The Scarlet Veil

Written by Shelby Mahurin

Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld

A new darkness is rising in Belterra. This dark and thrilling vampire romance—set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Serpent & Dove series—is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas.

Six months have passed since Célie took her sacred vows and joined the ranks of the Chasseurs as their first huntswoman. With her fiancé, Jean Luc, as captain, she is determined to find her foothold in her new role and help protect Belterra. But whispers from her past still haunt her, and a new evil is rising—one that Célie herself must vanquish, unless she falls prey to the darkness. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Sep 26, 2023
• ISBN: 9780063258785

Shelby Mahurin

Shelby Mahurin is the New York Times bestselling author of the Serpent & Dove trilogy. She grew up on a small farm in rural Indiana, where sticks became wands and cows became dragons. Her rampant imagination didn’t fade with age, so she continues to play make-believe every day—with words now instead of cows. When not writing, Shelby watches The Office and reads voraciously. She still lives near that childhood farm with her very tall husband and semiferal children. Visit her online at www.shelbymahurin.com.

Reviews for The Scarlet Veil

[Billie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Scarlet Veil
by Shelby Mahurin
The Scarlet Veil #1
Fantasy YA Paranormal
Scribd Audio
Ages 16+

After the major trauma Celie Tremblay suffered, she becomes the first huntswoman, but her captain, who is also her fiance, finds it hard to break with tradition, and shelters her to protect her, thus never allowing her to become stronger both physically and mentally, for she is just a woman.

But there is a killer lurking, and after the death of someone she knows, Celie begins to investigate and finds herself kidnapped by Les Eternels.

This is the first book of this series but is a spin-off from the Serpent & Dove series, (read 2022/2023) and one must read it to get the background of these characters. The author did a poor job of 'recapping' the original series and I almost DNF because I didn't remember who Celie was, nor her fiance, or others in the book and it felt like a bunch of rambling by people who I had no connection with. It took me over a quarter of the book before they started to click into place; what part they played in the original series and why they were important. Once that happened, the story became more enjoyable.

I could relate to Celie and her struggle, especially in this world where women are considered weak and need to be protected. Her character slowly grows as she discovers her hidden strengths/talents, but her trauma holds her back, and the reader gets to listen to her rambling thoughts a lot since this is a 1st person POV.

The plot and the murders are an interesting tangle, along with the reasons for why and by whom. The ending was a major cliff-hanger, :( which while shocking and an interesting twist, I'm still taking away points.

With the cliffhanger, the (minor) repetitive rambling, and (major) lack of recapping of the original series I can only give this...

3 Stars

[kaeladawn · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Listening to this was hard with the use of another language since I often couldn’t remember the meaning for the word but I still enjoyed it and was able to figure it out for the most part! The storyline was unique and thrilling. I can’t wait for the second book!

[Ekene Ogbue · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I….well first off, the audio keeps buffering, which affected a good chunk of the reading experience. As the for the story itself….I do not know. The vampire vibes were there. The audiobook narrator (when the audio was working) was great.

However…I don’t know….I feel like something was missing