But remember, these are the good guys - the blood they feed on comes from humans possessed by demons. This creature is symbiotic - it grants Harley great physical strength and agility, but also plagues her with a hunger for blood. The main character, Harley, is a human girl who undergoes a dramatic transformation: she allows herself to die only to be revived with a dark creature infused within the fabric of her being. It works on literal and metaphorical levels. Yes, these non-vampires are the good guys. There is enough resolution at the end to make the story feel complete but enough is left open to make you look forward to the sequels.The Devil Inside is a part paranormal romance and part kick-ass anime-type tale about vampire-like creatures who battle the forces of evil. I look forward to seeing where this story goes. The relationships between characters, the history, etc. So, instead of spending the novel wondering if she will or will not become one of them, you get to focus on other aspects of the story. You know from the beginning she is going to become striga. It doesn't go out of it's way to try to be overly mysterious. This novel does a good job of setting up for a bigger story. Such as screaming for help, or being overcome with fear. Even after becoming a striga she, at times, seems to rely on social convention of allowing someone else to take care of her. Having said that, I would have liked to have seen her grow as a character a little more. She experiences a lot of pain and instead of crumbling under it, she chooses to fight and accept what she must do. The main character, Elizabeth, is interesting and it's easy to feel for her and her situation. You can tell that the author did his due diligence. And I did look some stuff up to check for accuracy.

While purists might pick apart the finer details of the language I didn't find anything anachronistic or distracting about the setting.

It is difficult to write a historical novel and I am intimidated by the idea of doing so myself, but this author does so convincingly. It follows some 'traditional' vampire lore but also refreshes the genre enough to still be interesting and engaging. It kept me interested and entertained throughout. It follows a young girl, Elizabeth, on her journey to becoming a striga (vampire). I read Reborn for a R2R and really enjoyed it.

Devil Inside by Brandy Isaacs