Review: Taste by Kate Evangelista

Synopsis:  At Barinkoff Academy, there's only one rule: no students on campus after curfew. Phoenix McKay soon finds out why when she is left behind at sunset. A group calling themselves night students threaten to taste her flesh until she is saved by a mysterious, alluring boy. With his pale skin, dark eyes, and mesmerizing voice, Demitri is both irresistible and impenetrable. He warns her to stay away from his dangerous world of flesh eaters. Unfortunately, the gorgeous and playful Luka has other plans. When Phoenix is caught between her physical and her emotional attraction, she becomes the keeper of a deadly secret that will rock the foundations of an ancient civilization living beneath Barinkoff Academy. Phoenix doesn't realize until it is too late that the closer she gets to both Demitri and Luka the more she is plunging them all into a centuries old feud

Review: 

First, I would like to thank author, Kate Evangelista for the opportunity to read her new book Taste.   

Next, I would like to say that the book cover is awful pretty!

Taste had me hooked from the very first chapter.  I literally couldn't put the book down until I finished it.  At first, I really wanted to know about the Night Students.  I kept reading to try to find out what they were.  I was thinking vampire - but boy was I wrong.  I don't want to give away the paranormal aspect of this book - because it would spoil some of the surprise.  Let's just say that I have never read a book before that had this paranormal aspect or these particular creatures in it. I found it fascinating. 

Demitri sounds like a hot enough guy, and a little sensitive - but I'm team Luka all the way.  Luka just sounds hot - mysterious, brooding, snarky sense of humor.  I won't tell you who or if Phoenix ends up with either guy - you'll just have to see.

I enjoyed the setting for this story.  I think Kate Evangelista did an excellent job of painting a picture of Demitri and Luka's world.  It made me want to learn more about it.  I love the costumes, and the different life style that these characters live.

My favorite character is Luka's sister, Yana.  She is gothic-Lolita, curious, spunky, and just overall a good secondary character.  I like Pray alot too.  He is a lovable mad scientist type - who kind of reminded me a little of Myrnin in the Morganville Vampire series.  Not really that they are alike so much - but they're both a special kind of crazy that you can't help but like.

My only criticism of the book is Phoenix.  I didn't like Phoenix all that much in the beginning of the story.  She had absolutely no sense of self-preservation and even when she learned what the scary, big, bad secret was  - she kept placing herself in danger.  Even more so, she had an issue with authority.  If someone told her not to do something, she did it anyway - maybe even more so because she was told no.  She didn't take into consideration that other people might actually know something more about circumstances than she did.  Pheonix did grow as a character by the end of the story and I was happy about her development in that way.

Overall, I rated this book 4 stars.  I would like to read more by Kate Evangelista.