Fated to My Fiancé's Brother

by Jennifer Eve

Ten years secretly loving my fated mate.
Ended up engaged to his brother.
But on the wedding day… everything changed.

Kayden Blackwood—
Alpha heir, my childhood savior,
the man I loved in silence because mixed-blood girls like me don’t deserve miracles.

One moonlit night, he marked me by accident—
bond burning, breath tangled, destiny exploding between us.
And at sunrise?
He looked at me like I was nothing.
A week later, a marriage notice arrived with his name.
For a heartbeat, I thought he was choosing me...
until the groom beside me was his brother.
And when my fiancé dropped dead in front of me,
the pack called me “murderer”.

Seven years later, I walk into a masquerade gala—
new name, new face, new life.
Until a familiar heat brushes my spine.
Kayden turns, freezes, and in the next breath his hand closes around my wrist—
His wolf recognized me first.
But I’ll never let him see it—
the child waiting at home…with his silver eyes.

Genres: Shapeshifters, Paranormal Romance, Second Chance, Paranormal, Romance

276 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 30, 2025

Reviews

[Jetscarbie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh! It’s the same recycled story.
I started to skim this book about 1/2 way in. (Possible spoilers ahead with a plot recap)

H was the soon-to-be Alpha. His dad has drilled into his head since he was a child that fated mates were a curse. Basically, dad was married and in love with his wife, but met his fated mate one night while he was drunk. He couldn’t resist the pull, so he boinked her. Surprise baby on the way. His wife was devastated by the cheating/baby- she eventually commits suicide. Dad treated the half brother like dog 💩. (I’ve read enough of these to know that half brother is already a major red flag. 🙃)

h is some pathetic, boring hybrid wolf. Everybody treats her like garbage. h has swooned over H for YEARS….for absolutely no reason. She’s never even talked with him. She makes ❤️ in her diary daily over how much she loves him. H comes back from college after being gone for years. He sees h one night…and they boink. 🙃🙃 *fated mates*

The next day, she gets an invitation saying she’s going to be a bride. Uh oh. She’s excited, and when she shows up- the groom is the creepy half brother. Don’t stress, though because he promptly falls over DEAD! h is immediately accused of killing him. H arrives, and h thinks he’s going to save her. SIKE because H is like….i reject you and you’re trash. The poor girl realizes she’s been TSTL, so she commits suicide by jumping off the cliff. 😏
(All the above happens in like 4 chapters, so it does move along quick)


So..7 years later.
We find out H hasn’t had one moment of peace. During the last 7 years, his pack keeps being attacked. He feels a lot of guilt over h. He found her diary, and now keeps it on him at all times. (The diary literally sounds like entries a 12 year old girl would make)
H has to go to an art show.

h is alive. 🙃 we find out she has a 7 year old son. She was saved that night she jumped by an old guy, who happens to run a jewelry business. Now she’s some famous designer. She changed her appearance/name (which means NOTHING because everybody recognizes her)

(Random question- why do these heroines always have the same occupations years later? Jewelry business, fashion design, or CEO of a major corporation)

H seems absolutely confused on why h is so mad at him the night they are reunited. 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ He’s immediately all upon her, kissing her, and her body is betraying her…but she’s able to escape. Lol The next day, H buys her company. H finally gets her alone, and she *almost* caves in to the “bond” when Victoria shows up and goes “I’m H fiancée” 🤪 oops H forgot to mention that tiny detail.

(Sidenote- H didn’t look for h those 7 years. The only thing he did was search for her body for a week after she jumped. It never mentions if he was celibate)

Naturally, the little boy has some medical issue where the cure is he needs his dad.

I’m going to skip all the other nonsense dealing with politics, vampires, bloodline, and the MCs working together to build trust. It’s the same old-same old. There is very little grovel and the h has massive BBS.

It’s absolutely NO Surprise that Victoria was fated mates with the half brother, and that half brother was not dead. Half brother was playing the long game to destroy everything H had. Why? Because daddy didn’t love him *cue 🎻 noise*
He became a vampire and faked his death. 🥴
At least H did ☠️ him.

H and h get married. Then years later, they have a little girl.

This is a book I should have DNF

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

Skimmed a lot. Very predictable.

[BiblioDarling · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fated to My Fiancés Brother
A Forbidden Rejected Mates Shifter Romance
Jennifer Eve

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
Rating System (as of 8/14/2025):
⭐: It was a struggle to read. I almost DNF
⭐⭐: This could have been so much better.
⭐⭐⭐: Good/Average
⭐⭐⭐⭐: Great book. I will probably reread it.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐: I absolutely loved this book.
***********************************************************************
Triggers:
🚩Kidnapping
🚩Violence
🚩Fake Deaths

Tropes:
💕Rejected Mates
💕MF Romance
💕Mystery/Suspense
💕Paranormal
💕Grovel to HEA
💕Surprise Pregnancy
💕OW Drama
💕Humiliation
💕Fated Mates

**********************************************************************
Spice: 🔥🔥🔥
Spice Level Rating System (as of 9/4/25)
🔥: Clean. Handholding. Kissing.
🔥🔥: Non-Descriptive/Implied on Page Sex
🔥🔥🔥: Hot-Descriptive on Page Sex
🔥🔥🔥🔥: So Hot—Do Not Read in Public
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥: Oh My-BDSM. Blood Play. Smut.
************************************************************************
Quote:
"I, Kayden Blackwood, formally reject Layla Gray as my mate."

Summary:
FMC is a hybrid. She is treated badly within her pack. MMC is the alpha heir. FMC has had a crush on the MMC for most of her life. One night they recognize that they are fated mates. FMC and MMC have a one night together. FMC then is led to believe she will be marrying the MMC, but when she gets to the altar his brother is in the MMCs place. MMC publicly rejects the FMC. He is engaged to another. MMCs brother mysteriously dies and the FMC is convicted as his murder.

FMC escapes and restarts her life. The MMC and her are reunited years later. Eventual HEA.

Review:
This was one of the better rejected mate books I have read. There was some suspense/mystery. Also, a bit of OW drama in the form of the MMCs fiancé. This book drew me in. I wanted to figure out the mystery of who was plotting against the pack, etc.

I would recommend this book to someone who has a few hours to sit and relax. The book does draw you in and has a good pace to the writing.

Recommended Werewolf/Shifter Romance Authors:
Lexi C Foss
Dreia Wells
Bree Rosebury
Sadie Seas
Kayleigh King
Kira Nightingale

BIBLIODARLING | BOOKISH LIFE, TBRs & READING CHALLENGES GROUP (GOODREADS)
https://www.goodreads.com/group/invit...
*****************************************************************************
FOLLOW ME ON:
INSTAGRAM📢
https://www.instagram.com/bibliodarling/

SUBSTACK📢 https://open.substack.com/pub/mterron...

TIKTOK📢
https://www.tiktok.com/@bibliodarling...

WATTPAD📢
BiblioDarling (@BiblioDarling) - Wattpad

INKITT📢
https://inkitt.com/BiblioDarling

[Jeanette Wolfe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great story premise and compelling synopsis but lacking with delivery.

First lets talk the nuts and bolts of writing: formatting. The dialoge was not in the least formatted properly, and as a result it made following which character was saying what more difficult. Each sentence of dialogue was a new paragraph regardless of whether or not it related to the subject of the previous line of dialogue, and each new sentence/paragraph was enclosed in quotation marks despite being part of the dialogue of the same character in the same monologue.

The dialogue from the same character in the same monologue should have opening quotes at the first sentence and then not have quotation marks again until the very end of the monologue despite being different paragraphs different lines, etc. Secondly you don't need a new paragraph for every line of dialogue unless the subject has changed. Paragraph rules don't change because it's dialogue. I would recommend whoever the author and editor is get a Chicago Manual of Style and review how to format dialogue. If they don't have a Chicago Manual of Style, go to the library and check one, or look online, because the formatting on this was completely wrong.

Now let's get into plot and character development. This was plot development light, introducing characters and then having them drop off the map with not even a mention, like Mr. Ross, the wealthy man who saved the female lead. The guy's yacht just happens to be at the right place at the right time at the base of the cliff when she jumps, he saves her and he sets her up but declines to make life easy for her and then he's not mentioned again but once when they're talking about how difficult she found being a mother, but after that crickets, nothing. Plot points are brought up just enough to move things forward or fix holes in the story but not enough to really flesh out the world or the characters. As is usual with this author the female lead cannot maintain her convictions in the face of the hot guy she's attracted to despite how horribly he treated her, so with very little effort at redemption he's back in like Flynn. And the male leads sense of entitlement to the female her body and life is epically misogynistic. I guess if you're a conservative Woman's Place kind of person this all fits in with your world view but I find it irritating.

The idea for the story was great her dramatic jump from the cliff was really what hooked me in the sample and I red on social media, but there were holes and dropped plot points that just were frustrating and left me wanting. It makes this a quick easy read but not really satisfying or thorough.

[Lenna Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not really the brother's woman from the beginning. There will be other woman drama, exhuming of a grave, mentions of suicide and cheating (Kayden's parents), attempted rape (to Layla/Ella from a pervious employer). Vampires and not the sparkly friendly kind either.

Kayden Blackwood, Alpha heir in the beginning but will be the Alpha in the rest of the story. Was 27 when he dismissed and rejected his fated mate, Layla, all because of his father's obsession. Kayden's parents were not fated mates but of a love match and they were happy family until Kayden's little brother came in to the picture, a by-blow (his father's result with his one-night stand with his fated mate) that tore his parent's marriage apart, his mother wasted away and slit her wrists, breaking his father more and made it his life mission to make Kayden despised even being with his fated mate no matter and be with the woman his father pacifically picked for his son... For 7 years Kayden lived to keep Layla alive in his heart and his love for her not knowing if she survived the cliff fall into the ocean.

Layla Grey/Ella Ross, orphan, hybrid, we don't know anything about her parents or her past. Was 25 when she thought her fate would bring Kayden to her and he would make her his, since she had loved him for a very long time but his younger by-blow brother pulled some strings to make Layla his and did something to frame her of his murder. Kayden sat back and watched her be accused and sentenced to a cell but the high cliff called to her so she ran and made her escape of her crappy life in the Silver Moon Pack.. 7 years later, mother to a 6 year old son Kia and a top jewelry designer, new name and identity, Ella is living in freedom and her pasts is that in the past never to bring up in her present... until her mate just happens to be in the same gala she is showing her art...

[Cassandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nope, not going further.

This book started OK, but I think the author went a little too far to make us hate Kayden. Because I really did. Then, at 26% she's ready to give in with just a kiss? No! This man has so much groveling to do, it isn't even funny. I'm at a point where I don't think I can forgive him, and I will hate Layla if she just gives in.


Now, at 32%, suddenly he is sorry? Why? He acts like they were in love or that she was always in his life. Nope, he was gone for 5 years, prior to which he barely remembered her. Suddenly he has regret over someone he doesn't (and never did) know.


So, she was missing for maybe an hour after he left her to get the call she disappeared, and he just went after her rather than figuring she was with a friend? That whole thing doesn't make sense. Not real happy they got together while she was drugged, though.

OK, I have finished the book. I now see that the author has issues conveying a passing of short periods of time. 


Why was nothing addressed about how deplorably she was treated before they discovered they were mates? I mean, who treats people like that? Not to mention, after she jumped, it eas never really mentioned again. If this is how even the lowest is treated, she should just stay gone and write iff the whole pack. The were despicable, and they didn't deserve anything from her.


There were so many technical formatting issues all over the place. There is no way in hell this book had an editor. It was so difficult to determine who was talking when there is a new set of quotation marks every sentence. It was very excessive and annoying. 

I have read this author before and gave her a low average rating. I decided to try again with this one, but I'm done. I will not continue to the next books.

[Teany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book Review: Fated to My Fiancé’s Brother by Jennifer

I just finished Fated to My Fiancé’s Brother, and overall, it was a solid read—nothing groundbreaking, but definitely enjoyable if you’re into shifter romance.

The story centers around Kaden Blackwood and his fated mate, Layla. Right from the start, it leans heavily into that instant-love, fated mates trope, which is always a hit or miss depending on what you’re looking for. In this case, it worked well enough to keep things moving, even if it didn’t feel particularly unique compared to other books in the genre.

Kaden’s character follows a pretty familiar arc—especially with the whole denying-his-mate situation and then having to grovel later. If you like that kind of redemption storyline, this book delivers. Layla, on the other hand, holds her ground well enough, though there were moments where I wished for a little more depth or unpredictability from her.

As for the plot, it was decent but pretty predictable. The so-called “surprise” villain didn’t really feel like a surprise at all—you can kind of see it coming from early on. That said, even though the twists weren’t shocking, the story was still engaging enough to keep me reading.

This isn’t my favorite shifter romance, but it’s far from bad. It’s one of those quick, easy reads that you can get through without too much effort, and it still gives you the drama, romance, and tension you’d expect from the genre.

I’d give it a solid 3 out of 5. If you’re looking for a light, entertaining shifter romance with fated mates, a bit of angst, and a groveling male lead, it’s definitely worth checking out.

[Caroline Buck · Rating 2 out of 5]

From the title and the teasers I had seen, I thought this might be a bit different than the usual “unacceptable female is fated mate to alpha, they hook up, female ends up pregnant and runs away, alpha finds her years later”. Nope… the triangle hinted at in the title is not really a triangle, and the book follows the usual trope. On the plus side, there weren’t a lot of typos or misspellings, however there were some lapses in storyline (there’s a lot of angst about how the h can’t leave town because of all the contracts, but then she *does* leave town with the H with no mention of her business for many chapters; how did the “aromatherapy” in the car affect the h and not the villain?, and then there’s an odd paragraph talking about the H’s callouses from wielding a sword and plowing fields (?) that really made me think it was a line from another book. The only thing missing from the usual formula was “unacceptable female turns out to be a special shifter”. It wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever read, but wasn’t anything special, either.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating: 4.5⭐️ / 2🌶️

Layla Gray + Kayden Blackwood

I found this book on Facebook through the ads on my feed; I was in a slump so I figured, what the heck, let’s try it. The excerpt seemed like it was right up my alley and let’s just say, they have my number. Rejection/betrayal and secret penance all day

The rejection hit hard and the groveling hit harder.

Loved the growth of both characters and getting to see flashbacks of their past experiences really rounded everything out. Also enjoyed the complexity of the plot and I cant say this often but, I was surprised by the twist.

This book was so close to being 5 stars but the formatting and the fact she kept using his full name even after being biblically acquainted kept yanking me out of the movie in my head.

Excellent read.

- Hybrid outcast x pureblood Alpha
- Fated mates
- Rejection
- Shifter romance
- Betrayal/Grovel
- Secret Pregnancy

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kayden, the Alpha, fated to Layla, rejects her after they mate because he sees fated mates as a weakness. This is based upon his father's experience which unfortunately is emphasized by Kayden's father his entire life. Layla is framed for murder, jumps off a cliff to escape punishment, and keeps hidden for seven years. They meet again at a jewelry gala and he recognizes her. The rest of the story is about trying to determine what happened seven years ago, who was behind framing her, and who is currently attacking the pack. There is a twist at the end that I didn't anticipate. They work as a team to neutralize the threat, uncover the person(s) that betrayed them and the pack, and bring peace to the pack.

[Samantha Case · Rating 3 out of 5]

Formatting Issues

The story is overall predictable but still enjoyable. The addition of other magical beings was a nice touch, though. I like that for once the FMC had a benefactor after leaving the pack and disappearing for years. Makes more sense than someone amassing a fortune and a career in just a couple of years without formal education or training.

Layla and Kayden seem to deserve each other. He was cruel to her and suffered her loss for years. So at least he experienced some of the pain he caused her.

The book is riddled with formatting issues. Every new line of dialogue from the same character does NOT need to be a new paragraph. And of course a lot of spelling issues. Get an editor and you'll have a winner.

[L KQ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jewels and Secrets

Such an emotional journey as this book started off with a bang. Layla is accused of murder and rejected by her fated mate Kayden all in the same night she jumps to her death. Seven years have passed and Kayden can't help his pull toward jewelery designer Ella. The secrets of the past and present collide in this exhilarating story. I could not get enough of this plot and the twists that kept coming. What a fantastic read.

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

[Victoria Golby · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good shifter romance

An action packed shifter romance, with drama, action, secrets, betrayal, misunderstandings, second chances, love, passion, some great twists and a HEA. Would strongly recommend.

Layla had loved Kayden, her fated mate, for years but when she goes to see him she finds his brother is her groom, and she's framed for his murder when he then falls dead. To escape being killed she jumps off a cliff and stays in hiding for seven years before he finds her again.

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

[Mary H · Rating 5 out of 5]

SECOND CHANCES

This book was a good read. Two broken souls for various different reasons find their way back together, bonding with each other through their son and protective instincts. Both are suffering from past hurts ,challenges and deceptions from trusted people, they were able to overcome all obstacles and build a love that was unbreakable.

[Morgan Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fated to My Fiancé’s Brother is a gripping, emotional paranormal romance packed with forbidden love, fate, and betrayal. The tension is intense, the heartbreak cuts deep, and the second-chance romance delivers powerful emotional payoff. A dramatic, addictive read for fans of fated mates and high-stakes pack politics.

[Renee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me

The title is misleading since she was only engaged for like half a chapter. The blurb made it seem that this would be a story wrapped around family drama...I love me some family drama....but it is not. I didn’t finish this book because the FMC didn’t seem all that relatable to me. Though I did not enjoy this, you may.

[Lady S · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a meh read.

Considering how Kayden treated her, she certainly gave in far quicker than he deserved.
Now that she’s Luna what happened to those in the pack who abused her??

Also attention to detail is important and the fact the son of the alpha had chestnut colour hair one minute then next he has black hair.

[Gale Albright · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s a very long book filled with a lot of shifter type information about faded mates, etc. I’ve read a lot of rejected mate books lately and they seem to contain much of the same information. The book is written well that’s why it received three stars from me. I do not feel like the main male character that did the rejected did enough groveling to suit me.

[Pandora Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

hmmmm

I love the book. The plots with the main characters her strength it was awesome. I suspected the elder or his supposedly dead brother. That was genius. After a while, I definitely suspected Victoria. Kayden was correct. She was a lot stronger than she ever realized. Thank you.

[SilentSpectra · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 85% but should have been at 10%

This story reads like a budget telenovela. The dialog is stiff, the storyline doesn't flow, and it's so shallow that there's zero connection to any of the characters.

[Jenny Sundstrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fated to my Fiance's Brother

Excellent storyline, totally enjoyed this,loved the characters. Very emotional in parts but worthwhile reading. Loved the battle to beat the bad memories and live for love.

[Jeanette · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started it so therefore I had to finish it. It was a good read but very predictable, from the moment he said he rejects her, I just knew he would end up chasing her. You just know what's going to happen before it actually happens

[Debra Reeves · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading Kayden and Layla's story

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid story. Enjoyed the plot twists.

[Mary Ellen Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fated to My Fiance's Brother

Everything was okay. What happened to Sophia. We know what happened to Victoria. We know she tormented. We know Sophia tormented Layla.

[GreyTheLonewolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can't even remember if I finished not the worse but not really interesting

[Angelia Hughes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Layla and Kayden's story.

[Tara · Rating 5 out of 5]

wonderful read

This was such a good read filled with drama. All the story lines completed beautifully though into a wonderfully beautiful ending.

[Kay Lack · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's exactly what you think it would be. It scratched that drama itch I was looking for.

[Brynn Gabby · Rating 3 out of 5]

I fear this left a lot to be desired in terms of plot development. And the whole tidbit of her being “engaged” to the brother really felt like an unnecessary add-on. But… I did enjoy the first half.