Table of Contents
Praise for Laura Wright andEternal Hunger
Dark, delicious, and sinfully good. Eternal Hunger is a stunning start to what promises to be an addictive new series. I cant wait for more from Laura Wright.
Nalini Singh, New York Times bestselling
author of Bonds of Justice
Dark, sexy vampires with an urban bite make Eternal Hunger a must read!
Jessica Andersen, author of Demonkeepers
Action, passion, and dark suspense launch a riveting new series. Laura Wright knows how to lure you in and hold you captive until the last page!
Larissa Ione, New York Times bestselling
author of Ecstasy Unveiled
Paranormal fans with a penchant for vamps will find Eternal Hunger a must read, but be warned: You will quickly become hooked!
The Romance Readers Connection (4 stars)
Eternal Hunger is deliciously dark while making you believe in the concept of soul mates.
Fresh Fiction
An exhilarating vampire romance... dark, passionate, and utterly intoxicating!
Reader to Reader Reviews
In a field brimming with rehashes of the same theme, Wright has managed to create a sound, believable vampire culture with plenty of tension and interesting plot points. The pacing is smooth with well-developed characters, and the satisfying conclusion leaves ample room for more from this strong new series.
Monsters and Critics
A bold new voice in vampire romance.
Romantic Times (4 stars)
Just when it seems every possible vampire twist has been turned, Wright launches a powerful series with a rich mythology, page-turning tension, and blistering sensuality.
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
To my husband, Daniel Ionazzi, who, at times, was both mother and father to our children while I wrote this book. I love and appreciate you so much.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The world in which Nicholas Roman lives is a dark and complicated one, but with Danielle Perez by my side, it was an extreme pleasure and honor to tell his story. Thank you, Danielle. You are not only a brilliant editor, but a patient and kind one.
Thank you, Maria Carvainis and the entire staff at MCA. Your endless support is invaluable.
Thank you, Julie Ganis, Barbara Ankrum and Jennifer Lyon for your critical eyes and impeccable ideas.
Thank you to my friends: old, new and ETERNAL, on my Facebook author pageyour support and humor amaze me daily.
GLOSSARY
BalasVampire child.
Breeding MaleA paven of purest blood whose genetic code and structure were altered by the Eternal Order. He has the ability to impregnate at will and decide the sex of the balas. He is brought in by Pureblood families and/or to repopulate one sex or the other in times of dire necessity. He is uncontrollable, near to an animal and must be caged.
CredentiA vampire community ruled and protected by the Eternal Order. Both Purebloods and Impures live here. There are many all over the world, masked by the Order so that humans barely notice their existence.
DuroTender word for brother.
Eternal OrderThe ten Pureblood vampires who have passed on to the middle world. They make the laws, punish the lawbreakers and govern every vampire credenti on earth.
EyesThe New York City street rats who run the sales of drugs, blood, and body to both human and vampire.
GravoPoisoned vampire blood.
ImitiAn imitation vampire, one who can take on the characteristics of vampires if they drink blood regularly.
ImpurebloodAny combination of human and vampire. No powers, heartbeat, can live in the sun, only has fangs when blood is consumed. Males are blood castrated, their sex drive removed through the blood by the Order. Females are blood sterilized and the insides of their thighs are branded with Is.
MetaA Pureblood female of fifty years, can still remain in sunlight, but needs the blood and body of her true mate.
MondrarVampire prison.
MorphoA Pureblood paven of three hundred years; as powerful as a paven can get, is sunlight intolerant, and the need to find his true mate becomes impossible to deny.
PavenA vampire male of pure blood.
PurebloodPure vampire. Powerful, no heartbeat, will go through morpho and meta and find their Pureblood true mate.
PurititaOne who is chaste.
SacroDirty.
SimilisThe Impure guards of Mondrar.
SwellVampire pregnancy.
TeggaNursemaid /nanny/governess.
True MateThe one each veana and paven is destined for. Each shares the same mark somewhere on their skin.
VeanaA vampire female of pure blood.
VeracouThe mating ceremony between two Pureblood vampires.
VirginiVirgin.
WitteAnimal.
MARK OF THE VAMPIRE
Nicholas Odysseus Claudius Roman did not fight. In fact, as he lay on his back, strapped down to the stone table, bare as the day he slipped from his mothers weary body, he projected an almost eerie calm.
The leather restraints placed on his upper arms, belly, neck, and ankles by the Order sliced into his skin like dull razor blades, but he ignored the pain. It was as it must be. Inside the Tomb of Nascita, the massive hole cut deep within hundreds of layers of rock, the Order performed the morphing ritual several times per year. When a paven hit his three hundredth year on earth, he was brought to the tomb, laid out on the slab of stone, and more often than not, held his position without restraints. He was, after all, being gifted with the strength and power of morpho. But the ancient ten were a bit unsure of how the Son of a Breeding Male would react to the final strikes of the maturation ritual. After all, their body and brain chemistry were so very different than the average paven. Would Nicholas Romans pain override his good sense and spur on the instinct to attack, to drain, to kill? No one was sure. So imprison him they must.
Get on with it, Nicholas said with grave irritation, lifting his chin. My brothers search for a way here even now.
One of the female members of the Order sniffed her disbelief. Surely they wouldnt come without an invitation.
There is no one who wishes to incur the wrath of the ancient ten, said the paven beside her.
Nicholas laughed bitterly. If you think that, youre all even bigger fools than I thought you were.
Several low, bloodthirsty snarls sounded behind him, but one very cool head prevailed and the paven said, We waste time with things that matter not. Prepare yourself, Son of the Breeding Male.
There was a sudden crack, and above Nicholas, the perfectly painted night sky split apart. The sounds of day echoed all around himbirds waking one another, insects searching for a meal, and in moments the cold, happy darkness ceased to reign. The brilliant white light of a fabricated sun spilled into the stone room, its greedy fingers reaching for every dim corner and crevice.
