Let me start off this book review by saying I received a free copy of The Taming by A.M. Rycroft in exchange for an honest review.
The Taming is a quick read about a rather brash and imprudent vampyre named Thystle Moran. She has some emotional baggage that does not help her decision-making process. She runs up against a man who has it in for anyone and anything not human.
I had fun reading this one! It was paced well. I think Rycroft did a great job of mixing in enough flashbacks to fill in backstory. The flashbacks felt like they were balanced well with the current events in the story and were limited to just enough to tell the bits needed without becoming an information dump. I have to say, I liked Thystle. She was a wonderful combination of seasoned sell-sword with brash, impulsive, almost teenager-like young woman.
I have only two critiques. The first is that there were a few spots where the writing seemed like it could have been tightened a little more. Nothing outstanding, more just tweaking words and phrases here and there. Overall, this is pretty minor and likely a good portion just me and my preferences. The other is that the story seemed over almost too fast. I felt like it could have been drawn out a little more or something. Then again, I also have it on good authority that Rycroft has been looking at venturing back into this world for additional stories. If she does, it may well address this critique.
Overall, I enjoyed The Taming and would recommend it for anyone who likes creepy, crawly, vampyre type stories that go bump in the night.
Here are links to her Amazon and Barnes and Noble pages.
Part author, part artist, all dreamer 