Review: Royal knows how to hook a reader!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 22, 2012
I received this book for review for the author's book tour. I did not receive any compensation for my review, and the views expressed herein are my own.Olivia Bentley is a 55 year-old woman, recently widowed, who lives on a wildlife sanctuary. Wildlife is her passion, and she rehabilitates injured or orphaned animals so that they can released back into the wild. Olivia is also attuned to animals and can sense their emotions.Olivia's meddling younger sister, Lacey, thinks that it is high time that Olivia moves on with her life. Lacey tells her about a man named Chance Grayton, a man who she wants her to meet. Lacey can't seem to understand that Olivia is happy being alone. She doesn't need a man. If for no other reason than to appease her sister, she agrees to meet Chance in the morning.That evening, Olivia encounters an enormous black and silver wolf and is inexplicably drawn to him. The wolf acts strangely around her, as though he was protecting her. And then she sees it: Another wolf with a bad eye and deformed face. The black and silver wolf chases after the other one into the darkness.In the morning, Chance stops by and introduces himself to Olivia. It turns out that he is a forester, and he and his associates ask if they can take a hike through her wooded property to examine the haven habitat. He also asks Olivia to meet him for a mid-afternoon lunch. Unbeknownst to Olivia, Chance is actually a werewolf...the very same black and silver werewolf that Olivia encountered the night before. He is a member of the Lycan International Investigation Agency, and his pack has been hunting the rogue werewolf named Smoke for years. His "date" is Olivia is a bit of a ruse to drug her up so that - while she is sleeping - he and his pack-mates can access Olivia's property to hunt for Smoke.When Olivia awakens many hours later, she realizes that Chance must have drugged her. She is furious and demands that he drive her home. After dropping her off, he has a premonition that Smoke is at Olivia's barn. He rushes back with his pack, but he is too late. Smoke has already been there, and Olivia's goats have been slaughtered in the barn. Chance does tell Olivia that his team has been hunting this dangerous wolf for years and has trailed him from across Europe, but he fails to admit that his team is really a pack of werewolves. Of course, it sounds insane to Olivia that this wolf has managed to cross the ocean! Chance wants to remain at Olivia's house in case Smoke returns, and the two end up having a steamy encounter in Olivia's bathroom. Before Chance retires for the evening, he wants to take one last look around outside to make sure that Smoke isn't lurking about. Olivia hears a howl outside and fears for Chance's safety as well as her convalescing animals in the barn. Armed with her tranquilizer rifle, she goes outside to check on her animals and doesn't hesitate to pull the trigger when a wolf lunges for her. The only problem is that it is the wrong wolf! The one that she shot was not Smoke. Rather, it was the black and silver wolf. Before her very eyes, the black and silver wolf shifts into a human man...Chance.When I received this book for review for an upcoming book tour, I did not realize that it is an Erotic Paranormal Romance. Had I known, I probably would not have picked it up, as erotica is not a genre that I read. I like my novels steamy, but I prefer that the romance be a small part of the storyline and not the main feature. However, in this case, I am glad that I did not pick up on the genre because then I would have missed out on this author!Royal knows how to hook a reader, and she had me hooked even before any of the intimate scenes took place. For me, someone who does not read erotica, I actually enjoyed the first part of the book more than the latter half which is where all the action took place. Olivia is a wonderful character, and I love that Royal created a confident, older woman who is portrayed as someone who is still both desirable and someone who still desires! What I didn't like were the non-consensual sex scenes and the use of drugs to make someone compliant. Some of what takes place in the latter half of the book is a little dark and disturbing.Overall, I really enjoyed the book and I would definitely pick up the next book in the series to find out what happens next!MY RATING: 4 stars!! It was very good, and I would recommend it for someone who enjoys this genre!