We turned ourselves into vampires to save our lives… and now we’re being punished for it? Not cool, Vampire Council.
Okay, yeah, we get it. There are laws and we broke them. We gotta spend a year on a farm (!!!). Easy peasy, right? Right? Right!?
One thing’s for sure. This place ain’t Broadway.
Avery and Allison, twin sisters with a flair for drama, have been exiled to “The Farm” as punishment for turning themselves into vampires. Their sentence: a year under the strict surveillance of Blanche White, a formidable fae warden who rules the prison farm with an iron fist. Upon their arrival, the sisters are thrust into their first challenge—tracking down a herd of elusive fae pygmy goats that have mysteriously vanished.
But the Farm harbors secrets deeper than just mischievous goats. Blanche is grappling with more than she anticipated, including the arrival of Arric, a powerful vampire exile with dangerous ambitions of his own. As the twins delve deeper into the Farm’s dark secrets, they realize their punishment is just the beginning. Caught in a web of sinister disappearances and shadowy forces, they find themselves unraveling a mystery that some will do anything to keep buried.
My Review
Your sisters, new, fresh blood, have barely been a vampire for even a day, and you’re already on trial. Sorry, we never got the memo that becoming a vamp without permission is illegal. Who knew. Now you’re here on the farm. They made it sound so dangerous, a year-long punishment, but it’s kind of relaxing. I mean, we’re having cozy farm shananigans and our own personal space. Not like our cramped apartment in New York, where we were constantly in pain before turning. It feels so freeing not to worry about all that anymore. The supervisor is cool and kinda strange. Our fellow “prisoner” keeps butting heads with her with a tension you could slice with a knife. And yes, the goats are still missing, and a poacher is wandering around all while the faire still needs to be set up, but it can’t be that bad, right?
Twice Bitten on the Farm by Daphne Moore and Maeve Rayvenne is set in the world of Lia Davis’ ”Life After Magic”. We follow the sisters Allison and Avery as they navigate what’s supposed to be a year-long punishment to become reformed vampire citizens. Their only crime: existing as vampires in the first place. So what may seem harrowing actually turns into what appears to be an adorable, cozy farm journey. With some more subtle dark twists and turns, and some missing Fae goats, it led to a story that made me feel both relaxed and shocked.
One thing I consistently loved was all the different types of animals in the story. Each one was so different, I couldn’t wait to hear about the next adorable critter the sisters would run into. The bumblepaws were especially cute. Think about a kitty that’s actually a honey bee. With little wings that sound like purrs, I couldn’t help but say awe every time they were mentioned in the story. The authors know how to write about these animals in such a way that you’ll find yourself attached to them. From a too-perfect golden horse, adorable foxsnakes, and mischievous goats that love yoga and mischief, I couldn’t stop the happiness that came over me. I just wanted to see them all safe and happy and protected. Because it would be a shame if something happened, right?
A hint of potential danger occurs almost immediately. All due to the fact that part of the fae goats are missing before the sisters even arrive. Now, while the goats wandering off doesn’t feel pressing at first, it continuously looms over the story. There are barriers, fae woods, ren faires, human towns, and these little suckers could wreak havoc anywhere. Allison and Avery walk into this mystery, tasked with solving it.
The missing goats had me going through different stages of thought with a dash of panic. The urgency amplified when a case of animal poaching occurred. The poaching spooked me in a way that I realized maybe there is actually danger here. Despite all the species of potentially dangerous people, it never occurred to me that something might be wrong. Because everything felt so normal and relaxing. A sense of dread slowly started sinking in, even as the cozy farm antics continued. It left me wondering, is everything actually alright here? And kept me focused on what might happen next.
Speaking of locked in, the characters also kept me incredibly engaged. The amount of fully fleshed-out, established characters was such an amazing thing to see. I felt like I had hit the lore jackpot. There were so many fascinating backstories. I found myself wanting whole books on so many people. Allison and Avery’s pov may be the primary focus of the books, but I found myself falling in love even with the characters that had none.
Blanche runs the farm, and she’s completely confident and in charge. Arric is a vampire council member with a violent past/present. Who, despite trying to be the most dangerous thing in the room, comes off as more of a guardsman for our main duo and even Blanche herself. I could watch Blanche and Arric’s dangerous flirtation and power plays all day. I would love an enemies-to-lovers book about them only. And even books about them separately. Blanche’s species type and her history with Arric all contribute to this feeling. Arric getting sent to the farm is known slouch, either, potential novel material. The times they’re the focus always got my blood pumping.
Even the side characters shine brightly. I want to know how Phillip and Zam actually got together before the events of the story. I want to see the story of our human characters deciding to stay here and how that’s affected them. There’s so much burgeoning book potential with this exciting, colorful cast. It makes me extremely excited.
There was a lot to love about this story. But there were some caveats. Blanche’s chapter started off smoothly, giving us an early look at what’s going on at the farm before the girls arrive. What followed was a rocky transition.
Allison’s first pov chapter uses a significant amount of purple prose, which made it rather hard to read through. She seemed to have a habit of being the one who focused on what others were wearing and commenting on every single detail. She would talk up a much bigger game than she could currently back up, being a newborn vampire. Unfortunately, it leads to her intro becoming clunky and distracting versus insightful. The trend doesn’t carry to the rest of the book and can be attributed to her mood at the time of the trial.
On the subject of prose, a persistent naming error occurs throughout the story. Zam’s name frequently gets replaced with Sam. The constant name change could make it difficult for readers to discern who’s being talked about at any given time.
Pivoting back to the characters, I already established how much I love the wide variety of characters. And our main duo is super adorable. I loved seeing them get adjusted to their new surroundings and abilities. They make for such a cute newborn vampire experience.
But Allison and Avery lack main character energy due to being overshadowed by the other cast. The book’s primarily the twins’ pov. Yet I find Blanche’s chapters take over as the primary interest. Her chapters showcasing so many interesting people, unfortunately, detract from the twins.
Their much fresher experience is put on the back burner. If Allison and Avery had the book completely to themselves, I feel the emotional investment would have resonated more, giving them their chance to shine. The discovery of new abilities is an exciting time. The animal whisperer power and the ability to see beyond the glamor are incredibly interesting. Allison’s power is great because of all the fae creatures. To be able to understand and empathize with all these fantastical beings is extraordinary. Avery’s ability makes it easy for her not to be fooled by any dark shenanigans that may occur. It makes things a lot more mysterious.
But Blanche’s perspective gives us so much information that it makes the characters seem less phenomenal. The experiences aren’t as intense or novel anymore. Any opportunity we could have had to experience learning about the world through their eyes gets dashed.
Such as the case of when Avery saw Blanche’s true form. I could feel the fear and confusion from her. It was so interesting and mysterious. I wanted to know more. That emotional impact got tossed aside when Blanche’s chapters just give us all or most of the answers. Her character has such a commanding, heavy presence that it devalues the twins’ perspective.
I’m saddened that despite them having the most screen time, they feel so small in comparison to everyone else. I like them and want to see how they evolve. The potential and framework are there from their backstories to their burgeoning talents. I hope to see them stand out and shine more in the next book.
That being said, while reading, you’ll realize the book is a setup for the second installment. Not every question gets answered. The story leaves us with an insane cliffhanger. While this might be a deterrent for some of you, this ending hit me like a truck. What I had started to fear may have been an exaggeration in the summary, came in as a roaring crescendo at the very end. The consistent cozy atmosphere with the subtlest of cues made this ending feel like a gutpunch in the best way possible. I am hyped to see what happens next. Thank you to Daphne Moore, Maeve Rayvenne, and Lia Davis for letting me take a dive into this fascinating world. And if you wanna know what happens and why I’m this excited, you’ll just have to give it a try for yourself.
Until next time,
Lynzee
If you would like to read Twice Bitten On the Farm by Lia Davis (Author), Daphne Moore (Author), Maeve Rayvenne (Author), Life After Magic (Author), you can find this book on Amazon. As an Amazon Assocaite, I earn on qualifying purchases.
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