Reviews by Christy Duke

So much better than the first book! Deacon and Daryl are excellent MC’s and getting more glimpses into Santino and Sabine was especially wonderful. Plus, every visit with Sylvia, Sabine’s young daughter, is an absolute joy. I know the Humans Matter movement isn’t going to stop and they’re certainly still focused on getting Daryl but I think Deacon and his pack are in a better place now, emotionally and mentally. Now I want to read Santino’s story to see if the author can keep this momentum going.

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Hands down, in my opinion, this is the BEST of the McMurray men’s stories. Lachlan is amazing and I loved everything about him. I didn’t like Percival in the beginning but he grew on me. Actually, once Lachlan took matters into his own hands, I saw Percival in a better light. Definitely my favorite of this series so far. I’m not sure I’ll read anymore but even if I do, I doubt my opinion about ‘Elder and the Youngest’ will change, nor will my love of all things Lachlan.

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I’d like to be able to say that this first novella in Fel Fern’s new series, ‘Devil Hills Wolves’, blew me away and was amazing. Unfortunately, it is way (WAY) too similar to her ‘Darkfall Mountain Pack’ series and I didn’t really find anything particularly unique about it. The worldbuilding is slightly different as there are humans, paranormals, and humans with special abilities. Obviously, the only ones tolerated by Humans Matter is pure humans and this government organization is too similar to ones I’ve seen from this author before. I liked the characters and I’ll admit to some serious curiosity about whether Daryl and Deacon are mates so I might read another in the series.... I’ll have to wait and see.

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A really good beginning to this new series. <spoiler>The background about the quadruplets with Gabriel being the oldest and then Dominic, and having been spirited out of their homeland which is on an alternate plane to earth, and then adopted out to human families was very interesting.</spoiler> Chay is just plain hot and so is Gabriel although I have to admit I’m really looking forward to Dom’s story. The second brother is delightfully yummy. I can’t wait to see where they find brother #3 and then the inevitable showdown with more bad guys will be entertaining AF.

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I was disappointed in this second novella in the ‘Geek Squad’ series. I normally never have an issue with first person POV but I couldn’t get a handle on Andrew. He seemed very distant to me and I really struggled with that. The drama revolving around the mob, Andrew’s agent, and some skeezy millionaire was just too predictable for me. The first book had such excitement and a huge spoiler that I didn’t see coming, and this story really fizzled for me. I’m still excited to read more in the series because I do love the geek squad.... five best friends who got turned into ocelot shifters in the first book by a shaman in the jungles of South America is just too good of a premise to not want to see each guy get their HEA.

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Loved it, loved it, loved it, loved it! Now that I know (straight from Ms Glenn’s mouth) that ‘My Lupine Lover’ is the unofficial beginning of her ‘Tri-Omega Mates’ series...... well, suddenly things make so much more sense. Plus, now I have to go back and reread that whole series to find all of the connections. Sasha is most definitely my 2nd most favorite character of Stormy’s. The first as some of you know is Beau from ‘Scales and a Tail’. I love Sasha! He is an incredible character and I totally fell for him. Vadim and his betas (who, btw, are in the tri-omega mates series) are very sexy men. Vadim and Sasha are beyond hot together. Hell, they go beyond incendiary. This is a great story that I know I’ll be rereading often! Loved the plot lines that all converged together. Well written, awesome characters, smoking sex, and a fantastic mating. Excellent job, Stormy!

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After having met Salvador and Davi in ‘The Stormy Glenn Collection Convention’ I was eager to read their story. Davi just reeled me in with his vulnerability, his years of loneliness and despair under the old alpha, and his adorable personality that slowly was revealed. Salvador is beyond yummy. He’s a good man as a human. He’s an amazing alpha wolf. *****SPOILERS AHEAD***** I loved the worldbuilding and storytelling that had Salvador exploring a cave when he was attacked by an alpha wolf in full on bloodlust. Salvador, as a human, killed this alpha which meant all of the alpha powers transferred to Salvador. Then the fact that Davi and Salvador mated and created a soul bond - something unheard of in many, many years - just made their story so much better! As much as I loved this story, I was a little disappointed. The conflict and fight with the bad guy was very unrealistic in many ways, in my opinion, and I felt that all of the pieces coming together i.e. Salvador’s mom, finding Davi, etc., was kind of haphazard. Of course, I’m not letting those feelings interfere with my absolute joy in finally reading this novella. So, Stormy..... how much longer until Thiago and Lester’s story? You promised......

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I knew I would love Sasha and Dante! Dante is hysterical and had me laughing out loud more than once. Sasha is just bad boy.... umm, bear.... enough to be very sexy. The two together are a great mating and definitely give one another a run for their money. The secondary plot line was well done although my heart is now breaking for Charlie. I sure hope his and Owen’s story gets here quickly! LOL

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The hits just keep on coming, my friends! Marcus and Charlie are fantastic. I seethed a little until Marcus got his head out of his ass, but Xavier (not telling who he is, it’s a surprise) really helped. Charlie is just as funny with the snarky comebacks as Jon and Etienne are. I liked the whole councilman-gone-insane trope and the way it was handled. I’m already actively bugging the author for more books, so hopefully she’ll listen. I mean, she did promise her characters in ‘Convention’, after all. *smirk*

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And it’s another winner! Loved Louis and Etienne’s story. Etienne is just as fabulous as Jon, although way more kick-ass with his katana, and the humor was rampant throughout. Well, there were at least a couple of other things rampant, as well. Thrilled that some progress was made on the rogue situation although I think there’s more to come in the next book. Which is Marcus’s story and should prove to be pretty damn kick-ass all on its own. Now, I’ve already put in my request for Dietrich’s tale, and I hope the author listens!

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A good addition to the series. I would’ve loved a little more character development in terms of Troy as I felt like there were things about him, his personality, that I only got a quick glimpse of. Galvin and Troy are very sweet, and hot together, and it was fun watching them fall in love. The secondary story line with the Hunter was predictable as is the fact that his death will encourage more to descend on Spirit Lake but I expected that. My only question is - if Troy went camping with just a duffle bag of stuff, met Galvin, mated him, moved into Galvin’s cabin, severed ties with his parents..... how come he never dealt with the real life issues of withdrawing from living on the college campus AND picking up his belongings and bringing them back to Galvin’s? Inquiring minds and all that......

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2.5 Stars ~ I have to admit that Ignacio and Adriano’s story left me feeling a little ho-hum. There was too much with Lyle and then him finding his mate which I really thought should have been broached in THEIR story which comes next in the series. Ignacio and Adriano just didn’t work for me. They left me neither hot nor cold, just sort of lukewarm. They’re good characters and I think with a different approach I could have liked them and this addition to the series much better.

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Ah, a relief to read Olander and Teak’s story and fall right back into why I enjoy this series. These two are super adorable with some very fun secondary characters. I definitely enjoyed their love story and mating. It looks like the author isn’t done with Itayu Lake yet. The head of the North American division of the Hunters is now onto them so I foresee some excitement in the future.

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I absolutely adored Nikolas and Jon’s story. After having met them, so to speak, in ‘Stormy Glenn’s Convention’ I really wanted their backgrounds because Jon appealed to me immediately. Particularly considering he’s human and yet all the vamps seem just a little wary of him. This was such fun. A definitely humorous and sexy tale. Now, I’m going to jump into the sequel. Because I can. Stormy finally wrote it. LOL

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It’s good to return to Emerald Valley and its unique wolf pack and vampire coven. Along with the five alphas who left many years ago but returned for vengeance against the murderer of their slain friend. At the end of Lee and Magnus’s story they had found and eliminated Eduardo, Magnus’s evil brother, and also liberated his blood slaves including Jerry, whom Lee had been searching for for a long time. Jerry’s older brother, Rob, was Lee’s best friend and when he died Lee took it upon himself to become Jerry’s adoptive older brother. Jerry had been kept as a blood slave by Eduardo and endured a hellish nightmare no one should ever endure. “Back in his cell, he’d been certain he wanted freedom, to live again, and yet he didn’t understand what he’d been asking for. “I didn’t know living could be so hard,” he whispered.” Even three months after his rescue, Jerry struggles with fear, nightmares, panic attacks, and he just wants to fly under the radar and not have anyone notice him. Unfortunately, the members of the wolf pack can still smell he was food for a vampire and most of them look at him with disgust. They don’t dare physically harm him or Lee, Magnus, and Lee’s alpha friends would be on them, but words can often be far more hurtful. Jerry knows he’s broken and that no one will ever want him. Colton is one of the five alphas who returned to Emerald Valley with Crash, Lee, Dante, and Atlas, and helped to get revenge on the old beta of the wolf pack who murdered Larry, their friend. When Colton first left town he enrolled in the Army where he eventually was placed into a shifter special ops unit. He has his own share of PTSD related trauma and issues, so when he meets Jerry, a part of him understands where the little omega is coming from. Colton’s wolf whispers “mate” but Colton shies away from that. As far as he’s concerned anyone he gets involved with just ends up hurt or dying. As much as I did enjoy Jerry and Colton’s romance, there were a few things that didn’t work well for me. The insta-lust was fine as they are shifters but the insta-love came as a surprise considering what each shifter had endured in their life. It came across as unrealistic, in my opinion, and there were several inconsistencies that I had difficulty with. However, the romance was very sweet and I liked seeing both men get the happiness and love they each deserved.

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It is with a little wistfulness that I began this fifth and final installment in the ‘Wolves of Emerald Valley’ series. I have enjoyed reading about each man finding his mate and the mates have all been well written characters. Dante is the last and I noticed differences in him during the previous novella so I was looking forward to his own happy ending. I wanted to see all of these wolves, and vampires, safe, happy, healthy, and maybe get some resolution to the problem of the current wolf pack alpha not able to handle his role or his pack. I didn’t blame Six at all for sneaking out of the compound (told me everything I needed to know about his birth pack) and heading to a bar for a drink and to find someone to lose his virginity to. He certainly didn’t want to give it to Spike, his alpha’s brother, who is to be his mate. Spike is mean and vicious. Six can’t believe his luck when he meets Dante at the bar. Dante is in town tying up some business he had with Randall, alpha of the Ridgeback pack. Six’s pack. Dante is well aware of, and completely disagrees with, the way Randall deals with the omegas in his pack. Dante is ridiculously attracted (as is his wolf) to Six and he gives the omega a night they both can remember. Two weeks later Dante is miserable missing Six and wondering how he can sneak into the compound when Six shows up. Pregnant and exiled from his pack for having broken his mating contract by having sex outside of their pack and his intended mate, Six is thrilled when Dante welcomes him and his pregnancy. Of course, it’s too easy to think that Spike won’t still hunt Six down for revenge but I’m pretty sure Dante can take that guy. I really would have liked more backstory on both of these main characters and fewer editing errors. However, Six is very sweet and Dante gladly stepped up to the plate, so I was rooting for them to make it. The drama involving Spike was very anti-climactic and I was a little disappointed with that. All in all, though, book five finished out the series very well, and even though there were things in each novella I wasn’t thrilled with, I’m glad I read this series because I definitely liked the characters.

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Normally I have not been reading this series back to back - I’ve been giving it a few days in between each to make sure I’m coming into the world still fresh, so to speak. However, considering that Ronnie met his mate, Maksim, while cowering in a corner after seeing four guys shift into lions, and then Ronnie’s friend, Silver, killed one with a shotgun, all in the previous novella… Well, I really needed to jump right in and see how poor Ronnie is handling his introduction to not only the paranormal world, but his very large tiger shifter mate who is also an agent for the council. Scary things, indeed! How could Ronnie possibly say no to Maksim when everything he has ever wanted - acceptance, love, need, and home - was right there for the taking? Of course, Ronnie takes a while to grasp the full significance of being mates (much less lubirea mai once that’s discovered) and it drives Maksim and his tiger a wee bit crazy. See, council agents aren’t known as being particularly flexible in their umm, how should I put this? They don’t like hearing no and they expect every word out of their mouths to be obeyed… immediately, no questions asked. Now, Ronnie might not be the most courageous soul, but he’s got some spunk backed up with a little snark, and he isn’t afraid to use it. And once Maksim understands the reason for Ronnie’s fear about violence and bloodshed, it is much easier for Maksim to help his mate with his fears. Of course, who is going to help Maksim when Ronnie’s grandmother interrogates him? This might be my favorite of the series, to be honest. Ronnie really got his hooks into me plus the sideline regarding the two orphaned cougar cubs just had me aww’ing all over the place. Plus, Harold and Grandma were two wonderful secondary characters that I would love to see more of. I definitely wouldn’t say no to more stories in this series *hint*.

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The premise, based on the blurb, sounded wonderful. However, IMO, the actual writing wasn’t that fabulous. Granted, this is my first experience reading a novella by this author, but I had difficulty with phrasing, lack of detail regarding the characters including more backstory, and a definite lack of connection to the characters. Again, this could just be me. I truly believe that this story could have been fleshed out, maybe adding an additional 10 or 20K words, and I think I would have enjoyed it more. But, I did love the premise, and the sex was certainly steamy.

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Having recently read Stormy Glenn’s brilliant new book, ‘The Stormy Glenn Collection Convention”, I was flabbergasted to discover there were some books of hers that I had missed. WHAT? How in the hell did that happen? Regardless, once my shock was over, I had to go and buy each of those missing stories so I could get caught up. Since, you know, I fell in love with these couples at the convention. I knew I was going to start with Harper and Memphis in ‘Broken-Nail Diva’ because Harper stole my heart straight out of the gate. Harper and Memphis are way sexy and incendiary when Memphis slips into Harper’s room one night. Memphis knows it’s the only time - can only be the one time - because of what he is. Harper wakes up thinking he had the hottest wet dream imaginable...... except strange things start to happen. And then Harper gets kidnapped. Memphis has been feeling off the whole day until he has a dream vision showing Harper in trouble. Memphis, along with his “pack” (they’re not real sure what they are) Brooklyn, Denver, Boston, and Jackson, head out to find him and rescue him. I loved the worldbuilding here in that each of these men were bitten, they know nothing about being werewolves, and they’re all learning as they go. Luckily for them, Harper’s job in the real world involves researching the answers to obscure and bizarre facts. Of course, what turns out to be the most helpful is Harper’s best friend, Truman’s, treasure trove of paranormal romances. *grin*

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I adore this series that takes the idea of fated mates to a whole new level. So far I have seen lions, tigers, wolves, and panthers, so I was excited to find out more about cheetahs in this fun world the author created. It would appear that, much like in the wild where lions kill cheetah babies, in this world cheetahs are on the lowest rung of the feline ladder and if a stronger predator runs across one, as long as the cheetah isn’t mated, the lion, tiger, or panther can kill the cheetah with no repercussions. Huh. Sucks to be Tye in my opinion. Tye is thrilled beyond belief when he meets his mate who happens to rescue him from four lions out to kill him. He is not happy, however, to discover his mate is human. Tye was hoping for the baddest of the bad in the feline world to keep him safe. Turns out that Silver has a lot going for him even if he is just a human. In this world mating a cheetah is a wonderful thing because whatever type of feline shifter finds their mate in a cheetah, that feline becomes bigger and stronger in order to protect their cheetah mate. Ah, now it makes sense. If the lions and tigers kill the unmated cheetahs then that’s one less mate that’ll be bigger than they are. It seems Silver has a lot in store for him and the rest of these feline shifters are going to find out just how big and bad Silver can be. Oh and Tye is going to find out his mate is a whole lot more than he seems. *grins* Tye is seriously shocked when he realizes that he and Silver are lubirea mai mates. He expects Silver to view it as a gift like Tye does but there’s a reason Silver is still single at forty-five. Silver doesn’t like dealing with others’ emotions. Hell, he can barely handle his own, which is why he left his former life behind for one where he’s in complete control. However, once Silver feels the depth of pain he has created with his words in Tye, he strives to be better at being open, honest, and receptive - not easy for him when it comes to feelings - and Tye works at understanding his mate’s discomfort. I loved the ending. Absolutely perfect and full of irony. I definitely fell for Tye and Silver, and am very happy about their happy ever after.

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This is such a sweet, insta-love, soulmates, romance. Moose and Cory are absolutely adorable together and I always love seeing how the people in Cade Creek always come together to help each other out.

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Second read: I still loved Simon just as much, or even more, than I did the first time I read this story. Pretty much everything works for me in this installment of the series *grins* What a great addition to this series. I adored Simon and he's definitely my favorite in this story. I liked the plot, the sex was hawt, and Ares was perfect for Simon and vice versa.

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Really, really, really enjoyed this story. It reminded me of a movie that I always liked with Kurt Russell titled 'Soldier'. I loved all of the Spartan warriors and I honestly hope the author writes more in this world. I adored Ari and Lucius was far too cute for words. There are definitely some answers that I still need because the author didn't explain them. I was also giggling because for a guy who has never had sex before, Lucius sure knew all about stretching and how to find the prostate. LOL. Oh, and how did they get the bottle of lube? None of that matters, however, because for me watching Lucius learn about his emotions and allow himself to feel them, was a journey well worth taking.

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For a small town, Cade Creek sure is a hotbed of criminal activity. I found the idea of the DEA opening a branch there pretty unrealistic, but the rest of the story is fun. Mike and Adam are pretty great together. I would have loved seeing more of Cato but I understand he wasn’t part of the romance *grins*. I kind of thought Mike was a little dumb for an agent but I guess I was comparing him to Dorian. It’ll be interesting to see if the author writes more.

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It has been quite a while since I read Moose and Cory’s story (#13) so it took me a few moments to put all the characters back in my head. Robby is Moose’s little brother and between the two of them they’re choking on their guilt over what they perceive they should have done to protect the other. Gus was a breath of fresh air, frankly. I really enjoyed watching Robby and Gus fall in love. They both needed each other so much, but didn’t know it until they met.

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