Belle Morte by Bella Higgin ARC Review!

 

Title: Belle Morte
Author: Bella Higgin
Publish Date: April 5th, 2022
Publisher: Wattpad Books
Source: Huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC for review!

There’s only one way out.

Belle Morte. One of five houses where vampires reside as celebrities and humans are paid to be their living donors. While others came here seeking fortune, I came in search of my sister who walked into Belle Morte five months ago . . . and never walked back out.

Now that I’m here, the secrets about this world have proven to be much bigger than I ever anticipated. And lurking around every corner are shocking insinuations of what happened to my sister.

There’s only one person who might have the answers I need, and the undeniable pull I feel toward him is terrifying: Edmond Dantès―a vampire, and my mortal enemy.

The harder I try to resist him, the further I fall under his spell. And in one instant my life is irrevocably changed. My past becomes prologue and my fate becomes sealed behind these doors.

Belle Morte has spoken. And it may never let me go.

Penelope's Review

Oof I am a SUCKER for vampire books and Belle Morte did not disappoint! At first, I was nervous that this would be a bit too similar to Twilight at its core, but honestly once I started reading I was like Edward and Bella who??? Lol which basically means that no, this is not a Twilight re-write. I found it unique and refreshing - I personally may have gone with a different name than Edmond simply due to the massive popularity of Edward but meh like I said, I wasn't thinking about Twilight at all while reading.

SO! We have vampires out in the open, and since their reveal 10 years ago, they have risen to the height of fame and become celebrities. They live around the word in various "vampire houses", each with a different name. This book is based on a UK vampire house called Belle Morte. Humans apply to these houses to become donors, and get paid very well for the honor. 

Renie was a headstrong, spirited girl with fire in her heart and a stubborn streak a mile long. She was loyal and determined and was more of an "act before you think" type of person which is always great in a book lol! Edmond was broody and sexy and stoic until he was vulnerable... yum. Everything I want in a male lead. He would do anything to protect Renie and it was swoon-worthy watching his devotion to her grow. 

I loved all the side characters - Roux and Jason were hilarious and amazing, I ended up liking Ysanne more and more the more I read, and I'm thinking we are going to see more Ludovic and Etienne in book 2 which is exciting for two very different reasons lol!

Overall, I think this was a really great debut! You need to go in expecting a YA vampire novel, otherwise you will be disappointed. You really do need to think along the lines of Twilight, not Dracula. (I'm not saying this is like Twilight, but that's the sort of vamp novel you need to go in expecting). I went in with  basic idea of what to expect and I ended up being really happy with what I read! I think the more this author develops her writing skills, the better her books are going to be and I'm really excited to watch her progress!

Rating: 4/5 Devils!