Book Review: Crusade (Crusade Book 1) by Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguié

Title: Crusade
Author: Nancy Holder & Debbie Viguié
Series: Crusade #1
Pages: 470
My Rating: ❤❤❤❤❤

The ultimate battle. The ultimate love.

For the past two years, Jenn has lived and trained at Spain’s Sacred Heart Academy Against the Cursed Ones. She is among the few who have pledged to defend humanity or die trying. But the vampires are gaining power, and the battle has only just begun.

Forced to return home after death takes a member of her family, Jenn discovers that San Francisco is now a vampire strong-hold. As a lone hunter apart from her team, Jenn is isolated—and at risk. She craves the company of her fighting partner, Antonio: his protection, his reassurance, his touch. But a relationship with Antonio comes with its own dangers, and the more they share of themselves, the more Jenn stands to lose.

Then Jenn is betrayed by one who was once bound to protect her, causing her to doubt all she had held as true. To survive, Jenn must find the courage to trust herself—and her heart.

I came across Crusade in a bargain bin at my local bookstore. I loved the premise and knew that I had to have it! Like most books I end up purchasing, this one simply got added to my TBR, which is pretty extensive. While cleaning out my bookshelf, I came across it once again and decided to read it. I have to say, that my bargain book skills are pretty top notch, because I absolutely loved it!

There is much more to this book than the synopsis explains. First off, the short snippet only talks about Jenn and Antonio, so when I started reading I was pleasantly surprised to find that the book is not just about them and their romantic woes. Instead, we get to meet a whole team of hunters!

Each member of the Salamanca Hunters is extremely unique. I'm not kidding! They are truly a diverse set of characters! Spanish, Japanese, Danish, and Irish lingo would all be used on a single page! It seriously brought me back to my high school Spanish days. The hunters are all great...except Jamie. I really want to like him, but I don't know if I can forgive his attitude. He's going to have to be pretty awesome in the next book to win me over!

Being a fan of all things action, I was enamored with the amount in this book. There was suspense, betrayal, fighting, and even some shock factor! At times, I found it impossible to put the book down, I had to finish a scene...or a chapter...okay or maybe the whole book!

Overall, I really enjoyed the crazy world that Holder & Viguié created. I would say it's somewhere between True Blood and The Walking Dead, making it what I call an apocalyptic vampire action romance (sounds fancy, I know!).

"Do you know, Antonio's been going outside in the cold mornings, and then coming and putting his hands on your face, to bring your fever down. That's really awfully sweet, in a very strange way."