Infinite Days Review

"Throughout all my histories, I found no one I loved more than you...no one."

Those were some of Rhode's last words to me. The last time he would pronounce his love.
The last time I would see his face.

It was the first time in 592 years I could take a breath. Lay in the sun. Taste.

Rhode sacrificed himself so I, Lenah Beaudonte, could be human again.
So I could stop the blood lust.

I never expected to fall in love with someone else that wasn't Rhode.

But Justin was...daring. Exciting. More beautiful than I could dream.

I never expected to be sixteen again...then again, I never expected
my past to come back and haunt me...”

For 500 years Lenah Beaudonte has been a vampire. 500 years of seduction, blood and destruction. But she is sickened by her dark powers – and longs to feel the sun on her skin, grass under her bare feet, and share the breath of a human kiss. She wants to be mortal again. But is she really capable of being human, after her long years of darkness? Waking up as a sixteen-year-old girl brings Lenah many things – the life she has missed, taste, touch, love. But a vampire soul is not easily shed. And her coven – the four vampires she led in decadence and thrilling destruction – want their queen back...

Infinite Days by Rebecca Maizel is a book that has been sitting on my shelves since its publication in 2010. Obviously, I bought the book because I really wanted to read it but sadly it got lost in the TBR pile as a lot of books invariably do. However, that does not mean that it has not called out to me on occasion and recently, I heard its cry again, only this time I listened and picked it up. Who knew that I had such a good book sitting RIGHT THERE all this time?! Just when you thought every book that could be written about vampires is already out there in the world, along comes Infinite Days with its highly original and fresh take on the whole thing. There are tons of stories about humans turning into vampires but Rebecca cleverly thought to flip this idea on its head and write about a vampire turning into a human again after 500 years of existence and quite frankly, that makes me rub my hands together with glee.

Lenah Beaudonte is our protagonist and she is brutally honest about her less than perfect past. She tells us in no uncertain terms that she was one evil BIATCH who led a strong and undefeatable coven. But, 500 years can change a person and Lenah wants to feel/touch/taste again but such a prize requires an equally huge sacrifice.

I love the fact that Lenah is essentially British (rock on UK!) and she is described in the book as “spellbinding” as one would need to be as a vampire I presume but she retains her beauty as a human as guys just fall at her feet. To be honest, I feel sorry for the guys who can’t see past a beautiful face, especially when she was a vampire. The guy I felt sorry for the most though has to be Vicken and I never really saw him as “the bad guy”. He truly loved Lenah and they were bound for eternity because she was his maker. His love for her became his curse even when their bond was broken as far as she was concerned (when she became human). Justin on the other hand is another kettle of fish. He seemed like an ok guy but the way he fell away from his current girlfriend Tracey so fast and even openly flirted with Lenah in front of her was a tad uncomfortable. I will admit that the beginning of this book shocked me as we’re introduced to a character that is very swiftly pushed out of the exit door. But then, his absence became a presence through memories and flashbacks and I enjoyed that.

Don’t get me wrong, whilst Lenah was an evil, power hungry vampire, she is quite different as a human and it would appear that she’s learned a few things in the past 500 years ;) I believe in forgiveness and second chances and this was definitely her second chance at life. The thing is though, you can’t run rampant for centuries and not expect to pay a price and so ultimately, her destruction will be of her own making.

Most of Infinite Days took place at a very old, regal looking boarding school which I quite enjoyed. There is a scene where Lenah locks herself in a listening room in the library and experiences an operatic aria for the first time since becoming human again. I will admit to youtubing the aria and listening to it myself whilst reading so that I could effectively be in the room with her.

Infinite Days reads like a standalone novel and Rebecca could have left it at that; however you will be pleased to know that there is a sequel in the works and whilst I have my own theories on where the story could go, I am super curious as to what is actually going to happen. Ultimately, Infinite Days is a story of sacrifice, repentance and redemption. It’s fresh, it’s original and I enjoyed every minute of it.

Infinite Days was published in the US on 3rd August, 2010 and in the UK on 3rd September, 2010 followed by the paperback in April, 2011. The sequel Stolen Night (or Stolen Nights in the US) will be published in the UK on 5th July, 2012 with no US release as of yet. Sadly, the UK book will not be hardback to match the first :( To find out more about Rebecca and her books, please click here to visit her website.