*I had the absolute privilege of getting an ARC from Dreamscape Media and Netgalley and I could not be more grateful. All thoughts and comments are my own.*

I am always on the lookout for a new paranormal series and I've read several of Marie Harte's contemporary romances before, so this was a no-brainer of a one-click situation.

The story begins with an unlikely band of brothers serving under the rule of the Goddess Hecate and her direct servant, Mormo. Varu is the strongest of the vampires in the group. On a mission, Varu meets a sexy and deadly female carrying a weapon that could change the entire course of his life. Fara has been on the run for a long time and is on the ultimate mission to save her and her brother’s lives. As the two turn allies struggle to find a way to work together against a common foe, they also struggle to give into the unconscious and undeniable draw towards each other.

Overall the story was fun and entertaining. I had a difficult time getting into the story and fully comprehending all the overall world the author built. Well, some was the world and it's complexities and some was the unyielding (at first) characters. I realize the stubbornness is part of the overall character arc, but it made the initial connection with the characters a bit difficult. I thought the long-term arc was interesting and the action parts were entertaining.

Ellis Evans was the narrator and I thought they did a great job. The intonations, pace, and character voices were well done.

I enjoyed the story overall and look forward to more in the series.

Yeah, this was a no for me. I should have seen it coming, the cover art didn’t make it look very promising, but sometimes that can be deceiving. It was, in fact, not deceiving.

I enjoyed the world building. The characters were fun and interesting. It was sexy but not too steamy. I'll definitely continue with this series.

I found this to be a relatively entertaining new vampire series. I liked the background history on the different vampires and their origins as well as the fae. I thought it had some originality within a genre where that's quite difficult.

I'm always game for a paranormal romance with vampires, werewolves, witches and more. So, this was completely in my wheelhouse. It took me a bit to connect to the main characters though. I think that was intentional since they are both a intentionally resistant to others as a protective mechanism. Of course, we do have the vampire who finds the woman whose blood is irresistible and thus so is she. That's a little typical of the genre, but I still fall prey to it myself every time. Overall, a satisfying storyline and strong start to a new series.

I chose to listen to the audiobook via NetGalley and found it to be quite enjoyable. The narrator was talented and kept me engrossed in the story. Narration can make or break an audiobook. Either it will pull you in or put you off. This narrator kept wanting to listen.

What is a Fae? You will find this and more inside this story of clan, elf, magician and goddess vampire lore. The details of the characters like Mormo, the battle cat and many interesting vampires awaits! I found this story to be very emotion provoking as you go through the journey of this Vampire Master’s awakening; fear, excitement, hope, love and sadness. I highly recommend this book.

This book had a great plot, the only thing that was hard for me to follow at first was the names of the characters and once I got those down it was smooth sailing a a great book to read. I believe that the names in this book set it apart as well as the plot and I cannot wait for book two as I believe one will be coming!

Between Bloode and Stone is the first book in the Between the Shadows series by Marie Harte. The audiobook is narrated by Ellis Evans who dies an excellent job bring8ng the story to life.

The book is alow getti h started but eventually draws you into a tightly crafted world of vampires who have been cursed to reign in their growing power, vampires can only coexist in small groups wh8ch are carefully monitored. I found the plot interesting and the world-building was well done. I really enjoyed the book.

Between Bloode and Stone is the first book in the Between the Shadows series by Marie Harte. The audiobook is narrated by Ellis Evans. Cursed long ago to check their growing power, vampires can only coexist in small groups. Yet despite their many conflicts, those Of the Bloode possess similar traits. All vampires, no matter from where they come, are male. They can go unnoticed by humans unless they wish otherwise, and they can’t survive sunlight. Mormo, servant of the goddess Hecate, has created a small new bloode clan at her behest. The six vampires he commands are rough, ill-disciplined, and mean, and they fail to follow orders on a daily basis. But they’re needed. Something big and bad is coming. Hecate, goddess of death, magic, and gateways, has a duty to guard the borders of the mortal world. She knows that without a strong force to contain the threat, chaos will come, destroying everything in its wake. Her secret weapons are those Of the Bloode. Though they refuse to worship anything but themselves, she loves their wild ways. In order to battle gods and monsters and survive, they’ll need ferocity, inner strength, and something to fight for.

Between Bloode and Stone is an interesting urban fantasy and series starter. First off, I think Ellis Evans did a great job narrating. I enjoyed the tone variations and inflections they used, and simply enjoyed listening. I also enjoyed the characters and world building. There was a great deal of ground to cover in the world building, and I suspect more important pieces have yet to be revealed about all the varied supernatural creatures living there in future books. I thought the development of the characters, and their relationships with each other, was very well paced and engaging. I liked that I did get different points of view, and that those view changes were clear as I listened. Getting insight to the minds of more than just the romantic leads was great, and gave me a better understanding of the bigger picture and how important certain things might be later in the series. It also made me more invested in the world and secondary characters. There were moments where the amount of world building seemed too much, but sometimes that happens at the beginning of any series to get a full understanding of the moving parts. I was not put off by this and think that I will continue on with this series, only partly because I want to see more of the vampires and see hoe the teasers in the epilogue play out.

Between Bloode and Stone is a good start to a series, and I am interested to see where the story goes from here.

Between Bloode and Stone by Marie Harte
Narrated by Ellis Evans
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Genre: Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy
Published October 19, 2021

Between Bloode and Stone is the first book in the Between the Shawdows series by Marie Harte. I listened to the audiobook version and loved it!

This book starts off a little slow, while it sets the scene and creates a new world, and is so worth getting into! I loved absolutely loved the world the author created! Vampires, Fae, Hecate! What more could I ask for?!?

This story was masterfully woven and the narration by Ellis Evans was captivating! The intrigue, the romance, the battles! Wow!!!

I loved that this book ended with closure and still kept me wanting more! I can't wait to read what comes next!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I started off with an ARC of the audiobook and became so enthralled I had to immediately purchase the e-book. The description of the book does not do it justice and I wish more people would review this book so that it could become more popular. I need someone to talk to be about this book!

Do you like a slow burn that doesn't take forever for the couple to act on their passion? Do you like novels about Fae, Elves, Vampires, Witches, Gods, Lycan, and mystical animals? Do you like romance novels with super-steamy scenes leaving you asking for more? Do you enjoy action and twisting plots? Please read this book.

Fara is a dusk elf (Fae), with an affinity to the elements, tasked with finding bloode stones and returning them to the powerful vampire she is under the control of. Varu is a vampire serving a debt to a magician with several other vampires or otherworldly beings. This group of vampires is highly unusual because their species has been cursed to not comingle with one another or it ends in extreme bloodshed/death. Moru the magician has the ability to let the vampires work together and live under the same roof.

Fara runs into Varu (accidentally on purpose) to find that the bloode stone calls out to him. They take Fara captive along with her brother Onvyr (ah'n-veer) who is emotionally unstable after suffering years of torture. Onvyr has bouts of happiness and rage that flip back and forth with no explanation to the others living in the home. Onvyr can speak with animals and draw strength and speed from the gods when needed. Fara and Varu must work together to find the truth of the bloode stone while fighting their attraction to one another. The stone pulls them together leaving Varu to question what is and isn't real between them. Can a vampire actually fall in love when he has been taught for hundreds of years they cannot?

The ending is so unexpected I gasped. Don't worry there is a HAE and now on to the next one in the series. I promise this is a must read.

For some reason I just couldn’t get into the audiobook. I had no issues with the narrator but the story just couldn’t keep my attention .
Unfortunately I can’t recommend this book.

I enjoyed the narration. It was good.
However I did not enjoy the story itself. There was a lot of details and history that was easy to get lost in and I found myself getting bored. I wish I liked this one better but it was not for me.

A new vampire series with its own history. This is book one of a series and it didn’t have a cliffhanger. It’s a light mostly enjoyable read with somewhat calm story with some spicy scenes.
I liked it but didn’t love it. But if you’re a huge fan of vampires you’ll probably be satisfied.
I chose to listen to this book on audio and really liked the narrator Ellis Evans.
Thanks Dreamscape Media via NetGalley.

Marie Harte seamlessly intertwined the worlds of vampires, elves, werewolves, and even gods. The idea of Elves and Vampires working together, to keep the world.... all of the worlds from from being destroyed is an interesting one.

From the first chapter I thought that Mormu would be my favorite character and I did love him, his snarky comments, the zingy one liners, even his annoying habits, I loved all of it, and this may be a very unpopular opinion but the Goddess Hecate, she was the real star of the book for me. I realize she had a smaller part in this amazing story but the thought of Hecate falling in love with an Elf while his sister fell in love with a Vampire, it was just something I didn't see coming.

Now don't get me wrong, Varujan and Fara were amazing characters, their story was well.... kind of epic all things considered, what they had to go through to be together, right up to the last few pages was an emotional roller coaster, one I loved way more than I thought I would, and even with the last chapter changing everything (presumably a set up for book two) I found myself happy with how Harte ended it.

The descriptive storytelling is really nice in this one, the transition from a mansion in Washington to a swamp surrounded castle somehow seemed natural and organic, which I think is the ultimate compliment to the author, each scene change worked, nothing felt out of place, even Bella's commentary on the color of her nails, every little detail had a purpose in the story.

This book works really well as a stand alone in my opinion or as the opening to the series, I for one will be reading the next one and probably all of them.

This was a interesting story. I enjoyed the complexity and who the story unfolds. The characters are intriguing and Varujan and Faraine make for an interesting couple. He is a Vampire and she is most definitely not. They Are definitely different but they work it.m It was steamy, fast-paced and held my interest. Great ending to a enjoyable adventure.

Between Bloode and Stone (Between the Shadows Book 1)
by Marie Harte
Magic, vampires, Fae what an interesting mix. The author has a world with depth and remarkable intrigue. The story shows the nature of gods and their children. The conflict of the children have colored the world with the infighting, and subterfuge. The threads of the story are creating a blurred picture that the reader is able to piece together. The reader has a humorous voice with a lot of joy, and chuckles in his voice no mater the text.

Big thanks to Marie Harte, Netgalley and Dreamscape Media for the audio arc in exchange for a review.

Fara, a dusk elf (who is masquerading as a human) is in possession of something that needs to stay out of someone else's hands. The blood stone. It calls to Varu. It takes her to him.
Varu, a vampire, thrown into a new clan with other vampires he wouldn't normally be civil with needs to know who the female is. What she is.

I'm giving this one 3 stars. Maybe 3.5 stars.
The narrator was decent. They were able to voice the characters well enough to distinguish each, the accents seemed well done enough to my rarely traveled ears.

There were a few STEAMY parts, that didn't really move the story along, just fluff (I don't mind a lil' fluff ;) so not a YA, very much a NA book.

The overall vampire clan demographics were confusing. They don't get along with this and that clan, somehow a magician (not entirely sure what he was) somehow brought them all together and now they don't fight.
The synopsis of the book doesn't really follow the story. The main character isn't even mentioned, Varu has a single mention in the synopsis and Hecate is barely part of the story.
I think it would have been less confusing if it was as though the whole Mormo thing was a side story and Varu and Fara were the story, cause that's what it is. The story IS Fara and Varu, Mormo is a secondary thing. Although, I assume this will likely come together in the rest of the series.

DNF at 15%

I genuinely have no idea what in the hell is going on in this book, and the writing isn't interesting enough for me to care. Harsh, but yeah, I'm done.

Loved the characters and plot of this sexy fantasy paranormal romance. Who doesn't love a brooding, strong and sexy vampire hero? Even better when paired with a strong-willed, cunning, and selfless 'little elf.'
The world Marie Harte created is beautiful as it is dark, friendly as it is dangerous. Secondary charters should have loves of their own.
Enjoyable to read/listen to, and I can't wait to read the other in the series.

This feels like high fantasy in a contemporary setting, or like high fantasy dumped into a contemporary setting. A really interesting thing in this book is that only males are vampires! There’s also kind of a makeshift team and maybe someday it could be a found family, which I am all about. I read the audio version of this, and I thought the narrator was great! Four stars.