This was a solidly written, and quite entertaining vampire story. I liked the world the author created and I really enjoyed the characters. I will definitely read more from this author.

**ARC provided through Netgalley**

I should have read this book last year, but you know... *pandemic*.
Not going to lie, I felt a little underwhelmed. The premise was interesting, and the characters weren't that bad, but I felt like there was something missing. I wanted to know much more about the vampire world, and the fae. I think everything happened too fast and there was no time for real character development. What I did like was that Belar was explicitly demisexual. We need more books with characters that are able to express freely who and what they are.

I enjoyed the world-building but I wanted something a little more. The whole society/ dark realm was vague enough to capture my interest but then it started to get too confusing to keep up with. I'm hoping there's a second book that delves more into the world-building and if so, I would 100% pick it up.

I loved Cassian and his smirking and smugness. I like how Belar stood his ground and did his own thing.

A fun adventure romance, with a vampire hunter and vampire pairing. It's a good read for a rainy afternoon with a cup of tea. If you're expecting something that will rend your heart and provide angst, this book is not it, which was perhaps the only issue I had with it. I do like my romance full of pathos.

The character interactions were fun, and the writing hinted at a world bigger than what's shown in the story, which I do love. The ending was enough to make me hope for a sequel and I do think that's a sign of a good book.

The writing is strong, and I liked it well enough that I'll be trying more from the author, but the most successful part -- the chemistry between the MCs -- got the least play, while the bulk of the book focuses on the least successful storyline, which was the action plot.

I liked the world-building, but there's a missing link between all the buildup and the big climax. It's fine to go vague on the details of your magic system IF you don't rely on it for the climax the whole book revolves around. Let the inner workings of the vampire society build your tension instead. But that part of the buildup didn't go anywhere either. In fact, all the best details from Cassian's history are introduced as teasers and then never mentioned again. So this ends up being a strong foundation for something that didn't have any real payoff in either direction (except the UST).

Basically, the book thinks it's plot-driven and it's just not. It would have been much stronger if the author had leaned into the interesting relationship dynamics they created with these great characters instead. The clean writing saves it from the usual pitfalls this can breed, but the mismatch does make it a little draggy in places. I'm still looking forward to trying the more character-driven offerings from this author.

This was a an easy book to get through with two likeable characters, an engaging plot. I would have liked a bit more world building and hope to read some more in this world. Would have liked if it had been a bit longer! Great demi rep!

At first glance, 'From the Dark We Came' by J. Emery, had a fascinating premise for me.. and right up front I'll tell you.. there's nothing wrong with the story. The writing and story are fine, the characters sparked my interest right away, and the paranormal topic is generally something I enjoy.

Belar is a monster hunter who seems to do especially well at executing vampires, of course.. he has some tricks up his sleeves that his fellow agents don't. He has one of the best kill records in the organization.. in fact.. only one monster has ever escaped him.

He's a skilled agent who hides by day as a mild-mannered music teacher, often starting rumors about himself just so others don't get curious about his long disappearances and stir worse ones on their own. He purposely lives on the outskirts of the town to limit the visibility of his comings and goings.

One night, late returning from a city gathering.. having learned socializing with the townsfolk wherever he sets up helps him stay under their radar, he finds the monster that got away inside his home. Having already tried to kill Cassian twice, he discovers the vampire wants to hire him. Apparently, one of his own kind wants him dead and they've been using the hunter to do the job.

For me, there are components here of a great story. I love the way they begin at odds with one another, though Belar harbors prejudices regarding the vampire's kind, Cassian seems to shrug much of it off with the kind of amusement only the truly hard to kill creatures can. They both have secrets that impact the way they deal with others, things that spurred them to make the choices that put them on a trajectory toward one another.

In part because of the secrets between them, Belar struggles to tell who in his sphere is friend and who is foe and there's a chance there to really exploit that, but Emery just doesn't.

As I said before, the book was fine. It was a quick read with likeable characters. I didn't find the story particularly moving because there just isn't a lot of development done with Cassian or Belar. We're sort of tossed the bare bones of their pasts, then it's not extrapolated on.

There's even a discussion of a situation from Cassian's history that is directly tied to the reason they've both been targeted in the way they have, but the only thing really focused on is the finality of that situation. If you give it a try, you'll see it. An heirloom is brought up as a way of identifying a connection between those involved. There's a known betrayal mentioned.. and even a trial.. but none of that is followed up anywhere later in the novel.

Both Cassian and Belar have so much potential. In an almost.. crib notes explanation.. their paths have forged these magnetic characters, but the range of experience and emotion is just never shared.

If you want a quick easy read, it's still worth a look. The author could definitely grow from here and do much more with their skill. I know I'm hoping they do.

I'm in two minds about this book. There are good points and bad points, but I think the good does win out far more come the end, so rather than giving it three stars, I'm going for four. I think it's worth it.

On the surface, it's an intriguing and gripping tale of a monster hunter and a vampire who find their paths crossing until their way forward becomes one and the same in a world that piques the interest. But there's a lot left lacking, and elements of the writing style really doesn't help, either.

First and foremost, it's never mentioned once, or even hinted at, as to when or where this story takes place. It's never once made clear as to whether it's set in our world or an alternative universe, and the timeline is never expressed, either, though the apparent lack of electricity alludes to it being set during times of old, it could just as easily be of another world entirely from our own or set sometime in the future - there's no part of the story that brings into it anything beyond the characters, no hints as to what lies in the world around them, no household objects interacted with that answers any questions, nothing to suggest one way or the other. It's simply never made clear, and because of this it's often left confusing with certain descriptions.

The narrative is more or less consistent with the 'voice' it carries, at least until the very end, and then suddenly it alters, the narrative voice sounding less otherworldly yet proper and becomes more common modern world-ish - the descriptions of the sexual encounter, for example, switched the whole 'voice' of it entirely and it made it seem as if it just didn't fit. There's also a problem with the narrative in general, reading as though it's third-person limited to start, switching between Belar and Cassian, but the whole time it's never written too personally, rarely using pronouns of any kind concerning the character who's POV it's in at the time, the over-use of names - it makes it read as if it should have been third-person omniscient and yet it isn't. There's also long rambles of text, starting out with one thing and running off in tangents that add to the moments of confusion. Between the issues of narrative, it does throw off the flow of the whole thing at times, giving moments where it's easy to space in and out.

However, I have to stress that, overall, despite narrative writing issues and lack of details, this book is a fairly quick read, perhaps shorter than it ought to be with so much left out that could have enriched it further, the characters are well-written and three-dimensional, layers there that we barely get to scratch the surface of, and their separate journeys that lead them onto a mission to find whoever it is that seems to have linked them together and tries to get them both killed on several occasions until they join forces and get to the bottom of it. There's a whole world there, though lacking with details to fill in some of the questions of intrigue around it all, that makes the story gripping, makes it easy to sit down and get into, and keep reading. The world where hunting monsters, however secret it appears to be kept, seems to offer job positions with ranks to climb and pay cheques to cash in for their efforts, and a whole building where research is done to plan out hunts before they happen and to write reports on once they're over - it's all so intriguing.

This book isn't perfect, but I never once felt the urge to put it down and never pick it back up again, and although it left me with a lot of questions about the world around the main characters that were never answered, the story did feel whole, complete, come the end, and most things were wrapped up nicely. It would actually be lovely to re-visit them in a sequel, perhaps where more could be explained, especially as a lot of the lingering questions about the world impact on the characters themselves and how things end. With the two of them finding their way together, how does that go about working? Everything about vampires is more or less vague, left a mystery, even to the characters themselves, and then there's the fact that Belar is part Fae - does that alter anything about him in comparison to humans? Do the Fae have extended life-expectancies? Could the two of them spend decades together? Or will a time come when Belar will perish and leave Cassian to carry on without him? What about the princess Cassian served, and how he's known to break away from her and always return - does that mean once Belar's out of the picture, he'll return to her in the end? What will become of them? There's not an awful lot throughout the story to leave us to imagine how their journey will continue on long after the story is over.

Gripping. But lacking. Yet still whole and complete. I loved reading this book, I enjoyed every moment of it regardless of its flaws, and it's easy to overlook wasted potential to appreciate the story for what it is. The only true thing that I raise an eyebrow at is the fact that this book is advertised to have this sexuality and that gender, but the only real character who openly labels themselves is Belar as demisexual, and I think the sex scene at the end ruins that a little, as the one thing we are told about him is that he's spent months, even years, with people and never managed to reach a point where he's felt physical attraction towards them enough to act upon it, reaching a time when both parties grow bored and move on - this notion takes away from the fact that people can be in romantic relationships without physical attraction and be satisfied with that, and it also undermines the fact we're told this simply doesn't happen for him until Cassian comes along and suddenly his whole sense of sexuality alters in an instant. Demisexuality happens over time, and I think this would have been much more satisfying come the end if the sex scene had been replaced with a moment of romantic closeness instead, perhaps them curled up together or something, much more fitting to Belar's character and the story itself, and to show that, although it will probably happen because Cassian holds a stronger bond with Belar than anyone else ever has to the extent that he feels things he never really has before, wants to do things he's never been interested in with anyone else, that it doesn't switch on and off instantly, it happens gradually, and the two of them haven't known each other for very long, nor do they know much of each other, much like the reader. Personally, and through my own experiences and those of others I've spoken to, I do think this could have been much more satisfying an ending without it, their romantic relationship beautiful enough to witness the beginnings of alone.

I do have to admit that I missed the fact that Belar is a sufferer of chronic pain until I read the author's notes on this at the end. I felt that his pain was portrayed as being the result of lots of injuries over time on hunting missions, especially those alluded to in recent times he's still healing from, combined with natural aches and pains that come with ageing. As a sufferer of chronic pain, I feel I should have realised this is something that was going on with the character, but it was never explained, simply alluded to and portrayed in the wrong light, considering that he's a chronic pain sufferer who also happens to have lead a life of strenuous physical activity and who's ageing. The lack of detail around the world in which the characters live in general made it truly difficult to tell much beyond the action we see as we see it on the page - there's no real background information on either character or their world, no small moment to pause and make it clear he's a chronic pain sufferer or how it came about. It would be nice to see it made more clear if ever there's a future instalment or another book by the author in a similar world with similar characters.

I'm not disappointed with this book, though, however much I wish there were more details involved, the world painted more clearly rather than either no hint at things or only vague notions about them, the book is still easy to get lost in, the characters are likeable with flaws that make them come across as realistic, the lives they lead are intriguing and full of action and excitement with the boring mundane aspects of every day life between as well, which again makes them more three-dimensional and realistic. It's a complete story that offers action, danger, drama, romance, intrigue, and excitement, and without the occasional interruptions to the narrative, the pacing is good, keeping the story moving onwards, and it's a satisfying read to have finished.

I'm not sorry I requested this book, I am glad I read it, I may possibly read it again in future, and I will be keeping an eye out for future releases from the author, because for all the issues in this book, the potential for amazing things with enough time and experience is right there. I recommend this book to anyone who's into the supernatural, who generally leans towards urban fantasy stories with elements of action and mystery, containing characters who are of the LGBTQ+ community, and don't mind a bit of romance in and around the main plot, which is solid and doesn't get abandoned for the romance. It was short and sweet, full of danger and excitement, and I couldn't read it fast enough to discover who it was who was creating so much trouble for the main characters and how they came to take care of it all.

From the Dark We Came by J. Emery is a good, short LGBT+ paranormal romance that very much made me think of K.J. Charles's A Charm of Magpies series. I enjoyed getting to know the characters (a vampire and a hunter) very much, but I was underwhelmed by the author's world-building. I would have liked to have known a lot more about the paranormal fantasy world they inhabit. I'm also pretty sure this is the first time that I've met a demisexual character in fiction, and I wouldn't have minded if the story were longer for the characters to get to know each other more and build up their emotional connection to each other over a longer span of time. Overall, though this story is a good introduction to Emery and I think I'll have to give more of their work a try in the future.

This was a nice surprise! I love when I discover a new author. I really enjoyed the way they wrote the vampires, there were little to no cliches like you find in so many other vampire stories. This one stood out and that is so refreshing.

Belar is a hunter who has a perfect track record except for one vampire he wasn’t able to kill. That vampire shows up at his house one night to make a deal with him. Together Belar and the vampire, Cassian, join forces to fight what is coming after them.

There is not much romance here but you see Belar & Cassian’s attraction to each other. I would love more with them working together but also being together. They were like 2 sides of a coin. Belar also has a backstory that is very interesting but we don’t get any of it. I think there’s so much potential if the author decides to make this into a series or even write a second book.

I had a lot of fun reading this story and I found it engrossing and entertaining.
The world building is interesting, there's a lot of humour, and the cast of characters is interesting.
Some more backstory would help.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Well this book was such a fun read! It has a secret society of Vampires, Werewolves, Fae of all sorts, shadows with eyes and claws and hunters who try to keep humans safe at night while teaching kids music lessons at day. I am not much into vampires anymore since they all started to sparkle and be oh so nice and protective, but I am glad I put up this book. In "From The Dark We Came" they are not braindead monsters either, but they are bloodthirsty, dangerous as hell and definitely creatures of the dark. Love them!
So as I said before this story is fun but also dark with just the right amount of sexy. I would have loved to get to know the world even better, same goes for Belar and Cassian. There are some questions left like who actually is Belars father and how do real vampires come to life? Will there be a sequel someday? – I don’t know and even with this questions looming above my overly curios head I still enjoyed this book from start to end and finished it within three reading nights (I could have devoured it within a day but I tried to savor it as long as possible).

If you love impulsive, dramatic gays as much as me, then you will love this. VAMPIRES! ENEMIES TO LOVERS! MAGIC! This book was such a joy to read and kept me enthralled from start to finish. I really love books that feature lgbt characters, that isnt focused around their identities, and this on was such a good one. I only wish I had more backstory on them, I'm so curious about their pasts

From the Dark We Came is a reluctant love story between a vampire and a vampire hunter, with both steamy and hilarious results. With sympathetic main characters and an enemies to lovers plot (my favorite trope), this novel is also unexpectedly sweet and funny, with just enough world-building to flesh out the circumstances between the two main characters coming together. Truly my only complaint is that the novel isn't longer!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

I did enjoy this - basically a queer vampire/ hunter paranormal fantasy story. Personally I would have liked more in depth world building and back story. This was fun and enjoyable but there was something missing for me. Still highly recommend for fans of urban fantasy who would like to see more lgbt+ rep.

4 stars

Even though it took me what feels like forever to read, I really enjoyed this story. Belar and Cassian were such good characters but I wanted MORE from them. More backstory mainly. I want to know about Belar’s father and the Fae part of him. More of Cassian’s history as a vampire and his court story. I also felt like it could’ve been longer to give us more of the backstory. And I seriously want to know about Erathel and Arakiel SOOOO badly.

I’m hoping the author writes more about these characters. Whether with Belar and Cassian as the main characters or others in the world. It was fascinating and there’s so much more they could develop from it.

** Thank you to Netgalley for an arc to review **

3 stars

I really enjoyed both Belar and Cassian as characters. They had good chemistry and I enjoyed them as well as Arakiel and Erathel. However, the predominant thought as I read was that it seemed like I was missing something. It felt like I had been dropped into a book mid-story and I spent the entire time piecing together what had happened before. One such example is Cassian's past. Considering its significance with regards to the story, I would have preferred that it be explained more thoroughly. Along the same lines, the story seemed to be missing a lot of context too. I didn't really understand vampire society at all. Cassian discusses it, but in the most minimal sense, and I had many more questions after his brief explanation. Also, I didn't understand how the monster world and the human world mixed. Did humans know about vampires? Were there tensions or fear between the two species? The world, as intriguing as it seemed, did not feel properly constructed. In a great book, I almost feel like I was put into the book's world, but I never got that feeling.

Spoiler:
[Finally, I thought the climax was a little lacking. There was very little build-up or struggle. It seemed like Cassian figured out who was trying to kill him unbelievably fast. The fight with Dismas' mom went much the same way. ]

Overall, the book and the world had a lot of potential. The writing itself was really nice and flowed smoothly, but a lot felt like it was missing in the book.

I absolutely loved this novel. The main characters were so unique and I just adored them so much. The pace of the novel was quite fast which made it super easy to read. A great romance to just curl up and read in one go. The plot was really interesting and the twists were really well done. I loved the ending so much!

The way the author wrote the conflict of the main character was totally different from what I normally read. I enjoyed that we weren't given all the answers and that the main character didn't immediately fall in love. The relationship was fast and slow all at once which was way more natural.

This book was overall an excellent read. I'd definitely read it again. The story was dark and interesting with sweet and sensual romance mixed in.

Although the idea seemed promising and I liked a couple of scenes, the writing style took me out of the book several times. It bothered me that both "vampire" and "hunter" were so repetitive, but it wasn't just that, but the general tone and style. it also seemed unrealistic to me that a demisexual would fall in love in just a matter of days when he said it took him months or years before feeling real attraction, and in this case it happens with no real explanation. However, I liked the characters and parts of the story.

Really enjoyed this one! Both the main characters were great and it was a nice quick read. I would have maybe liked a little bit more world-building - although the bits we did get were very interesting - and I think the final battle was over maybe a bit too quickly, but overall I really enjoyed it so I can look past those minor details. Definitely a more character driven story but that's nice sometimes.