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Black Moon Rising
Not yet published
Expected 12 Feb 26The federal agents waiting outside my ecology classroom are there for me.
One of them is an enraged Alpha.
I’ve been dodging the agents for days, and Conall Segerson seethes with impatience. His Pack children are disappearing, but the wolf shifter has few clues and no leads.
He doesn’t care about exposing an unregistered, no-name Cognizant if it will help him find his missing cubs.
As we race to recover the children, I become an invaluable tool in his arsenal.
His wolf’s obsession.
And a target.
Conall pledges to protect my secrets, but enemies are closing in. And the most vicious betrayals are those we never see coming.
*The first book in the thriller urban fantasy romance series where a deadly investigation leads to seduction and betrayal.
Black Moon Rising is book one in the Riley Blackthorne Series. This book ends on a cliffhanger and contains power imbalances, a slow-burn romance, spicy scenes, and violence.
For fans of Ali Hazelwood, Lola Glass, and Patricia Briggs, who love smart, action-packed supernatural novels.
One of them is an enraged Alpha.
I’ve been dodging the agents for days, and Conall Segerson seethes with impatience. His Pack children are disappearing, but the wolf shifter has few clues and no leads.
He doesn’t care about exposing an unregistered, no-name Cognizant if it will help him find his missing cubs.
As we race to recover the children, I become an invaluable tool in his arsenal.
His wolf’s obsession.
And a target.
Conall pledges to protect my secrets, but enemies are closing in. And the most vicious betrayals are those we never see coming.
*The first book in the thriller urban fantasy romance series where a deadly investigation leads to seduction and betrayal.
Black Moon Rising is book one in the Riley Blackthorne Series. This book ends on a cliffhanger and contains power imbalances, a slow-burn romance, spicy scenes, and violence.
For fans of Ali Hazelwood, Lola Glass, and Patricia Briggs, who love smart, action-packed supernatural novels.
369 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication February 12, 2026
3 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
About the author
J. L. Brannick
9 books53 followersJ. L. Brannick works as an attorney by day and detoxes at night with crunchy Cheetos and red wine. She's an introvert who likes to socialize but then needs a few days to recover. J. L. lives in the mountain desert with her family and hikes every day to keep her dog happy. Her favorite stories have smart, quick-witted characters and enough spice to curl your toes. Visit her website to sign up for new releases, updates, and bonus material.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
January 18, 2026
3.5 ⭐️ 🌑✨ Started off as a five-star read… landed at a 3.5 for vibes alone.
Let me start by saying I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There wasn’t a single character I didn’t like. Our MMC was a bit of an asshole — and I see absolutely zero flaws with that. Our FMC was a badass who stood her ground in her opinions, even if she was a little flighty in her actions at times… but honestly, I completely understood why.
In addition to our main characters, the family/found family really made this book. I found myself laughing out loud (talk about awkward) more times than not!
The drop in rating comes from a writing standpoint, not the story itself. It wasn’t bad — there were just a few things I couldn’t get past.
1. The time jumps.
They felt unintentional. One second characters were mid-conversation and the next, a week had passed. Or they’d pull off the road and suddenly be at a gate in the next sentence. No paragraph break, no chapter change. I found myself rereading sections to make sure I hadn’t missed something, which kept pulling me out of the story. Some formatting changes would really elevate the reading experience.
2. The ending.
It was… an ending. I won’t spoil anything, and I want to be clear — the plot itself was GLORIOUS. It just ended oddly? Like there should have been more. Almost as if a chapter was missing in printing, not that the author didn’t write it.
That said, I finished this book at 10pm and stayed up until 1am just thinking about it — which tells me everything I need to know. It was clearly good 😂 I’m really hoping the next few months fly by because I will absolutely be reading book two.
——————
Thank you to NetGalley and J.L. Brannick for providing the ARC! 🖤
Let me start by saying I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There wasn’t a single character I didn’t like. Our MMC was a bit of an asshole — and I see absolutely zero flaws with that. Our FMC was a badass who stood her ground in her opinions, even if she was a little flighty in her actions at times… but honestly, I completely understood why.
In addition to our main characters, the family/found family really made this book. I found myself laughing out loud (talk about awkward) more times than not!
The drop in rating comes from a writing standpoint, not the story itself. It wasn’t bad — there were just a few things I couldn’t get past.
1. The time jumps.
They felt unintentional. One second characters were mid-conversation and the next, a week had passed. Or they’d pull off the road and suddenly be at a gate in the next sentence. No paragraph break, no chapter change. I found myself rereading sections to make sure I hadn’t missed something, which kept pulling me out of the story. Some formatting changes would really elevate the reading experience.
2. The ending.
It was… an ending. I won’t spoil anything, and I want to be clear — the plot itself was GLORIOUS. It just ended oddly? Like there should have been more. Almost as if a chapter was missing in printing, not that the author didn’t write it.
That said, I finished this book at 10pm and stayed up until 1am just thinking about it — which tells me everything I need to know. It was clearly good 😂 I’m really hoping the next few months fly by because I will absolutely be reading book two.
——————
Thank you to NetGalley and J.L. Brannick for providing the ARC! 🖤
January 25, 2026
This book is gonna consume my every waking thought until I get the sequel.
I feel privileged to have been granted access to read it but I’m also currently cursing the author for leaving it on the cliffhanger even though I knew it was coming.
Thank you to NetGalley for the free ARC that I received in exchange for an honest review.
I feel privileged to have been granted access to read it but I’m also currently cursing the author for leaving it on the cliffhanger even though I knew it was coming.
Thank you to NetGalley for the free ARC that I received in exchange for an honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
’Black Moon Rising’ – Or ’The Case of the Vegetarian Wolf’
➤ Plot and world-building - 3 or 4 stars
➤ Characters, Execution, Romance/Spiciness - 2 or 3 stars
Final rating: 3 stars
Clearly women over 30 are not the audience for this book or maybe it's just me.
If you enjoy books where the dialogue doubles as a character sheet, you’re in luck. The introductions are painfully telegraphed. It feels less like storytelling and more like a police lineup where everyone feels the need to describe themselves out loud. You know the vibe: “Hi, I’m the Alpha of the Pack…,” said the tall, handsome, black-haired, grey-eyed, perfect-bodied man who is also the best tracker. Subtlety? Never heard of it.
First things first - the Vibe: Patricia Briggs Meets Ali Hazelwood: The tragedy here is that the world-building actually gives off Patricia Briggs energy, which is high praise.But then the romance walks in wearing an Ali Hazelwood trench coat, and it all falls apart, it’s excruciating (both romance and spiciness, much similar to Hazelwood’s style). There is absolutely no slow burn here. We are talking insta-lust, tingles, and blushing from the very first sniff.
Next, characters: Edgy snowflakes: Let’s talk about Conall, our MMC. He is a wolf shifter. He is an apex predator. He is... a vegetarian. Gods, how many edgy traits can we pack into one guy? I know we want our monsters to be relatable, but a wolf abstaining from meat? It tries so hard to be unique that it loops right back around to absurdity. But don’t despair, the book explains why he eats tofu, even though any human with two neurons firing could guess the reason without the lecture.
The characters are all ‘tortured souls’ and special snowflakes, yet somehow entirely generic. The POV choices (1st person for Riley, 3rd person for Conall) gave me whiplash and made it impossible to settle into the narrative. I didn’t feel any connection to any of them, but maybe that’s because I already read about these characters in about dozens other novels.
As for our FMC (Riley), I won’t even bother anymore to explain why it just didn’t work for me. Think of all other witty, snarky, badass wannabe heroines in all Romantasy novels and that’s her.
The plot follows Riley (a Cognizant with special powers, obviously) helping the Pack find missing children. Naturally, this puts her in danger, which triggers the most tired trope in the book: forced proximity.“Oh no, you’re in danger! You must stay at my house!” We need a new name for this cliché because my eyes rolled so hard I saw my own brain stem.
Info-Dumps and more Alpha cringe: The story itself isn't terrible, it’s just executed with the grace of a sledgehammer. The world building is genuinely interesting (Pack politics, humans with special powers), but the author is terrified we won’t get it, so she dump-trucks information into the middle of casual conversation. It’s hard to feel immersed when the characters are constantly reciting the rulebook to each other.
Speaking of rules, my poor human brain hurts. Wolves mate for life, but can have multiple mates, but can refuse the bond, but Alphas can enforce the bond? The lore contradicts itself so much I started wondering if the author was making it up as she typed just to justify the forced proximity.
By the last third, the book devolves into a soap opera cringe-fest. We get jealous she-wolves, bullying pack members and enemies (how else can Riley be more of an oppressed character without these?), and an Alpha screaming, "Don't touch her/Insult her or I'll rip out your [insert any organ] and feed it to you!"
The Good stuff:
➤ Plot & world-building (disregarding the execution)
➤ The spicy scenes are short (thank the gods, because they are awkwardly written)
➤ The ending was surprisingly unpredictable
I’m not going to lie, I’ve read similar fanfictions (if not better), this felt more like that written by a young adult who just discovered the Omegaverse. Great concepts, poor execution, and please…enough with the “mine”, "mate", “growling”.
Many, many thanks to J. L. Brannick, Smart Mouth Publishing LLC, and NetGalley for the ARC. This is a voluntary review, reflecting solely my opinion.
➤ Plot and world-building - 3 or 4 stars
➤ Characters, Execution, Romance/Spiciness - 2 or 3 stars
Final rating: 3 stars
Clearly women over 30 are not the audience for this book or maybe it's just me.
If you enjoy books where the dialogue doubles as a character sheet, you’re in luck. The introductions are painfully telegraphed. It feels less like storytelling and more like a police lineup where everyone feels the need to describe themselves out loud. You know the vibe: “Hi, I’m the Alpha of the Pack…,” said the tall, handsome, black-haired, grey-eyed, perfect-bodied man who is also the best tracker. Subtlety? Never heard of it.
First things first - the Vibe: Patricia Briggs Meets Ali Hazelwood: The tragedy here is that the world-building actually gives off Patricia Briggs energy, which is high praise.But then the romance walks in wearing an Ali Hazelwood trench coat, and it all falls apart, it’s excruciating (both romance and spiciness, much similar to Hazelwood’s style). There is absolutely no slow burn here. We are talking insta-lust, tingles, and blushing from the very first sniff.
Next, characters: Edgy snowflakes: Let’s talk about Conall, our MMC. He is a wolf shifter. He is an apex predator. He is... a vegetarian. Gods, how many edgy traits can we pack into one guy? I know we want our monsters to be relatable, but a wolf abstaining from meat? It tries so hard to be unique that it loops right back around to absurdity. But don’t despair, the book explains why he eats tofu, even though any human with two neurons firing could guess the reason without the lecture.
The characters are all ‘tortured souls’ and special snowflakes, yet somehow entirely generic. The POV choices (1st person for Riley, 3rd person for Conall) gave me whiplash and made it impossible to settle into the narrative. I didn’t feel any connection to any of them, but maybe that’s because I already read about these characters in about dozens other novels.
As for our FMC (Riley), I won’t even bother anymore to explain why it just didn’t work for me. Think of all other witty, snarky, badass wannabe heroines in all Romantasy novels and that’s her.
The plot follows Riley (a Cognizant with special powers, obviously) helping the Pack find missing children. Naturally, this puts her in danger, which triggers the most tired trope in the book: forced proximity.“Oh no, you’re in danger! You must stay at my house!” We need a new name for this cliché because my eyes rolled so hard I saw my own brain stem.
Info-Dumps and more Alpha cringe: The story itself isn't terrible, it’s just executed with the grace of a sledgehammer. The world building is genuinely interesting (Pack politics, humans with special powers), but the author is terrified we won’t get it, so she dump-trucks information into the middle of casual conversation. It’s hard to feel immersed when the characters are constantly reciting the rulebook to each other.
Speaking of rules, my poor human brain hurts. Wolves mate for life, but can have multiple mates, but can refuse the bond, but Alphas can enforce the bond? The lore contradicts itself so much I started wondering if the author was making it up as she typed just to justify the forced proximity.
By the last third, the book devolves into a soap opera cringe-fest. We get jealous she-wolves, bullying pack members and enemies (how else can Riley be more of an oppressed character without these?), and an Alpha screaming, "Don't touch her/Insult her or I'll rip out your [insert any organ] and feed it to you!"
The Good stuff:
➤ Plot & world-building (disregarding the execution)
➤ The spicy scenes are short (thank the gods, because they are awkwardly written)
➤ The ending was surprisingly unpredictable
I’m not going to lie, I’ve read similar fanfictions (if not better), this felt more like that written by a young adult who just discovered the Omegaverse. Great concepts, poor execution, and please…enough with the “mine”, "mate", “growling”.
Many, many thanks to J. L. Brannick, Smart Mouth Publishing LLC, and NetGalley for the ARC. This is a voluntary review, reflecting solely my opinion.
Review of advance copy
A huge thank you to BookSirens, NetGalley, and J.L. Brannick for the ARC of this first book in a captivating urban fantasy series.
I could hardly put this book down. Taking place primarily in Colorado, a place near and dear to my heart, and having the MMC be a horse guy (lifelong horse girlie here)? This book was already off to a great start for me. Add in shifters, a unique magic system, and clever plotting? I was captivated.
Things I really enjoyed about this book:
- The somewhat familiar settings. It was so cool to be imagining shifters and cogs in places that I have been before.
- The relevance of the biases against cogs and how it compares to those that we see in every day life against marginalized communities.
- Conall is a horse guy! Who is sweet with his horses and takes Riley on rides! We need more of these.
- The suspenseful edge brought about by the case that is trying to be solved throughout the book and all of the twists that it takes.
Things that could have been better for me:
- I enjoyed the alternating POV, but it was a bit odd that it shifted between first person for Riley’s chapters and third person for Conall’s chapters.
- The ending (epilogue, mainly) seemed quite out of nowhere. Without giving away too much, it definitely left me on edge to read the next book but I would have appreciated something from Conall’s POV to give some insight into how things changed so drastically.
Overall this is a fantastic urban fantasy shifter romance filled with adventure, magic, and beautiful scenery!
I could hardly put this book down. Taking place primarily in Colorado, a place near and dear to my heart, and having the MMC be a horse guy (lifelong horse girlie here)? This book was already off to a great start for me. Add in shifters, a unique magic system, and clever plotting? I was captivated.
Things I really enjoyed about this book:
- The somewhat familiar settings. It was so cool to be imagining shifters and cogs in places that I have been before.
- The relevance of the biases against cogs and how it compares to those that we see in every day life against marginalized communities.
- Conall is a horse guy! Who is sweet with his horses and takes Riley on rides! We need more of these.
- The suspenseful edge brought about by the case that is trying to be solved throughout the book and all of the twists that it takes.
Things that could have been better for me:
- I enjoyed the alternating POV, but it was a bit odd that it shifted between first person for Riley’s chapters and third person for Conall’s chapters.
- The ending (epilogue, mainly) seemed quite out of nowhere. Without giving away too much, it definitely left me on edge to read the next book but I would have appreciated something from Conall’s POV to give some insight into how things changed so drastically.
Overall this is a fantastic urban fantasy shifter romance filled with adventure, magic, and beautiful scenery!
Review of advance copy
This author is new to me. I like her writing style. To me this is a darkish story. There are triggers to watch out for. Also the way the wolves get information out of other wolves or their "enemies" is not traditional torture.
I loved Riley. I loved her brash , unfiltered attitude. She is smart and has been trained by her uncle and another to be able to defend herself. Even though she gets injured quite a bit. I loved Jamie's nickname for her. She has more than one gift which she has hidden until she met Conall.
Conall is an alpha through and through. His wolf sees Riley as more before he does. I liked him until the end of the story, and yes it has a cliffhanger.
I loved the action, intrigue and mystery evolving around missing children. Slow burn to the romance. A splash of humor. It will be interesting to find out more about Riley.
I was given a free copy of this book via Booksiren and am voluntarily leaving my review.
I loved Riley. I loved her brash , unfiltered attitude. She is smart and has been trained by her uncle and another to be able to defend herself. Even though she gets injured quite a bit. I loved Jamie's nickname for her. She has more than one gift which she has hidden until she met Conall.
Conall is an alpha through and through. His wolf sees Riley as more before he does. I liked him until the end of the story, and yes it has a cliffhanger.
I loved the action, intrigue and mystery evolving around missing children. Slow burn to the romance. A splash of humor. It will be interesting to find out more about Riley.
I was given a free copy of this book via Booksiren and am voluntarily leaving my review.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
watdafawkkkkkkkkk omgggg I don’t even know how to feel rn this was amazing. I didn’t realize I was craving urban fantasy until I started reading and suddenly hours has passed. I was engrossed with the story from start to finish, and if it wasn’t for having to work, I would have read it all in one sitting. The plot was engaging, the stakes were high, the conflict was nerve wrecking, and the romance was steamy.
I was actually so invested in these two I don’t now how to describe it. I adore Riley, I loved how complex she was and how she slowly opened up to Conall, even if it was kicking and screaming. When I tell you the gut punch I got in the last sentence of the final chapter and the epilogue, I cannot wait for April now. Whatdafawkkkk there is a lot of splaining to do.
Overall an amazing read and such a blast of a time. I cannot recommend this enough! Still reeling from everything, but this was a 5 star read for me.
I was actually so invested in these two I don’t now how to describe it. I adore Riley, I loved how complex she was and how she slowly opened up to Conall, even if it was kicking and screaming. When I tell you the gut punch I got in the last sentence of the final chapter and the epilogue, I cannot wait for April now. Whatdafawkkkk there is a lot of splaining to do.
Overall an amazing read and such a blast of a time. I cannot recommend this enough! Still reeling from everything, but this was a 5 star read for me.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
If you like Romantasy & books about shifters, alphas & wolf packs... you will enjoy this book!! I never knew until recently how much I enjoy these types of books & this one didn't disappoint!!
The characters are so well written & wonderful - Conall is immediately taken with Riley & knows he wants her to be his mate... Riley is not a shifter & it takes her a bit longer to get on board with it, but finally falls for him.... the only thing I was disappointed with is that we have to wait until Book 2 comes out to read more!!!! Not left on a terrible cliffhanger... but still.... (also, I will say...the description said there were spicy scenes & I found the spice to be very mild...just my 2 cents)
Thanks to the author (J. L. Brannick), publisher (Smart Mouth Publishing LLC) & Netgalley for the ARC read. All opinions are my own.
The book is scheduled to be published February 12th, so mark your calendars! You won't want to miss this book!
The characters are so well written & wonderful - Conall is immediately taken with Riley & knows he wants her to be his mate... Riley is not a shifter & it takes her a bit longer to get on board with it, but finally falls for him.... the only thing I was disappointed with is that we have to wait until Book 2 comes out to read more!!!! Not left on a terrible cliffhanger... but still.... (also, I will say...the description said there were spicy scenes & I found the spice to be very mild...just my 2 cents)
Thanks to the author (J. L. Brannick), publisher (Smart Mouth Publishing LLC) & Netgalley for the ARC read. All opinions are my own.
The book is scheduled to be published February 12th, so mark your calendars! You won't want to miss this book!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Thank You Netgalley!!
Meet Riley and Conall as they try to solve what is happening to pack children. Riley gets messed up in pack business as she learns her way around their laws and customs but also trying to remember herself.
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I really did like the plot of this book. Understanding the abilities and how the shifters work was great and watching the characters come together was beautiful.
But Holy ass ending. whattt? I'm going to need book 2 to understand what just happened.
--------
There are some weird things with the book, like her chapters are first person and his are in third person. Also some information is repeated weirdly.
------
If you can get through that, then read it for the plot. I need somebody to talk to about what I just ended with.
Meet Riley and Conall as they try to solve what is happening to pack children. Riley gets messed up in pack business as she learns her way around their laws and customs but also trying to remember herself.
-------
I really did like the plot of this book. Understanding the abilities and how the shifters work was great and watching the characters come together was beautiful.
But Holy ass ending. whattt? I'm going to need book 2 to understand what just happened.
--------
There are some weird things with the book, like her chapters are first person and his are in third person. Also some information is repeated weirdly.
------
If you can get through that, then read it for the plot. I need somebody to talk to about what I just ended with.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I was intrigued by the blurb, maybe not so much the cover, but I had to give it a try since it seemed to fall into what I wanted to read. At first, I was very happy that I started it. I was engaged immediately, liked all the characters, and was interested in the story. However, after a little while, I was so captivated, I didn’t want to put it down! Conall and Riley are such a great couple who are going to have to overcome many obstacles to stay together, and Conall already has stepped into it by the end. I can’t say much about the end, but I can say that I loved the suspense, the romance, and the high stakes action that is in the book, and I am so very eager to read more. Highly recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This is an amazing read! I have a new author on my "must read" list. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Riley is cunning, gifted, strong and wounded. Letting people close is something she doesn't do. Until Conall and the missing children. She's attacked repeatedly and holds her own each time but not without injury. I read this book in one sitting as I couldn't put it down. Highly recommend.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This book was action packed and I enjoyed the variation in the storyline from other shifter books that I have read . The problem was solved and they accomplish what they set out to do but it feels that there are more secrets to uncover and the ending feels unresolved . Can’t wait to read book 2 .
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews