Paranormal Road Trip: Destination Manhattan with Melissa De La Cruz

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.  This week's stop is Manhattan and our special guide is Melissa de la Cruz author of The Beauchamp Family (Witches of East End) series, the Blue Bloods series, and the Vampires of Manhattan series.

The Vampires of Manhattan series is set in Manhattan, one of the five boroughs of New York City, so it seems fitting that our guide for this week's Paranormal Road Trip be the amazing Melissa de la Cruz.  Let's see what terrifying places Melissa has planned for our tour.

Manhattan's Top Five Spooky Places

Manhattan is a city full of history and haunted places. A few of my favorite places to ghost-bust, below.

Hotel Chelsea
222 West 23rd St. 

The famous hotel in Chelsea was the site of many deaths. Poet Dylan Thomas, who wrote of the “dying of the light” and died there is said to haunt near room 206. Doomed punk couple Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen are said to haunt the lower floors. Sid killed Nancy in a drunken, drugged out fight, and he died of a heroin overdose before he could stand trial.

White Horse Tavern
567 Hudson St.
One of my favorite bars downtown, and related to the Chelsea Hotel. Dylan Thomas reportedly drank 18 whiskey shots here before collapsing and being brought back to his room at the Chelsea. It’s said he haunts his usual table at the tavern from time to time.

One If by Land, Two If by Sea
17 Barrow St.


One of the most romantic restaurants in Manhattan, it is also the former home of Alexander Hamilton and his daughter Theodosia, who have supposedly never left. Diners are said to have experienced being shoved by them, lights flicker, and women’s earrings disappear. Staffers insist the ghosts are friendly, but maybe a little cheeky?

Edgar Allen Poe’s Abode
85 West 3rd Street
“Nevermore” author Edgar Allen Poe lived here for eight months in 1845 and 1846, and wrote “The Raven” here. The house has been demolished for NYU dorms but students say they’ve seen the haunted and haunting writer climbing the banister, the only remaining part of the original house.

Mark Twain House
14 W 10th St between Fifth and Sixth Aves
The practical and down to earth writer born Samuel Clemens lived in Greenwich Village from 1900-1901 and reportedly haunts this domain. He was skeptical of ghosts, so it’s hard to believe he became one upon his death.

Thank you Melissa for giving us such a haunting tour of Manhattan!

Want more Melissa de la Cruz in Manhattan?

Check out these two YouTube videos of Melissa de la Cruz giving an author tour of Manhattan's Uptown and Downtown.  These videos also bring Blue Bloods fans up-to-date as she launches her new series Vampires of Manhattan.

To learn more about Melissa de la Cruz and her books, please visit her website. Also, don't miss my reviews of Blue Bloods, Masquerade, Revelations, and The Van Alen Legacy here at From the Shadows. You can add her Vampires of Manhattan series here on Goodreads.

Readers, was this your first visit to Manhattan?  Have you experienced anything supernatural in and around Manhattan?

What did you think of Melissa's picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited New Orleans, Louisiana with Suzanne Johnson.  Next week we'll be traveling to San Diego with Eileen Wilks.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

Readers: What do you think of this new weekly feature?  Your feedback is important to us as we strive to bring you fresh new content that you want to read. 

Bloody Valentine Giveaway

Here at From the Shadows we are counting down to Valentine's Day with some fabulous giveaways!

**Bloody Valentine Giveaway**

Enter to win a copy of Bloody Valentine: A Blue Bloods Novella by Melissa de la Cruz.

Vampires have powers beyond human comprehension: strength that defies logic, speed that cannot be captured on film, the ability to shapeshift and more. But in matters of the heart, no one, not even the strikingly beautiful and outrageously wealthy Blue Bloods, has total control. In Bloody Valentine, bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz offers readers a new story about the love lives of their favorite vamps - the passion and heartache, the hope and devastation, the lust and longing. Combined with all the glitz, glamour, and mystery fans have come to expect, this is sure to be another huge hit in the Blue Bloods series. 

To enter, please leave a comment on this post including your email address (so we may contact you if you win).  This giveaway is international (to anywhere The Book Depository ships)!  Giveaway ends February 14th midnight EST.

Bonus entries:

+1 GFC follower (old or new)
+1 Follow E.J. on Goodreads
+1 Follow E.J. on Twitter

Book Review: The Van Alen Legacy

The Van Alen Legacy (Blue Bloods, book 4) by Melissa de la Cruz.

With the stunning revelation surrounding Bliss's true identity comes the growing threat of the sinister Silver Bloods. Once left to live the glamorous life in New York City, the Blue Bloods now find themselves in an epic battle for survival. Not to worry, love is still in the air for the young vampires of the Upper East Side. Or is it? Jack and Schuyler are over. Oliver's brokenhearted. And only the cunning Mimi seems to be happily engaged.

Young, fanged, and fabulous, Melissa de la Cruz's vampires unite in this highly anticipated fourth installment of the Blue Bloods series.

Something is happening to Bliss.  Something terrifying and potentially lethal to her friends.  Will she survive, and if so will she come to regret it?  I found this book a bit slower to start than the other books in the Blue Bloods series, however, it picked up with a frenetic pace becoming increasingly interesting and suspenseful.  I thoroughly enjoyed this book and felt that it added depth to the characters I had come to both love and despise.  A wonderful addition to the series.

I would recommend The Van Alen Legacy to readers of paranormal romance, vampire fiction, suspense thrillers, young adult, urban fantasy and especially to fans of the Blue Bloods series.

My review of Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods, book 1) is here, my review of Masquerade (Blue Bloods, book 2) is here, and my review of Revelations (Blue Bloods, book 3) is here.

Source:  This book was purchased by me for review.

The Van Alen Legacy on Amazon.
The Van Alen Legacy on Goodreads.

Book Review: Revelations

Revelations (Blue Bloods, book 3) by Melissa de la Cruz.

Schuyler Van Alen's blood legacy has just been called into question--is the young vampire in fact a Blue Blood, or is it the sinister Silver Blood that runs through her veins? As controversy swirls, Schuyler is left stranded in the Force household, trapped under the same roof as her cunning nemesis, Mimi Force, and her forbidden crush, Jack Force. 


When an ancient place of power is threatened in Rio de Janeiro, however, the Blue Bloods need Schuyler on their side.  The stakes are high, the battle is bloody, and through it all, Schuyler is torn between duty and passion, love and freedom.

Who is friend? Who is foe? And what is going on in Corcovado?  Revelations is the third book in the Blue Bloods series and you will be surprised by what secrets are revealed.  This book pulled back the veil with each page uncovering machinations, manipulations, true allegiances, and dire betrayals.  Revelations indeed.

This review is intentionally brief since I don't like spoilers and it would be difficult to discuss the details of this book without giving something away.

I would recommend Revelations to readers of paranormal romance, vampire fiction, young adult, urban fantasy and especially to fans of the Blue Bloods series.

My review of Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods, book 1) is here and my review of Masquerade (Blue Bloods, book 2) is here.

Source:  This book was purchased by me for review.


Revelations on Amazon.
Revelations on Goodreads.

Book Review: Masquerade

Masquerade (Blue Bloods, book 2) by Melissa de la Cruz.

Schuyler Van Alen wants an explanation for the mysterious deaths of young vampires.  With her best friend, Oliver, Schuyler travels to Italy in the hope of finding the one man who can help--her grandfather.  Meanwhile, back in New York, preparations are feverishly under way for the Four Hundred Ball, an exclusive gala hosted by the city's wealthy, powerful, and unhuman--a true Blue Blood affair.  But it's the after-party, a masquerade ball thrown by the cunning Mimi Force, that the real danger lurks.  Hidden behind the masks is a revelation that will forever change the course of a young vampire's destiny. 

Rich with glamour, attitude, and vampire lore, this second installment in the Blue Bloods saga will leave readers thirsting for more. 

Hunger, beauty, mystery, deadly secrets, pain, and blood memories...  Masquerade is the second book in the Blue Bloods vampire series by Melissa de la Cruz.  (Click here for my review of Blue Bloods book one.)  Masquerade takes us across continents and deeper into the world of Blue Blood vampires.  Mimi Force is still being Mimi.  Bliss is coping with the nightmares of her transformation and with the uncertainty of what really happened to Dylan.  Schuyler Van Alen continues her search to discover the secrets of the Silver Bloods and to unlock the secrets within her own blood.  Her unusual heritage, mixed feelings towards Jack Force and Oliver Hazard-Perry, as well as the sudden loss of a loved one leave Schuyler adrift and confused, sure of only one thing.  She must find the secrets of the Silver Bloods.  Before it's too late.

I enjoyed Masquerade and am looking forward to reading Revelations the third book in the Blue Bloods series.

I would recommend Masquerade to readers of paranormal romance, young adult, urban fantasy, mysteries, and especially to fans of young adult vampire fiction.

My review of Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods, book 1) is here. Visit my 300 Follower Giveaway and enter before June 16th for a chance to win a new copy of Blue Bloods, Vampire Academy, and Shadows of Myth and Legend!

Source:  This book was purchased by me for review.

Masquerade on Amazon.
Masquerade on Goodreads.

Book Review: Blue Bloods

Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods, book 1) by Melissa de la Cruz

Schuyler Van Alen has never fit in at Duchesne, her prestigious New York City private school.  She prefers baggy, vintage clothes to the Prada and pearls worn by her classmates.  But when she turns fifteen, Schuyler's life changes dramatically.  The death of a popular schoolmate haunts her in unexpected ways.  And strangest of all, Jack Force, the most popular boy in school, is showing a sudden interest in her.

Once an outcast, Schuyler is thrust into Manhattan's most exclusive social circle.  Its members are the powerful, the wealthy, and --as Schuyler soon discovers-- the unhuman.  They are Blue Bloods, an ancient group of vampires, and for centuries they've been invincible.  Now something is preying on this elite group, and Schuyler wants to find out the truth.  But is she the most vulnerable of them all? 


Hungry for more.  Blue Bloods, book one in the Blue Bloods series, left me hungry for more.  There is often a tricky balance that an author has to find when serving up the first book in a series.  In my opinion, Blue Bloods maintains an enjoyable balance of introducing us to the series and moving the story forward.  The characters are well developed and believable.  I found myself immediately identifying with Schuyler, a social misfit at the elite Duchesne school, and felt compelled to continue rapidly turning pages to see what she would encounter in the future and what she would soon discover about her past.  De la Cruz manages to interweave an elaborate back-story of vampire history without losing the reader's interest and without becoming unnecessarily complicated or confusing.  I found Blue Bloods to be a fun, quick read that left me wanting to sink my teeth into more books in the Blue Bloods series.

I recommend Blue Bloods to readers of paranormal, paranormal romance, young adult, mysteries, thrillers, and urban fantasy and especially to fans of vampire fiction.

Source:  This book was purchased by me for review.

Blue Bloods on Amazon.
Blue Bloods on Goodreads.