I adored Hidden (book 1). Taken (also known as Thicker Than Blood) picks up where the first leaves off and brings Maddy and Alex closer. I love the past and present timelines. Each jump to the past grows the drama happening in the present. The threat is well developed and I like how it ties a little romance and danger together. Aelia may be one of my favorite New additions too.

Fast paced, historical, romantic and one that keeps you flipping pages! This series is perfect for fans of K.F. Breene, Sarah J. Maas and Tracy Wolff.

Thank you to Netgally, the publishers, and Shalini Boland

When I requested this book I was unaware that it was apart of a series, one that requires you to read the previous books for this one to make sense. I am unable to read all the previous books along with this one before the publish date. Therefore, I will rate this a fair 3/5 stars and will adjust the rating and review when I am able to read all the books in the series along with this one.

The Marchwood story continues - for vampires the past really never stays in the past and a kidnapping into a dark vampire world sets a new adventure and rescue. You know, things just can't stay all peaceful for too long!

Yes a new series by an author I just love to read especially as it was so different to what she usually writes......Exciting!!! and the cover was gorgeous. I just had to read it............

This book is called Taken by Shalini Boland is the second book in the new Marchwood Vampires series............and what another brilliant book this was. It's a romantic supernatural adventure that spans the centuries........

Falling in love has never been so dangerous.............

My name is Madison Greene and lived in foster care with my brother Ben and I was just an ordinary teenager until I fell in love….......
with a vampire. Yes, a Vampire....... WoW!!!!

Alexandre is tall, with a sexy French accent and mesmerising eyes.
He makes me feel protected, and he’s completely captured my heart
I will be in love forever!

At Marchwood House, our sprawling mansion nestled in the English countryside, we’re in our own perfect bubble together. But, in the blink of an eye, everything changes when an old enemy of Alexandre’s sets a trap and rips me away from my boyfriend’s arms.

The ancient demon takes me to his underground city, deep beneath the windswept desert. In the twisting tunnels and enormous vaulted caverns, there’s a bloodthirsty vampire around every corner. I’ve never been so terrified…......

They can't sleep at night. Door and windows locked People are still being killed!

Her life is hanging by a thread, and every second she is there is a step closer to death. But, she can’t just sit here and hope that Alexandre will rescue me.

Can Madison outsmart a city of vampires to escape from this hellish place?

And will I ever see Alexandre again?

WoW!!!! Well, You will just need to read it. It will not disappoint. Just magical and a brilliant read! Especially if you loved reading Twilight or The Vampire Diaries this is a series for you.

I highly recommend Hidden. 5 star read.

Big Thank you to NetGalley and Second Sky for this ARC

Wow, the twists and turns of this book. Boland is such a master at her craft! I am on the edge of my proverbial seat for the third installment.

A story filled with captivating characters, exotic locations, and storyline that will leave you craving more.

Taken - Vampires of Marchwood book 2, is starting off right at the end of book 1. Maddie and Alex are deeply in love, despite their differences - Maddie is human and Alex is a vampire. One moment they are in a cozy bubble of love and the next Maddie is taken by an enemy of Alex's. Will Maddie be reunited with her lover or will she live out the rest of her life in her captive's care.

I enjoyed this story and the characters we are introduced to. Boland has a way of writing the characters, so we feel connected to them and their journey.

Much better than book 1. Book two in the Vampires of Marchood series begins where the first book in the series, Hidden leaves off. Maddie and Alex are in love. They are perfect for each other except that Maddie is human and Alexandre is a vampire.

In the present, Maddie and Alex happily lives in the English countryside and think nothing can burst their perfect bubble until the past comes calling with a vengeance. Maddie is taken away deep into the caves in Cappadocia. Alex and his family spring into action and go searching for her, but will they make it in time?

I really enjoyed this book, in fact I think that I loved it more than the first one. The world building is fantastic, the characters amazing and the storyline completely gripping. Would definitely recommend!

Alex and Maddy are once again pulled into an adventure with trouble. It was full of action, adventure and their romance. It was good to see more of an insight into Alexs family and all the characters began to evolve in more detail, which only made me love them more.

I really enjoyed the first book and the second book was just as good. I enjoyed reading the past and present POV’s. It really helps to understand the backstory.
I really like the authors writing style and found it easy to follow along. The plot was great and I felt that it flowed nicely throughout the book.
If you’re a fan of fantasy with a hint of romance then I recommend this series.
I’m looking forward to starting the final book in the series and seeing what happens next!

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy of taken. this was part of a romance and fantasy trilogy that was fantastic. I always enjoy a fantasy book with romance in it and this was a good trilogy to read.

I got about 80% into this book and then had to stop. I enjoyed the first book in this series but found it a struggle to continue. I could not relate to any of the characters and found that Madison was so unrealistic that it out me off. I love strong female characters but they have to behave a relatable and realistic manner, which I did not get from this one. It's a shame I couldn't bring myself to continue reading as I felt the first book had so much promise for the series.

This is the second instalment in the Marchwood Vampires series. This is not like most other vampire books I have read they are mindless killing monsters but they have personalities and have honour just like they did in life. The unlife of these characters is very interesting.

The story of this is Maddy disappearing and Alexandre really struggling with his emotions and being a tad bit scary as he tries to find her.

I think he is possessive and that isn't always good in any relationship as it can lead to so many worse items including assault.

The only issue I can find with this book is the time jumping which can be difficult especially when they introduce so many new characters with this jumping technique. It does make it slightly hard but it also shows a talent for making things seem plausible as well as having to do a lot of research.

Aelia was one of these characters and from seeing her in her debut it had me hooked and wanting to protect this young lady. I also love the name it's so beautiful.

The fear she must have felt at what was being done and the sexist attitude of the time must have made it even more scary. A woman was treated as a whore and would be punished as such but a man got away with everything. It is the sexist society that was enacted and in some areas is still very much part of the culture.

It is great as I love seeing the interaction with aelia and the widow and to see what this is leading to. You can tell there is something off with what is happening and what aelia is doing is risky as well as brave.

Aelia has become a favourite of mine and I look forward to her chapters more than almost any others. She is captivating and smart which is a perfect combination especially when you see what she is doing.

This was a great book and I now want to start on the next book to see just what happens. This book has a bit of everything in it.

Review in progress and to come.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

This the second book in the vampires of Marchwood series and this book is just as good as the first, Hidden. Taken is a fast paced read, full of drama and tension, the story is good and I love the characters so much .
Shalini Boland is a wonderful writer, she manages to weave the threads in the plot so well I don’t see them coming and that’s what makes it so engaging

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I was hooked from the beginning. I loved this and it is so all consuming. I really enjoyed this book so much.
I just reviewed Taken (Vampires of Marchwood Book 2) by Shalini Boland. #TAKEN #NetGalley
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Wow! Absolutely so impressed with Shalini Boland! I’ve loved every thriller she’s written and am delighted to see her venture into a fresh new take on vampires. This one starts with a bang and just never lets up!
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book

Taken (Vampires of Marchwood Book 2)
by Shalini Boland

Having come across Shalini Boland and her Vampires of Marchwood through Net Galley I was delighted to read the first book, Hidden. It was tense, gripping, involving, and totally un-put-downable. I was positively ecstatic to realise that there were two more books.

The second, Taken, does not disappoint. Fast paced and a roller coaster of tension, intrigue, plotting and kidnap. Dusted with confusion, betrayal and fear. The story is good, the characters are the best. I feel so involved emotionally with their continued existence and survival, I feel I am actually willing them to be safe, and happy. (Which would make a far less addictive story!)

Shalini Boland is a fabulous story teller. Embroidering the stitches, laying the clues so much so that you are carried seamlessly onward. The tension and thrills actually made me jump and I know I should have seen them coming but my involvement with the characters and the story pushes the rest just out of my focus, on the periphery until relevant to the carefully planned and thought out plot. I want them to make it and I focus on the situation in hand so didn't see quite a lot coming. Once you know you realise the clues have been there all along and it is this that makes these stories clever, engaging and totally addictive.

It's been a while since a book, stories and characters have got under my skin to this extent. The split within two times stories only adds to the eventual feeling of completeness when it all comes together and you are left in total wonder with an overwhelming desire for MORE!

Taken: Book Review | Author: Shalini Boland

**Warning: this review contains spoilers**

In Taken, Shalini Boland returns us to the world of the Marchwood Vampires. This is book 2 of the Young Adult & Paranormal Romance series, and I eagerly whipped through it in one sitting. I was thrilled to be able to reimmerse myself in the riveting narrative web that Boland was spinning.

As Taken begins, the reader gets to witness the burgeoning, sweetly romantic relationship between Madison and Alexandre. Yet fateful events of the past and present begin to collide as Maddie is taken captive by a group of vengeful ancient vampires–a deed which is accomplished through the coordinated financial and legal assistance of Winston Blythe.

When the Marchwood crew learn that Maddie has been spirited away to the ancients’ underground city in faraway Cappadocia, Turkey, they quickly follow to rescue her. While there, though they find assistance through unexpected allies, they also uncover a devastating betrayal from within their own ranks.

<<My name is Madison Greene and I was an ordinary teenager until I fell in love… with a vampire. Alexandre is tall, with a sexy French accent and mesmerizing eyes. He makes me feel protected, and he’s completely captured my heart.
At Marchwood House, our sprawling mansion nestled in the English countryside, we’re in our own perfect bubble together. But, in the blink of an eye, everything changes when an old enemy of Alexandre’s sets a trap and rips me away from my boyfriend’s arms.>>

Of the 3 books, I read Taken the quickest. This is because I was already so invested in Boland’s skillful world-building that began in book 1. She really does have a knack of bringing her fictional worlds to life for her readers.
As in book 1, Boland utilizes multiple perspectives to move throughout the narrative; she also uses dual timelines (past & present). Unlike Hidden where the timeline switches between the present-day and the 19th Century, Taken alternates between the present-day and AD 571.

<<The ancient demon takes me to his underground city, deep beneath the windswept desert. In the twisting tunnels and enormous vaulted caverns, there’s a bloodthirsty vampire around every corner. I’ve never been so terrified…
It seems like there’s no way out from this underground maze. My life is hanging by a thread, and every second I’m here is a step closer to death. I can’t just sit here and hope that Alexandre will rescue me.
Can I outsmart a city of vampires to escape from this hellish place? And will I ever see Alexandre again?>>

Though the modern timeline is mainly concerned with Maddie’s kidnapping and the frantic attempts by Alexandre et al to rescue her, the other timeline reveals the root cause of the viral pandemic which eventually afflicts the world’s vampires. This timeline is narrated through the perspective of Aelia, a character whose past fate is inextricably linked to these future events. I found, personally, as Aelia’s story unfolded, that she quickly became my favourite character.

I really don’t want to give too much away. All I can say is, when I finished Taken, I immediately picked up and read Hunted (book 3). These books have quickly become some of my favourites so far this year. Typically, when I’m reading a series, I don’t always pick up the next book right away, even if I love it–I’ve still not yet read Patrick Rothfuss’ The Wise Man’s Fear, even though The Name of the Wind is one of my all-time favourite books. But with the Marchwood Vampires trilogy, I can almost guarantee you’ll find, like I did, that it was unputdownable!

I’d like to thank Second Sky Books, Shalini Boland, and NetGalley for providing access to ARCs of this trilogy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was fantastic, and it was fascinating to see how Alexandre and his family were settling in at Marchwood.
However, life does not remain quiet for long because Madison is kidnapped while they're all out ice skating.
Alexandre is required to travel to Turkey to retrieve the letter.
Turkey is where the whole thing started for him and the others, so they know what they're getting themselves into.After devouring the first book in this series, I was delighted to return to Maddie, Alexandre, Ben, and co in this second installment of the Marchwood Vampires Series. The story picks up immediately after the events of book one and is just as addictive.

This time, the plot revolves around Maddie's kidnapping, which forces Alexandre to confront his past in order to save her. This time, the backstory transports the reader to AD 571, where we meet new character Aelia.