The Escape Trilogy by Sara Dobie Bauer
Edmund is a British naturalist who has sailed the world seeking new species. Intrigued by creatures that might kill him, immortal Andrew is this scientist’s dream—but so is making his way back home. Edmund will fight to survive, even while wrapped in the arms of a monster.
As light touches and laughter turn to something much more passionate, the cannibals creep ever closer to Edmund. Can the ancient vampire keep his human alive long enough to escape exile and explore their newfound love, or will Andrew’s bloodlust seal his own doom?
Desperate to stay by Andrew’s side forever, Edmund examines the impressive coven library in search of an Elder, the only creature capable of turning Edmund. Although missing for centuries, Andrew believes an Elder must still survive somewhere; they just have to find him.
The search is put on hold when Edmund receives word that his mother is ill in London, and the lovers set off on an oceanic journey surrounded by new friends and old enemies. When things go terribly wrong, Edmund’s fragile human life hangs in the balance, and an Elder must be found or Andrew will be alone forever.
When they arrive at Edmund's family estate, his sick mother and her loathsome best friend await them. While ducking religious curses, Edmund struggles to harness an unexpected power gifted him by the Elder. Andrew fears for his beloved as Edmund becomes more and more monstrous—but vampires have always been monsters, haven't they?
A battle is coming, for Edmund's heart and his soul, and Andrew will lose neither. He escaped island exile and a near tragedy at sea to be with Edmund, the beautiful young sailor he loves. Andrew will do anything to keep Edmund by his side, but his most dangerous adversary may be Edmund himself.
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Review
Escaping Exile
As if it wasn’t enough that he was sent away for
overindulging his desires to possess another person so completely as to drain
them dry in order to feel the linked to their soul, Andrew was also sent to an
island where the only inhabitants were bloodthirsty cannibals-hardly a tempting
or satisfying meal for a vampire. Plus it meant the chances for any shipwrecks
at sea to actually have any survivors once the cannibals lit upon them were
slim to none. But maybe his luck was changing, for there was one man who he
managed to grab before the natives got him.
Edmund was not a stranger to the sea. He was an explorer who
studied new species he found on his many journeys. What he didn’t expect was
for the sudden violent storm to destroy his ship and leave him the sole
survivor. Washed up on a beach with a head injury meant he could barely manage
to stay awake much less take shelter. His gratitude to the man who rescued him
was short lived however when he discovered that Andrew was something far more
sinister than just a fellow survivor. Edmund’s life now hangs in the balance
should Andrew give in to his natural inclinations. Now to see which foe was
more dangerous—the one that attracted Edmund in so many ways or the one that
threatened to tear him to pieces. Either way his blood would be spilled and
death a certainty.
Thus, author Sara Dobie Bauer begins her trilogy of novellas
with the first one, Escaping Exile. Despite the shorter length, Ms. Bauer packs
a whole lot of story and action into a short amount of page time. With both
Andrew and Edmund’s back stories to explain as well as how Andrew even ended up
on the remote island they both find themselves on, it takes some clever and
skilled writing to create fully fleshed out characters in such a short time.
Thankfully for us this author has such skill and uses it to weave a story that
has me thirsty for more.
While I find myself pitying Andrew, it’s Edmund who really
captivated me right from the start. He has such energy—such light and you can
understand instantly why Andrew would be so taken with him. Plus there is a
naughty side to the seemingly formal British naturalist that is rather
delicious to read about. Edmund is the reason you almost forget, as does
Andrew, that they are on a dangerous island and that death waits in every
shadow. When the author chooses to remind us of that fact it’s very
jolting—much as it is for the characters themselves and so you feel the same
sense of shock and fear they do. I love that. I think it’s just brilliant when
a writer can enthrall you so completely and lull you into this false sense of
security only to remind you time and again that this isn’t some tender romance
but a terrifying action adventure that has deadly consequences.
reading the next novella in this series.
Escaping Solitude
Sara Dobie Bauer continues her Exile trilogy with the second
installment, Escaping Solitude. Picking up where the first, Escaping Exile,
left off we meet up with Andrew and Edmund as they return to New Orleans and
begin their life together. As Edmund and Andrew become closer and declarations
of love are exchanged, we learn more about Edmund and his past, particularly
his relationship with his mother, whom he loves despite her trying to cure him
of his attraction to men in his late teen years. We also watch as Michelle and
Felipe become more and more enamored of Edmund while Andrew watches over him in
order to keep him safe, just in case they get too familiar with his lover. But
most importantly, Michelle, the undisputed queen of the New Orleans coven, shows
Edmund her personal library and he begins the task of trying to discover the
whereabouts of an elder—one who will be able to change Edmund into a
vampire—something both he and Andrew want. However, news from home will interrupt
their plans and steer their course for England first. While at sea a violent
storm will rise and claim a victim—now there is precious little time to find
the elder before it is too late.
This second novel takes us deep into the steamy underbelly
of New Orleans with its debauchery and lust for life taking center stage.
Edmund and Edmund will declare their love for each other and enjoy a lusty
night at Andrew’s favorite brothel where one of the novel’s most sensuous sex
scenes will take place with two of the brothel’s finest male whores. We get to
see more of Michelle and Felipe in this novella as well. Those who read the
first in this series will remember Felipe as the one who essentially got Andrew
into the trouble that finally broke Michelle’s patience and landed him on the
deserted island. Thankfully we get to eventually see that Felipe is not all
bad—definitely naughty and cunning but he still has a bit of his humanity in
tact as does Michelle. I enjoyed hearing more about Edmund’s past and watching
the relationship between he and Andrew develop. Once Edmund discovers exactly
where the elder has been keeping himself the race is on to find the vampire so
that Edmund may be made immortal. However, things don’t quite go to plan and
this one ends on a real cliffhanger—with Edmund’s life in the balance and
sinking fast.
I move on now to the last book in this trilogy. I can’t wait
to see how this all plays out and if Edmund survives. Suffice it to say that if
he doesn’t neither will Andrew. Also there is the fact that Edmund has repeatedly
told Andrew that he likes killing. While that may seem macabre it does fit in
with Edmund’s personality and it makes one wonder what kind of vampire he will
turn out to be. Will Andrew, who has since turned over a new leaf and refrains
from taking blood from others, be able to rein Edmund in if he has a lust for
blood once he’s turned? Will Edmund and Andrew actually find the elder and will
he be willing to turn Edmund? If so, at what cost? So many questions to be
answered in this next novella. I can’t wait to read the ending to this exciting
trilogy.
Escaping Mortality
With the release of Escaping Mortality, Sara Dobie Bauer
finishes her Escape trilogy and the story of the vampire Andrew and his lover,
Edmund. Once again this third book begins as the one before it ends but we now
know if Edmund was successful in calling forth the elder from the depths of the
ocean and the price he paid for the mortality Brien the elder was able to give
him. From there it’s home to England only to discover his mother has lost her
mind to dementia and a woman who hates him has been taking care of Edmund’s
mother while he was away. Edmund will have to contend with her and so much
more. Although Andrew is by Edmund’s side, he worries about the behavior he
sees his lover beginning to exhibit. More than just mortality was given to
Edmund when the elder Brien remade him and Andrew fears the man he loves may slowly
be losing his battle with the evil that lives inside the dead, cold heart of
every vampire.
What an amazing ending to this fantastic trilogy. First, we
get to see Edmund being reborn and all that it does to him. Then we watch as he
returns home to both a mad mother and countrymen who love and hate him in equal
parts. We discover even more about the legacy that Edmund left behind him when
he ran from this mother’s attempt to “cure” him of his sexual orientation and
not many are happy to see the Duke home again for good reason. But it’s Brien’s
hold on Edmund that worries Andrew the most. He fears that every time Brien
replenishes Edmund’s blood, after the newly made vampire uses his powers, the
ancient one claims even more of the man he loves. There is going to be a
reckoning in this novella and it’s unclear up to the very end just who will win
and if Edmund can hold on to the small piece of his soul that was left after
his change.
With a lovely epilogue, intense action and multiple plot
twists, the author brings her two lovers full circle. There will be some before
it’s all over but there will also be triumph. I wish this series could go on
and on. I have enjoyed reading about Andrew and Edmund so much and love that
there story got the happy ever after it deserved. Fans of the first two
installments will love this final book. I look forward to reading more by this
author in the future.
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