Tag Archives: shifter romance

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Book Review: Her Wolf in the Wild, by Rien Gray

I received a copy of Rien Gray‘s Her Wolf In the Wild from Netgalley, quite a while ago. I’m embarrassed to say it got lost in the digital library for a time. So, my review is super late. Which is why I’m becoming more and more reluctant to accept digital books for review. There is something to be said for a physical book that can sit on my side table and remind me of it’s existence.
her wolf in the wild cover

The Hounds of God MC live outside the law and protect their own. They only have three rules:

(1) look out for each other

(2) obey the club president

(3) never show a human your werewolf form.

Christiana Arjean needs to get out. She tried to fix her relationship, but making a break for it is her only shot. She almost doesn’t make it, until a butch biker with a shock of white hair tosses Christiana on the back of her bike. Micah is as mysterious as she is attractive, and Christiana wants to know what’s under that tough exterior.

Micah Nubilo knows a little bit about keeping secrets. Rescuing Christiana is a bad idea, and letting her hang around is even worse. But there’s something calling to Micah: an impossible bond no werewolf should ever feel for a human, even one as beautiful as Christiana.

Their growing intimacy is threatened when they realize their pasts are connected in ways they never could have imagined. Christiana and Micah must fight against threats both outside the pack and inside themselves for a chance at putting it all behind them and finding a way forward—together.

my review

I thought this was a super sweet romance. Though if I’m honest, the platonic love between Micah and her pack-mates was my favorite part of the book. The book is chocked full of representation. The writing is easy to follow. The editing is fairly clean. And the whole thing actually concludes, no cliffie.

However, I did feel a little bit like the villain was villainous just because. There wasn’t much steam in the book; no sex until the last chapter, in fact. There was also very little down time for the reader to get to know the main characters outside of the drama, which I found a little exhausting.

[SPOILER] Lastly, I was confused by the fact that Christina was supposed to be hiding from her crazy ex, but just went to work like normal—the most predictable place to find her. It made no sense that she would decide to do this, and having done it, it made no sense that he didn’t find her there. I was also irritated that she made no effort to inform anyone that she hadn’t, in fact, been kidnapped. I understand she was nervous about in-person police working with the ex. But she made no effort to—or even seemed to consider—informing anyone of anything and it felt like a convenient oversight for no reason but plot progression.

All in all, however, I enjoyed more of this than I didn’t and would happily read another Gray book.

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Other Reviews

Review: Her Wolf in the Wild by Rien Gray

Review: Her Wolf in the Wild – Rien Gray

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Book Review: Charley’s Christmas Wolf, by C.D. Gorri

I picked up a copy of C.D. Gorri‘s Charley’s Christmas Wolf as an Amazon freebie, in order to add a little paranormal to my otherwise Contemporary Romance heavy Christmas Reading Challenge.

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Rafe Maccon is the Alpha of the Macconwood Pack, for now. His rule is being questioned by a rogue Wolf who wants him ousted for breaking an ancient law that states the Alpha must be mated!

He must find a mate in order to keep his position. Seeing their Alpha in trouble, Rafe’s Wolf Guard take it upon themselves to find one for him.

Charley Palmieri works a dead end job and lives alone with her cat until one night when her world is changed forever.

Instant attraction sparks between them. Can Rafe convince Charley to be his before the meeting of Pack elders on Christmas Eve? Will she be his one true mate, for life?

my review

I’ve mentioned before that years ago, before we had kids and evening responsibilities, my husband and I used to indulge in something we called Good Wine, Bad Movie Night. The idea was that there is a certain brand of cheesily bad movie, that when watched just a little drunk turns marvelously horrid. So, one of us would pick up a Good Wine (or what passed for good for a broke couple) and the other would pick a Bad Movie. Then we’d drink and be merry. We watched a lot of B-grade sci-fi and questionable anime. But it was fun.

I mention this memory because Charley’s Christmas Wolf has many of the same qualities as the bad movies of Good Wine, Bad Movie Night. It is bad. There is no getting around that fact. We’re talking the heyday of Ellora’s Cave bad. But there is also something gloriously indulgent in accepting it for what it is. You have to laugh at it, but stop short of doing so mockingly, because it knows what it is. It’s not trying to be something else and you have to respect that.

The whole thing is super rushed. The love is instant. There is no character or plot development. The sex is questionable. The book tries to be both a dub-con and a hot romance and fails at both. The dialogue is atrocious, etc. But throughout it all, if you take another sip of wine and relax into it, it’s worth the good-natured laugh.

charley's christmas wolf photo

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Book Review: Dreaming Of a White Wolf Christmas, by Terry Spear

I picked up a copy of Terry Spear‘s Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas as an Amazon freebie, in order to read it as part of my Christmas Reading Challenge.
dreaming of a white wolf christmas

Tangling with a White Wolf—Best Christmas Ever, or Real Trouble?

Romance writer Candice Mayfair never missed a deadline in her life—until an accidental bite from a werewolf puppy turns her into an Arctic wolf shifter. She’s forced to isolate herself in the wilderness to cope with her unpredictable shifting while she works on her deadlines. After all, for Candice, Christmas is just another day.

Enter private investigator Owen Nottingham, a wolf shifter hired to find Candice so she can collect her inheritance. They have a real problem: she must arrive home in human form, and that’s not happening during the full moon. Besides, Owen has a new mission: to convince the pretty she-wolf her best move is to join his pack in time for Christmas…and to prove he’s the only wolf for her.

my review

Good lord, this was just horrid. I don’t understand it either. Terry Spear is well known. Lots of people enjoy her books. Hell, this series is 30 books long. Obviously, someone somewhere enjoys this sort of thing. But I was bored to tears.

The dialogue is stiff. The writing is dry as dust. It’s SO tell heavy and everything is repeated, as characters do things and then tell people about doing things, or tell people they’re going to do something and then do it, or think about doing something and then do it, etc. The love is instant and the romance is non-existent and basically comes down to her being the only available arctic wolf. Random things happen randomly. There are a ton of characters who pop up and then disappear just as suddenly. I assume they are only mentioned because they’re cameos from other books (but they just felt disruptive here). And the book just went on and on and on.

Honestly, I would have DNFed this, for sure, had I not been reading it for a challenge and wanted to be able to count it. I think I need not ever read another Spear book.

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Other Reviews:

Mainlining Christmas: Book review – Dreaming of a white Wolf Christmas

Dreaming of a White Wolf Christmas (White Wolf #1 / Heart of the Wolf #23) by Terry Spear-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway


Come back tomorrow. I’ll be reviewing Solstice Surrender, by Tracy Cooper-Posey and Charley’s Christmas Wolf, by C.D. Gorri. Yeah, I’ve had to start doubling up to try and fit all the reviews in by Christmas.