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Devil's Hoof: A Welsh Boys Novel
This is not one of Heather King's Regency novels. It is a paranormal Shape Shifter romance set in the present day. It is the first book in The Welsh Boys series and contains non-graphic love scenes.
Matthew Swift, Special Forces veteran of the Iraq wars and invalided out of the army following an act of heroism, is struggling to adjust to civilian life. Suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, he is a loose cannon ready to explode, beset by horrific flashbacks and images. If that were not enough, Matt has broken up with his girlfriend and his father is fighting a hostile takeover, in the process hiding a heart problem from his family.
Sparks fly when Matt meets alternative therapist Shani Stevens, but then they become stranded in Rhandor Forest by unprecedented storms and have no choice but to help each other.
Both have scars, yet slowly they learn to trust. Mutual sympathy and understanding soon grow into an abiding passion, but Matt has a secret he cannot reveal…
Matthew Swift, Special Forces veteran of the Iraq wars and invalided out of the army following an act of heroism, is struggling to adjust to civilian life. Suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, he is a loose cannon ready to explode, beset by horrific flashbacks and images. If that were not enough, Matt has broken up with his girlfriend and his father is fighting a hostile takeover, in the process hiding a heart problem from his family.
Sparks fly when Matt meets alternative therapist Shani Stevens, but then they become stranded in Rhandor Forest by unprecedented storms and have no choice but to help each other.
Both have scars, yet slowly they learn to trust. Mutual sympathy and understanding soon grow into an abiding passion, but Matt has a secret he cannot reveal…
353 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 24, 2016
1 person is currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
Heather King
13 books35 followersI am an author with a passion for history and in particular the Regency. I have my own voice, but I like to follow traditional Regency precepts and pen uplifting stories with flowing prose, witty dialogue, engaging characters and bags of emotion -- following with tiny steps in the magnificent wake of Georgette Heyer.
I live in a beautiful rural part of the UK and share my home with various life forms, including two ponies, three cats and a rescued 'Staffie' X. When I am not writing, I enjoy long walks with my dog, watching costume dramas and curling up with a good book.
From a small child, I have loved to write - and dream. In my bedroom I had a wallpaper with flower-edged squares - just perfect for writing my 'news'. I don't think my mother was very impressed, although I don't recall any major consequences.
I discovered Georgette Heyer in my early teens and in my opinion, there are few in the modern era who come close, let alone match her in the Regency genre. We can but aspire, as a friend once said!
My debut novel was 'A Sense of the Ridiculous', a traditional Regency Romance released originally by Musa Publishing and I'm excited that I will soon be re-releasing it with a new cover.
Writing as Vandalia Black, I also pen Vampire and Shape Shifter romances.
I live in a beautiful rural part of the UK and share my home with various life forms, including two ponies, three cats and a rescued 'Staffie' X. When I am not writing, I enjoy long walks with my dog, watching costume dramas and curling up with a good book.
From a small child, I have loved to write - and dream. In my bedroom I had a wallpaper with flower-edged squares - just perfect for writing my 'news'. I don't think my mother was very impressed, although I don't recall any major consequences.
I discovered Georgette Heyer in my early teens and in my opinion, there are few in the modern era who come close, let alone match her in the Regency genre. We can but aspire, as a friend once said!
My debut novel was 'A Sense of the Ridiculous', a traditional Regency Romance released originally by Musa Publishing and I'm excited that I will soon be re-releasing it with a new cover.
Writing as Vandalia Black, I also pen Vampire and Shape Shifter romances.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
October 22, 2021
A New Genre for Me
I usually shie away from anything that has “paranormal” in it, so I am not quite sure what attracted me to this book in the first place. Believe it or not, it was when I read the line of Shani Stevens at 3% in the sample that she must have eaten too many Mint Imperials, that I bought this book. Mint Imperials, I love ‘em. That, and the fact that the author states there are non-graphic love scenes. I also hope there is no bad language, as I didn’t read enough of the sample to see. The book page gives a very good outline of the plot so I will try and concentrate on my impressions of the story.
From their first meeting when Matt pulls Shani’s Jeep out of a ditch, there seems to be a connection between them, but the encounter is far from amiable. Their second encounter is equally unfriendly, and equally unsettling for both of them, although Matt seems to have better control over his response to Shani than she does to him, although they both manage to do a good job of hiding their attraction. The interplay between Matt and his siblings is as amusing as it is enlightening and they are a definitely a very close-knit family. The third time they meet, it is in Radnor Forest and Shani has a fall, badly spraining her ankle and hitting her head. The weather is very bad and about to get a lot worse so Matt takes Shani to his isolated cabin where he was staying. Once there, they are stranded by extreme weather conditions.
There is a lot going on in this book, with action on several fronts, and some turn out to be very dangerous. The two main protagonists, Matt and Shani are fully-developed, and many of the secondary characters are very well-defined. The shape-shifting is part of the story, not just an added extra and brings an unusual dimension to romance, and provides opportunity for a lot of innuendo. Matt’s PTSD is treated with a combination of sensitivity and compassion. Through Matt’s reactions to triggers and flashbacks, readers get a very brief glimpse of some of the horrors that servicemen and women face, and the struggle to adjust their innate humanity with the realities of war.
The author has a delightfully humorous turn of phrase and I frequently find myself smiling when coming across them. There are also some wonderfully constructed descriptions of many things, from meals, to décor, to scenery, some of them quite poetic. The book is extremely well-written and edited, and flows well. The love scenes are very sensual, but non-graphic as the book page states, and there is only the occasional mild swear word. The pacing is good and I like the way the author has weaved a little of the history of this particular locality into the story. Although I have read one “fantasy” book in early August, this is my first foray into a paranormal story (although I am told they are more or less interchangeable terms) and I was intrigued by the differences between the two. I have been told that the way the shape-shifters transform in this book differs from the norm, but I did like the way they transformed. I will read the second in this series, although I hope the author doesn’t increase the innuendo and sensuality as I feel this book reaches my threshold. This is a 3.5star, rounded up to four.
I usually shie away from anything that has “paranormal” in it, so I am not quite sure what attracted me to this book in the first place. Believe it or not, it was when I read the line of Shani Stevens at 3% in the sample that she must have eaten too many Mint Imperials, that I bought this book. Mint Imperials, I love ‘em. That, and the fact that the author states there are non-graphic love scenes. I also hope there is no bad language, as I didn’t read enough of the sample to see. The book page gives a very good outline of the plot so I will try and concentrate on my impressions of the story.
From their first meeting when Matt pulls Shani’s Jeep out of a ditch, there seems to be a connection between them, but the encounter is far from amiable. Their second encounter is equally unfriendly, and equally unsettling for both of them, although Matt seems to have better control over his response to Shani than she does to him, although they both manage to do a good job of hiding their attraction. The interplay between Matt and his siblings is as amusing as it is enlightening and they are a definitely a very close-knit family. The third time they meet, it is in Radnor Forest and Shani has a fall, badly spraining her ankle and hitting her head. The weather is very bad and about to get a lot worse so Matt takes Shani to his isolated cabin where he was staying. Once there, they are stranded by extreme weather conditions.
There is a lot going on in this book, with action on several fronts, and some turn out to be very dangerous. The two main protagonists, Matt and Shani are fully-developed, and many of the secondary characters are very well-defined. The shape-shifting is part of the story, not just an added extra and brings an unusual dimension to romance, and provides opportunity for a lot of innuendo. Matt’s PTSD is treated with a combination of sensitivity and compassion. Through Matt’s reactions to triggers and flashbacks, readers get a very brief glimpse of some of the horrors that servicemen and women face, and the struggle to adjust their innate humanity with the realities of war.
The author has a delightfully humorous turn of phrase and I frequently find myself smiling when coming across them. There are also some wonderfully constructed descriptions of many things, from meals, to décor, to scenery, some of them quite poetic. The book is extremely well-written and edited, and flows well. The love scenes are very sensual, but non-graphic as the book page states, and there is only the occasional mild swear word. The pacing is good and I like the way the author has weaved a little of the history of this particular locality into the story. Although I have read one “fantasy” book in early August, this is my first foray into a paranormal story (although I am told they are more or less interchangeable terms) and I was intrigued by the differences between the two. I have been told that the way the shape-shifters transform in this book differs from the norm, but I did like the way they transformed. I will read the second in this series, although I hope the author doesn’t increase the innuendo and sensuality as I feel this book reaches my threshold. This is a 3.5star, rounded up to four.
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