Review: The Mark of an Alpha by Kim Dare
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 13, 2010
This was quite an original paranormal M/M romance, a comparison between the D/s relationships and the strict pack order of the traditional shapeshifter romance. In a Dom/sub relationship the roles are quite clear, the Master is the Dom and the pet is the sub, there is no blurry line; the same clear is the structure of a pack, the Alpha is the leaser, the beta and gamma are the enforcerers and the omega is the weaker member, the one who has to be cherished and protected, like a lucky mascotte. So the sub is the same of an omega? That is the dilemma.Marsdon and Bennett met in a dungeon, two strangers seeking for pleasure, and they have never exchanged names. They both know the other is a werewolf, but that was not part of the agreement and no one asked for an explanation. Marsdon assumed Bennett was an omega, still without a pack; Marsdon was also engaged with the son of an Alpha of another pack, a young Alpha man who will mate with him and help in building a new pack. Marsdon cannot fall in love with Bennett, he is not his chosen mate, he is not an Alpha.But both Marsdon than Bennett will have a surprise, when they will recognize each other during the mating ceremony: only that now Bennett cannot hide the fact that he is a submissive, that he craves the touch of a Master, and as submissive he is not the right mate for an Alpha.That is what Bennett has to learn: being a submissive doesn't mean being an omega, he can be a sub for his Master in the intimacy of their bedroom, and at the same time being part of an Alpha pair and helping his mate in the day-to-day management of the pack. Being a sub doesn't mean being weaker, being a submissive is a choice, or a need to fulfill your inner desire; instead an omega is born like that, you cannot teach or pretend from him to be an Alpha, or to be strong as an Alpha.I liked both Marsdon than Bennett, for different reason, even if I found Bennett a bit too much stubborn; Marsdon on the other hand was almost perfect, perfect Master, just the right level of dominance without being violent, and perfect Alpha, willing to sacrifice his happiness for the well-being of the pack but without doubt more than glad when he discovers that he is already in love with his promised mate.