Fangs With Benefits by Kath Richards
Molly Mason is not a team player. She does more work than the rest of her team, but when a promotion becomes available, they bring in an outside hire over her. To add insult to injury, she’s tasked with training him. This is easier said than done, though, when he has the digital literacy of a toddler and is, infuriatingly, the hottest man she’s ever laid eyes on.
Elijah Thorne’s reintegration into human society is going swimmingly. He scammed his way into a job, got new clothes, and successfully convinced a myriad of New Yorkers that he is human, not a vampire. The one person he can’t win over, though, is his intimidating colleague Molly.
When Molly discovers Elijah’s secret, he realizes that being human isn’t as easy as he thought. She’ll help him act the part if he’ll help her get promoted, but when they fall into a colleagues-with-benefits arrangement-no feelings involved-can they keep things professional?
by Naomi
I have to be honest, for a book that has the benefits right there in the title, I did expect there to be a lot more of them…
All kidding aside, Fangs With Benefits is a super lovely, sweet romance! Both Molly (a human who is overlooked at work and rightfully very mad about it) and Elijah (a centuries-old vampire who is completely out of touch with human culture and uses his vampire-powers to get himself a job in an IT-department, when he has basically never seen a computer before, taking Molly’s promotion so he can learn about humans) were great characters. Molly is a prickly pear in the best way possible, and Elijah has such wide-eyed wonder for all things human, which in turn made Molly soften and open up more to those in her life. Elijah likes Molly for who she is from the very beginning though, and he never wanted her to change. The progression of their relationship was wonderful, and I loved seeing them as genuine friends before they proceeded with the benefits. It’s something the book does right, focusing on the “friends” part before we get to the benefits. It adds a wonderful layer to their relationship and makes you all the more invested in their happy ending. I was a little worried about how we’d get a happy ending, but that’s the great thing about romantic fiction: there will always be a happy ending. Even though the resolution was introduced a bit late in the story, it made perfect sense for Elijah, Molly and their relationship.
The writing was solid and really pulled me in. I really liked the text messages/IMs/emails that we got in between the chapters, they were cute interludes to each chapter and added a fun dynamic to the book. The book was also surprisingly insightful and hopeful, having a lot to say about being human, and creativity, and going after your goals.
I would highly recommend Fangs With Benefits to those who are looking for a sweet (and sexy) romance, and who want a little something different from a vampire story.
