Sigh....What can I say. I love the Cole brothers but I have to say that Austin is my favorite. I have never read a Dannika Dark book so when the book turned out to be paranormal I was pleasantly surprised. I adore paranormal romance novels so this was definitely up my alley. I really felt for Alexia & her family. You could feel the bond they have & it was touching how dedicated she was to them. Austin & Alexia's relationship was so sweet & frustrating all at one. There wer many times I wanted to smack him upside the head & say open your eyes fool. All in all this was a solid story with great characters. I can't wait to read what comes next for Austin, Alexia & the rest of those hot Cole men. ( )

2.75-Found myself skimming. Never really drew me in ( )

This first book in Dannika Dark's Seven Years series was intriguing to me, as was the mystery behind Lexi and how she discovered she was really a shifter. I enjoyed Dannika's worldbuilding, as well as the buildup towards the end of the mystery surrounding Lexi's past. ( )

3.5 of 5 stars

Listened to audio narrated by Nicole Poole. Enjoyable listening.

Lexi Knight's brother died seven years ago and it changed her. She still mourns him and the loss of a close family friend, who disappeared after this death. She has emotional wounds but she's getting by working at a candy shop and helping her mother raise her little sister.

Austin Cole was Lexi's brother's best friend. He's an alpha wolf shifter and considers Lexi and her family part of his pack even if they are human. He had to go away to gain control of himself and establish his pack but now he's back and he wants Lexi back in his life.

Lexi has a stalker ex-boyfriend as well as a flock of unwanted male attention and she seems utterly clueless recognizing when a situation is going to go south on her. Thankfully Austin is watching out for her and saves her most of the time.

I mostly liked this story, but I had a hard time believing some of the situations Lexi found herself in, falling into the 'too stupid to live' category. More frustrating was that Lexi never seemed to learn from her mistakes and kept making the same or similar mistakes over and over.
Must like alpha males saving damsels in distress and somewhat clueless damsels.

The author seems to throw the kitchen sink at this couple, there are so many tropes these characters are dealing with and there's some editing problems, making the book overwhelming and less enjoyable.

If you like my reviews I hope you will follow my blog. https://wyldheartreads.wordpress.com/
( )

How did I not find out about this book until now?? What a totally awesome series! Its well written, unique, and romantic. I loved Lexi and Maizy and Austin. I can't wait to grab the next book! Full review at http://www.thebookdisciple.com ( )