The Lone Wolf Paradox

by M.J. Etkind

The bisexual, asshole, lumberjack, werewolf your TBR needs!

Praise for The Witch of Wall Street “In a subgenre known for its small towns, THE WITCH OF WALL STREET shoots above the crowd like a skyscraper.” Olivia Waite, New York Times Book Review

Two lone wolves are pushed to confront what it means to build a pack of their own and rely on their village after being alone for so long. The only risk, they might just fall for each other in the process.

When Bea Howell puts her beloved farmhouse up for rent as a last-ditch effort to save her family’s apple orchard and moves into the garage apartment to earn extra money, she never expected that a total asshole, full-time lumberjack, and fellow werewolf would move in with kids in tow.

Untethered by a pack, Lane has spent most of his adult life on the move and uncommitted to any man or woman. When his parents, who are raising his sister’s children, are ostracized from the community, he returns to Maine and moves the kids across the state in search of anonymity and a fresh start. Renting the quaint farmhouse was an obvious choice, but his werewolf landlady, was a surprise.

Having sworn off a relationship after her divorce, Bea is surprised when she starts to develop feelings for the interloping werewolf, leading to Bea’s increased involvement in Lane’s family life. Distracted by his infatuation, Lane can’t help but aid Bea with the floundering farm, which makes him unavailable when the kids need him most. As their lives intertwine, Bea is wooed by Lane’s quiet competence, while Bea’s tenacity only furthers Lane’s attraction.

342 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication March 17, 2026

About the author

M.J. Etkind lives a double life. By day, she is a corporate girly with a business degree. By night, she writes romance novels in a cozy book filled apartment. When she is not writing, she can be found walking her dog and getting coffee. M.J. Etkind’s most favorite fun fact is that she once took an entire vacation to visit a bookstore. Follow M.J. Etkind on Instagram for updates on future book releases.

Reviews

[Courtney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bea and Lane. You sucked me so far into this story it was all I wanted to read before bed. I do love a wolf pack story and this one did not disappoint.
Let's start with Bea who is head strong and so stubborn. But let's be honest it's what makes her so relatable and fun.
Lane is not your typical brooding bad boy (as much as he might like to think he is). He's a nerdy man who just needs to be shown some affection and kindness.
This was definitely more of a slow burn than i'm used to but it felt so worth the wait.
I really wanna read more about Bea and Lane and their life together.
I'll be so honest the author was spot on: this absolutely 100% is the bisexual, asshole, lumberjack, werewolf you definitely need to read.

[Ellie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmm, I would describe this as a Hallmark romance with added werewolves. It has strong queer representation, some hot-topic issues form US society (abortion, health insurance). I was invested in the beginning, probably somewhere until the middle - I liked the MCs who dealt with different issues (divorce, single guardianship of teenagers, toxic family, isolation, etc.). It was nothing revolutionary but rather cozy and hopeful. And then, the second hald, especially the last third, things got really boring and just too neat and perfect. There was no real conflict any more, no character development - everyone was nice, caring, things worked out both personally and professionally. The third-act break-up was just ridiculous. The repetitive talk about not/having children, the responsibility of raising them, while it's an important topic, I felt it was poorly handled and the same argument was repeated every three pages or so.
And don't get me started on the shifter thing, it was no more than a curious quirk of some of the characters. They were more wolf than human around full Moon and tried to hide it from the humans but again, there was no real conflict there, no depth ragrding pack/animal nature of the characters. The story wouldn't have been much different if they were regular people.

In short, this didn't work for me but could be the right story for someone else.

CW: abortion, toxic family,

[☆Laura☆]

Bea ha pasado años intentando que la granja de su familia sobreviva, aunque cada temporada trae más perdidas que ganancias. Acostumbrada al trabajo pesado, a la rutina del campo y a ser la única loba de la zona desde que su vida personal se vino abajo. Su plan inmediato es simple, resistir lo suficiente para no perder todo lo que sus abuelos construyeron, incluso si eso significa alquilar la casa y conformarse con menos de lo que soñaba.

Su aislamiento se rompe cuando percibe el rastro de otro cambiaformas en el bosque que rodea su propiedad. El desconocido aparece también en el pueblo, y su actitud segura y desafiante despierta tanto desconfianza como una atracción incómoda que Bea no esperaba sentir. Con el estrés del dinero, la presión de la comunidad y la incertidumbre de compartir territorio con alguien nuevo, Bea tendrá que decidir si proteger la vida que ha levantado con tanto esfuerzo o arriesgarse a que la presencia de ese otro lobo cambie el rumbo de todo lo que creía bajo control o amenaza con alterar la estabilidad que tanto le costó construir.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Trischia · Rating 2 out of 5]

My rating: 2 ⭐️, 3 🌶


I want to start by thanking NetGalley and M.J. Etkind for the E-ARC.

I really wanted to enjoy this book. However, there were several issues that made it hard for me to finish. There are some spoilers in this review.

First, chapter four isn't complete. It cuts off in the middle of a sentence and that made it hard to know what was happening. Second, the passage of time isn't handled well. I wish the author would date each chapter so we can better understand how time is progressing. For example, one chapter ends on Christmas Eve and the next chapter is suddenly in the middle of January. Third, it felt as if important discussions about relationships were avoided and it prevented us from seeing the characters grow and mature. Fourth, the FMC Bea has a sister that has a baby in chapter 21, and yet in the same chapter Bea states that she doesn't have any nieces or nephews. There's also a lot of formatting errors that made it difficult to get through the book.

I feel like there is the potential for a good book here. But for me, the number of formatting, consistency,  and timing errors made it hard to finish it in its entirety. Hopefully, these errors can be corrected prior to publication day.

[Sarah Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were a lot of good things in this arc for me. I really enjoyed the structure of the were community (and other species/magical beings) and both the FMC and MMC were really solid characters.

I loved the role the MMC had to play in the twins life and how the story came together overall watching him grow in that aspect. The ending really came full circle and I enjoyed the overall read.

My only issue with this one is sometimes we got a little bogged down in the minutiae of things. There was a lot of gender exploration, which totally here for, but it sort of got too in the weeds and took away from the overall story after a bit.

I'm so happy I got to read this one early from the author and enter into this world!

[Rebecca Goss · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the community building and the recognition of the importance of friendships that developed throughout this book. Bea is not an easy character to like initially because she is so closed off but as the book goes on, readers get to know her more and will enjoy her kindness. Lane struggles with escaping his family drama but is more open and eager. They are an interesting combination that will keep readers engaged. I read this ARC on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Turning the first page of this novel felt like stepping into a kinder, magical world. I really enjoyed looking at the world through Bea's eyes, and the unique wolf shifter and mer lore felt so hopeful and beautiful. The way the characters dealt with big, real world issues really helped me connect with the storyline. I will definitely be recommending this as a must read cozy paranormal romance! It was a breath of fresh air.

[Tiffany (areyoutellingstories) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bea is a hard-working independent woman not interested in losing herself as a wife and mother. When a hot single man rents her farmhouse, complete with twins in tow, she has to decide if she's willing to risk a new life for the right man.

[Meenu · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll leave the review up on NG because this book was something.

[Nicola · Rating 2 out of 5]

2/5 ⭐️ NetGalley

I can see the potential for this book, but it just was not for me.
I struggled to get into the story majorly and it’s just wasn’t my favourite.