John Patrick Kennedy

I got this series with the impression that it gets better as the series continues. I hope that is true. While one hand, I could understand why she is afraid of what she becomes, I don't read vampire books to have the vampires hide in the woods for half the book. It was Grizzly Adams meets Dracula. And then there are all the references to her living without wearing any clothes. While it wasn't completely illogical, the author kept pointing out all the time that she was naked. I downloaded the whole series so I'm hoping that this will get better in the next book.… (more)

The synopsis and the gorgeous cover is what made me start reading this book, but oh how I really wanted to love it. I wanted Ruxandra to be bad-ass while at the same time find out who she is. While Ruxandra is bad-ass with her new supernatural powers I felt like she never did learn if she should continue trying to embrace her humanity or if she lets her power control her.

Honestly I felt like I read one giant PWP.

I don’t mind sex scenes. I am a adult if I want to read about two (maybe more) people getting it on I am not going to shy away from that, this book however found needless ways to include sex. Honestly sometimes the sexual situations got me bored and I just wanted them to get to the story.

The story was not noteworthy. I found it predictable and yawn worthy. I know what the story was suppose to be, but I felt like Kennedy failed to deliver which was a huge disappointment. It was not until the very end that something actually caught my attention enough to be noteworthy but it looks like that story won’t be told until the second book, which just makes this book a huge tease! It’s almost as if the author had no real plot but then had a spark of an idea but realized that he hit his word limit.

Ruxandra has so much potential to be a character who could really be lovable. With her uncontrollable badass powers but her desire not to harm anyone could be for some amazing character development and conflict, but it just didn’t happen in Princess Dracula maybe the second book is better or maybe I am just being too harsh. Kennedy is able to beautifully describe some of the gore and death scenes in this book so he’s not a bad writer in any sense. I just don’t know.… (more)

In this tale, Vlad the Impaler is not Dracula. He is just a king at war with the Turks. His daughter Rauxandra has been in a convent for 10 years. She has spent her childhood there. Until Dad shows up and says, come with me. Turns out daddy has nefarious plans. His warriors strip her naked and lay her out in a pentagram inside a cave to call forth a demon. Vlad demands power to defeat the Turks and offers his virgin daughter as a sacrifice. But the fallen angel wants nothing to do Vald. It asks Rauxandra if she wants to live. When the answer is Yes, the fallen angel gives Rauxandra everlasting life and Princess Dracula is born. But this book does not Follow most Dracula stories. Rauxandra spends most of the book learning and dreading what she has become. There are scenes that try to be spicy, but it’s a man writing sex scenes for women and it reads like one. It has Sapphic moments as Rauxandra and her her best female friends experiment so they are knowledgeable for their future husbands, but these parts of the story are not done well. Overall the book is intriguing. I am not sure I will read the rest of the series. Book 1 ends with a note of what happens 132 years later in order to get you interested in the next book, and while intrigued, I’m not sure, I’m intrigued enough to continue.… (more)

I’m a sucker for pretty covers and vampires. That much has always been clear. So, I voted for Princess Dracula by John Patrick Kennedy to be published by Kindle Press because I thought it would be fun. Then, I started it and was excited because wow! A wlw book too??? Can this truly have everything I could want? Then, I kept reading and my hopes became a nightmare.

I had to stop reading at 30% because it genuinely was so cringey for me to keep going. It felt like it was written as someone’s wet dream, and I’m sorry to be so crude, but that’s the honest truth. Then, I went back and realized the author was a man and realized oh, this makes sense. Everything is done to titillate. Oh look, I’m so innocent and naive and oh, woops! I’m naked and going to stay naked and woops! All the sex with all the people! And like, I’m no prude and I’ve read books that have been mostly pwp, aka the later books in the Anita Blake series. However, none have left me feeling so grimy and gross. This feels like it was written by someone who views women as toys, as Barbies. Even if that’s not who the author is, the writing feels this way and it is extremely off-putting.

Princess Dracula by John Patrick Kennedy is a story that had so much promise. A fantastic synopsis and cover which falls so low. It fails as erotica, it fails as parody, it fails as dark fantasy. If Kennedy tries to use Ruxandra’s sexuality as a metaphor for her budding liberation and freedom, he has sorely missed the mark as it is just completely written with obvious male gaze in mind.

// I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this title. //… (more)