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Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Fantasy

My Rating: 4.5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Bloodwalker is a paranormal thriller by L.X Cain. It starts in Budapest, Hungary where something sinister is happening. Children are being kidnapped by a man dressed as a clown. Rurik, the Security Chief of circus Zorka Circus and one of the main characters, is trying to catch him. A young girl called Sylvie arrives in Budapest. She belongs to the Skomori clan which consists of bloodwalkers. 

 The opening scene is like that of an action movie. I had never read a book centered around a circus so that was exciting and something that I really enjoyed. The book has a very interesting plot. It is centered around Zorka Circus and consists of bloodwalkers which are people who can see souls, hear voices of the dead and take care of them.

Throughout the book, there’s the mystery of who the clown is. There are unexpected murders happening and the book just keeps on getting more twisted. It also gets quite gory sometimes. There were moments when I was frustrated with the events and felt scared for the characters. It was also hard to read about the suppressed traditions of the Skomori clan.

I really enjoyed the writing style of the author. It made the book flow very nicely and had a nice tone to it.

Rurik was a very interesting character and my favorite. He was different than the perfect good-looking male characters we usually see in books. He was strong and brave and had a warm heart. I really felt for him. The only problem was that I wanted to know more about him and there was not enough.

Sylvie is a Skomori woman and a bloodwalker. She is kind and gentle. I felt sorry for her for the situations she finds herself in. She seems naive and not a very strong character at first. However, she becomes braver as the book progresses and manages to stand on her own. I was very glad to see her character developed.

Sylvie and Rurik are apart for most of the book and we read their stories separately. I liked how there wasn’t much romance between them but even then, I rooted for them.

Bloodwalker is a very unique and exciting book. The world building and plot was huge and fascinating. I thought this was going to be a series but it is actually an excellent stand-alone. The ending was very intense and scary and I couldn’t see how it would turn out. However, the book wraps up very nicely. Everything about this book was different and interesting- the circus theme, the clan of bloodwalkers, the villains. All revelations were exciting. This book makes me want to read more books centered around circuses. The paranormal in this book was different than anything I’ve read before. I enjoyed it even though it got very gruesome at times. There wasn’t a moment of rest in the book and that kept me hooked. I liked how Sylvie becomes a very strong character from a quiet, naive girl. I loved the originality of this book as I haven’t read any books like this before.

This book is overall a very enjoyable and exciting read. I recommend it especially if you’re looking for a stand-alone.