Bear Rising

Best Mates #1

by C.A. Taylor

“Stay away from me and my pack.”
“Everything changed once I got away from you.”
Lone werewolf Shawn McLeod is drifting from pack to pack trying to find somewhere he belongs. A terrifying experience with his first pack left him scarred, unable to trust others. His fear and resentment makes it hard to control the wolf within, which keeps getting him in trouble. When he's reunited with his old best friend and crush, Canyon, sparks fly.

“I need someone that can keep up.”
Werebear Canyon Torres is finally ready to get over the memories of his cheating ex. When he stumbles across Shawn, the flame they once shared is reignited. Canyon's feelings for Shawn intensify, but can he get over his fear of betrayal to let Shawn in? And can he face the fact that it's time to leave his cousin Bruno's Dark Den clan?

“There was hunger in his eyes.”
Shawn and Canyon must face their fears head-on to open their hearts to each other. As the two learn to love and trust a second time, they must protect each other from exes, old enemies, and the ever-growing threat of mankind on their doorstep.

Bear Rising is the first steamy gay paranormal romance novel in the “Best Mates” series. It is the continuation of the previously published “Stepmates” series.

Genres: Paranormal, M M Romance, Shapeshifters, Fantasy, LGBT, Romance, Friends To Lovers

185 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 25, 2015

About the author

C.A. Taylor has been writing gay romance titles since 2013. Although she started her career writing mostly gay erotica short stories, she has made the move to exclusively writing longer works of gay romance. She mainly focuses on the hot and dangerous paranormal realm where sexy shifters rule supreme. Her stories revolve around dramatic tension, passionate encounters, and happy endings in a lover's embrace.

Reviews

[Viz · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first book of Taylor that I have read. It is an average book. The story line is good but it the book itself was more forgettable.

[Missjoanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting start to new shifter series

CA Taylor has taken time to build a shifter world in New York you can believe in with likeable characters and some old characters e.g. Dalton and Dakota you may recognise from a previous book.
The two male protagonists wolf Shawn and bear Canyon meet again several years after being separated by Shawn's pack. Although the spark is there the time in between has affected their belief in relationships. They rebuild against a backdrop of keeping shifters hidden from humans.
Small gripes - odd occasion where language appeared stilted. Need to proof read went to Central for hot dogs but unwrapped burgers.
Shawn and

[K · Rating 2 out of 5]

Werewolf, Shawn, has returned from 2 years in Scotland when he runs into former childhood friend, Canyon, whilst in his shifted Werebear form... the pair were torn apart as teenagers, when Shawn joined a pack who didn't believe different types of were's should mix. Back together it's instalust followed by instalove... and then they become alphas of their own pack. There is a bit of background story involving a paranormal bar run by a Weretiger and Shawn's former alpha who is power mad and anti human.

This didn't really work for me, either in terms of the paranormal set up and storylines, or the mc's themselves.

[Jenna ✨DNF Queen✨Here, Sometimes...]

DNF at 24%

This one wields insta love and insta sex like a 2x4

I just am not a fan and it ruins any goodness about the story for me.

[Jax]

DNF @3%
Didn't read the sample because it was free. I can tell immediately that this writing is not for me.

[Meep]

Kindle-Sort-ReRead

Dnf at just 4% writing really not working for me, despite starting with a sex scene the book feels very childish. Plus info dump intros to all the handsome stars of other books.

[Denise GremoryKohta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love that this book ties in with the others. I wanted to read more. Can't wait for more. Especially about Leon and Virgil. Keep them coming.

[Andrea · Rating 1 out of 5]

Writing, characters, and story are just too juvenile for me. I tried.

[Coral Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shawn has been rifting from pack to pack searching for a home, a place to belong since he was a teenager. The Blizzards were a horrible werewolf pack, damaged him emotionally, and he has little control over his wolf when his emotions run high. He does not think he can heal or trust anyone. Canyon had a horrible breakup a year ago when his lover betrayed him with a friend. He finds it difficult to trust anyone to get that close. Canyon and Shawn were close when they were teenagers before Shawn was ripped out of his life by the Blizzards. Shawn has returned to the city, hoping Canyon might still be there. They meet again and the sparks are still there.

Shawn has little control over his temper and finds it difficult to trust or stand up for himself. Canyon wants to find love but is still reeling from being betrayed. Throw in humans finding them and enemies standing in the way makes a recipe for something disastrous or wonderful. A sweet read of second chances and standing for what you believe in.

[Sierra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great start to a new series. Rating 3.5 A real winner for those who love a good second chances story. I found Shawn's backstory and issues very well thought out--something to bring into his new/old relationship with Canyon that they could work through together. It was interesting to see the dynamics of bringing a new wolf into a pack and how they interacted--along with Shawn's particular issues. There was steamyness and even more sweetness in the story. I like this more that the Stepmates series but was excited to see some of my favorite characters from both that series and the Pearce Brothers/Howl book. I do find it confusing that "mate" is used in these books in a sort of boyfriend sense rather than the lifemate way that you usually see. Although I'm not crazy about vamps, I'm looking forward to the next one in the series.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

[Diane Dannenfeldt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid 3.5 stars. After several years apart, Shawn returns to NYC and runs into his best friend from child hood Canyon. Shawn has been through a lot since they were torn apart just before their friendship turned into something more. Canyon is also working through his ex's betrayal and not sure if he can give his heart to Shawn even though he has always loved him. In this story we see these two work towards what should have happened years ago. There is some minor issues w/Canyon's ex showing up briefly and the Alpha of the pact that Shawn was a part of prior to him leaving NYC. The sex scenes were pretty hot. I most definitely will be reading the next book in the series when it comes out.

ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Alexis Woods · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, the blurb pretty much sums up the majority of the story. Execution of said story left something to be desired. Although the sex scenes were fairly steamy, the characters themselves were blah. Some action and fight scenes with violence and bloody results.

The story itself is an offshoot from author's prior Stepbrother's series with the majority of the players from those books. However, the author did do a nice job of giving the reader background without drowning us in it. The story holds fine as a standalone.

[Debby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read

This was a cute quick read. If you are a fan of C A Taylor you'll notice characters from other books. The plot is moderately paced and the characters fun.

[Rachel Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just meh for me. I didn't really get any chemistry between the two MCs to be honest.