My name is Theoden, this is the story of my life. Apparently, there has been a huge demand for me to tell it. Normally, I do what I want, unless the command comes from my Sire, Ara. But, revealing the tale about how I became the powerful vampire Prince of the City is something I think I will enjoy telling. You’ll see my first mission for the church, my first kill, the life-changing moment when I lost my virginity, and how I chose my first son, all of the things that mean something to me, that made me the vampire I am. So, sit back, and give me all of your attention, as I want your eyes on me. Now, let’s begin.

Prepare to be entertained to new heights as Theoden delivers you a unique tale of his life from childhood to the vampire Master you know him to be. Warning: This is a prequel to the highly erotic, extremely dark and twisted New Haven Series and the spin-off, Odin Chronicles. I can’t stress enough how strong the sexual, violent, and adult content is in this book. It will steam up your glasses, and melt your contact lenses. The temperature in the room will rise to unbearable degrees. Pearls will be clutched and you may utter the words: “Oh my God” several times while reading. You have been warned. For mature readers only.

The Reviews

Taylor
5.0 out of 5 stars Finally... More Story Than Sex!!
Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2019
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What I truly appreciated about this book was that it actually had SUBSTANCE to it... and actual story. That is one thing I am growing tired of as this saga continues from New Haven into Odin Chronicles, the sex is getting redundant. In this book, the author proves he can write an actual STORY... so why he feels a need to waste an entire series filled with almost nothing but sex is beyond me. I keep hoping that he will get this and actually start adding more story to the Odin Chronicles instead of believing that sex is the only thing selling his books.

Additionally, there was a huge glaring omission from this book, PIERCINGS! Nowhere was it mentioned how abruptly Theoden started piercing his sons including himself- nor was there any mention of Dragons being into piercings. To me I was wanting more details as to how this became so significant for him, since it plays an important part in the series, but nothing was mentioned here. Also wasn't mentioned, how and when did Theoden suddenly develop an enjoyment of inflicting pain and torture, including his seemingly sudden interest in bondage, S&M?!? Because that is all Theoden was about in the beginning of the series- yet nothing of that nature in this book. Honestly, having just re-read book 1 of the series, the Theoden there and the Theoden here are two completely different people. Perhaps it had been so long since the author wrote the first book, that he completely forgot WHO that Theoden actually was.

Further, I also found a MAJOR flaw with this book, I almost took a star off because of it. Considering that Tylendel is one of my favorite characters, to have the author describe him differently in this book versus book 1 of the series, "Chained in Darkness", really irritated me. This is a problem with authors who write so much and tell the story from so many points of view, they forget how they previously described characters. In "Chained in Darkness", Tylendel was described by Noel as having AUBURN hair... and yet in this book, he is described as having BLACK hair... VERY VERY different. So the entire series I have been seeing Ty with red hair and green eyes, only to be jarred out of the entire story immersion by Theoden describing him with black hair in this book... but at least he got the green eyes consistent!!! Sorry Nicholas, I love red heads and when I come across one in a story, I remember that detail quite vividly. It might be a good idea to keep a journal of characters and their descriptions so you always have it handy whenever you need to describe them again from someone else's point of view.

L.D.
VINE VOICE
5.0 out of 5 stars Very Intense and Riveting
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2021
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Theoden is the prequel to the New Haven series, and a wonderful introduction to the series and Nicholas Bella’s writing. This book is not for the faint of heart – take the trigger and content warnings seriously. The world building is fascinating, but the world of New Haven series is dark and twisted ruled by vampiric morality. This means that there is a lot of violence, blood, and human suffering - no punches were pulled or soften.

This book follows the life of Theoden, from his childhood, both as a human and as a vampire, to his growth into a dangerous and powerful vampire lord. I found it riveting to follow Theoden’s journey from his point of view. The transformation was intense and dark with both cruel and painful moments as well as some surprising tenderness and love. I found the storytelling thrilling, and the writing style flowed very well. This was an intense and dark read, but so well written and captivating.

The audiobook, narrated by Christian J. Gilliland, was fantastic. Christian did an amazing job bringing this book to life. His performance was spectacular, and he was able to bring the characters alive with just the right amount of emotions and energy. I was hanging onto every word. Overall, this was a well done audiobook with quality production and narration.

SW and BK
3.0 out of 5 stars Love him or loathe him, fans want to know his history...
Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2018
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Nicholas Bella is the master of the serial. We first met Theoden as the handsome and eminently cruel vampire/dragon that 'embraced' Noel and made him what he never wanted to be in the author's famous and wonderfully stupendous New Haven serial (of which I am a most ardent fan and always will be).

I don’t think it is ever an easy task to venture into new territory. A prequel to a serial in one novel. In this case, the idea was great, but the execution, perhaps somewhat lacking.

I'm not sure if Theoden was meant to work as a standalone novel—propped on its own two feet, so to speak, in all its 120k word glory—and perhaps be a way to introduce new blood (lol, readers) to that dark and oh so very sexy vampire series, but personally, I feel this is a work that readers who are fans of the series already, will appreciate far more.

They know this character, love him or loathe him, and of course, they want to delve into his history—the wherewithal of how he came to be. They want to see the introduction to his life as a vampire who was then destined to become the Prince of a City in a world that was no longer the playground of humanity.

By far this author’s longest work, it had the potential, maybe even the necessity to be even longer. As a single work, unfortunately, it read more like a chronicle than a riveting narrative. So many interesting things were barely touched on, namely for me the metamorphosis of Raphael from willing son to traitorous rebel. Obviously this wasn’t his story, and as it was seen only through the eyes of Theoden, who seemed mostly oblivious to his brother’s dissatisfaction with the philosophy of their sire (Ara is not the model upon which to build your parenting skills, he is more like the blunt hammer that pounds you into submission-and perhaps appropriate for that day and age) then it is understandable that this change in thinking happened so suddenly. But this, in a way, fed into the jarring nature of the narrative.

Another thing that could have benefited from far more build up was the werewolf revolution, which intertwines with Raphael’s story, making it a very interest arc. Again, it was touched upon, but to me the escalation to the total cultural turnaround of an entire species lacked imperative, and no doubt, for the same reason—Theoden’s disinterest in their plight in his total absorption in privileged vampire society.

I totally understand how it is difficult to present such an epic saga in a way that proliferates the required tension and maintains it throughout the story—the MC finally winning free, or getting justice, or his comeuppance, or complete and abject submission—whatever is necessary—but even in a prequel (especially one that introduces an entire hidden society before it is lethally revealed to humankind), is still vital. And it is missing.

Theoden bowed to Ara’s dominion as his sire relatively easily; there was a bit of conflict with his sibling—which exists even into the New Haven series; and a spattering of incidents that take us from the beginning of his journey (with quite a lot of feeling) to the end (with much less) without really revealing the growth of character necessary to get him there.

However, all is not lost. In some aspect, Theoden is revealed as a sad and abandoned character, and this flaw, while terrifying because it reaffirms his desire ‘to be special’, is what makes him more understandable. He doesn’t know what true love is, nor acceptance, nor sacrifice. He bows to his own will and no other apart from his father and those to whom his father makes him. He is definitely a chip off the old block but has the desire to change things to assuage the dissatisfactions he suffered in his own ‘vampire upbringing’. This is so, so understandable, and we get to see it.

As a fan, I was also looking forward to meeting Marco and Bruce and the others that I had come to know and...love...in their own brutal and blood-thirsty way, but, unfortunately, this seemed sort of stuffed to the end of the story. I had already heard the tales of their ‘embracing’ in the New Haven series and was looking forward to seeing the why and how—Theoden’s thought processes and feelings as he searched for his own future sons to sire. Where was the seeking and not finding, the discarding of candidates and the realization that here before Theoden was one that was worthy to be called his son? Again, this section felt rushed in its headlong dash to reunite us with the original serial.

In light of this then, my personal recommendation is, if you’re looking for a different, bloody, gruesome, highly-sexual LGBT fantasy-story filled with lust and nastiness, vampires, gore and down-trodden humanity, shot through with a little bit of sweet, desperation and possessiveness, then you can’t go past ‘Chained in Darkness’ the first in the New Haven Series by this author. Read that series first and you will appreciate this tome so much more.