Vampire Thirst (Book 2 of the Dragon Heat series) - Ella J. Phoenix I received Vampire Thirst in exchange for a fair and honest review. In Dragon Heat the stage was set, in Vampire Thirst, Ella J. Phoenix found her voice. Don’t get me wrong, I really liked the first book, but as is true of most first books in a series, the story kind of gets lost in the set up. Zoricah and Tardieh were a great couple and their story continues in Vampire Thirst, but I loved Sam and Hikuro from the moment they were introduced. There was always something dangerous and mysterious about their draw to each other. I knew that their story was going to be intense and I wasn’t wrong.There was a lot more to Sam than was on the surface. She had a lot of inner turmoil, timidness and doubt. She did a really good job of hiding it though. So good Hikuro pegged her as devious and therefore a danger. What he didn’t know was that she was protecting him and everyone else from a danger she couldn’t control and didn’t understand. Readers got a lot of Sam’s history in Vampire Thirst and it explained a lot. It also made me like her even more.There was a lot more to Hikuro than the arrogant vampire let others see as well. His feelings and attraction toward Sam took him by surprise. His patience and acceptance of her was what really won me over though. That along with the smart wit, determination and protectiveness of both these characters turned their story into a real page turner.A lot took place in Vampire Thirst beyond Sam and Hirkuro’s story. It was all interwoven with different POVs. Some mysteries were solved, more politics were thrown in and a few more devious characters were introduced. Some were surprising, while others were expected. There are still a few more mysteries to be solved and the set up for the next book, which looks like it will involve Yara, should prove to be extremely interesting.