A BLOOM IN WINTER by J.R. Ward

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A BLOOM IN WINTER
J.R. Ward

Reviewed by Make Kay
Posted November 1, 2024

A BLOOM IN WINTER is a Black Dagger Brotherhood novella, book number 22.5 in the BDB series by bestseller J.R. Ward. While Wrath the Blind King of the Vampires and the Black Dagger brotherhood make appearances, the vast majority of the action occurs outside of Caldwell and features a Wolven from the prison camp. So this feels more like a spin-off sort of novella.

The main pairing in A BLOOM IN WINTER is male/male, but there is also a secondary male/female romance here. Thirty-three years ago, Wolven shifter Apex was repeatedly tortured and gang raped in the Prison Camp. Vampire fighter Callum recognized Apex as his true love and brought the bedridden male a single white rose every night to express his love. But poor tortured Apex disappeared on Callum before a romance could begin. Now Callum and Apex stumble upon one another at the remote property of an A-hole new glymera, and Apex must decide if he can let go of his traumatic past to pursue love now.

I don’t think the book blurb accurately reflects the storyline of the novella. I found the plot to be somewhat disjointed, but most of it gets wrapped up to make sense at the end. There is a fun twist to the plot that I will let the reader discover themselves, which I really enjoyed. Ward loves to torture her characters and give them horrific past traumas, and these characters are no exception. Readers who enjoy watching Ward put the screws to her suffering characters will enjoy this quick dip into the periphery of the Black Dagger Brotherhood world.

SUMMARY

Another sexy, high-stakes holiday spinoff installment of the New York Times bestselling Black Dagger Brotherhood series.

Nothing warms a cold heart like true love, and in this newest Black Dagger Brotherhood winter book, a fighter who has never been a savior finds himself falling in love—and trying to rescue—a male who’s lost all hope.

With the BDB training center reopening, and the Brothers looking to add more soldiers in the war against the Lessening Society, fan favorite Callum decides to find his purpose in fighting. Apex knows what suffering the male has survived, and he joins the program just to make sure Callum doesn’t get himself killed. As the two hit the streets, and the danger gets real, Callum must decide whether he can open himself up to love or if he will give in to his inner darkness and spiral down into an abyss of hatred and death...forever.