Monster's Mate

Prothekan Monster Pets #3

by Anne Hale, Celeste King

Only one thing keeps me from turning this world into a nightmare…
…And that’s the angel of a woman I’ve fallen in love with.

Her purity and beauty is the only thing that soothes my tortured soul.
The world fears me. It doesn’t matter if you’re a human, orc or dark elf - you shrink away in terror when I come into view.

Only Moira can keep me at bay.
And I’ll kill anyone or anything that tries to harm her.
I’ll rip them apart as they still breathe and feed them pieces of themselves with dark delight.

But that’s nothing compared to what I’ll ever do to her if she tries to leave me.
She’s mine. Forever.

Together, we will rule the land of nightmares. She by my side.

Whether she likes it or not.

Genres: Monster Romance, Fantasy, Monsters, Fantasy Romance, M F Romance, Paranormal, Romance

151 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 9, 2023

About the author

Anne Hale writes paranormal romance about dragons. All of her stories include smoldering, hot, dragons that claim their fated mates and protect them from a world that doesn’t understand shifters. Anne’s alpha male heroes protect their mates and provide for them during the day, and at night wrap their arms around them and make them forget the world. She lives in a world of magic and also writes urban fantasy. Anything to escape from her day to day life! (Source: Amazon.com)

Reviews

[kymagirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beastly monster Tanem (H) is stalking his favorite prey, dark elves, when he scents a human woman, Moira, who draw his interest. He launches a vicious attack to save Moira from being auctioned off by the dark elves and convinces her to go with him. At first, Moira only sees his deadly visage and is terrified of Tanem, but as she spends time with him, she comes to see that he’ll do anything for her. Things heat up between the two but the struggle to find a safe place to be together due to their continued pursuit by dark elves and humans, unable to find a place that will accept them both and let them be free to love one another. Tanem is so sweetly protective of Moira and will do anything to keep her safe (sob). Ultra-hot and steamy monster-human romance with lots of action and violence.

[Chrissy Loves Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strong Uber protective alpha hero. I hate everyone except you Trope.
Moira is kidnapped from her village and being sold into slavery by dark elves and she's rescued by Tanem a dark mysterious and scary woodland monster. Once Tanem returns her to her village she's ostracized by the village inhabitants. Moira begins to build a bind and an unlikely friendship/relationship with the gentle giant.
The love and caring that develops between these two characters as they struggle against society's norms to stay together with both gut wrenching and heartwarming.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[JackaayReadsallday · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite book of Celeste’s so far. I love that Tanem is a whole @ss monster that makes everyone run for the hills. I love the quick growth of his relationship with Moira and the spicy scenes were great! Fantastic monster love story 💖

[Becky Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monster's Mate by Celeste King and Anne Hale is in the Protheka world. Not sure what to think. Tanem was super scary, brutal and eats dark elves . 😲 Moira was braver than I could ever be. However it was a love story with a HEA. Kudos!

[IsaChimeraDragWol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Translation with Google Translate:

I really like the story a lot. And I like the cover.

One thing irritates me: Why do the tentacles mentioned in the book look like wings on the cover? Is it wanted like that? Or am I misinterpreting the cover?

Anyway, the story was very interesting, exciting and charming. Getting to know each other was bumpy at first, but that passed quickly. Tanem turns out to be a wonderful friend for Moira. And Moira as a smart woman, even if you don't necessarily notice it at first.

Smut/Spice doesn't come around very often and tends to be quite simple in design, which allowed the feelings to come out better. I think it's great!

From beginning to end it was exciting, soulful and heartfelt. Funny partly too. Anyway, I love Tanem very much. He is a wonderful companion. And they both make an even better couple.


Original language: German

Ich mag die Geschichte wirklich sehr. Das Cover finde ich schön.

Eines irritiert mich: Warum sehen die im Buch genannten Tentakel auf dem Cover wie Flügel aus? Ist das so gewollt? Oder interpretiere ich das Cover falsch?

Die Geschichte war jedenfalls sehr interessant, spannend und liebreizend. Das Kennenlernen war am Anfang holprig, aber das verging schnell. Tanem stellt sich als wundervoller Freund für Moira heraus. Und Moira als kluge Frau, auch wenn man das am Anfang nicht unbedingt merkt.

Smut/Spice kommt nicht oft vor und ist eher recht einfach gestaltet, wodurch die Gefühle besser zum Vorschein kamen. Finde ich sehr toll!

Von Anfang bis Ende war es spannend, gefühlvoll und herzlich. Witzig zum Teil auch. Ich liebe Tanem jedenfalls sehr. Er ist ein wundervoller Gefährte. Und beide geben eine noch schöneres Paar ab.

[Karen Nastasio · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book 1 in a new series and i loved it and although it takes a while for our main couple to get to there HEA but it was totally worth it. Moira is a human thats to be auctioned off and while on the stage she is going crazy and her scent is what brings the monster to the auction and he buys her but she is so scared and takes off running away from him. Tandem is a monster that is feared amongst everyone on Protheka and many want him dead but now he picks up a scent that is pulling him to the Auction Stage where he finds the source of the scent and its a human female that he must protect and so he buys her but when she see’s him she is scared and runs away from him but gives chase and saves her a few times but she still runs from him. Moira finally makes it to her old home and its not the same and they treat her badly and it gets out of hand and when Tane saves her again she finally realizes that her life is with him and they leave but on the road they learn about each other and fall in love along the way but there are enemies that try and stop them but they eventually get there HEA in the end.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Laura Moylan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tanem has lived for centuries and is considered monstrous in appearance. However, he is drawn to a human girl due to her scent while she is throwing a tantrum on an auction stage. Moira is that girl. Tanem saves her but she runs because he looks like a monster, so he keeps saving her, until she stays with him. She returns to her old life and finds it very different than before. She is treated like dirt, and Tanem is forced to save her again. She finally returns the favor and they leave. Their journey is rife with dangers and they learn about it each other. It is sweet and cute how they act towards each other. Finally, they get together. However, he decides that they will always be on the run. *rolls eyes* Yeah, he leaves her but, well, you’ll see! Read the book! I can’t wait for the next book. It was a great read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nina Diab · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this book. It's always a thrill to see a new Prothekan series. Great world building. I really liked Tanem and Moira. I was fascinated with Tanem from the start. I loved his personality. It didn't take long for him to win me over. Moira is a fighter. She just wants to be free and return to her village. Tanem is not the monster she initially believed him to be based on his appearance. But the village she returned to is not the same as when she left. This story is fast paced and I was completely hooked. This is definitely one of my favorite of Celeste's books. I can't wait for the next book! 5 stars.

[SiriRainbow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Harlenkýnka na téma krásky a zvíře.
Ona je k prodeji na aukci, když se tam náhle objeví monstrum, které ji ukradne. Tím ji zachrání, čemuž je zpočátku těžké uvěřit. Postupně v sobě najdou zalíbení a dojde na intimnosti. Po pokusu opustit ji, protože monstrum má vždy v patách lovce, což je nebezpečný život, se k sobě vrátí, protože bez sebe žít nedokáží.
Anotace je přemrštěná, neb téma, kdyby jej ona chtěla opustit (což by jí údajně nedaroval) zde vůbec není.
Nenáročné, plynulé, oddechové čtení.

[Erin OBrien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having read from several different series of Celeste King, I found the premise of Monster’s Mate intriguing. What does this monster look like? What is he? How will Moira find him attractive?
I didn’t really feel like we got a good description of Tanem or a definitive answer as to what he is. Just that he’s a monster with tentacles coming out of his back, fangs and, claws.
I did really like Tanem and Moira. It was such a sweet story. Tanem is so clueless about feelings that it’s really endearing.
4 stars!!!

[Jasmine Love · Rating 5 out of 5]

so amazing and heartwarming

Their love is so unorthodox but pure in itself. I’ve always believed that love can conquer all and we should be able to love who we want. This was a prime example that love can be found in the strangest places… I wanted more in their story but overall I was satisfied!

[Marianna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had some what high hopes for this... but really, I couldn't get through it. I was confused, and I just read really strange, way too fast for me it was like this author wanted so many plot points, but I didn't know how to smoothly make them happen, so they just made it happen with no lead up to it.

[Montgomerie-Anne Hawkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

love the book but….

I every now and the. Read a book like this where one the the lead character is immortal and then other one isn’t and there is no way to change that. I always feel happy when the immortal finds love and happiness, but also sadness as the mortal one will age and eventually die leaving the immortal alone. So it’s a bitter sweet ending.

[Lynn Hunt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Racist monsters, who would of thought it?

I would hope it would vanish in other worlds / dimensions, but I doubt it. It's a pie-in-the-sky dream.
We can dream and hope we humans get better of accepting things outside their comfort zone.

[Sue Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Monster's pet by Celeste King.
Only one thing keeps me from turning this world into a nightmare…
…And that’s the angel of a woman I’ve fallen in love with.
I really enjoyed this book. I liked Penny and Laiken story. I loved the cover. 5*.

[Scooby2 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved Tanem (1.5 stars for him) but couldn't stand Moira, kept wishing he would find someone else. There were too many TSTL moments.

[alyssa · Rating 3 out of 5]

not bad, the mc's are okay but it felt like i was reading cliff notes not a whole story. a tad boring at times.

[LizKat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cover was the best part of the book.

The writing style wasn't for me, I found it very choppy and really didn't care for the FMC. I didn't get very far before I DNF.

[Colleen Downey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not vibe with this book and had to give up reading it . I have 3 starts because I don't think it's written badly or that the story is not good It just did not work for me currently.

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

The ideas are there, it’s the writing and the pace that ruin it. The book moves way too fast and the writing starts out okay but seems to worsen with every page.

[Helena · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story was good but the writing was pretty dull / flat and I wish it had more spice 😭

[shei · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tanem te amo pero era necesario????

[María · Rating 3 out of 5]

Regular

[Domino · Rating 3 out of 5]

KINDLE UNLIMITED

DNF-

I stopped reading on page 66. The conversations were stilted with a lot of repetition. The one positive is the fantastic cover!

[Lulu [at] Reckless Reading · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw Monster’s Mate by Anne Hale and Celeste King randomly while browsing for my next read and thought you know what? Why not! Why not pick this up since I typically need a no thought predictable fun book to read as a palate cleanser between ‘heavier’ things. I still want to get into monster romances despite that wild disappointment that was Honeysuckles by January Rayne and looking at the cover, I figured okay this’ll do! I picked up the audiobook and got straight to it. Unfortunately “it” was continued disappointment.

First, the superficial. The narrators were good. I enjoyed their voices and they did as good as they could given the source material. They’re both narrators I think I’ll keep in mind in the future when deciding between written and spoken. That was the superficial positive. Now, the superficial negative. The monster in this romance? Looks absolutely NOTHING like the cover. There’s no wings. There’s no skull head. I don’t even think there were horns. It sounded like it was just a large man? with claws and shadow tentacles that come out when angry. I was WILDLY disappointed. I get not having the covers match exactly the protagonists in a book, but I think when you’re selling yourself as a monster romance and you’re showing a monster on the cover, having that monster look nothing like what he is in the story is a bait and switch. I felt cheated.

Now, let’s get into my deeper issues with the book. Moira is taken from her village and meant to be sold into slavery (though in retrospect, I’m a little confused because she mentioned having a dark elf master previously so like what happened? did she have a master AND work in her human village?). Monster Tanem is attracted to her scent but can’t understand why. He saves her and takes her back to her human village as she asked. While traveling back to that human village, Tanem regularly hunts and feeds Moira. They spend three days apart while she’s at her village before Tanem comes to visit. In those three days, she is eating smaller portions than usual because of reasons. Tanem sees her and is immediately concerned due to her weight loss. She also makes a fuss about how she doesn’t know how long she’ll survive and weight loss. I’m sorry what? She is eating smaller portions for three days and suddenly she’s visibly frail and withering? Have the authors never know people that fast? It’s so wildly ridiculous it completely took me out of the story and made me run ranting to a friend and fellow monstermance lover about the ludicrousness. After that, I simply couldn’t take anything else seriously. Moira wants to stay where she isn’t wanted. Tanem agrees because he’ll do whatever she wants. People keep trying to kill them (despite him supposed to be so strong and great?) Eventually they find their own way. Happily ever after. The plot just didn’t make a lot of sense and seemed to be so loosely held together that things like looking frail after three days of portion control is enough to knock it down. The spice? I mean, it was there but didn’t feel like anything much. It didn’t feel worthy of the monstermance genre.

Rating Monster’s Mate by Anne Hale and Celeste King at 1.5 stars (rounded up to 2 on GoodReads) is honestly better than I would other. I would not recommend this but I would recommend giving the narrators a listen. I am sure there has to be some good monster romance out there and maybe one day I will find it but it was not this day and it was not Monster’s Mate.

first reviewed at

[Sibilor · Rating 1 out of 5]

Strange and, at times, confusing. I don't connect with the characters.