As the leader of the Blackpaw werewolf pack, Nick Jenner had spent years protecting his people from dark outside forces. When the victim of a feral drifter turns up on Blackpaw territory, he thinks nothing of bringing her home while her attacker is hunted down and destroyed. But Jenner soon finds that nothing about his alluring new houseguest is what it seems.
Mia D'Alessandro, a dark beauty with abilities she would rather forget, was mortified to find herself the victim of a man she thought she could trust. As the full moon approaches, his bite will unleash an inner wolf that can destroy her unless she bonds with a pack. But the darkness now stalking her threatens to destroy far more, including her strong, silent guardian.
Kendra Leigh Castle is the author of numerous paranormal romances, including the MacInnes Werewolves trilogy, the RITA award-nominated Renegade Angel, the Dark Dynasties series, and the Hearts of the Fallen series. 2014 will see the release of her first contemporary romance, For the Longest Time, which will be the first in her Harvest Cove series. Kendra lives in Maryland with her husband, children, two Newfs, and one obnoxious cat.
The plot in Wolf's Surrender follows the Nocturne formula: he's got issues, she's got a secret, her secret ties into his issues, so you know it's leading up to the moment when the truth is going to cause a problem - but I don't mind that, after all something needs to make the starring pair work for that HEA.
Wolf's Surrender was a quick read but I do enjoy Castle's stories. And it really helped that I liked both of the leading characters a lot: Mia, a woman who's romantic weekend goes oh so wrong when her boyfriend turns out to be a psycho werewolf who bites her and intends to kill her and Nick, a protector for his pack, who tries to avoid entanglements of the female variety, but just can't help being drawn to the woman who doesn't fully freak out about the existence of the supernatural.
Heroes are easy for me to love, so it is not hard to love Nick despite his issues, but I really like Mia too. She is used to taking care of herself, so I liked how she pushes for the truth about what the after effects of a werewolf attack mean to her and how she is determined to make her own choices when others are trying to decide her future for her.
My only real nit with the story is near the wrap up, Nick is a man of few worlds up until the very end when he gets pretty darn talky while cementing the HEA and that felt just a bit off to me. But still that was just a nit and I still enjoyed the story and wouldn't mind seeing a bit more from this world - there are a couple alpha males in the supporting cast who would make good leading men.
Mia D'Alessandro has a lineage and abilities that she has spent her life trying to keep under wraps. But her blood is known to a feral werewolf posing as her boyfriend, who then tries to sacrifice her to gain power.
Nick Jenner's Blackpaw werewolf pack rescues Mia from the feral werewolf, and Jenner takes her to his home to heal. A unique, magical pull develops between the two. But Jenner has been burned before, and refuses to become involved with Mia. Even though she must be initiated into a pack before the full moon or she will become feral. And initiation involves...you guessed it.
Keeping her secret is second nature to Mia. But Jenner had to kill his former girlfriend over a similar situation. What will happen when Jenner learns the truth about Mia? And how can he keep her safe from the feral ex-boyfriend when she places herself in danger? And will someone from the rival pack initiate her, since he refuses to?
The Wolf's Surrender is an enjoyable read. You'll like the characters of Mia and Jenner. Their plight will pull at your heartstrings and maybe even cause a few tears. The plot is straightforward, with just enough suspense to keep you turning the pages quickly to see what's going to happen next.
I enjoyed the book a lot. I liked the whole pack/mate setup. I thought Mia and Jenner had great chemistry even if she did fawn over him like a lovesick teen at times. I also wished we got to know more about the Shadowkin. We never really got to know exactly what they were. Were they demons? Vampires?
Better than average nocturne. Mia & Nick were both likable and the world building was interesting. There were some secondary characters that I can see taking center stage and enough of the world left to explore that I hope we see stories in this setting.
Ca commence par une poursuite où l’on découvre Mia qui coure dans la forêt pour échapper a son petit ami qui l’a mordu et veut sa mort.
Elle ne sait pas que c’est un Loup-garou et que sa transformation sera effective à la prochaine pleine lune.
Ça, elle va l’apprendre de Nick Jenner venu la secourir.
Elle se sent attirée par lui et lui aussi, mais il refuse d’éprouver à nouveau des sentiments pour une femme et la repousse, ce qui crée quelques malentendus.
Jusqu’à ce que Jeff le petit ami de Mia soit arrêter, elle rester sous la protection de Jenner ce Loup-garou solitaire.
Un livre bien sympa, de l’action assez souvent ce qui fait que l’on ne s’ennuie pas. Mia a un sacré caractère et ne se laisse pas faire par tous ces loups garou qui voudrait la voir s’unir rapidement pour ne pas qu’elle devienne un loup sauvage.
Il manque juste un peu d’explications sur les Ombres, car on ne comprend pas trop qui elles sont et ce qu’elles veulent.
J’ai lu ce livre dimanche et il m’a bien changé les idées.
Setting: Northern Pennsylvania: town – Ferry’s Hollow; Nick’s home in the woods; the woods;
Theme: accepting/embracing ones dark side; releasing the past to embrace the future; falling in love; defeating evil;
Characters: Mia D’Alessandro: nerdy; pretty; father half dark fae, mother with some light fae; raised by intolerant grandmother who constantly reminded her that her dark side will destroy; she pushes her magic down; attracted to needy men; came to Ferry’s Hollow with a man she has been dating for some months – a charming, yet moody, man; they go out for a walk in the moonlight, and he starts to change - part man, part wolf, and he bites her, and chases her – threatening with words that suggest she is part of a ceremony, that will be complete when he rapes her… but wolves appear, he disappears – and…
Grandmother Ada’s voice, still in her head – reminding her she is dark and evil; Jeff Gaines: of a wealthy, were family; never measured up; joined the Silverback pack, challenged the alpha, lost, and the alpha showed mercy, and allowed him to live, as long as he never showed himself again; has always felt the calling, acceptance, and ‘love’ of the dark – of the shadowkin; they direct him to Mia, and her dark fae blood, who as a faewolf, her blood would open a portal allowing the Shadowkin to take corporeal form in this world - so he goes after her; he starts the conversion with a bite, but being in Blackpaw country, he runs when the wolves locate them;
Nick Jenner: Blackpaw pack Lunari; shares the alpha’s power, the enforcer, the fighter; he called in when what they assume is a rogue wolf bit an innocent; Mia seems in shock, surprised when notices healing, and seems to trust him, so he takes her to his house …
Tess: 10 years ago, after Nick turned were, he thought she was his mate – he loved her, but she was heeding the call of the Shadowkin; ultimately, Nick had to kill her, as she was enticing weak humans into the woods to be devoured by the Shadowkin; he decided he will never love again
Various pack members: fighters, friends, lovers,
Jayson Bane: Alpha; powerful; talkative; tough;
Kenyon Chase: Silverback; wants to convert Mia, and possibly mate; courts her as best he can with Jenner around; good fighter;
Shadowkin: enemy of the weres, who fight them nightly; shadowy/smokey half creatures that prey on people’s weaknesses – killing them, to energize them;
Murdock: a more solid, influential shadowkin – he is influencing Jeff, trying to open a portal for his kind to come through and take over this plane of existence;
Summary: There is a week until the full moon – and Mia’s first change; if she is not taken into a pack (via sex), she would be feral – and she fights for, and Nick fights for her right to chose who will ‘initiate’ her (the Silverbacks want to take responsibility for her – and his alpha is for ‘throwing’ her to them)… plus Nick wants her for herself;
Nick’s words are stay away – but his actions are contrary – he fixes her breakfast – he kisses her; he answers her questions – however reluctantly; her one night with him stretches to two – and when the Silverbacks show interest in her, he reacts and ‘keeps’ her longer; she gets him to talk; but she isn’t sure how to tell him of her nature, her magic; but she begins to embrace her magic, accept it as the weres accept their magic… but when she tries to use her magic to kill the Shadowkin, and he sees her magic, he feels betrayed…
,Nick confronts her in town, in front of his alpha; she tries to explain, she tries to apologize – he is angry, but when she is going to stay with the alpha, he decides to take her home, to have his say and to maybe… but jeff is there with his goons, he rams his truck, and turns over the truck – she believes he is dead, and doesn’t have the strength to fight him…jeff is taking her to her death and final ceremony to open the portal…
But Nick wakes up, struggles out, realizes he cannot live without Mia - and gathers the pack to track them… he tries to send her a mental message to hold on, he’s coming…
And as the ceremony starts, Murdock places a force field around him and Mia… Nick tries to reach Mia – can’t; he reaches out to her mentally – tells her to hold on, he loves her… and when she sends back the message she loves him back, a crack in the force field
Memorable scenes: Ferry’s Hollow smelled like home;
… the hot snap of connection where their skin touched. It still seemed wrong, to feel such a thing on a night like this, but Mia had no strength left to fight it. His fingers closed gently around her own, and again she felt those threads between the two of them, tightening and pulling them closer.”
“…a breathy exhalation of pleasure that had his mind immediately racing for the gutter. He was pretty sure that after he got her carried into the house and tucked into bed, his mind was going to stay in that gutter for the night and roll around for a while.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Un Nocturne bien écrit avec des personnages intéressants et une plume passionnante.
La règle des loups commence par une poursuite : Mia est pourchassée dans une forêt par son petit-ami Jeff, qui après l'avoir mordue, tente de la tuer. Ce qu'elle ignore encore c'est qu'il est un loup-garou et que sa morsure provoquera, à la prochaine pleine lune, sa transformation. Secourue par des hommes qui ont entendu son cri, elle ne se doute pas que sa vie va complètement changer. Lorsque Nick Jenner, le lunari de la meute, la rencontre, il est troublé par la jeune femme et par les sentiments qu'elle déclenche en lui, des sentiments qu'il se refuse d'éprouver à nouveau. Chargé de sa protection, il va devoir cohabiter avec elle le temps que Jeff soit arrêté et surtout ne pas céder à son attirance pour la jeune femme.
Kendra Leigh Castle offre une histoire de loups-garous bien construite et intéressante, même si elle ne révolutionne pas le genre. Certains points, notamment sur les Ombres, auraient eu besoin d'être un peu plus développés, et plus tôt dans le récit, mais cela ne gêne pas trop à la compréhension globale de l'histoire. Les personnages, même s'ils répondent aux critères du genre (la romance paranormale), sont bons et on a très envie de découvrir plus en détail les autres membres de la meute des Blackpaw. La romance est assez classique mais elle reste mignonne et remplit bien son office.
Au final, on passe un très bon moment de lecture avec La règle des loups avec des personnages intéressants et une histoire bien écrite. Espérons que nous aurons la chance de voir d'autres titres de l'auteur publiés chez Harlequin.
Paranormal romance between a gruff, guarded werewolf warrior and the victim of a rogue werewolf he's sent out to retrieve.
This is a textbook example of Nocturne paranormal romances in general. Noble, handsome werewolf hero with issues, stunning, desirable, not too spineless, damsel in distress - instant attraction. Insane villain and a nice but honourable rival wolf for the heroine's affections.
I liked how this wasn't a straight supernatural creature/human romance. Our heroine has fay blood which gives her a little extra sparkle and was a nice bonus.
The attraction between the protagonists was instant and initially unwanted. The hero fights it, but caves in very quickly because when it's right its right. The author tries to justify the speed of the romance claiming that courtships are accelerated when between werewolves, as they just 'know'. I went with it for the sake of the book, but I'm not totally convinced by that excuse:
Our heroine is on a romantic weekend with the villain before he tries to sacrifice her and she gets rescued by the hero - their courtship lasts less than a month (she has to be mated before the next full moon for the story to work) - it's a bit whirlwind and although this tries very hard to get over that it doesn't for me quite succeed.
Still, much here to enjoy: The pace was good, story engaging, characters sympathetic but it's fairly unoriginal and there's not much here that isn't predictable. I've read better but I've also read a hell of a lot worse!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Franchement au début je me suis juste dit que ce livre était mignon; une version édulcorée et plus soft de La meute du Phénix donc ça passait bof quoi. Mais comme d'hab la fin m'a vite fait déchanté. L’héroïne parle pendant tout le roman de
Du coup cette fin m'a tellement soûlé, parce que la nana avait un vrai potentiel et une histoire qui aurait mérité d'être développé, que je ne peux que voir les défauts que j'ai tenté d'oublier au début en pensant que cette histoire allait tenir la route. Je suis déçue et si j'étais tout a fait honnête je mettrais un 1/5 bien sentie, mais bon, c'était une lecture prenante et surtout courte, ça fait que je peux passer vite fait à autre chose, thanks god d'ailleurs !
I loved this book! Despite having school work that desperately needed doing, I started the book and read a few chapters before bed and then woke up in the morning and had to continue reading until I was done. I love the characters and despite being in a supernatural setting, it is still set in a relate-able experience personality wise. I think we would all want our own Nick Jenner on our side, especially after reading this book. Mia is thrust into a situation that while it is mostly new, she knew bits and pieces due to her partly being already supernatural but having that part of her always being repressed and shunned, but didn't realize how much of it was actually true. If you are into supernatural and/or Harlequin novels, this is definitely one that needs to be on your list of ones to read!
This one didn't work for me. I had a hard time believing that after being bitten and almost killed that Mia would be so calm, accept werewolves and real and want to know how to get on with her life. I also didn't really buy into the instant attraction between Jenner and Mia. I am slightly interested in what the darkness is in Mia and Jeff was after her blood and what happened to Jenner so that he became a wolf, but not enough to keep reading, as I was bored and gave up around page 60. In the end this one just wasn't for me.
I loved this book. I read it in a couple of days. I had to read it at bedtime because work and other stuff kept getting in the way.
The book was fast-paced and full of action and adventure. Mia was Unseelie bitten by a feral werewolf. She is about to become something different a faewolf and the key to open a portal for the Shadowkin. Nick Jenner is the Lunari for the Blackpaw Pack. His job for the pack is protector and Shadowkin hunter. He helps Mia come to terms with her knew life while trying to distance himself from his feelings towards Mia. Like it or not Mia is his true mate.
This booik was okay. I thought there would be more action from the description. I also felt the writing was a bit choppy at times. The author even contradicted herself from changing the heroine from a blonde to a dark-haired woman in the space of a few chapters. Would have thought that the editors would have caught that.
Strong opening chapters and decent world-building. I really liked Mia, the main character. She was quiet, but not timid or weak. Quibble: I wanted to know more about how Mia's magic worked beyond 'glowing'. I found the Kenyon/suitor/jealousy subplot annoying.
je m'y attendait ça casse du boudin je me suis dit peut être un bon psychopathe dans le livre ca devrai passé pas mais non une vrai lavette celui là. Donc sans grosse surprise je suis pas déçu vue que je m'y attendait pas d'intrigue rien donc good bye
Vraiment, sans plus... Un peu tordu le fait qu'il faille absolument "s'accoupler" pour faire partie de la meute d'ailleurs... Enfin bon, ça se lit facilement et ça fait passer le temps dans les trajets mais rien de bien folichon !