Eclipsed Empire: The Wolves of Crescent Creek, Book 2

The Wolves of Crescent Creek #2

by Tessa Hale, Vanessa Moyen (Narrator), Connor Crais (Narrator)

Book 2 in the Wolves of Crescent Creek series. More details coming soon!

Genres: Fantasy, Why Choose, Paranormal, Romance, Shapeshifters, Paranormal Romance, Romantasy

Audible Audio

First published July 16, 2025

About the author

Author of love stories with magic, usually with more than one love interest. Constant daydreamer.

What a FREE novella from me? You can download one via BookFunnel: https://BookHip.com/NWRWMZA

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

hey Tessa, I’m sending you my therapy bill lol

[dak ⋆.˚ ☾ .⭒˚ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5☆ 🐺💜🗝️

give me 5 overly protective wolf shifter men, 1 baddie wolf shifter/??? 🤫🤫 who is on the run + a small town and ohhh im THERE!!!🤸🏻‍♀️🏃🏻‍♀️

this plot is super addicting i actually wish these were longer!! every time i get to that last page im like what the🤬

we see more of the boys personalities in this one and i love them all ahhhhh 💓💓

the spice was ✨𝟷𝟶/𝟷𝟶✨

i’m gagged by that ending sprinting to book 3

∴.·:*¨¨*:·.☾⋆.ೃ࿔*:⋆.·:*¨ ¨*:·.♡ ༘⋆.·:*¨ ¨*:·.∴

⚚₊˚“ℐ 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊, 𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝔀𝓪𝓻𝓻𝓲𝓸𝓻. ℬ𝓁𝓊𝑒 𝑒𝓎𝑒𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝑒𝓁𝓉 𝒻𝓇𝑜𝓂 𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝓈𝒽𝒶𝒹𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓃𝑒𝓍𝓉. ℰ𝓎𝑒𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒶𝓀𝑒 𝒾𝓃 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒶𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓃𝒹 𝓎𝑜𝓊. 𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝓂𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝓎𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝑒𝓁𝓈𝑒. ℰ𝓎𝑒𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓀𝑒 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒻𝑒𝑒𝓁 𝓈𝑒𝑒𝓃, 𝓉𝑜𝑜”₊˚⊹♡

[Lucy Mason · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this book, I loved Tessa’s other series but this one just isn’t hitting. I’m struggling to connect with the characters, the storyline isn’t all that interesting and it all just feels rushed and slow at the same time.

The FMC started out as semi interesting but she kinda peaked and fell off, she’s way too forgiving and didn’t make the alphas grovel. The MMC’s are all boring, normally brix would have been my guy but like the others he’s just so two dimensional. They have emotional conversations but they just read as so false.

As usual with Tessa’s characters there’s always an arsehole who’s last to get on board with the mate train (ender) and the rest are like insta love - I wish she’d mix it up a bit and it not be so predictable, as it genuinely feels like reading the same book again and again. My other issue with this is you have no idea on ages? I mean I’m putting these guys in their 30’s maybe, but they’re so immature who knows? I also got sick of all the little nicknames ‘little warrior’ was particularly annoying after the 3rd time, I’m not invested enough to read the final book in the series.

[Brittany Ferraro · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ MY SHOW IS ON!!

I was so excited to dive back into this world, book one was an absolute blast, and I stand by what I said: it’s giving CW binge-worthy TV in the best way. And guess what? Book two still checks that box. But now Wren is getting a little more up close and personal with her wolf shifters, and I am thriving. I already know I’m going to lose my mind when we finally get that first group scene. We got a little taste (thank you for that), but I need the full line up, all of them, at the same damn time.

The whole mate thing? I’m still into it. When characters just instantly connect and everything flips upside down, immediate love, and obsession. Sometimes I’m not looking for a slow burn, sometimesssss I’m just in the mood for a love at first sniff okay??! IM JUST A GIRL

The characters really came into their own in this one too. I’m definitely starting to pick favorites even though I genuinely love them all. They each bring something I adore. However, I’m a sucker for an alpha male, and there’s just something about Kingston… Im waiting until he gets his moment to shine.

The plot in this one is super addicting. It’s fast-paced, high-stakes, I love a FMC on the run/in danger especially when she has five men wanting to protect her. It gives me that ILL BURN THE WORLD FOR HER vibe that I gobble up.

Every chapter ends and I swear I can hear Netflix asking, “Still watching?” Um, yes. Obviously. Hit play again wtf

If you’re looking for something that’ll suck you right in, is a super easy read, and a hell of a good time, you need to meet Wren and her five feral wolf shifters


I’m hoping book 3 is a tad bit longer because every time these books end I’m like ALREADY?!? Noooo 😭😂

[Steph is Hopelessly Bookish · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Tessa Hale’s stories. I do. But at this point in her writing career, her romantic tone and emotional framing need to mature—especially when the plots are darker, the characters are well into adulthood, and the themes lean heavy.

There’s a lot to enjoy here. The worldbuilding in Eclipsed Empire is immersive, the pacing is sharp, and the emotional through-lines are satisfying. If you love found family, protective love interests, fated mates, hidden identities, and why-choose dynamics, this delivers. Hale has a clear talent for building bonds that feel emotionally sincere. The harem dynamics are thoughtful, and I was genuinely invested in how the group came together.

But here’s where I started to disconnect. While there are explicit scenes, the emotional tone of the spice still reads closer to new adult. These are grown men with jobs, businesses, and established lives. The heroine is younger, yes, but the overall dynamic between them feels out of sync with their ages. There’s an undercurrent of softness and emotional hesitancy that feels better suited to characters just figuring themselves out, not ones who have supposedly been through real adult trauma and loss. It’s not that the spice is missing—it’s that the writing treats sex like something tenderly new and vaguely experimental, rather than something these characters would realistically already understand and embody with more confidence.

The ending lands with a familiar Tessa Hale twist: a predictable cliffhanger. Not bad, just expected. I was hoping this installment would push her formula into more mature territory—emotionally, narratively, romantically—but it plays it safe. And while I’ll finish the series, I’m hoping to see more growth, both in how her characters are written and in how she frames their relationships.

Three stars. There’s heart here, and the character connections work, but the tone needs to evolve to match the maturity level of the world and the people in it. The potential is real. It just needs to catch up with itself.

[Bookish Equestrian {hiatus} · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review to come!

[Casie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am convinced anyone who gives this book more than 2 stars is lying to me and has a stake in this book. I hate how strength in FMC are often measured in how much pain they can endure. Coming back from a 5 days of torture and 2 weeks of magic induced sleep. And you’re ready to be finger f***ed and kissed on by men you were running from?! I’m tired of FMC not loving themselves enough to stand up for themselves or demand more from their so called mates. Your father didn’t treat you right and you didn’t accept and condone that why would you from strangers you barely know? I hate how during her recovery we have to be reminded that ow eventhough I’m hurt I still want them. ENOUGH actually ENOUGH. Even through the perspective of the men their pain is central to hers. And now they want to put her through more torture in the third book, this time through self sacrifice ugh spare me 🤣😅

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series and can't believe we only have one more book to go! In this one, we jump right into where the cliffhanger of book one ended and Wren's mates will literally tear the world apart for her. They put their mercenary skills to use and I loved how much they would do to get her back. Her relationship develops at different paces with each of the guys and we have even more danger lurking at every corner. There were some breakthroughs in some of her relationships and yet another cliffhanger, so I am dying for the conclusion to this shifter why choose romance!!

[Christi (christireadsalot) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eclipsed Empire is the second book in the Wolves of Crescent Creek series and to no one’s surprise, I loved this one so much too! This author is a favorite for why choose, paranormal romances with fated mates. This series is wolf shifters, why choose, heroine in hiding, hidden identity, fated mates, with touch her and die vibes.

The first book ended on a cliffhanger so this book picks up right where that one left off. Think of the trilogy as very episodic of your favorite binge worthy tv show! You’ll be so ready for the next book to come out like the next episode of your favorite show. We get back to Wren, Crescent Creek, Colorado, and all her guys! Wren is a strong character who always just had to look after herself, so it’s so fun seeing her now be so taken care of by her pack of guys. Kingston, Puck, Brix, Ender, Locke. We get to see more of their relationships being developed. I love how each hero is unique and brings something different to the dynamic. We even get a little tease of group activities in this book.

I flew through this audiobook, it’s a quick read and so easy to get pulled into the world. I’m so excited to see how the story will conclude with the next and final book. The audiobook is fantastic, highly recommend grabbing the audios for this author’s books because they always are amazing! This one has a full cast narrating the characters and was so good: Vanessa Moyen, Connor Crais, Jason Clarke, JF Harding, Teddy Hamilton, and Shane East!

I received an ARC/ALC, all thoughts in this review are my own.

[Sarah | sarah.onemorechapter · Rating 5 out of 5]

5⭐️ | 2🌶️
Devoured in 24 hours. Oh. My. Word.

Eclipsed Empire is book 2 in the Wolves of Crescent Creek series. This book follows Wren and her pack after the crazy cliffhanger from book 1 (Crescent Kingdom). You can expect action, wolf shifters and a badass fmc.

I don’t want give away too much so I’m going to do my best to summarize without spoiling the good stuff.

Wren was running from her past and she felt it catching up to her. Fate brought her to her pack and they’ve had to try and work together to protect their mate and take down the evil that continues come for her.

She has 5 mates, Kingston, Locke, Brix, Ender and Puck and I’m obsessed with all of them. She’s got a man for every mood.

Unfortunately for Wren, not all of them are happy about the situation due to some past trauma. The connection is there and the sexual tension is off the charts but they continued to fight the pull. I can’t wait for moment they snap.

Tessa gives us another jaw dropping cliffy in this book as well and I am FERAL for book 3. I’m ready for the pack to finally unite and put an end to the crazy that’s been chasing Wren for too long.

•why choose
•wolf shifter romance
•fmc in trouble
•touch her and d!e

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series is so bingeable and I literally can’t put these books down. I waited for the third book to come out before I started this series, and THANK GOD, because the cliffhanger here is diabolical!

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️

[°˖✧˚lindsay˚✧˖° · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s all the same crap from the last book that wasn’t exactly groundbreaking work in the first place.

Everybody gets all hot and bothered about the yummy noises she makes every time they’re eating?
Give me a break.
Can we just get through a meal? Please?

The same! exact! jokes! about her calling Puck, ‘buddy,’ and Locke threatening to hack their Candy Crush scores if they’re mean to her about it.
Notably, no one is ever even mentioned being on their phones once.
When would a pack of muscular mercenary wolf shifters have the time to crush some candy anyway?

Majority of the jokes and content makes no sense, isn’t funny, or both, making the shallow nature of the scope of this storyline that much more evident.

Who sticks their tongue out at people?
Why is this a thing?

They’re two dimensional characters, at best.
At worst?
Well, the worst would be reading it for yourself.

The spice was kind of… perfunctory?
Plus, a combination of surprising choices that were more detached from reality than the ability to turn into wolves.
We get the general idea, we scoff at the application, and then it’s done.
Almost like an experience with humans, then. Isn’t it?

She gets a tattoo of a black wolf wrapped around a brown wolf…. Baby, that’s a blob.

And the ending? She and her poop tattoo are on her own. Can’t stand when they’re idiots.

[The Bodacious Bibliophile · Rating 2 out of 5]

Corny, short, cringe, outdated, recycled, cliched, same same, unimaginative, lazy, boring and overhyped.
Oh, and the most boring and short and unimaginative sex scenes ever and THE worst DP scene ever written. Fucking pathetic. I hate lazy and unimaginative writing.

[Athena Que Será, Será · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tags: abuse, damaged-broken_hero, damaged-broken_heroine, dark-romance, hero-hurts-heroine, heroine-waitress-bartender, mean-mean-girls-women, office-workplace-romance, om_drama, ow-drama, pnr-werewolf, pnr-witch, poor-heroine, read, rh-paranormal, rich-hero, rich-hero-poor-heroine, scarred-hero, scarred-heroine, small-town, strong-fmc-heroine

[Mikky]

DNF at 26%

Books by this author are either a hit or miss for me. This one is a miss. The plot line that was introduced in the last few chapters of Book #1 has already been resolved by 26%. Frankly, I don't like the MMC's enough to stick around. Most of them are *sshats, 2 of them are okay, and even that's iffy. I have almost 500 books on my TBR. I don't need to push myself into a book I'm clearly not enjoying.

Hopefully the next book I pick up will be better ♡

[AllisterMarie aka Alli 🖤 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am so obsessed with this series & chomping at the bit for book 3! The storyline, the tension, the spice, & the characters all have me in a chokehold! Tessa is always an insta-read author for me, & she delivered perfectly once again!

[Krysta ꕤ]

Rtc
———
back for more 😛

[MarissaIsBooked · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yeah I’m out on this series lol. Still shitty and/or severely lacking any serious world building. Wren almost immediately forgives/gives in to these men without any real groveling. AND spoiler warning for the rest….

- They’re so worried about the Red River Pack and literally the one and only useful thing book 1 set up was Wren having an untraceable tablet that shows where every microchipped member of that pack is!!! Why the fuck wouldn’t you utilize that.
- The guys have wards set up around their home that they paid a caster to set up for them. They now have a mate who is also a caster and capable of protections/wards. Yet they don’t have Wren set up any wards around Arcane or Crescent Kingdom that would notify them of Bastian or any other supernaturals entering the property??? Not even after he showed up at the bar and tried to get Wren to submit??

This series is a mess. The audiobook has a full cast of amazing narrators I love and that’s about the only thing this series has going for it. My curiosity for what happens isn’t strong enough to endure a 3rd book when it comes out.

[Lorie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Same ending as book one cliffhanger...Not good

What a big disappointment. The FMC was again taken at the end by the villain father. Same as book one ending where the FMC was also taken as a cliffhanger ending. Book two was a filler and could have been skipped. This would have been a great series if it didn't drag the FMC being targeted or taken as the main focused. Lost interest at halfway once the villain father showed up and wasn't taken out except lots of telling on threats. Lost interest on this series. Predictable and boring now. Disappointed this series went downhill. Should have been a duet in my opinion.

[Julianne · Rating 2 out of 5]

She forgave them far too fast for my liking. Needed more groveling

[Francisca S. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a bit disappointed. I had high hopes, was expecting more groveling to be honest. And the spice was awkward.

[Darcy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tessa Hale once again delivers us a story that instantly pulls you in and keeps you glued to it. I have liked Wren’s character since book 1. She has this inner strength that just shines brightly. She knows how to take care of herself and even if she can’t she knows how to be smart and let others help her. We continue book 2 where book 1 leaves off. Let me say that the start of book 2 is explosive. Wren and her mates go through so much in this book. Their misguided mindsets are put to the test in this one. We see the relationships between some of them growing and others not as much. The story is extremely well written and developed. It has you on the edge of your seat. We get to the end of this book and we are left with a major cliffhanger that has me absolutely excited to see what is going to happen next. An absolute fantastic read that will not disappoint.

[Britney ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure why I always finish Tessa Hale's new releases at like 2 a.m. but here I am again because I had to read this cover to freaking cover.

I loved seeing her build relationships with the guys individually in this one. Ender definitely still has some work to do but he's gone from hating her to I'll kill anyone who even looks at you so I think that's progress.

Wren has been through so much and she just deserves her happily ever after my gosh. She really found her will to fight and not just run and it made me so happy because girlie deserves the freaking world.

That cliffhanger? CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT.

thank you to the author for the gifted arc

[✨Gretch✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, that cliffhanger was BRUTAL. I'm going to need to time travel to when book 3 comes out right now. Secondly, this was everything I wanted it to be, and more.

This book picks up right after the events of book one with Wren being kidnapped and held hostage by the motorcycle gang. They put her through some rough shit, but nothing her Dad hasn't put her through in the past. When the guys finally got to her, and save her I cheered. I think it really helped bring it to perspective for some of them, that she isn't faking anything, and she isn't going to sell them out to the Red River pack. It also helped strengthen their bonds, and we finally got to see a few of them complete the bond with her. There was some trauma healing, and they all finally learned that she is an empath, so that's one less thing to hide. I really loved watching Wren's confidence grow with not only herself and being able to show her scars, but learning to trust the guys too.

When I tell you, I can't wait for them to all get together, and get their heads out of their asses I mean it. This is a good mix of insta-love with the mate bond, and slow burn. Some of the guys it was love at first sniff, but others - looking at you Ender - are taking more time to wrap their heads around it. AND THAT'S OKAY. I AM HERE FOR THE YEARNING AND PINING. Sometimes you need a book with both, and this delivered.

If you want a series that will suck you in from the jump, and keep you attention, and is short and sweet, then this is the series for you!

[Frida Hemborg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it, but I’m also drawing way too many parallells to the Dragons of Ember Hollow series. It takes place in the same universe, a spin off you might call it. But it does read as the exact same story just in a different font, unfortunately… I will ofc read the final book, but kind of disappointed since we got off to such a good start.

[Annet Yarkovaya · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐️ soooo dramatic

[Isabella Maraschi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Um…HELLO??! Tessa Hale, PLEASE COME TO THE FRONT!! What do you mean you’re gonna leave us with the cliffhanger?!!! I’ll admit, I had a feeling it was coming but it still left me SHOOK.

The audio was absolute perfection & this cast was PHENOMENAL. They truly did an incredible job bringing these characters & story to life, this was such a great reading & listening experience. 10/10 recommend doing an immersive reading with this series headphones 🎧📖

As always the banter, the tension, the connection between Wren & her 5 mates (yes, you read that right 😏) was *chef’s kiss*. I love that they all have such different dynamics & relationship with each other.

I can’t wait to see how this story concludes in book 3! It will definitely be bittersweet to see this series end but I just know Tessa will have me on the edge of my seat & I’m gonna love every second of it! 👏🖤

Thank you so much to Tessa & team for the advance reader + listener copies 💜🐺

- Shifter romance
- Why choose
- Fated mates
- Forced proximity
- Heroine hiding
- Touch her & 💀
- Multi-POV

[M.L. Burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s cute and someone described it as a CW show and I couldn’t agree more. These are short books, great for catching up on a reading goal. Lock has my heart 🖤

[Dayna | daynas.bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

if you’ve read Tessa’s books you know how these books end BUT IT STILL GETS ME EVERY TIME 😩😩

the romance POPPED off in this book- dare i say my new fave?? highly highly recommend the audiobook because the full cast of voice actors was AMAZING!

these books are my go-to rec for a bingeable RH wolf series. perfection!!

thank you to the author for the ALC 🥹🫶🏼✨