This book was recommended to me in the Pick It For Me Challenge

I must say I'm fairly disappointed.

I've added a star because of the unexpected way things developed in the book.

What bothered me the most (apart from the shallowness of the characters and their unnatural reactions) was the power dynamics.

The first 60% of the book I was hoping for Nicky to rebel and tell them to shove their leashes and rules up their posteriors but I doubted that would ever happen. But when it did actually happen (oh the joy!), Marco's reaction was very... disappointing and expected at the same time. I was really looking forward to him groveling for forgiveness a bit but all I got was "Okay, maybe I was wrong to treat you like a dog, now I'll treat you like a really good dog. Here, I'll even allow you to have a hobby". And Nicky took what he could, because it's not like he had a choice - it was that or go mad and die in the woods.
( )

It's only because I'm way to stubborn to give up on a book that I actually finished this one.

While it wasn't all bad, I didn't like the chauvinism portrayed. I'm not quick to call a book this, but honestly, this truly felt a bit like a "chick with a dick"story.

Luckily I've read and enjoyed other stories by this author, but I'm definitely not continuing with this series... ( )

A werewolf story with a difference is pretty hard to write. Hundreds of them are already out there and while the mythologies and exact details vary, a lot of the basic assumptions and the ways they interact with humans are actually pretty similar. One of them is the ‘machoness’ of the dominant werewolf partner and the submission of the physically weaker human. Want to see a different way this can go? This story has an interesting twist in that dynamic which had me pay close attention to what was going on. I’ll admit the first third of the story was pretty ‘standard’ – but once it takes off? Buckle your seatbelts!

Nicky is an artist, but also works as a waiter to make ends meet. He doesn’t think of himself as special, and isn’t particularly happy with his life, but it is his, and he stands on his own two feet. But when he is mugged, changed into a werewolf to save his life – but without his consent, and suddenly finds himself mated to a big, strong alpha werewolf, he is understandably upset. Imagine his horror when he is called ‘pet’ and treated no better than a dog. Possibly a spoiled and protected pet, but still. Marco, his mate and master, demands total submission and even cussing is forbidden as a sign of ‘becoming feral’. I really felt for Nicky and all the wolves’ constant reassurances about how treasured he was did not help.

Marco is an overbearing, arrogant werewolf who may say he has his pack’s best interests at heart, but he is too stubborn to listen when something new and unexpected happens. The way he treats Nicky is pretty bad, even if he doesn’t mean it to be degrading. For him, having a pet and what they are expected to do is very clear, rooted in tradition, and acting against the old laws can only bring danger – mostly for the pet. I felt like banging his head against the wall and yelling at him to wake up and smell the roses during most of the book, but he was so well-meaning and protective of Nicky that it was as difficult for me to remain mad at him as it was for Nicky.

This is a great story. I loved the emotional tension between Nicky and Marco, Nicky’s struggle to understand what was going on, and then his fight to make Marco see that he was wrong. I liked the message that people (and I include werewolves here!) are not all the same and that there are differences that need to be taken into account if they want a happy relationship. Nicky’s fight for what he knows is right is heart-breaking, and I can only be very relieved that the ending was worth all the suffering.

If you like werewolf stories with a twist, if strong-willed characters are your thing, and if you prefer your main characters to have emotions as well as a physique to die for, you will probably like this story as much as I did.



NOTE: This book was provided by Secret Cravings Publishing for the purpose of a review on Raonbow Book Reviews. ( )

I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it. First of all this was listed in recommendations for mpreg, of which there was none, but no big deal. I'm okay with dub-con and even a little non-con depending on the situation and how it is written. Mostly I felt sorry for Nicky throughout the book because mostly everything done to him was against his will or without his prior consent. He was taken and turned against his will. I understand it was done to save his life, and that's always forgivable in my book, because the intentions were in the right place (usually). What bother's me is how mad everyone was at him for not just jumping for joy at this sudden, major change in his life and quite frankly his freedom. He was no longer fully human, he had become slave to a biological imperative that he'd never asked for, and he was to become a slave, a submissive to a master he didn't ask for. He wasn't even into dudes before any of this happened. It's a lot to take in and he wasn't really given a chance to process, he was just told to behave or be punished.

As a pet, or mate, he was expected to be submissive but he wasn't. And when he tried to explain that it wasn't in his nature before he was turned, so he shouldn't be expected to be that way after. Nicky was basically told over and over that he didn't know his own mind and that everyone else knew what was best for him. His alpha wouldn't listen to reason that, perhaps the ways of their ancestors were wrong, or at the very least in need of an overhaul as the bloodlines had been diluted over the centuries, and the world had changed.

A lot of the complications could have been avoided if Marco had just approached Nicky and explained things to him in the first place. If he had given the change to make an informed choice, maybe things would have turned out different. I know part of the story had to be angst and strife, but that could have been covered with the rogue pack and the prospect of hunters.

So I didn't hate it, but it didn't quite rank three stars for me. I'm considering reading more of the series; maybe it will get better. ( )

Nicky is the blood mate of Marco but he has no idea what is happening to him. He has to learn but I have to admit I would have liked to smack Marco upside of his head for not explaining to Nicky what is occurring. Nicky has to learn by asking others or watching.

I loved Nicky. He was no follower. He had a back bone and stood up to Marco when needed. Though it cost him, he did not back down. Marco was harder for me to like. He was pure alpha and often did not listen because of pride. He almost loses the most important thing in his life. I did like when he rethought his decisions.

I would like to read more of this series. Their world is interesting ( )