Shape-shifter/Vampire Paranormal MenagePrevious SanctuaryAfter defeating the bears in Sanctuary, Kimberlyn, Logan, Andrew, and Elijah discover new passions and have a few peaceful months exploring their deep love and hot passions.The peace ends when Kimberlyn stumbles upon a vampire who begs Logan for asylum, and Logan has no choice but to grant it. The vampire has a hidden agenda, and once he has Kimberlyn addicted to him, the wolves must keep him alive at any cost. If he dies, Kimberlyn dies.With the vampires comes the wolves’ fifth -- and a whole new set of problems when Kimberlyn refuses to share her men, can’t get enough of the vampire, and finds new desires with this unusual addition to the pack.Publisher's This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find Anal play/intercourse, menage (m/f/m, m/f/f/m/m, m/m/m/f/m), same-sex sexual interaction/practices (f/f, m/m), sex in partially shifted form, violence.
I loved this one even more than the first book in this series. If you didn't read the first book, stop reading this review right now and go read it!
Kimber, wolf shifter and healer and matriarch to her pack found herself in an interesting situation by the end of the first book. Not only did she manage to reel in the 1st and 2nd in command of the pack, she also snagged the "shield" or bodyguard to the Alpha too. Asylum began where Sanctuary left off. Since Kimber's relationship with Elijah really only began in the last few pages of book 1, we really didn't get a chance to see their relationship...let's just say wow! Little Kimber is getting a little of everything she needs in a man...it just so happens that it is 3 men giving it to her. Among other things, she is getting a little tenderness and kisses, a little rough and raunchy and a whole lotta alpha male!
Once again, I was surprised with the ending...and I totally felt her fear and why she felt threatened. I can't wait to see how the next book plays out!
Asylum begins where Sanctuary left off. I’m going to skim through what I gleaned about the back-story of that one. I didn’t feel that I was at a disadvantage in not reading it, but it’s always nice to know where the story begins.
Kimberlyn is a werewolf and a healer, which is a rare, powerful being who can heal the injuries of anything that lives. She is also the third in a magical circle of power within the heart of the wolf pack. When Kimmy, Logan, Andrew and Elijah accepted each other as mates, they created a powerful circle, which made the pack a force to be reckoned with. All of them are marked with an unusual five-pointed shape on their person; each point signifies a person, which means that there is still a fifth person yet to join them.
In Asylum, there is a lull in battle procedures, which gives them a chance to explore their newfound sexual power. There is a LOT of ménage type pairings in this book. The sex ranges from straight up F/M to M/F/F/M/M, with a whole host of various combinations in-between. The magic is strengthened by sex, so there is a lot of it. Elijah is not completely happy with the situation that they find themselves in, unable to resist the pull of the magic that draws them together but also unable to reconcile himself with his attraction towards the men. Due to this, he keeps sneaking Kimmy off for some straight up hetero sex, leaving divisions in the ranks because no one is completely happy with this situation. On a walk, Kimmy runs into a Vampire, Malik, demanding Sanctuary. No one within the wolf pack wants him there, because Vampires and Werewolves are enemies, but a moral code means that they cannot deny anyone seeking protection. All of the members of the circle are attracted to Malik, and Kimmy becomes convinced that the Vampire is their fifth. Taking advantage of this attraction, Malik takes drastic action to ensure his safety by binding Kimmy to him by feeding from her, the drug in his saliva creating a powerful and toxic bond. If Malik dies then so does Kimmy, which no member of the pack wants. Malik does have an ulterior motive; he wants their help to overthrow the head honcho vampire and rescue Kali, the woman who he has sworn to protect. When Kali appears Kimmy finds herself having to imagine the unimaginable, she may have to start sharing her men...
I really enjoyed this book. The characters engaged me and the storyline gripped me. It wasn’t always the easiest read, because I didn’t always agree with the characters actions. I found I actually gave a crap about what the characters did to each other, which is new! It was refreshing the way Ms Hunter wrote the dynamics of the ménage. It’s bad enough being part of a two-person relationship, I can’t imagine a five-person one! In this book they fight, they struggle for attention and they use every trick in the book to get their own way. It was refreshing to see how the dynamics of such a large ménage would work, and I loved it.
The first thought that entered my head when I read the blurb and read some of the ménage combinations, was “how the hell is that going to work”. It does beautifully, without ever being crude. The sexual scenes are written focusing on the emotions and sensations, rather than just the placing of body parts, which makes for some seriously hot chemistry. I enjoyed the majority of the scenes but there were a couple that made me uneasy (I’ll explain why later).
Malik is a douche...seriously a complete dick. Yes, he had his reasons for tying himself to Kimmy and, having lived for a long time, he doesn’t have the same morals as humans would. He offended every single one of my morals and, the fact that he became a sexual drug to Kimmy, made me feel a bit queasy. It’s an interesting take on the vampire myth!
The other men in this story are wonderful. Logan is aloof, protective and feels the need to dominate every situation. I didn’t feel I got to know Logan all that well in this book, but that felt right because he was the alpha, so remained a bit of a mystery. Andrew was the character I felt the most sorry for. He was the second in the circle, the one that was his Alpha’s lover before he had to share him. I was under no illusions that he loved them all; he just loved Logan a whole lot more. Elijah was man that I connected with the most, which is probably why some of the sex scenes were a little uncomfortable for me. He was in complete denial that he felt anything for the other men, yet they kept pushing at him to accept it by expressing himself sexually with them. He was completely in love with Kimmy, hating the fact that he shared her with the other men and willing to do anything for her. What did she do about this? She told him she wanted to watch him with the other men, knowing how uncomfortable he felt about it. I began to realise that Elijah wouldn’t accept his feelings without some nudging, but it really p**sed me off that the others in the circle seemed to have their own agenda for rushing him into it.
Kimmy is the most sexually selfish person I have ever read about in a book. The majority of the sex scenes revolve around what she wants, and, luckily, the men are generous lovers. When another woman turns up, who could be added to the mix, she was hacked off she’d have to share “her” men. It took me a while to accept her, but I finally got that this was her repayment. The healer in her refused to let her cause harm, unless threatened, and ensured that she would heal even her enemies. In that area of her life she was completely selfless, so in this area she was completely selfish...it kind of fit, but she still annoyed me! I’m not going to say much about Kali apart from I liked her...she was snarky but funny. I like that in a female character and I’m hoping, if there is another installment, we get to see a lot more of her!
Overall a very enjoyable read. It was very sexy and gripped me from start to finish. It wasn’t always comfortable but that just kept me more engrossed...well recommended
With so many bodies in the bed, how can a girl not get flustered? If I had to give this story a heat level, it would be "scorching" because you cannot help but fan yourself while reading this tasty treat.
One thing that did not change was Elijah who I thoroughly enjoyed in the previous story Sanctuary, and he did not disappoint in this one. His spitfire personality really keeps everyone on their toes, which with so many characters is not an easy feat. This fiery personality ensured his place as one of my favorite characters.
Two characters that did shock me were Andrew and Logan. They seemed like different characters. Logan is no longer the strong domineering alpha who seemed like a borderline bully. Instead, he became an understanding partner who loved and respected his partners. In the first story Andrew seemed to be as much as a leader as Logan, just not the same style. In this story he seemed too submissive and sometimes got lost amongst the stronger characters. These changes were not necessary bad changes, but they left me feeling a bit puzzled because the changes were so drastic.
Asylum also introduced two new main characters to the storyline: Malik and Kali. Malik is a strong character and purposefully vague. From beginning to end, you do not know if he is one of the good people or the bad. I'm still not sure how I feel about him and will have to continue reading the series to really say if I like him. Kali, on the other hand, I quickly fell in love with. Elijah’s wit entertained me and Kali’s just added even more excitement to the mix. In addition, her unique abilities as a Methuskein added an extra paranormal element, which I appreciated.
The sequel to Sanctuary may have some of the same characters, but took on a life of its own. Not only were some of the characters a bit disconnected from the storyline from Sanctuary, but so was some of the overall feel of the story. I got the feeling I was missing a story in between the two because so much changed. It made me wants to go back and reread the first story, just to make sure I wasn't forgetting things. It felt as if the author recognized the mistakes she originally made and corrected them in this story, but it left me a bit disconnected because of it.
The writing style of this story read very smoothly. With a story involving so many characters, I was worried I would get confused as a read. Instead, I was able to easy tell each character different personalities and keep up with the actions including in the bedroom. This is something I really commend the author on. She even incorporated small details like different nicknames from each of the main characters to make you understand which was speaking.
Still, the story was able to stand on its own and even added a little more than the first story, and for that, it was an enjoyable read.
Before I read #2 I pondered reading the #1 in the series obviously but I found via this synopsis and one other review that I had read enough of the back story. I was intrigued by the four person relationship that was moving from the first book to this one, FOUR! Most of us struggle in a two person relationship. Who decides who gets the remote? Sorry I digress. In this #2 book there gets to be a fifth person! Kimberlyn becomes attracted to a vampire and then her sexual desires develop further outside of the original pack too.
Now, I do like a bit of sex in my stories but I also like it with a bit of story too. Within a couple of pages we're leapt straight into a full on long sex scene which are written very well. The story loses pace a bit and then picks up again with another sexual act, this repeats. Now like I say I like a bit of sex but in a book of 202 pages I really want a bit more story. But the sex scenes were good and not just body upon body but more of the emotion and sensation.
Overall I did enjoy this book, the characters were interesting and despite the story losing a bit of pace in parts the author did enough to keep me reading. Should add that wasn't just the sexy parts of the book... although it helped ;-)