Primal

Prey Drive #1

by Kayleigh King

PRIMAL THE PREY DRIVE SERIES, BOOK I

Fated Two characters who are destined to be together.
But what happened when you’re rejected by your fated mate?

(Official Cover + Blurb Reveal Coming Soon)

What to

M/F Wolf ShiftersRejected Fated MateOmegaverse Structure (Alpha, Beta & Omegas)Heats, Ruts & NestingHe's technically betrothed to someone elseHEA guaranteed

Genres: Omegaverse, Fantasy, Shapeshifters, Romance, Romantasy, Paranormal, Slow Burn

394 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 4, 2025

About the author

USA Today Bestselling author Kayleigh King is a writer of contemporary and paranormal romance. She creates love stories that will stick with you, almost like they’re haunting you.

She’s a Diet Coke and cold brew addict, sharing music is her love language, and she seriously lacks a filter. Anything she thinks, she usually says. And if she doesn’t say it, her facial expressions will say it for her. Currently residing in Denver Colorado, you’ll never find her on a snowboard since she avoids the snow like the plague.

Want to chat about books, music, or life in general? Make sure you join her Facebook reader group and follow her on Instagram. Her DMs are always open to her readers.

Reviews

[Kursed Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Despite her banishment eight years prior, Noa finds the strength and courage to return to her former pack land to fulfill her mother’s last wish.

Stepping into Fallamhain Pack territory opens a Pandora’s Box of secrets Noa didn’t know existed. Before she knows it, she’s thrust into, what feels like, an alternate reality.

Whew… This was my first omegaverse (I think) and to say I was engrossed would be an understatement. Noa’s pain was palpable, Ren’s sense of duty a crushing weight. All these big feelings were wrapped in a big ‘ol package of WTF is happening and who’s behind all the fuckery. I’m so glad Kayleigh promised not to keep us waiting long for Raw because I need more!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Burn: 🔥
Darkness: 🩶
Heat: 🌶️
Range of Emotions: 😢😮🤬😭😱
Ending: 🧗🏻‍♀️ {Cliffy}
POV: 👫🏻 {Dual}

🗄️ Genre: Contemporary Romance
🗂️ Subgenre(s): Fantasy, Omegaverse, Suspense

✨ Tropes: Family Saga, Fated/Rejected Mate
 
💫 Microtropes: Alphahole, MINE!, Shifters, Virgin MMC/FMC

💋 Kinks: Biting/Marking, Praise

⚠️ Warning: The angst in this slow-burn will edge you to the point of combustion!

🚩 Safety Squad: Trafficking (Not MC’s), Unalìvíng, Vìolençė (All Off-Page), and other potentially triggering elements. If you have any hesitation, check the warnings before diving in. Otherwise, blind is best!!

📣 Type: Primal is the first book in the Prey Drive duet and and ends on a cliffhanger. This series must be read in order.

🛑 Be Advised: My Goodreads shelves are … explicit in both senses. As such, they could be considered spoiler-y.

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 ⭐️

Wolves + Witches
Fated mates + Rejected bonds
He’s betrothed to another
Multiple POV
ANGST + Emotional damage

The vibe of this genuinely brought me back to my angsty teen twilight era 🤎🐺🔥

I’m a big time hoe for wolf shifters 😏 HOWEVER this book was not meant to be a love story. Ren, the Alpha MC will piss you off. I hated him for basically most of this, but regardless we do love a flawed man and I’m excited for his redemption- I want him to GROVEL at her feet

70% of this book was actually HEARTBREAKING but the pieces left are hopeful and I’m invested in Ren & Noa’s story. Book 2 is out soon and I’ll def read it!! Maybe I wished for a bit more tho?? The plot has huge potential but it needed to be refined a bit more. Some parts dragged & there was too much internal monologue from our MCs that drove me crazy, so I can’t give 4 full stars, but I enjoyed this overall !!!

[Shannon Farley · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶️

How is no one talking about this! I have been trying to find a good werewolf book for a while and this definitely delivered! This is so under hyped!

Beautiful, emotional writing all the way though. I loved how well the werewolf lore was written in this. The tension and the romance was off the charts.🔥 And oh man the trauma Kayleigh put us through was heartbreaking! 💔 This was definitely more romance forward, but it did have an interesting plot as well. All the characters in this were also really well done.

It could have had a-little more action/ adventure and the ending left off on a cliffhanger that seemed a-little out of the blue but all around such a great read! If you love romantic depth you will love this! Look forward to book 2!

[Madellen Cunningham · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF @43%
Waaay too much internal monologging.

[Alicia | kindleandmagic · Rating 4 out of 5]

“𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙪𝙥 𝙨𝙤𝙗 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮. 𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙧𝙤𝙩. 𝘼 𝙨𝙡𝙤𝙬 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙮.”

Primal by Kayleigh King
4⭐️ | 1.75🌶️

-wolf shifters
-rejected mate
-he’s engaged
-mutual pining
-slow burn
-secrets & mystery
-dual POV

This was exactly what I expected. It was agonizing, raw, emotional, angsty, a torture of its own kind. But so beautifully written. Kayleigh doesn’t shy away from the depth of grief and loss and the pain of rejection.

“𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙤, 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙝𝙤𝙥𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡—𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙞𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙛𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡—𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙤𝙤, 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙬𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙝𝙚𝙧.”

Noa’s life is rotting away as she’s going through the absolute hell and her lowest low. Though she doesn’t let it harden her. She still cares and protects those around her with what very little energy she has. But she’s not the strong fmc who channels her rage and has an immediate comeback story, and I appreciate that realism.

“𝙄𝙩’𝙨 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖 𝙥𝙪𝙣𝙘𝙝 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝘿𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙞𝙛 𝙞𝙩 𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙩𝙨.”

And while I’m mad at Rennick for his choices, I can see the reasoning behind his decision and the sacrifice he thought he was making. It’s easier to forgive him once he understands and sets out to make things right again.

“𝙁𝙤𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙄 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧. 𝙄 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙫𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙩-𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙬𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙬𝙖𝙮. 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙙𝙪𝙩𝙮 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙮.”

And I think that’s what truly makes this so beautiful though, is the hope. That small, fragile thread of hope. Hope is what keeps that spark going, keeps Noa’s feet forward, to fight, to live.

“𝙄 𝙛𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙗𝙮 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙄’𝙢 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙤𝙬, 𝙉𝙤𝙖. 𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙮, 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙧, 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙨 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙢𝙚.”

I’m scared for what’s to come after that ending because I can’t experience any more grief after that, but I’m excited to get to the peak or the finish line and know it was worth it haha. So I need book 2 soon please.

“𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙪𝙢𝙖, 𝙤𝙛 𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙙𝙚𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙚, 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝. 𝙄𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙖 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣’𝙩 𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙥𝙞𝙨𝙩. 𝙄𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤𝙣’𝙩 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙧𝙞𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙩, 𝙤𝙧 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙞𝙩, 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙮. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙣𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙜𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙡𝙮 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙤 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙣𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙡.”

[Rochelle ♡]

────────────────────

˖⁺‧₊♡ pre-read review ⋙
moving away from fantasy romance more with some paranormal romance. i love wolf shifter romance, but find it difficult to find one that works well. this book has what i want—alpha and omega dynamics, heats, knots, rutting and nesting 👀🥵

follow me on: instagram

[readbydj 🧺 · Rating 3 out of 5]

this hit the angsty goodness i really needed.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite books this year! It was so easy to read, the world is amazing the characters are amazing. I’m obsessed

[Bookishness · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was so much more than I expected. I am already a huge fan of Kayleighs writing, but this exceeded all expectations. Primal tore out my heart and chewed it up but.. I am on my knees ready to beg for more.

The slow burn was so SO good. This had the twisty plot, the depth and emotion but it was all balanced perfectly with humour. I didnt know whether I wanted go laugh or cry so a majority of the time it was a mix of both. I hung on every word. Continuously I tried to guess which direction this would go, but kept having the carpet pulled from beneath me.

Rennick is an Alpha doing his best to keep his Omegas and pack safe. The big doofus doesnt always make the right decision, but we all make mistakes, right!?

Noa, our exiled latent wolf. This woman has a heart of gold. Watching it shatter hurt like a.. but the strength she showed was awe-inspiring. Even broken she still saw the good.

The side characters bought so much to this. The dynamics , their loyalty. I loved them. This is a must read if you like OmegaVerse and fated mates. I cannot wait to see how this story unravels.

[Ms. Amnah · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Primal" by Kayleigh King has a captivating premise, especially with the concept of a rejected mate, which is an interesting and emotionally charged twist on typical paranormal romance tropes. The idea of a mate bond being denied adds layers of conflict and tension, making it an intriguing foundation for the story. However, while the plot held promise, the execution left something to be desired. The pacing felt a bit off, and I found myself hoping for more depth, especially when it came to the emotional payoff. I was really hoping for some intense groveling from the characters, but unfortunately, that element was missing. The story felt like it could have been wrapped up in one book, as the second installment doesn't seem to add much more to the narrative, though I'll still be curious to see where it goes. Overall, it had potential, but I felt it didn’t fully live up to what it could have been. I’ll still keep an eye out for the second book, hoping for a more satisfying development.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

my first omegaverse & wolf shifter romance 😮‍💨

thank you to my girl, leah, for introducing me to this book. i couldn't believe that i had waited so long to get into books like this.

Noa knows she hasn't belonged in the world she was born into for a long time. her wolf never showed up for her even when she needed her most. she's exiled, latent, and alone in the world after her mother passes away. and now that she's on her own, secrets are starting to bubble to the surface. but when she has to return to the land where her old pack lives, she runs into Rennick. he's the alpha now, and he's working to save the omegas that are going missing from his pack. but that means hurting people around him.

my heart was HURTING throughout this book. i had been looking for the angst, and kayleigh absolutely delivered. the slow burn was SO SLOW and each characters personalities popped out. i know some people said that it was incredibly slow, but i honestly felt that the slowness built the angst and made my heart race because i was CONSTANTLY trying to figure out what would happen next.

i literally cannot wait for the next book. i'm already counting down

[F]

DNF at 20%, page 70.
Could not get past the writing and flow of the book. There would be one sentence of dialogue, then followed by 1 to 2 long paragraphs of introspection or background info. Then another sentence of dialogue followed by 1 to 2 long paragraphs of introspection. Making one scene or conversation last forever. By the time the next character talks I've already forgotten what the question or previous comment was because there was so much internal dialogue going on about something else.

[Ceacea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Genre: Paranormal Romance
⭐️ 3.75/5
🌶 1.5/5
🧠 4/10
🎵 The Night We Met by Lord Huron
Noteworthy: Wolf shifters and witches. Book 1 of an incomplete duology. Dark themes but nothing graphic on page. Ends on a major cliffhanger. Available on KU.

I'm going to wait until I read book 2 to give a final judgment on this book. I liked what I read here, but there are so many plot holes that I imagine will be filled once we are given answers in the final installment of this story. I really wish this was just a larger standalone because we got a very romance heavy part of the story while saving any major plot or action for book 2. What we did get gave us a good sense of who these characters are, so that was nice. I also think it's set up really well for a banger 2nd book.

Just a heads up that, yes, this is a very heavy book. The topics are heavy, the emotions on both sides are heavy, and you can just tell there is more pain to come. This is very high angst so beware! I will definitely be reading book 2.

[iremucka · Rating 2 out of 5]

Normalde 1 yıldız ama harika bir playlisti var (yeni takıntım)
Oats in the water' ı Kim eklediyse ellerinden öpüyorum, witcher 3 trailer song oldugunda az dinlememiştik, burada 10. yılı kutlu olsunnn

Kadın erkek arasındaki fark çok fazla, bir sürü gizem var hiçbiri çözülmedi, başladığımız gibi bitirdik, ama adamın köpek gibi sürünmesi lazım 2. kitapta (normal olan)
Onun için okurum 2 ' yi de..
Rejected mat trope çok seviyorum ama yazar burda biraz abartmış olmamış..
Beklediğimi bulamadım.

Ama playlist çok güzel dağlarda bir çiftlikteymiş gibi hissettirdi..

Hearing Damage ile başlayıp follow you down to the oak tree ile bitiyor, emek var emekkkk

[Taylor Krasinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 ⭐️ 1 🌶️

The pining. The raw emotions. The depth… I am emotionally exhausted from this read, in the best possible way.

There’s something wrong with me when a book can make me ugly cry at 1:56 AM from rejection, but I still give it a glowing review! When I tell you this leading duo pulls you into your feels, I’m not kidding. This story is built on rejection, but reading how Noa pushes through- that’s a type of strength I always want from my lead females! More glowing reviews to come, but for now- this author knocked this book out of the park and I’m DESPERATE FOR THE SEQUAL !!!

[Ebc_readsmut · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ 🌶️

I just finished this and my heart is bruised and beaten. This has the emotional journey that I needed. It hurt so good, the pain in my chest is proof of that, and then it offered a little bit of hope to blanket my bruised heart. Just to be seized and cracked again. THAT ENDING?! 😭😭😭 I need book 2 now like I need air.

I love the FMC. She has a quiet strength, resilience, and self worth. I love that she constantly picked herself up, by force sometimes, even though she wasn’t sure if she wanted to. The things she goes through, her past, the breaking of her bond, the lies and secrets that are coming undone and piling up…she could easily give up.
👏🏼 I have a lot of respect for her and think the author did a great job showing that not all female characters have to be loud, vicious, or snarky to be strong, to be a warrior.

😮‍💨The MMC… man, what he does is unforgivable & this is the first book with a betrayal that I was like THEREs NO WAY WERE COMING BACK FROM THIS. And idk if he deserves it. I hated him. But, damn it if I didn’t start feeling myself warm to him after the layers start being revealed. 👏🏼

This is plot driven and there’s only a little spice at the end but it didn’t even matter. The yearning, longing, aching we get kept me fulfilled. Their past together coming to light just added to the feels. I love the mystery aspect, the secrets and alliances.

I love the writing style and really think the author does a great job conveying the characters emotions, the weight of all the grief and sadness they’re feeling.

Oh and the side characters! 👏🏼 I love them! Minus the obvious THORN IN MY ASS 🙄 she’s the WORST. But, the others 💕 they add to the story and depth of the main characters.

I can’t wait for book 2, for all of the secrets to come to light & who’s behind them. 🤯

[Kellie Suggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book overall! And I really enjoyed the characters& the plot! I’ve never read a wolf shifter book based around a rejected mate..I really enjoyed that switch up! It does have some spice- mainly one scene. so if you’re looking for a lot..you won’t find it here-which was fine with me! I do have one critique that really bummed me out….


🚨 INSERT SPOILER ALERT! STOP READING if you don’t want it spoiled 😜.

My biggest issue with this book was…it lacked an intense connection between the two main characters- Noa& Ren who are two fated mates. There really is ZERO build up when it comes to a connection…So when Noa does the unthinkable and denies his fated mate..I really felt no emotion about it. It didn’t rip my heart out..simply because the two main characters lacked any sense of connection..there was no relationship or even structure jf chemistry prior to that. They were basically strangers... I wish the author spent a little more time building a bond between the two..a love story of sorts. The emotions were big on the page with words but I didn’t FEEL THEM..I expected to cry lol but I felt nothing …there was also a ton of detail in this book..Other than that I enjoyed this read & I will be reading book 2!

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

She is meant to be my destiny, my perfect match. She is my heart living and beating beyond the confines of my chest. And I have to break it. To break her.

Need book 2 right this instant!!!

We all know I love a shifter romance and Primal was no exception, BUT it may be the most emotionally driven one I've read and I LOVED IT.

I'm completely obsessed and have been checking the author's social media almost daily for updates on Raw and I'm so excited to see where their story takes us next.

Read if you love
-wolf shifters
-he’s engaged
-mutual pining
-rejected mate
-slow burn
-a good ole cliffy

[erin | sinfulshelves · Rating 5 out of 5]

rejected mate omegaverse EXCELLENCE 🌲🐺 - 5/5 stars review below 👇

𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐲, 𝐦𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭.
𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐢𝐭.
𝐓𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝒉𝒆𝒓.

🐺🌲 || 𝙱𝙾𝙾𝙺 𝚁𝙴𝚅𝙸𝙴𝚆
⚠︎ check TWs | 18+ content ⚠︎

📖 Primal by Kayleigh King
Star Rating: 5/5 ★★★★★
Spice Rating: 1/5 🌶️
Spice Frequency: 0.5/5
POV: Multi/1st

• rejected mate omegaverse
• wolf shifters
• he dreams of her…
• scent matching
• YEARNING
• second chance + slow SLOW burn

My first rejected mate omegaverse and I’m nervous to read any others tbh because this is so freaking phenomenal 😩 I was obsessed from the prologue and could not put the book down. I mean I’ve been up all night…it is now 6am and I have not slept because I truly could not stop reading. Kayleigh’s writing is SO add!ctive in the best possible way and as a spice girly, for an author to hold me in with a book that has only one spicy scene, yeah that’s a testament to how amazing this is. If you’re a fellow spicy book person, just know if you read this you won’t notice the lack of spice because the story is THAT GOOD!

The characters are loveable and complex, the plot kept me on my toes and interested, and the world building really made this universe so real for me. I honestly only have amazing things to say. So, I’ll just hush and scream at you to PLEASE READ THIS BOOK! 😍

[Chels ❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I thought I was doing the right thing.” “Seems to be a lot of that going around lately.”

4.25 ★

Despite the utter stupidity of the MMC, Rennick, I got fully swept up in this. It’s one of those books that makes you want to text running commentary about it to your friends (in this case, my sister and I had a field day), and I am fully ready for book two after that ending.

** Note: I was worried about the potential for OW drama, but everyone despises that woman and I loved that for them. Rennick and her never hook up, and he openly dislikes her as well, so it was a go for me.

Things I Enjoyed:
🐺 Noa - This woman deserved absolutely zero of the sh!t she’s put through, and I wanted to rage on her behalf (just call me “Seren #2”). Despite the crap hand she’s been dealt, she fights to support those she loves and the cause she holds so dear to her heart, and I admired the hell out of her. She’s patient, nurturing, and deserves so much better.
🐺 The Wolf Halves - Okay, but I loved their personalities and the moments they simply had enough of people’s (and sometimes their own human’s) BS.
🐺 Dual POV - This was necessary so that I could tolerate Rennick’s poor decision making.
🐺 The Supporting Characters - Canaan (who should actually be the pack alpha) and his mate, Rhosyn, were delightful. I loved their relationship and loyalty to each other. Seren, aka “some kind of empathic Dyson,” was a true ride-or-die friend. She’s fiercely loyal, has been through it herself, and deserves an award for the sh!t she was not taking on that clearing. My heart hurt for Siggy, and her story had me emotional.
🐺 The Bonds Between Friends - Besties Seren and Noa gave out encouragement like, “Don’t stand there and try to paint yourself as some basic b!tch. It’s beneath you.” I mean, who doesn’t need a friend like that? Siggy and Noa’s bond was also very heartwarming, and I loved the slow development of it.
🐺 The “Saving the Omegas” Component and Conversations Around Trauma - The entire support system that Noa’s mother created, and that Noa now leads, was beautiful and empowering. I loved the female strength theme.
🐺 The Sarcasm Woven In - These bits were well placed and well done to help offset some of the depressing parts of the story.

Things I Struggled With:
💔 Rennick “I should have listened” Fallamhain - “The audacity of this man…” is the mood. Even his wolf had enough of his sh!t. He and his “emotionally constipated alpha brain” did get better as he came to his senses (and I guessssssss I started to feel bad for him towards the end), but he certainly frustrated me for a hot minute there.

Favorite Quotes:
🌙 “There’s a certain power in a quiet kind of dominance.”
🌙 “Trauma, of any degree, doesn’t just vanish. It leaves a scar that we can’t erase with time or a really good therapist. It lingers. You don’t get rid of it, or simply move on from it, it's something you learn to carry. You learn how to navigate around it while you simultaneously relearn how to live your new normal.”
🌙 “Just taking the scenic route to my downward spiral, that’s all.”
🌙 “I beg your finest pardon?”

[morganinpages · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC REVIEW
I absolutely loved this book and cannot wait to see how Rennik and Noa’s story concludes! This was definitely a story that was not only tragic, but heartfelt in a good way. When Rennik rejected Noa I wanted to literally slap him upside the head for how stupid he was. Their chemistry was literally undeniable and made this story so powerful. Had to give this three stars tho bc did I like this book? Yes. But did it also annoy me and make no sense? Also yes. The more I think about it their whole situation could have been solved with ✨communication✨. I mean the man didn’t even speak more than a couple sentences to our girl before he chose to reject their bond over some bogus excuse. Like if he would have at least talked to her I feel like he could have at least seen reason. But no. And it came to bite Rennik in the butt when he finds out that Noa’s literal JOB is to protect omegas, which is his whole problem and the reason he rejected her in the first place. Also he didn’t even grovel ONCE! NOT ONCE! I was literally expecting him to get down on his knees and beg for forgiveness, but no. That didn’t happen. Noa basically opened him back into her life like it was nothing and let him give her an O for his troubles??? Like what?!!! I feel like this book would have been 4 stars if he groveled. Honestly I’m really just hoping we see more of their relationship in the next book bc this one just disappointed me.

[EternallyPaperbound · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the premise of this book. Liked the characters, am all for the whole mating bond, the alpha structure and so was very hopeful. Unfortunately it just never picked up. I think the story was very good, the plot well thought out, but each element took up too much time and was repeated too much for my personal taste. I would have liked some more about the pack, more of the conflict there, kore of the forced relationship between the beta and alpha, more anger from the friends, more backstory from the omega … instead their internal discussions about breaking the bond became a bit monotone.
I would be interested in the next book though - like I said, stellar storyline.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. The title is exactly how I would describe this book. So completely primal, they’re doing everything in their power to fight against their primal forces until they can’t anymore. Cannot wait to see how this story continues in Raw.

[Amy Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I like the women’s shelter take, but I mean yeah it’s a little meh - not the best, not the worst, entertaining enough and yeah I’ll probably read the next one. But I have a feeling my thoughts will be it didn’t need to be two books…

[givememycheetos · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ soy demasiado fan del angst, los shifters y encima de yapa omegaverse con mates.

Me estresó que a veces hubiera demasiado monólogo en los POVs de ambos protagonistas, casi no habia mucho dialogo y habian cosas algo redundantes. PERO la contraparte es que eso hizo que las descripciones de sus sentimientos fueran bastante complejas y hubiera una descripción fuerte de la trama y la personalidad de los personajes. La verdad me gustó muchísimo.

—¿De qué va?

El libro arranca con la muerte de la mamá de Noa, una wolfshifter latente, quien regresa a su ex manada para poder solicitar que las cenizas de su mamá sean enterradas junto a las de su papá. Noa y su madre, una antigua sanadadora/bruja/chamana/loba, fueron exiliadas, y hay dos versiones del por qué.

Del lado de la manada, Rennick es el alfa, y la manada está atravesando su peor momento con el asesinato y desapariciones de sus omegas. Para eso, se hace una alianza con otra manada, para que la hija del Alfa de esta sea su prometida, Tanis, una wolfshifter beta. Pero hay unas razones turbias y no claras detrás de esta unión.

El encuentro entre ambos desata que Noa y Rennick descubran que son mates, y encima con uno de los tipos de lasos más fuertes, y esta relación peligra por el matrimonio arreglado que ayudará a Rennick a reforzar la seguridad de su manada, POR LO QUE EN EL CAMINO DEBERÁ RECHAZAR A NOA.

MEN EL ANGST!!!!!!!!!! Fue forchi, y en verdad nisiqueira puedo odiar a los personas, hay demasiado yearning, desesperación, drama. Y pese a que estas historias son mas puerconas, NO HAY CASI NADA DE SMUT y améeee que no fuera así. Solo hay una escenita, y es porque la trama y el misterio de los asesinatos y las relaciones entre la manada, los secretos de la mamá de Noa y más, hace que la historia se vuelva muy atrapante y no requiera de tanto salseo.

Yo de paso no sabía que esta es una serie y este es el único publicado👹, y los protagonistas tendrán un segundo libro 🤡, NO SE COMO VOY A ESPERAR HASTA NOVIEMBRE, porque el cliffhanger DE ESTE LIBRO ES CRIMINAL.

Nada, me encantó, lo devoré en 1 día y definitivamente seguiré leyendo a la autora.

[Whitney Weaver · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is absolutely everything. I am not typically an Omegaverse / shifter reader, however this whole novel has me in a chokehold in a way I'm not sure I've ever been from a book before.
Kayleigh always provides us with some of the most beautiful writing, and Noa's journey is just that. Beautiful.

Noa knows she doesn't belong in the world that was destined for her. The goddess chose that long ago when her wolf never showed. Latent, exiled and without a pack, Noa found a new purpose in life alongside her mother at an early age. When her mother dies, it seems she may have left a multitude of secrets that may just upend everything Noa has come to known as they unravel.

Rennick. Well, I don't even know what to say about this Alpha-asshole that I both love and mentally curse every five pages. This man has me weak in the knees, while also wanting to throw the book across the room because of his audacity. It's all for purpose, and I get that, but Kayleigh really played with emotions here. Rennick has the task of protecting his pack when Omega's start to go missing, however the choices he makes to save the souls of those surrounding him only hurt the one person he was destined for.

Plot twists, slow burn (that to be honest I didn't even realize because the plot was so enthralling), a strong female lead, real personalities and love/hate relationships with all of the characters had me flying through chapter after chapter. I can't begin to count how many highlights, comments and curses I had throughout this one.

Kayleigh is going to break open your heart and serve it to your neighbor on a platter with this one.
I'll still recommend it until the end of time anyways knowing the damage it'll do to you because I have full faith she'll make it up to us with book two.

[Tatiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Primal gave me exactly what I was craving: fated mates, angsty Omegaverse longing, and a big dose of emotional torment. I hesitated at first—worried about “other woman” drama and an irredeemable Alpha—but I was wrong. The other woman is a plot device, not a love triangle, and Rennick’s rejection? It’s a misguided act of protection for his pack, not cruelty.

Noa and Rennick are both stubborn in the most frustrating ways. She's been through hell, hiding who she really is, and he's blind to the bigger picture (like... obviously the villain is villain-ing right in front of you, sir). But their push-pull chemistry, aching bond, and mutual drive to protect Omegas kept me hooked. The rejection stung, the groveling hit, and the cliffhanger left me begging for Raw.

If you're here for pain, yearning, a bit of mystery, and a broody Alpha who makes a royal mess of things, this one's for you.

[Kayla (Kayuhlareads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I.WAS.NOT.READY.FOR.THAT.CLIFFY!

All I saw was one quote and I dropped everything I was reading to read this. I was not disappointed.
I devoured this story and I believe I have a new favorite Trope in the Omegaverse world. I am a sucker for pain I cannot help it and this one delivers some heartache.

Oh Ren, You big dummy wolf! I can't wait to see more groveling in the next! As much as Id like to be mad at him. He was just doing what he felt he needed too without really thinking it through.
Noa really is put through the ringer and I really hope she makes him work for it in book 2.

This book was refreshing due to its raw nature and not so focused on smut aspect, but the emotional side.

I LOVED CANAAN!!!! The side Characters all were pretty amazing! I cannot wait to know the rest of this story!

[read_by_mal · Rating 4 out of 5]

THAT ENDING!!! The way I ran to Kayleigh Kings newsletter sign-ups to stay in the know for arcs. I NEED TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.

This book is emotional, raw, full of angst, rage, a tense slow-burn, and it absolutely had me and my heart hooked.

"𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒎𝒚𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑰 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅’𝒗𝒆 𝒅𝒓𝒂𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒍𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒕."

-wolf shifters
-omegaverse
-fated mates
-he dreams of her
-"where is she?!"
-second chance slow-burn
-multi pov
-a past shrouded in secrets
-a soul destroying choice