No Rest For The Wicked by Kresley Cole

Kresley Cole's No Rest for the Wicked was not what I expected.

The Blurb courtesy of B&N:

A soldier weary of life . . .

Centuries ago, Sebastian Wroth was turned into a vampire -- a nightmare in his mind -- against his will. Burdened with hatred and alone for ages, he sees little reason to live. Until an exquisite, fey creature comes to kill him, inadvertently saving him instead.

A Valkyrie assassin dispatched to destroy him . . .

When Kaderin the Cold Hearted lost her two beloved sisters to a vampire attack long ago, a benevolent force deadened her sorrow -- accidentally extinguishing all of her emotions. Yet whenever she encounters Sebastian, her feelings -- particularly lust -- emerge multiplied. For the first time, she's unable to complete a kill.

Become competitors in a legendary hunt.

The prize of the month-long contest is powerful enough to change history, and Kaderin will do anything to win it for her sisters. Wanting only to win her, forever, Sebastian competes as well, taking every opportunity -- as they travel to ancient tombs and through catacombs, seeking relics around the world -- to use her new feelings to seduce her. But when forced to choose between the vampire she's falling for and reuniting her family, how can Kaderin live without either?

I'm being a little bit lazy and linking to some of "The Reviews" I've come across:

Cindy loved it

Nath didn't.

Meljean loved it.

Bam liked it.

My thoughts... I liked it, but it had some hurdles to overcome. After the first in the series, A Hunger like No Other, I expected a fun read with little hints of horror, this one lacked the scarier moments that I liked so much about AHLNO.

I'm starting with "What I didn't like":

1. Sebastian starts out the tortured, self-pitying vampire hero, this almost stopped me from getting any further into the book.
2. The fated mates concept that seems to permiate so many paranormals.
3. The too cool dialogue was at times grating--"Don't go all dental on me." left me rolling my eyes.

What I did like--Cole overcomes my initial "Oh, no" reaction with a fun and overall entertaining story.