Book Review: A Bargain So Bloody by Vasilisa Drake
Thank you to Edelweiss and Scarlett Press for the early copy of this book!
Published: August 4, 2026 (Trad Re-release)
Series: A Kingdom of Dark Magic #1
Genres: Adult // Romance, Paranormal
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Spice Rating: 🌶️ (Glimpses & kisses)
Quick Thoughts: A Bargain So Bloody started off fast-paced and I couldn’t put it down for the first half of the book. The second half was markedly slower and I found myself frustrated with Samara’s choices and character arc. Would still recommend for those looking for something bingeable, especially if vampires and witches are your thing!
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What is A Bargain So Bloodyabout?
Sentenced for a crime she didn’t commit, Samara is bullied by guards and tormented by the screams of her fellow prisoners. She’s resigned herself to enduring her fifteen-year term… until she learns that the freedom she's been promised is the cruelest lie of all.
Now she's faced with a choice: resign herself to dying in the cold walls of Castle Greymere, or do the unthinkable and escape. But no one leaves Greymere alive. So to break out of the prison? She’ll have to use one of the undead.
Raphael is the worst kind of a vampire with a thirst for blood, the mortal enemy of witches, the same breed that killed her mother. And most importantly, he’s unspeakably powerful, his supernatural strength tamed only by the enchanted cuffs forced on him.
He’s her only chance at a life outside the prison walls.
The deal is Samara unlocks his shackles, and he'll help her escape. But although Raphael agreed to help her leave Greymere, he never promised to let her go…
A Bargain So Bloody Review
I loved the first half of A Bargain So Bloody. At the 50% mark, I was ready to give it a high four stars, but the second half was a different story. All the momentum built in the first half fizzles out in the second, and the plot wasn't all that memorable in the end.
Worldbuilding & Plot
The worldbuilding is close to non-existent, which was part of what made the beginning so bingeable. We lightly touch on the magic system and the tension between the kingdoms, and those pieces were interesting without bogging anything down.
The book starts off with a prison break that turns into an escape to the vampire kingdom. Once we arrive, the story slams on the brakes and becomes a drawn-out, repetitive montage of similar scenes. I didn't mind it at first, but the more I saw of Samara's actions in the vampire kingdom, the more frustrated I became.
Main Characters & Romance
I loved her character early on. She's gritty, she's a survivor, and there's clearly an interesting backstory being withheld from us that I'm hoping future books get into. When she arrives at the vampire kingdom, she turns impulsive and extremely self-righteous, making snap decisions based on assumptions. A huge pet peeve of mine is when conflict could have been avoided by just asking one question, and that was definitely the case multiple times in the latter half of the book. It made all the drama and tension feel forced.
Raphael is exactly my type of MMC. He's grumpy and brutal, but he has a soft spot for our FMC. He literally gives her anything she wants, and I ate it up. Overall, the romance lost me, though. We're meant to buy a deep connection built on surface-level interactions, and it didn't make a lot of sense to me. I think it was the right call to not have any spice scenes. It would have been out of place here.
So, should you read A Bargain So Bloody?
I'll be reading the next book in the hopes of getting some answers about Samara's past and the cliffhanger ending. If you want a fast, bingeable read with vampires and witches, this is worth picking up!
Check out this review on Goodreads or Storygraph.
Happy reading!
Kim
A Bargain So Bloody FAQs
Some of the answers may be spoilers if you haven’t read it already. Proceed with caution!
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Potential spoilers ahead ⚠️
Religious abuse
Abuse (not between MCs)
Graphic violence
Blood
Torture
Murder
Animal death (rats/rabbits/deer, for food)
Depression
Alcohol Abuse
Death
Anxiety / PTSD
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Potential spoilers ahead ⚠️
Enemies to reluctant allies to lovers
Touch her and die
He falls first
Vampire bargain
Prison break
Secret/Hidden identity
Forced proximity
Witches
Only one horse
Only one bed “for warmth”
Blood drinking
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No, there’s a cliffhanger and a lot of unresolved questions at the end of A Bargain So Bloody. You will definitely want to read the next book.
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Yes, there is a second book to A Bargain So Bloody by Vasilisa Drake. It is titled A Magic So Deadly.
The second book just launched the self-published ebook on June 30, 2026.
If you want to wait for the traditional physical copy, it’ll be published on April 6, 2027.
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Yes, A Bargain So Bloody is the first book in the Kingdom of Dark Magic series. This series will have 4 or 5 books total.
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There will be 4 or 5 books total in the series.
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No, A Bargain So Bloody has no spice scenes.
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The witch spy Samara made a deal with orchestrates an attack where Samara ingests poison, so Raphael gets poisoned when he feeds from her.
Just as Raphael is about to drink her blood, Samara runs back to her room.
The spy corners her and stabs her with a poisoned blade.
As Samara dies, Raphael turns her into a vampire to save her life against her wishes. Because he consumes her blood in the process, he is poisoned.
Samara wakes up in a cell and realizes she is a vampire. Raphael is in a coma, which she finds out from Iademos.
While Demos is threatening her, Samara accidentally thralls him into forgetting what happened.
Samara figures out she is the necromancer witch Raphael has been hunting for.