The youngest Toren brother, Rafe, is an anomaly in the paranormal world.  Half vampire, half warlock, Rafe would be hunted down if anyone learned that he wasn’t all vampire.  As such, he has learned to never let anyone close to him, save for his brothers.  All that changed when he met Morgan, a witch with an attitude sent to bring Rafe back to his mother’s coven at any cost, even if she has to expose Rafe for the halfling he is.  Rafe has no interest in connecting with his magical mother and has done his best to focus on his anger at Morgan’s threats so he can resist the attraction he feels towards her.  But with each passing day, his desire for her has grown stronger and Rafe knows it’s time to claim Morgan as his mate.  Even as Rafe and Morgan begin to fall in love, each knows something is missing from their relationship.  And when a warlock named Dominic shows up, claiming that Rafe is the key to fending off dark magics that can destroy both vampires and witches alike, Rafe knows exactly what is missing from his love life – Dominic. 

Three is the magic number in Stephani Hecht’s sexy new Drone Vampire tale.  Blood and Magic expands the world of the series to include the world of witches and warlocks, setting up for interesting possibilities in future books.  Fans of this series will know that the previous books strongly hinted at a Rafe-Morgan pairing.  I’ll admit, I was surprised with the introduction of Dominic and the explanation that witches often mate in threes, forming a “triquetra.”  While it felt like the addition of a third member of the romance came out of nowhere, I nevertheless did like Dominic and the three of them together made a strong unit.  Rafe has intrigued me from the beginning of the series, but I’ll admit that this particular story wasn’t as strong as Ms. Hecht’s previous books.  It didn’t have the emotional impact or the pull the other stories had on me.  This was a bit of a let-down, likely because Blood and Magic follows on the heels of Mad Blood, a fantastic, powerful tale.  While Blood and Magic is not my favorite book of Ms. Hecht’s, I will say that it is an enjoyable read overall.  Readers new to this series will be able to follow along and those familiar with the Drone Vampire Chronicles will delight in revisiting all their favorite characters once again.  I finished Blood and Magic eager to see what happens next in the world of the Drones.