Review: The Witch Hunter by Nicole R. Taylor

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The Witch Hunter 
Book One in the Witch Hunter Saga
Nicole R. Taylor
Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal

ISBN: 978-1482061697
Number of pages: 300
Word Count: 72,000

Book Description: 
I was born into the world covered in blood, and that's exactly the way I left it.

Ever since, I have been damned to walk the boundary between life and death alone. Unwillingly turned and left to my nightmare, I have seen men commit countless horrors and committed many of my own.

My origins shall remain unknown, my true self hidden. I have been called by many names, but in this life I am known as the Witch Hunter. I have been asleep these past 150 years, until I was awoken by a haunting call.

Zachary Degaud was twenty three when he died. The problem was, he didn't stay that way.

Present day, he's just another vampire with another unremarkable story. That is, until he manages to provoke a two thousand year old witch named Katrin, who wants to make him pay in the most horrible way imagined.

Along with his brother Sam, newly made vampire Liz and their only witch ally, Gabby, his only chance for survival is to summon the ancient and unpredictable vampire known as the Witch Hunter.

Zac is just looking for a way out of his psychopathic witch problems, but instead will find himself falling head first into a blood feud that has stretched thousands of years.

Aya has been asleep for the past 150 years, until she was awoken by a haunting call. The witch she has been hunting for thousands of years, Katrin, has resurfaced and marked a young, annoyingly arrogant vampire by the name of Zachary Degaud. Unless she does something, he will die a slow and painful death. He has given her an opportunity to end the witch, but does she want to help him or leave him to his fate?

Zac will get under her skin like no one else has and she just might find herself making the ultimate sacrifice before he is gone forever.

They will both have to choose sides and look deep within themselves before the end. But, what Zac learns about himself, will surprise him most of all.

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"Ten points to Ginda," clapped Zac.
"Ignore him," said the man. "I'm Sam, the moron is my brother Zac."

Sam sighed, "You couldn't help but talk back, could you?"

He'd done some terrible things in his time, but self-preservation was more tantalizing than repenting.

"I don't trust her," Zac growled. "She played us for fools."
"She's the female version of you," said Sam, earning himself a menacing glare.
"And you are a fool," snapped Liz.

"Katrin has caused me much trouble in the past, so I would really like to finish the bitch off. I have no issue with you other than that you're an asshole."

"Just go away, Sam. I was attacked by a crazy vampire, something that isn't meant to exist. Then I find out all my friends are vampires too!"
"And Gabby. Don't forget Gabby. She's a witch," Aya quipped.
Sam glared at her, "Not helping."

He drew a sharp breath and struggled to keep his mouth shut. Beautiful women would be the death of him, not some psycho witch from beyond the grave.

When I received the tour invite for The Witch Hunter  by Nicole R. Taylor, I jumped right on it. And I am not sorry at all. The cover (which is awesome!) completely drew me in. From there, it was a wild ride. I want more!

As The Witch Hunter  unfolds, you learn more and more about each character - what makes them tick, their hopes, their secrets. Everything unfolds at a perfect pace. There was no "I need to know more now!" or "Wow, what an info dump". Nicole Taylor paces everything quite well.

As for the characters, they were all extremely well-written. Let's start with Zachary. Zac is a major pain in the ass for  about seventy percent of The Witch Hunter. He drops to minor pain for maybe ten percent, and the last twenty percent - Zac is pretty damn awesome. Did I feel sorry for him throughout the entire story? Absolutely. Did he deserve my sympathy? Not all of it, but he had it anyway.

Aya was supposed to be this big bad, and she was. She's exciting, funny, secretive, tough, sneaky, and protective. She also takes some big risks, both physically and emotionally, throughout The Witch Hunter.  

Sam, Liz, Gabby, and Alex rounded out this group of unlikely heroes and friends. Each of them has a story, and it was a treat to learn about them all. I love characters with smart mouths. I wasn't disappointed with this bunch!

The Witch Hunter  has it all. There's lots of action, which is nicely balanced by the relationships between the different characters. There are several scenes that had me laughing, and others that brought me to tears. I absolutely fell in love with this book.

How does it end, you wonder? I immediately hopped on Twitter to voice my opinion when I finished it:

@phantasmicreads : I'm writing the last three chapters right now of book two! #thewitchhunter
— Nicole R. Taylor (@nicole_noir) March 17, 2013

Bottom line? I can't wait for the next installment of the Witch Hunter Saga!

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