The Darkness Bites Back
Will be published approx. on 29. September 2026
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-83673-005-7 (ISBN)
Description
Centuries ago, Tobias Osian had his mortality stolen from him when he was unwillingly turned into a vampire. Ever since, he's been consumed by the need for revenge against the monster who took his humanity - Vladimir Damianos, the head of Britain's most powerful vampire clan.
Now, Tobias is finally ready to enact his plan for vengeance, using Vladimir's son Alexander to infiltrate the family and bring down the entire clan. But what he doesn't expect is that Alexander has rebelled against his bloodthirsty father by protecting mortals instead of hunting them. When the two meet, Alexander is instantly enamoured with Tobias. And as a string of attacks rocks the city of Oxford, Alexander proves himself committed to protecting Tobias, unaware that Tobias is just as much of a monster as he is.
With his attraction to Alexander growing, Tobias must decide what means more to him: vengeance, or a love growing from the most unexpected of places.
Now, Tobias is finally ready to enact his plan for vengeance, using Vladimir's son Alexander to infiltrate the family and bring down the entire clan. But what he doesn't expect is that Alexander has rebelled against his bloodthirsty father by protecting mortals instead of hunting them. When the two meet, Alexander is instantly enamoured with Tobias. And as a string of attacks rocks the city of Oxford, Alexander proves himself committed to protecting Tobias, unaware that Tobias is just as much of a monster as he is.
With his attraction to Alexander growing, Tobias must decide what means more to him: vengeance, or a love growing from the most unexpected of places.
Reviews / Votes
"The Darkness Bites Back has everything I love to read in a vampire romantasy. Deliciously dark, sexy, and full of immersive language and relatable characters, this modern Romeo and Juliet retelling drew me in from the first to page to the last. This should be on all vampire lovers' TBR."- Elayna R. Gallea, author of Tethered
"Revenge and desire war in this darkly delicious tale from Alderson and Samotin. Filled with electric chemistry, bruising tenderness and heartwrenching loss, The Darkness Bites Back is a decadent feast of a book and a reminder of the enduring power of love and the lengths we go to protect it."
- Megan Shunmugam, author of The Mortal Trials
"A tightrope walk of seduction and secrets, there's nothing more scintillating than a character hellbent on revenge falling for the son of his enemy. The Darkness Bites Back is a deliciously fun romance filled with biting banter and brilliant chemistry that'll make you hungry for more."
- A.K. Mulford, bestselling author of The High Mountain Court
"Samotin and Alderson have crafted the deliciously, gloriously queer vampire romance I've been waiting for, and what a feast it is."
- S.E. Kiser, author of Hunt the Ever Wild
"The Darkness Bites Back sinks its teeth into you from the very first page. A captivating, sexy read that's impossible to put down. Ben Alderson and Laura R. Samotin have outdone themselves!"
- Kellyn Archambeau, author of The Starving Dark
"A blood-pounding dark academia dream with delicious bite."
- S.T. Gibson, Sunday Times bestselling author of A Dowry of Blood
More details
Edition
New edition
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Watkins Media Limited
Edition type
New edition
Dimensions
Height: 197 mm
Width: 130 mm
Weight
567 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-83673-005-7 (9781836730057)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Laura R. Samotin is the author of the adult fantasy duology The Sins On Their Bones (2024) and The Lure of the Graves (2025). She and her spouse live with two enormously large felines. When she's not pursuing her academic research on military tactics, power politics, and leadership, she relishes her role as a full-time cat servant. Ben Alderson is a #1 Amazon bestselling author and former BookTuber. In 2023, he was nominated for TikTok Author of the Year. An active promoter, Ben is active on TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter. He has self-published a number of M/M romantic fantasy novels, and his series Court of Broken Bounds is published with Second Sky (Hachette UK). Ben lives in Oxfordshire and, when not writing, can be found reading, taking Winston - his Labrador - out for long walks, or obsessing over Marvel's The Scarlet Witch.