Review: The Originals - The Rise by Julie Plec

Title: The Originals: The Rise

Author: Julie Plec

Publisher: HQN Books

Publication Date: 1.27.2015

Pages: 352

Genre: TV novelization, Historical, Romance, Paranormal

Series: The Originals #1

Source: eARC from publisher

Rating: 4 Stars

Summary (from Goodreads):

Family is power. The Original vampire family swore it to each other a thousand years ago. They pledged to remain together always and forever. But even when you're immortal, promises are hard to keep. 

Arriving in New Orleans in 1722, Original vampire siblings Klaus, Elijah and Rebekah Mikaelson believe they've escaped their dangerous past. But the city is lawless, a haven for witches and werewolves unwilling to share territory. The siblings are at their mercy…especially after Klaus meets the beautiful and mysterious Vivianne. Her impending marriage is key to ending the war between the supernatural factions—and Klaus's attraction to her could destroy the uneasy alliance. As Elijah works toward securing a piece of the city for his family, and Rebekah fights her unexpected feelings for a French captain, will Klaus's volatile desires bring their world crashing down—and tear them apart for good?

Review:

A prequel book series to one of my favorite TV series?YES, PLEASE!

I was so excited to see 3 of my favorite Originals getting their own backstory. I mean, we've learned a lot about Elijah, Klaus, and Rebekah from flashbacks in both their namesake show and The Vampire Diaries, but those were always so limited. THE RISE dives into the Mikaelson family rise to power (along with some heartache) in New Orleans their first time around.

Now some may argue that this book is little more than officially sanctioned fan fiction, and to an extent, it is. But what I love is that as a fan of the show I loved the filler this novel provided with more insight into what drives these three immortal creatures. But I can also see how someone with limited to no knowledge of the show could pick up this book and not be completely lost. There is enough detail that this book could be read by someone who has never watched the show.

The other high point of this for me was the romance. It wasn't skimpy and I was surprised at how ... detailed some of the romance scenes were. I mean, this is Harlequin, so by those standards it might be considered tame, but I was still a little surprised, but in a good way.

I can see how readers that are not fans of the show might roll their eyes and cry, "Insta-love!" but they need to understand that this is how these vampires operate. They know how long their lives are (not to mention impulsive) and how short human lives are, so there's little need for pretenses and games with them. They see what they want, they take what they want. The End.

Fans of the show will love reading this, but I'm also excited for non-watchers to engage with these three. I think they'll truly enjoy it.

Purchase The Originals: The Rise