The Lambs Review Once Bitten, Twice Shy by lifelesslyndsey

Okay, so we Lambs had a bit of an off month here in June.  With the start of summer and vacations and such, we’ve all been a little less than usual.  As such, you may have noticed that some of our duties slacked a little here and there.  Thus, we are doing this instead of your usual Wednesday One Shot this week.

We also had a bit of trouble deciding on a fic for this month’s Group Review, but we finally found a total winner!  So check out what some of us thought of…

Once Bitten, Twice Shy by lifelesslyndsey

Clinging to Angel ideals, trapped in a vampire body, with very human urges. He was very confused. Peter was an indecisive vampire with an identity crisis. Bella was jaded and self-isolated. In short they were perfect for each other.  Peter/Bella. Rated M

  

Maelyn

Donna and Wendy suggested this fic and said it was really good.  So I loaded up FFn, found the fic and started to read.  I don’t think I was fully prepared for this fic.  It is AMAZING.  Actually, I love it so much that when I’m done writing this up, I’m going to add it to my profile as one of my favorites.

I have two emotions when it comes to this that led over the others – intrigue and hilarity.  Yes, this is one of the funniest fics I’ve read and I can’t tell you how many times I thought I’d pee myself laughing! 

The unique story, especially Peter’s background, is amazing.  I mean, yeah he was an Angel, and usually I’d scoff and go bah no and skip to the next fic.  But it works here, seriously!  It reminds me of a mix between the Prophecy movies and Acheron from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series. 

Peter himself is such a well-rounded and thought out character.  He is so utterly intelligent and knows everything, but, as he says, he’s a thinker, not a doer.  He has existed for so long that his practical knowledge, applied knowledge is non-existent.  This makes him unbelievably awkward and shy and he’s easily shocked, as you will see.  I also adore his method of feeding from humans.  He exhibits compassion and mercy. 

Bella is, well, she’s a psycho schizo.  For real.  She’s completely fierce, but her vulnerability shows in certain instances.  Peter is completely shaken by her and utterly taken by her at the same time.  He has a small bout of Stalkerwardness for a bit there, but not for long, thankfully.  Bella knows he’s doing it and calls him on it. 

Meeting Bella, and talking to her, is completely foreign to Peter.  Talking to any human outside of what he does for his meals is foreign, in fact.  But Bella, well, she’s unique in her own right.

She lives alone, is heavily medicated, and had severe mental and health issues.  But she calls Peter on EVERYTHING.  When he’s indecisive, she pushes him to decide.  When he needs to chillax, she tells him that too. 

On thing they share, however, is their loneliness.  They are both alone in the world, so to speak, belonging in no one world entirely.

There are so many funny things to go on about, such as the cats: vampire vegetable gardens, and mad cat disease.  And this is from the first chapter alone!  There are so many others, but I don’t want to ruin them for you, because believe me, you’ll thank me for it later!

So if you want to read a really funny story WITH an amazing plot to boot, then check this out.  I’m still on Chapter 10 myself, but I’ll be continuing because I HAVE to know more about Peter, and Bella, and what is The Secret and come on, don’t you want to read a fic where the human saves a vampire?!

MerinaGreen

Once Bitten, Twice Shy is another fine foray into the World of Nomads for Lifelesslyndsey. I like the Peter she's created in this one. He's a little different from what we're used to. OK, he's a lot different. You can't really say he's OOC, because SM never really gave him a personality for us to depart from. It's not the personality so much as the fact that he wasn't exactly human when he was changed. In fact, he wasn't human at all. So he's carrying around a lot of baggage in his new immortal life.  And Bella, well, you could say she's OOC, too, but really – how are we to know what she would have become if the Cullen's never came back? 

What Lifelesslyndsey has given us here is what is turning out to be a Great Adventure – two misfits out to see the world. Sort of an “On the Road” for vampires (sorry Jack). Bella's taken Peter under her wing and is trying to show him a better way – one filled with lots of lovin' and eating animals instead of people. Peter's in love for the first time, and really, would do anything to make Bella happy. They are both carrying shit-tons of baggage along with them, which they are both ignoring. Or trying to, anyway. Both their pasts just seem to keep coming back to haunt them.

One of the things I LOVE about this story is that the Cullen's haven't shown up yet. Oh, they will (at least, according to her author's page!) But so far? Bella hasn't even mentioned them by name. Peter, of course, knows she had a coven once. And even in his lack-of-social-skills little world, he knows better to ask her about them. So...Peter knows Jasper, and knows OF the Cullens. And Bella knows the Cullens. But neither knows the other knows...should be interesting when THAT finally comes up in conversation. Even if they never run into the Cullens, the story stands on its own, without them – which is absolutely wonderful. Personally, though, I'm sort of hoping they run into each other at Wal-mart or something. Or maybe Peter has to take Bella to the ER for some sort of sex-game gone wrong damage, and Carlisle's on duty – that would work, too...

Oh, and did I mention Peter has somehow acquired a pet cat? Its a god-awful looking thing that Peter can't stand, but also can't seem to get rid of. For some reason, it likes him. It is one of the hairless kind, and Bella has named it “Peen”- and she keeps it in her purse. Gives you an idea of what these two are like together. I wonder if Lifelesslyndsey realizes that another one of the breeds of hairless cats is the “Peterbald”?