Eternal is a collection of six stories from popular writers of paranormal adult and YA fiction. Authors Claudia Gray, Lili St. Crow, Nancy Holder, Heather Brewer, Rachel Caine and Jeri Smith-Ready give us completely different stories with one common denominator: all of them involve vampires.

The first story involves a vampire falling in love with a World War II soldier and the tragedy that results from their affair. Fast forward to present times where a Catholic schoolgirl, used to being the sidekick, finally gets her moment to shine…with deadly consequences. Eternal continues with a re-telling of Romeo and Juliet with Romeo being turned instead of dying, and his search for the reincarnation of his Juliet. Next up is the thrilling tale of a girl and her boyfriend who wake up locked in a basement with no memory of how they have gotten there and no hope of escape. On to the town of Morganville where a new vampire in town has her eyes set on human Goth girl Eve’s vamp boyfriend, Michael; you can bet Eve is not giving up her man without a fight.

All of these stories stand alone, although some of them do involve familiar characters for those who have read the author’s other works. I did notice that the stories that I enjoyed the most were ones by authors with whom I was already familiar. By far, my favorite story was the last one, “Thief” by Jeri Smith-Ready, which focused on a group called the Irish Travelers who make their living by running cons and committing petty theft. Two young Irish travelers have been promised in marriage since childhood and they are very much in love. When things change and the two lovers are ripped apart, what lengths will they go to to stay together? Exciting news, to this reviewer at least: Ms. Smith-Ready plans to introduce the main characters in this story in her WVMP series to which I am already completely addicted! If you are a fan of any of the authors in this anthology or just looking to get a taste to build up your to be read list, pick up Eternal. You won’t be disappointed.

Back cover copy:
Eternal: More Love Stories with Bite presents all-new YA stories featuring vampires, the romantic heroes and heroines that still hold the reading public enraptured. A mix of writers from the first anthology (Immortal) and new contributors makes for a fresh new collection with all of the dark romance of its predecessor, and a book that’s sure to thrill vampire romance fans old and new.

Book Stats:

• Reading level: Ages 14 and up
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Smart Pop; 1 edition (November 2, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1935618016
• ISBN-13: 978-1935618010

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