Review: Just didn't work for me...
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 5, 2011
I really enjoy Kim Dare's books, but this one was definitely not my favorite.  I'm not sure if it was just that I didn't "get" the point of the book, or whether I'm just tired of shapeshifters (although I adored "Duck!").  Or maybe it was that I didn't get enough world-building to get into the premise of the shifter packers, or it may just be that this particular series isn't for me...MILD SPOILERS FOLLOW:The book begins with Marsdon and his unknown "pup" in a BDSM club.  Marsdon, a were/shapeshifter, knows his sub is wolf, but doesn't know the other man's identity.  The man under the leather mask is Bennett, who Marsdon finds out later is another alpha-male.  Both men are deeply moved by their experiences together, and I have to say the sex at the beginning was incredibly hot - the best of the entire book for me.The two men/weres meet again, only this time, they are being joined as mates for a new were-pack.  Neither knew the other was his mate until the moment they meet, but both men recognize each other, in spite of the fact that Bennett's face and scent had been masked from Marsdon and Bennett could not see Marsdon through his mask.  The men are mated, and this is how the main story begins.Bennett comes off as incredibly insecure and unsure about what being an "alpha" means.  He has a deeply submissive nature (at least in the bedroom), but he is powerful and a born leader.  Marsdon is thrilled that he is being mated to the one man he has ever truly felt something for, but he continues to call Bennett his "pup" and manages to totally alienate Bennett.The book turns on the issue of what being an alpha is, and whether submission in a relationship, behind closed doors is the same as submitting in the pack hierarchy.  This is where I got lost.  Bennett is so anxious to prove himself, he's willfully blind to the reality that these are two different concepts, and Marsdon doesn't do a heck of a lot to convince him otherwise.  I just got bogged down in the various concepts of dominance and, although I like BDSM in general, I just couldn't get into the whole angst thing here.Dare's writing is always strong, but I felt as though I just wasn't "connecting" on an emotional level in this one.  That said, the book was probably worth the price I paid just for the prologue scene in the BDSM club with the two men.  That was one of the hottest slash scenes I've ever read (and I've read a lot).  So, split verdict for me...