Books Jeaniene Frost Where to Begin Reading the Work of Jeaniene Frost Jeaniene Frost’s new romantasy series is just the tip of the iceberg By Lyndsie Manusos | Published on July 1, 2026 Comment 0 Share New Share Do you remember the vampire boom of the early 2000s? As a Millennial, I remember reading the Twilight series in high school, feral for the angst and the love triangle. I remember watching the Blade sequels and reveling in the hype of the True Blood series.  In addition to film and television, there was also a spike in the popularity of vampires in urban fantasy and paranormal romance literature. Some have alluded this boom to a post 9/11 desire for escapism, especially after all the horrors experienced. One could also argue that this is why romantasy has exploded recently in the publishing sphere–we are seeking to escape the horrors again (i.e. pandemic, rising fascism, xenophobia, transphobia,and  racism.) I highly recommend listening to Sarah MacLean and Jennifer Prokup’s romance podcast Fated Mates, which touches on this history in a few of their paranormal romance episodes.  To quote the writer K.S. Walker, whom I chatted with about this—and whose fiction you really ought to read—this genre has provenance. Look back to the 2000s—urban fantasy and paranormal romance walked so the genre boom we’re seeing now could run. Like Ilona Andrews, there are authors who were a part of the last boom and are back again.  Case in point: Jeaniene Frost.  Most recently, Jeaniene Frost has a new romantasy series, released in May 2026. The first of the Beautiful and Beastly series, A Curse of Beasts and Magic is a take on Beauty and the Beast, with the narrator, Raine, having to deal with an ancient beast that has taken residence in her body. Frost is a veteran in creating strong female characters who rise above their traumatic pasts (though, they probably could still use some therapy). Half-vampire Catherine “Cat” Crawfield from the Night Huntress series, which began with the first book, Halfway to the Grave, in 2009, is like Raine in her determination to keep the human part of herself, no matter how powerful the other part of her becomes. This determination, and at times desperation, to hold onto that humanity, is prominent in Frost’s work. You can’t go wrong on which series to start with, but to understand Frost’s oeuvre, I recommend starting at the beginning. Night Huntress To fully appreciate Frost’s latest release, start with the Night Huntress series, though it’s by no means a requirement. A Curse of Beasts and Magic and the Night Huntress series are not connected in any way, but as a fan of Frost’s work, it was a delight to witness both Frost’s trademark wit, spice, and action scenes along with Frost’s evolution and growth in the genre.  The main Night Huntress series revolves around Catherine “Cat” Crawfield, a half-vampire who hunts the undead in revenge for what was done to her mother, and for her own existence. In the first book, she’s captured by Bones, a vampire bounty hunter. Bones offers to train Cat to better hone her battle skills, but in the process, Bones and Cat fall for each other. Cat realizes that not all vampires are evil, and what follows in the series are the ups and downs of their relationship as well as growing personal and global stakes as the human and supernatural world collide.  My favorite book of the Night Huntress series is the fourth in the series, Destined for an Early Grave. In this book, Cat begins to have nightmares about a powerful vampire, Gregor, who claims that Cat belongs to him. What follows is a wild–and unsettling–ride of trying to keep Cat’s nightmares from giving away her location, while also dealing with Bones’ growing suspicions and fears. It takes their relationship to a whole new level and magnifies the issues they’ve been trying to look away from. Frost does not hide from showing the occasional ugliness that appears in Cat and Bones’ relationship, and I find that very refreshing. There’s a large cast of characters in the Night Huntress series, and Frost deftly manages to give so many wonderful layers to every side character—so much so that there are multiple spinoff standalones and series. Frost spotlights two main characters who were secondary, or even barely mentioned, characters from the original Night Huntress plot arc. The Night Huntress Universe In addition to Cat and Bones’ arc, there are multiple spinoff standalone and extended series following characters in the Night Huntress universe. It’s been a while since I’ve read these, but I do remember enjoying the spinoff standalone First Drop of Crimson, which follows the characters Spade and Denise, each of whom are friends of Bones and Cat, respectively. Like Cat, Denise struggles with her more monstrous side, and Spade helps her turn her fears into confidence, independence, and strength.  Night Prince The Night Prince and Night Rebel series are longer spinoff series that focus on secondary characters in the Night Huntress world. These series can be read on their own, without reading Cat and Bones’ story, but you’ll definitely be rewarded with additional context if you have the Night Huntress series under your belt.  The Night Prince series follows Vlad Tepesh. Vlad—yes, Dracula, but don’t call him that—is a prominent secondary character in the Night Huntress series, and Night Prince continues his story as he meets a new character, Leila, as the heroine.  Leila is human, but she has dark powers. Not only can she harness electricity, she can also divine someone’s darkest secrets with a single touch. Because her powers match Vlad’s own, enemy vampires attempt to use her to get to him. Once they meet, however, passion ignites, and with their powers combined, you can probably guess that there will be fireworks. Lots and lots of fireworks. Night Rebel The Night Rebel series is the most recent series in the Night Huntress universe, with the last book, Wicked All Night, having been released in 2021. This series follows master vampire Ian Flannery, a chronic rule breaker in the world of vampires. Now he’s in the biggest trouble (yet) of his undead existence: a demon named Dagon has claim to his soul. To break the claim, Ian has to partner up with a warrior who is truly his opposite, but as we know in the romance, opposites deliciously attract. Veritas is the Judge Dredd equivalent to vampires. As a law guardian, she plays police, judge, jury, and sometimes executioner for vampires who cross very carefully drawn lines. Ian should be someone she punishes, but since she, too, has to take down Dagon, they team up. What follows is a series of their growing love and heartbreak.  Jeaniene Frost is exceptional at crafting one of my favorite tropes in all of literature, which is bringing the gang back together. Add in the romance and fantasy aspect, and the gang often includes powerful couples from earlier standalones and related series. You can count on superb Avengers Assemble moments, especially in the last book in the series. Broken Destiny The Broken Destiny trilogy is entirely separate from the Night Huntress world. This series has its own urban fantasy mythos and worldbuilding, including other realms. It follows Ivy, who believes she has hallucinations, seeing otherworldly things and beings. After her sister goes missing, lost in another realm, Ivy realizes what she sees is real.  Adrian is bound by an ancient legacy to eventually betray Ivy, but he agrees to help her search for the relic that might release her sister. Adrian knows much more than he lets on, and try as he might, he can’t seem to stop his growing desire for Ivy.  What follows is a series of various realms and dances with destiny. Can they overcome fate to be together? Will they choose the world and those they love, or each other? Jeaniene Frost utilizes stakes so well in her series. One of my favorite thoughts reading any type of romance is “How will they get out of this one? How will their relationship survive?” A truly talented author will make it work in the end, and it will be satisfying as hell. Beautiful and Beastly Frost’s Beautiful and Beastly series is the newest, starting with A Curse of Beasts and Magic. I remember hearing about this series while working an event for Wild Geese Bookshop, the indie bookstore I work at—I overheard someone in line say excitedly to her friend, “Have you heard about the new Jeaniene Frost book?” To which my ears perked up, and I leaned in with “Jeaniene Frost as in Halfway to the Grave Jeaniene Frost?” Much excitement ensued, and I practically ran to Edelweiss after the event to learn more.  This series is entirely separate from the Night Huntress world, but as I mentioned earlier, it is rewarding to have read Frost’s earlier work before diving into this. The main characters, Raine Stone and Remington “Remy” Byrne, remind me of Cat and Bones in the best way, yet they are very much their own unique characters.  At the heart of a Curse of Beasts and Magic is Raine’s battle with a beastly entity that has lived inside her since her family was murdered by it when she was a teenager. By killing the creature that murdered her family, Raine became its new host, and in the years since, she has fought to make sure that its appetites are only appeased against violent, insidious individuals. Raine has even managed to use this entity’s powers to heal but at a cost.  When Raine saves an elderly man with little memory from being abducted, she doesn’t realize the man is related to the wealthy and powerful Remington “Remy” Byrne. Raine learns that Remy also happens to be a Warden, a powerful supernatural figure whose purpose is to keep humans safe from other, more powerful supernatural species and mediate power struggles between factions. Remy shows Raine a world she never knew existed, as well as help her take control of the beast inside her. What they could not anticipate, however, is how connected their pasts truly are, and how much they will have to fight to keep each other and those who they love safe.  From Frost’s website, there are two more titles listed in this series, and forewarning: A Curse of Beasts and Magic ends on somewhat of a cliffhanger (your mileage may vary on what you define as a cliffhanger, but I have questions! Anticipation!). I very much enjoyed the romance and battle scenes of this book, and I suspect fans of the current romantasy boom will love Frost’s latest addition to the genre.[end-mark] Buy the Book A Curse of Beasts and Magic Jeaniene Frost Buy Book A Curse of Beasts and Magic Jeaniene Frost Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleiBooksIndieBoundTarget The post Where to Begin Reading the Work of Jeaniene Frost appeared first on Reactor.