Blood Countess (ARC Review)

Based on Elizabeth Bathory, who was basically the female version of Vlad the Impaler (AKA Dracula) this story was bound to get dark and gory (which, as we all know, I love). But, this story made me beg the question: Why have I never heard of Bathory before?

The cherry on top of this bloody cake is that it features a female-female romance. That’s right…historical and gay and dark. 

What more could you want??

The writing style immediately made me nostalgic for all those medieval-style fantasies I used to read (and boy, I read a lot of them) but is also just plain clean and gorgeous. Rife with metaphors without being too heavy-handed it’s tried-and-true writing but also truly a treat.

If you couldn’t tell, I liked this story a lot…so much so that I wanted more. 

This book was good, great even at times…but it could have been amazing.

I usually hesitate to say this, but this book really could have been longer. As a standalone, this book is short when compared to others in similar categories and genres, covering a lot of ground concisely. I can’t say that it felt rushed or confusing, but there were a lot of times that I thought something could have been demonstrated more or that more time could have been spent on a particular event or character. 

As it was, I understood the characters, the world, the plot. But there was potential for me to be really emotionally invested, to feel and see 17th century Hungary, to get lost in this book and never come out until I was done. I could see that Popovic had that potential…but just didn’t use it. 

I wanted more tension built before the romance blooms, and then, more steamy scenes. I wanted more scenes of violence to solidify how evil these people really are. I wanted more time to get to know the side characters so I can cry when they suffer. I wanted more manipulation, to see the psychological game that Bathory plays to convince people to love her. I wanted to see Anna’s inner turmoil as she realizes everything she thought she knew turned out not to be true and what that means for those around her and for herself. 

We see a glimpse of each of these. A scene, perhaps, of each, maybe two if we’re lucky. But I wanted to revisit, to revel. Popovic cracked the door open and I peeked inside, but I wanted the full view. 

In the future, I’ll certainly be keeping my eye out for Popovic, waiting for the book she makes that tears my heart out and makes me eat it…which I’m sure will be soon enough. Although, the next in the Lady Slayers series, Poison Priestess, set for 2021 release according to the author, is so far off that it’s not even on Goodreads yet.

I’ll be here…waiting…

I rated Blood Countess 4 out of 5 stars. Fans of Tower of Dawn and Tamora Pierce books will like this one. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Amulet Books for the opportunity to read an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!