Review: Action Packed Series Starter With Lots of Sexual Tension
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 17, 2013
Chasing Sam is an entertaining series starter that introduces us to a headstrong family of sisters from a noble family and their journey to find their mates.  Making their journey to finding mates even more difficult is their being wolf shifters.  Not only does their heart choose who to love but so too does their wolf side, who actively carries on conversations with their human side throughout the story.  Being from a noble family carries certain expectations of who they'll mate with which results in a story reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet.Samantha doesn't want the life her mother has as just arm candy, she wants to be a doctor and see the world.  She's been hiding from fate but as it's her 25th birthday she can hide no longer.  A ritual of the nobility, the mate hunt, has been planned by her parents where three men of their choosing will hunt her down and claim her as their own.  The thought of being forced by an unknown man is repulsive to her, even more so after a chance encounter at the airport with military man Chase left her tingly and her wolf proclaiming him their mate.  Sam will do everything she can to get the man of her choosing, even if it leads to both of their deaths.  Samantha is a strong-willed woman but has the tendency to run when she gets upset.  I felt at times that she was a girl trapped in a woman's body making rash decisions.  She wants to be her own woman, which leads to numerous battles with her mother, but doesn't want to do anything to embarrass her family.  I felt sympathetic for her that because of her sex her future isn't her own and I was rooting for Chase to rescue her every step of the way.Chase Michaels comes from an average family, but the instant attraction he has towards her is anything but average.  His bloodline proclaims him unsuitable to be her mate but their wolves disagree and slowly but surely Fate brings them together.  Once Chase discovers that the only way he can claim her is by participating in the mate hunt, he enters a dangerous den where Sam's mother and the other candidates try to eliminate him before the hunt even starts.  As a seasoned military man of numerous wars throughout history and the world he's more than capable of protecting himself and Samantha and finally claim her as his, and his wolf's, own.  Chase is incredibly strong and loyal and he's proud of the fact that no man under his command has ever died.  He has medical training and traveled to numerous countries that draws Sam to him even more.  He knows that their families are complete opposites but no other woman has ever made him feel the way she has so he'll do nothing less than fight, and if need be, die for her.This is a fast-paced story that early on shows the playful banter of their burgeoning relationship.  The sexual tension oozes from them and it's frustrating that their relationship was interrupted by the mate hunt.  The mate hunt is short-lived but heart-pounding and bloody with a surprising savior rescuing Samantha.  Though the sexual tension is unrelenting it's not until the very end that that tension is finally resolved in a quickly concluded sexual interlude.  Samantha's sisters are an entertaining bunch with very unique personalities.  They too appear to have affections for inappropriate men that are just hinted at and will hopefully be addressed in future stories.  We get a brief glimpse of Chase's brother Chris who is equally sexy and admits to an attraction to one of Samantha's sisters, so there's possibly more drama to come when it comes to love.  Although I enjoyed many of the secondary characters it was Samantha's mother who I found absolutely awful!  She was judgmental towards her daughters and got violent with Samantha on more than one occasion.  She flew off the handle easily and purposely tried to eliminate Chase from the mate hunt.  It's as if she was having mental issues and I believe she'll create more problems as the series progresses.Ms. Shannan has created an intriguing paranormal read that has me excited to return to this world where HEAs are only reached through hard work.  With a likable cast of characters there's many stories left to tell and I plan on reading them as Ms. Shannan's writing style is immensely appealing with a unique twist to the usual wolf shifters.