The Rest Falls Away by Colleen Gleason

Wow! What a fun read. The Rest Falls Away is one of the most refreshing books I've read in a long time. Newcomer Colleen Gleason offers so much to her readers. I haven't read a page turner like this in ages. Last night I breezed through 180 pages of this book which is an accomplishment in itself in these time constrained days. I just couldn't put it down.

The Rest Falls Away is the first book in the promising Gardella Vampire Chronicles. It's classified as a paranormal romance. Now, I never thought that I would read a romance novel, but everyone was giving this book rave reviews. And now I see why. Don't be afraid of this on, men! It's not what I thought a romance novel would be. Sure there's a few steamy scenes in the novel (which are very well written), but it's a romance in the traditional form of the word. And a beautiful one.

This book had me at hello. It starts off with a bang in the prologue and just doesn't let go. It's smart, sexy, heart pounding, romantic, and horrifying all in the same breath. I found myself smiling at times when reading this book and clutching my chest at other times.

It is the story of Victoria Gardella Grantworth, the next chosen venator. A venator is a vampire killer or slayer, whichever term you prefer. Victoria is celebrating her coming out in two ways. First, she is making her debut onto the dating scene and second, she is making her debut as a new venator. On the night of her coming out ball, Victoria makes her first kill as the stake slides into a vampires chest and a "poof" is heard. She also meets the man of her dreams that night, The Marquess of Rockley, Phillip.

Victoria is a wonderful character. Colleen is able to make her very human to the reader. She is frail but strong, tough hearted but a hopeless romantic, smart and strong headed yet her heart melts at times. The reader can feel her struggle between the two lives that she must live and try to keep seperate...her life as a vampire killer and her life as a lover. What a classic character that I very much look forward to following in this series.

All of her characters are brilliant. There is Max, another venator that is Victoria's partner in crime and protector at times. Max and Victoria seem to constantly get on each other's nerves, yet there's a love there. Looking forward to how these characters progress. There is the old, wise Aunt Eustacia who teaches Victoria everything she needs to know about being a venator. There is the oh so slimy Sebastian who we really don't know what to think of. Very mysterious character. And then there is Lilith, the centuries old vampire that is so elegant and chic, yet so mysteriously horrible.

Gleason's writing is brilliant. One feels that they are reading a vampire novel written by Jane Austen. The story is set in 19th century London and has plenty of balls, horse drawn buggies, old mansions, and eccentric aunts drinking tea. Her writing is a pleasure to read and flows easily and perfectly.

Gleason has come onto the scene with a blaze and I can't wait to see what is to come with the second installment, Rises the Night which debuts in June. Colleen has a wonderful blog with updates on the series and some wonderful insights into her thought process.

I'm counting this as a bonus read for the Once Upon A Time Challenge. It seems to fit well into this one. Here's hoping for many more books to come from her for many more future challenges.