Book Review: Kindred by Erica Stevens

Kindred is a paranormal novel bursting with emotional turmoil, spilling feelings all over the prose like the wet tears of Cassie, the protagonist.
From the first page I was held captive by a scene of unrest. We learn that events of the past have dictated a rather unsteady future for Cassie and her two best friends. Born vampire hunters with inherent gifts to equip them against the fanged miscreants intent on wiping out their race, they've come to accept their responsibilities. In the first few chapters this is made quite clear, a scene even detailing a face off between hunter and vampire - action at its best.
Then a stranger by the name of Devon moves to town, and suddenly Cassie is disarmed by his charm, the effect he has on her and the aloof manner that sets him apart from others. What is it about her that draws him near, and for that matter, why can't he seem to stay away from her?
Honestly, I had to take a step back and remind myself that not every book that starts with action and twisted secrets will continue on that path. This novel is clearly an exploration of romance and the conflicted emotions of two people at war with their own inner demons - the journey being how they overcome their differences.
I appreciated the author's dedication to honesty and the insatiable urge to describe every little caress, thought and expression crossing her character's faces. I never doubted the significance of each encounter or the feelings portrayed. What did annoy me was the constant repetition, paragraph after paragraph of the same conflicting emotions readdressed without resolve or reason for reminding the reader of its significance. I also found the prose heavily burdened with unnecessary adverbs; 'sighing softly', 'laughing lightly', 'frowning heavily' - just to name a few.
Apart from a few personal grievances, I did appreciate the simplicity of the story and the heightened sense of drama crafted in every page. I'll be rating Kindred three out of five fangs.

Synopsis:

What do you do when the one you love is also you worst enemy? Trapped in a destiny she does not want, Cassie finds herself lost and adrift, until he walks into her life, turning it upside down and awakening her in ways that she never dreamed possible. 
Cassie is stunned and devastated to learn that she belongs to a long line of vampire slayers known as The Hunters. A murderous rampage by a group of elder vampires has left the Hunter line decimated and the remaining Hunters scattered around the world. With her friends Chris and Melissa’s aid, Cassie struggles to rid the world of the monsters that murdered her parents. Though Cassie knows it is her fate, she chafes against her heritage, and is resentful of the shortened lifespan that has been placed upon her by the circumstances of birth. Struggling to get through every day, Cassie finds herself simply going through the motions of living. That is, until Devon arrives. Tall, dark, and mysterious his arrival turns the school, and Cassie’s life, upside down. Fighting against her fierce attraction to him, and the chaos he represents in her carefully ordered days, she is irresistibly drawn to him. Though worried that what she truly is will place Devon in danger, she is unable to fight her feelings for him. He is the one light, and the only source of hope she has in a world that revolves around death and fear. What she does not know is that Devon has some dark secrets of his own, secrets even more frightening and dangerous than hers. Secrets that threaten to tear them apart forever.