Edward Cullen was my first vampire crush. While I’ve proudly moved on from those days, I can’t pass up a good vampire story and “Court of the Undead” by F.M. Aden sounded good just by the title.

What really sealed the deal for me was the comment that said it was good for fans of “From Blood and Ash” by Jennifer Armentrout, my favorite series.

Two sisters with a strong relationship, Aylin and Yara, are the daughters of a man who directly reports to the Sultan in Constantinople.

Yara is known to be pretty and delicate while Aylin would rather yield a weapon than to socialize and wear pretty dresses. When Yara disappears, Aylin knows she has to escape the palace, find her sister and bring her home.

While the sister had heard lore stories about vampires, they had no idea they were all too real. Forced into the land of the undead, Yara is subjected to the world of blood slaves, debauchery and violence. She meets twin brothers Volkan and Eldar and secures herself a safe position with one of the original bloodline families. She has to play a double agent as she is supposed to spy for Eldar and a relative of Dracula himself.

Aylin changes her identity to be able to safely travel with her long-time friend Ilyas and they band together with a group of vampire hunters to figure out where Yara is and how to fight the creatures.

What I immediately liked about the books was the different cultural setting; this is the first vampire book I’ve read that takes place in the Middle East and the Islamic faith is a theme throughout.

Aden switches between points of view, a style that is better suited to fantasy, especially fantasy romance. I didn’t care for the two love triangles and the constant wondering of who’s going to end up with who, but the characters were compelling enough that it didn’t bother me too much.

I’ve decided to get away from reviewing books that belong in a series for the purpose of review because it’s hard to provide feedback when the story is just beginning.

Having said that, “The Court of the Undead” was a good start and I am interested in reading the other books in the series as they come out. For anyone who loves vampires and fantasy romance, this one is worth checking out.

Candice Black can be reached at cblack@newsandsentinel.com