

[Vanyel Kane · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short story, good for a coffee break.

Enjoyed the main characters but as I reached the end I suspect the author had some female in mind that she was NOT fond of because there is a female that just had to suffer in it.

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable quick read. It fell apart a little towards the end, but I still liked it.

[Noughty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short easy read - 4,5

[Tamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

1st read - Jul 5, 2011
2nd read - Fe 26 2016

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Nikko · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was ok for me but it was aa bit rushed after brady was bitten.

[Sherry F · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 stars

WTF?!! No....just no. See Mandy *reads obsessively* review; she's spot on. (am having a 'duh' evening and not getting the direct link to her review to post correctly)

[Jason Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a nice classic tale. A little bitter at the end but still a great read.