Storm's Heart by Thea Harrison

Storm’s Heart is the story of Niniane (Tricks) and Tiago (Dr. Death). Tiago is a member of the King of Wyr’s security team and is a powerful ancient in his own right. Niniane aka Tricks is the former head of PR for the King of Wyr whom also happens to be the sole heir to the Dark Fae kingdom. Niniane has been in hiding ever since she was 18 when her family was assassinated. After the death of the former King of the Dark Fae, Niniane must return to claim the throne as the rightful heir. Tiago travels with her as protection and along the way their attraction builds until the only thing that will satisfy it – is a mating.

My most favorite thing about this book is the humor and the WTF situations the characters found themselves in. Case in point, the newsfeed of Niniane kicking the crap out of her family as they attacked her. This may not sound funny, but the way the author set it up the result was ultimate comedy. The second best thing in this book is Niniane herself. Her character is so likeable and so easy to identify with. There were so many times in the book where I would think to myself I couldn’t handle this and I would just run away. Niniane had the same thoughts. It made her so much more believable and realistic. Piggybacking off the first in the series I knew to be prepared for some brutal, straightforward honesty. So far that is a consistent character trait with these ancient Wyr men. They are honest to the point of cruelty, but also no nonsense and men of action. Tiago follows closely behind his Wyr king in these characteristics.

One piece of information I think it’s important to understand is that when thinking of the Wyr you need to recognize that they are all ancient beings and are not subservient to Dragos. My interpretation is that Dragos is just the most organized and the most willing to lead.

I knew from Niniane’s introduction in the first book of the series that when she did decide to claim her birthright there would be a great deal of espionage and court backstabbing involved. I felt for Niniane not knowing who she could and couldn’t trust, but I was glad to see that she had a discerning eye for possible enemies. The fact that the only people she could trust were the Wyr, but she couldn’t rely on them to help her was so frustrating. The politics is easy to understand, every race minds their own business, but I still felt bad for Niniane’s situation. So when Tiago made himself her chief of security I did a fist pump in satisfaction. Once the characters were in place I couldn’t wait until the sexual sparks flew. And did they fly? I loved how Tiago cut right through Niniane’s manipulative sexpot persona. Once they pledged themselves to each other they were like the dynamic duo. He watched her back while she cut through all the bureaucratic bullsh*t, but at the same time he was able to lend his experience at spotting dishonesty and recognizing deceptive people.

As much as I enjoyed the entire book the end was the ultimate for me. The reader is already rooting for Tiago/Niniane and when they overcome it all, but not without casualties L , you can’t help but take a much needed breath. Can’t wait to read the next one.

Fury by Laurann Dohner

There is something that needs to be addressed before the review. This series is similar to a present series by another famous author. If I didn’t address this issue then I’d be showing my bias. Yes, there are similarities (the fact that their DNA is spliced with animals and a few other things), but overall both series stand alone. 

One thing that is a constant with Laurann Dohner (LD) is her ability to immerse and pull you into the story in the first chapter. I was so horrified and so disgusted by how the New Species were being treated that I was automatically a fan and rooting for their freedom. I knew she could write action, build suspense, and was an expert (wd?) with love scenes, but after reading this new book my level of appreciation for her has skyrocketed.

This book is full of tension, sexual and plot wise. Neither Fury nor Ellie bother to hide the attraction they have for each other. It’s a build up to see who will give in first and what will push them both over the edge. The outer tension is the world’s reaction to the creation and existence of this New Species group. Naturally, there are the pro-New Species and there are the factions that are pro-Human.   

Besides the constant back-stabbing and murder plots, it was fascinating to see how the New Species were learning to exist outside of the labs. For example, the women were learning how to do everyday tasks as simple as vacuuming and using a microwave. It’s amazing how much we take for granted the doing of simple tasks. I was also interested in the steps New Species was taking to establish their own sovereignty. What I always enjoy about LD’s writing is that she keeps me on my toes. At the point where I get complacent and feel like I relax into the story she throws in a scene or conversation that literally makes you sit up and go WTF. Case in point, the part of the book where pro-Human fanatics broke into the New Species compound and were headed straight for the women’s dormitory. I actually sat up in my seat and reread the scene twice to make sure I got every dangerous description and detail.

As per usual, Laurann Dohner inserts characters that will have their own stories in the series. I honestly couldn’t find one whose story I was not interested in. I am extremely interested in reading the stories of the smaller female New Species. I did notice that the DNA the New Species were mixed with didn’t seem to be that important. It was mentioned that Fury was mixed with canine, but that is as far as it went. There wasn’t too much exposition into the DNA mixing. Maybe more will be explained in a later book.  

The antagonists in this book aren’t relegated to one person, but a group of people. There are adversary’s coming at the New Species colony from within as well as from the outside world, which opens up the book to the realm of espionage. And because there are so many positions inside the colony i.e. doctors, security, PR, etc. it’s difficult to pinpoint who the ‘bad guy’ is. An excellent plot device. I know I’ll love this series as much as I do the others.

Kendra Leigh Castle "Dark Awakening"

Dark Awakening is the story of Tynan MacGillivray and Lily Quinn. Tynan is a hunter for the Ptolemy clan in search of a seer that will help them solve murders that are happening inside of their clan.

Going into this book I had preconceived notions that Tynan would be this powerful shifter whom was greatly respected by his clan. Not. This is the first thing I enjoyed about this book. The author instantly snatches you out of normalcy. She introduces you to a male character that is not the biggest and baddest around. I am not saying Tynan isn’t tough and a force to be reckoned with, because he is, but most readers are used to the main male character being someone of importance within the core group. In this case Tynan is the lowest of the low, in Ptolemy clan pecking order that is. This, in itself, was enough to put me on Tynan’s side.

[Lily Quinn starts off as a regular human that may be of importance to the Ptolemy Queen who sends Tynan to find and return with her.]

The book begins with a definition of the different clans and bloodlines. After seeing this I was a bit apprehensive that I wouldn’t be able to keep up with the clans without having to flip back and forth. After the fact I can say I only had to flip to the front twice. To further support this idea of clans Kendra Leigh Castle (KLC) inserted the concept of sigils. These were tattoos that each clan member that identified which bloodline they belonged to.  In the case of Tynan he possessed one that marked him as a low caste and intertwined with this one was the Ptolemy symbol, which identified him as a servant of that clan. It was very reminiscent of Blade, but instead of only familiars wearing them everyone had one.

I enjoyed the character make up of Lily as well as Tynan. There were aspects of Tynan that were hard to stomach, but further supported how loyal his character was. i.e. his blind devotion to Queen Arinsoe. I loved Lily because she wasn’t content to be led around by Tynan and blindly accept his assistance. She wanted to know where she was going, why she was in danger, etc. It took over two pages for Tynan to talk her into accepting his help. To me her reactions and responses were extremely realistic. I found myself thinking that is exactly what I’d say.

In my opinion, the most important plot device the author employed was the use of boogeyman characters we are already familiar with i.e., Dracula, Nero, and Lilith. She stayed true to their reputations except for Lilith. (Going any further would require me to put up a Spoiler alert).

Although, it’s going to sound cliché my favorite part of the book was the end. Things fell into place exactly as I hoped. Throughout all of the running and trying to discover the truth of Lily’s background, KLC found time to insert supporting characters that I hope will have their own stories. The last thing I will mention is the subject of the love scenes. There aren’t a lot of love scenes, but at the point in your reading when you notice there hasn’t been one it happens. I give this a high rating just for the world KLC created.

Cynthia Eden "Never Cry Wolf"



Never Cry Wolf is the story of Lucas Simone and Sarah King. Lucas is the Alpha of the Los Angeles wolf pack and Sarah is in desperate need of his protection.

I give this book my highest of high ratings. Not because the love scenes were hot – THEY WERE NUCLEAR. Not because Lucas was the ultimate Alpha bad ass whom did not GAF. And not because Sarah held her own with this legend of wolf shifters. But because CE stuffed, Thanksgiving turkey stuffed, this book with sexy shifters and non-stop action with enough tension to send you into instant cardiac arrest. I loved the fact that espionage was her main plot devices. If you like spy movies and dream of Ethan Hunt you’ll love this book. (I’ll leave it at that so I don’t have to splash Spoiler Alert across this review)

Cynthia Eden did an excellent job with her character development, especially with Lucas. The book starts off with Lucas being a badass, but I personally wanted to know what happened to him to make him this ultimate BA and she gave it to me. If you like having a back story on your main characters – it’s there. I enjoyed the fact that Cynthia Eden wasn’t afraid to pump her characters full of flaws. It was great that there wasn’t the obligatory one main character is perfect while the other isn’t.  In my opinion, it helped me “root for” and support Sarah and Lucas better knowing that they weren’t “fine upstanding citizens.” This is real life and in this reality Sarah was a serial liar and Lucas had no problem with offing someone when there was a need.  The character development is so good that even when secondary and other background characters are introduced I wanted to veer off topic and delve into their stories as well. Way to go building the need to continue reading this series.

Dimension and a road that splits many ways. I say this because there is more than one villain and the driving force behind each is not the same. They are not all out for the same thing. Revenge. Power. Domination. All of these are a part of each villain’s end game, but their motivations are different.  Yes they all want power, but some desire revenge and some just want to show how strong they are.  All of these different motivations make for a multi-dimensional “villain.” It drives the anticipation and tension sky high because you have no clue in which direction each villain is going to go.

One thing that I wish had been changed, even though I know why she did it, was the fact that Lucas’s pack wasn’t larger. I was expecting this semi-large pack led by the ultimate BA, but that was not the case. Maybe it was my own preconceived notion that a shifter’s strength is in how large his pack is. Maybe it’s more along the lines of how strong your pack is and not the size of it.  Revelation. Light bulb. J



Lori Foster "Savor the Danger"

 

Lori Foster’s Savor the Danger is the story of Trace’s sister Alani Rivers, introduced in When You Dare, and Jackson Savor. Jackson is a new addition to Trace and Dare’s security team.

I was already invested in the Alani character because I was introduced to her in the first book of this series. If you remember, from my review on When You Dare, Alani was rescued along with Dare’s now-wife Molly. So off the bat the reader knows that any man trying to get close to Alani has not only Alani, but Trace and Dare to contend with.

I’m going to name a few of the things I didn’t like, which aren’t that many, and end with the things that I did. DISCLAIMER : These are my opinions and observations based on a single reading of this book. Eventually, I will go back and reread it so it’s possible my ‘dislikes’ can be understood with ANOTHER read. In my opinion Jackson was kind of a p____ hungry jerk. Yes, he’s yummy and dominant and oh so kick ass, BUT I didn’t like the part of his personality where when Alani tried to get close he turned into a sexual jerk. Case in point, Alani was trying to get to know him and he distracted her with a ‘do you swallow’ kind of question. WTF. That scene bothered the crap out of me. The second thing I was a little on the fence about was Jackson’s about face in regards to pursuing a relationship with Alani. One moment he didn’t want to talk about feelings and the next he was all for pursuing something lasting with her.

I did, however, enjoy the interactions between Jackson, Trace and Dare. They were so much alike it was hard to guess how each would respond to the other’s comments and actions. I also liked how protective Trace and Dare were of Alani. The plotline, I’m glad to say, had nothing to do with Alani’s previous kidnapping. Yes, her abduction shaped her and made her more hesitant about everyday things we take for granted, but the fact that she had family to help her overcome was an important aspect of this book. It would’ve been too obvious if her story centered on her kidnapping and I’m glad the author took a different path. Something other than the obvious most often than not makes for a more interesting story. I appreciated and enjoyed the way each character’s pasts made them much more dynamic characters. I don’t think it was a coincidence that Alani ended up with a man so much like her two older brothers. And of course who doesn’t enjoy the introduction of new characters that will most likely have stories of their own. I cannot wait for the story of Arizona and Spence to be told. Lori Foster definitely has mastered the art of whetting the reader’s appetite for more. When her new characters stepped into the scene I was already imagining how explosive and sensual their story was going to be.

Honestly, I didn’t read Trace of Fever, but from the two books I have read in this series her next releases will no doubt be just as good. 

 Feel free to check out the other books in this series.

When You Dare

 

Trace of Fever 

Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison

Dragon Bound is the story of Dragos Cuelebre and Pia Giovanni. This story is set in a world where Elves, Wyrs (shifters), Faeries, etc are actual beings and functioning members of society. Dragos is the leader, King, of the Wyr and Pia is a half-breed Wyr who was blackmailed into stealing from Dragos. As soon as she completes the theft she goes on the run because stealing from Dragos is tantamount to a death sentence.

WHERE HAS THEA HARRISON BEEN ALL OF MY LIFE? I am absolutely in love with and am prepared to be her beta reader for the next book in this Elder Races series. From the first page down to the last page I was pulled snatched in. Pia is a feisty, strong female character. Even when she feels the situation is hopeless she pushes forward and doesn’t give in. I was instantly intrigued when it was mentioned that Pia was constantly cloaking herself and grew up never telling people whom and what she really was. One of the best plot devices of this book is the idea that your true name holds Power and if someone were to find out your true name then you were theirs to control. In the past, when I’ve read books with this particular design I’ve always enjoyed it. And the same holds true for this book. It’s anything but dull to see how [and if] the characters can manage to keep their true name a secret.

From the get go I was routing for both main characters. Even though Pia stole from Dragos and Dragos was a foul-tempered and jaded tyrant I was on both of their sides. I have to admit I was chomping at the bit to know what sort of Wyr Pia was mixed with. It had to be either something so horrible or so fantastic that she couldn’t share it with just anyone. Such delicious suspense. And you, the reader, finally discovers what she is its like a light bulb clicks on. 

Pia’s sass and Dragos' asshole nature complement each other perfectly. Such a sweet and sour tangy relationship. Although, there were a couple of times where Dragos’ comments literally made my jaw drop. I could not believe some of the things that came out of his mouth and the people who received these words, but the author definitely made it work. And only because of the personality and background Thea Harrison built into Dragos.

This new world Thea Harrison created is one I wouldn’t mind visiting for a couple more books, say a series of 5+ books. And of course there were introductions to possible participants in the next books in the series. I hope they all get their own book. :wink wink:

MINI SPOILER : And what’s an awesome story without adding in a little bit of ‘oopsie I’m preggers’ into it. I loved that the author added this in. It punted the rating from my medium all the way up to high.

His Purrfect Mate by Laurann Dohner

His Purrfect Mate is the story of Anton and Shannon. This book is the second in the Mating Heat series and is centered around Shannon, a ¼ feline ¾ human mix, whom was abducted by members of Anton’s pack just because she was a feline shifter. Anton, a wolf shifter, feels obligated to protect her until he deals with the offenders, but this abduction happens in the middle of mating week.
If you haven’t read Mate Set its okay, HPM does not piggyback off of it. There’s a mention of those characters, but not having any familiarity with them will not upset your understanding of this book. 

I was torn between liking Shannon and not liking her because of how afraid she seemed to always be. When I found myself getting impatient with Shannon’s “unreasonable” fear I had to remind myself that she was raised by a human mother with old stories her father used to tell her about the savageness of wolf shifters. The story behind her character was original in that she hadn’t lived her entire life feeling different with unique abilities that she couldn’t explain. She knew exactly who her parents were and why she was the way she was.

The tension between Anton and Shannon, based on their different species, brings new meaning to the phrase fighting like cats and dogs. There was such disdain and genuine hatred between feline shifters and wolf shifters. There was an actual trespass and die rule.

I loved the chemistry between Anton and Shannon. Even their being enemies did not stop their budding attraction. It puts you in mind of Romeo and Juliet, but without the suicide. At the point where they acknowledge their feelings for each other I am instantly dying to know how they can overcome the hate their species has for each other. Throw in the fact that Shannon’s shifter pride doesn’t even know she exists and you have a recipe for disaster. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again Laurann Dohner is an awesome author. She does action, romance and humor so well. Another reason I love her writing so much is she is constantly creating and developing. The vocabulary and turn of a phrase that the characters use is completely fresh. For example, when the shifters are in their human form they call it ‘in skin.’ In all the shifter books I've read, quite a few, I've never heard this phrase.

 My favorite part of this book, besides the steamy love scenes, was the fact that Anton took the time out to explain and express his feelings. Shannon didn’t have to pry it out of him. He was ready to share himself without any prompting from her.

It’s always a possibility, even with a favorite author, that they could write something you won’t enjoy, but at this point I have yet to reach that point with Laurann Dohner.