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Awakening the Alpha

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Blaze Canis is doing what he loves best. As a shooting range instructor just outside Yellowstone National Park, the former Navy SEAL sniper is still handling firearms. When Shoshone Native Logan Swift Rider walks into his target shooting class one morning, the attraction each man feels for the other is swift and magical. Since Blaze’s SEAL teammates never knew he was gay, let alone a werewolf, he’s confident his new lover need never know of his two natures.

Logan opens his heart and body to loving Blaze in the most intimate ways possible. When he learns what Blaze has hidden of himself, Logan is shattered. Although raised in both the white and Native worlds, it’s Logan’s Indian heritage that tells him he may have fallen for a witch, a skinwalker.

Can Blake convince Logan there’s no evil involved in what he is or will Logan remain convinced he’s been making love to a monster?

110 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 6, 2013

40 people want to read

About the author

Carolina Valdez

45 books25 followers
Carolina Valdez warns not to be fooled by the photo. "Even if you walk most of the race, you want to be sure to break into a run for the camera." Although most of her running days have morphed into walking days, she's completed over a hundred distance races - six of them marathons. Her short story about a murder on the streets she's actually competed on, in the Los Angeles Marathon, appears in LAndmarked for Murder, an anthology produced by the Sisters in Crime/Los Angeles chapter.

After a varied career as a registered nurse while winning awards and making sales writing freelance, she decided to retire to finish her first novel. Now she writes about searing passions and the sweetly explosive ecstasies of love.

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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
Profile Image for BWT.
2,252 reviews245 followers
June 18, 2016
The instant ex-SEAL and current firearms instructor Blaze Canis looks into Logan Swift Rider's eyes they both feel an actual physical connection between the two, with Logan even able to see what he believes is Coyote, the Trickster, in Blaze's eyes.

The connections startles both men, for different reasons. Blaze has been suppressing, or outright hiding, his wolf side for years. Even to the point he's able to suppress the need to shift even on full moon nights. But Blaze knows there's something about Logan that calls on an even deeper level to him.

Logan is a renowned artist with works hanging in galleries worldwide, and he's only back in town to visit with his beloved Grandfather on the reservation. He's unsure about taking a chance on Blaze, but the pull between them is too strong, and Logan allows his walls to fall to be with Blaze.

When Blaze is forced to save Logan and show his wolf, Logan's heritage makes him think Blaze is a skinwalker, a witch, which is far more frightening a prospect than it just being Coyote, the trickster, playing with him.

The story is from both Blaze and Logan's POV. I liked seeing the love and respect between Logan and his Grandfather, but, on the whole, I didn't really connect with the characters or story. I felt like the side story seemed a little forced, and I would have liked to see more interaction between Logan and Blaze's wolf side and gotten a better idea of what the connection between them was.

Also, there were a couple of editing issues, which I wouldn't normally bring up unless it's really noticeable to the point it drew me out of the story (one example: a character's name goes from Kaye, to Kay, to Kate within a couple of pages).

Sometimes I'll read a story that just doesn't quite resonate. Unfortunately, this was one of those times. But don't let that stop you from checking it out - maybe you'll love it!

Advanced Review Galley copy of Awakening the Alpha provided by Loose Id in exchange of an honest review.

This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for The Novel Approach.
3,094 reviews137 followers
July 1, 2016
2.5 Stars ~ As the blurb tells you, the instant attraction between the two main characters is mystical in nature…somehow. It never really gets explained. There’s gold cord and soul gazing and visions of a wolf, but why that happens is never really explored. Not only that, but the characters don’t really seem that concerned about it, which seems odd. Particularly because it doesn’t seem to have anything to do with Blaze being a wolf shifter, and has everything to do with Logan being Shoshone. So you’d think Blaze, being a white man, would be at least a bit curious about the experience. At least, I thought that. I was wrong.

I liked the idea of Logan having a bit of magic of his own. After all, why should the shifter have all the fun? But it never seemed genuine, and sometimes felt more like a stereotype. He was raised mostly in the city, outside of the influence of his heritage, though he did spend four of his teen years on the reservation with his grandfather. Since then, he’s been living in the city as an artist who specializes in themes of his native culture. Yet Logan is supposed to have some sort of spiritual connection with the land that results in him recognizing this magical link to Blaze at their first meeting? Okay, I guess.

On top of that mystical Indian stereotype we also see mention of alcoholism, Indian modesty, a comparison of the character to a wooden Indian outside a tobacco shop, and an oblique reference to Logan being secretive, assumedly because he’s Native—all of which felt a bit like stereotyping to me as a casual reader. Now, I am the last person to claim any expertise on any of the Native American tribes, and in particular the Shoshone, of which Logan is a fictional member. I have no idea how much research the author did on the Shoshone, but based on my reading, it didn’t feel like much. There’s some high level cultural references, but nothing deep, and Logan’s ethnicity manages to be his defining character trait without ever telling the reader much about him.

I also had to actually step out of the book and Google preferred nomenclature for Native Americans because the word “Indian” was used EVERYWHERE, and I’d always been told that it was rude. Hardly any other term is used in the book. In case you’re curious, there are many different ways to refer to Native Americans, and preference usually depends on the person you’re talking to. Some do use “Indian” or “American Indian,” but many others do consider it rude. Mostly, the preference seems to be to reference the actual tribe whenever possible. But it’s always safe to respectfully ask the person you’re talking to for their preference. So it’s not wrong…exactly…but it definitely felt weird. But, I’m also not the arbiter of what’s offensive and what’s not for all (or any) Shoshone, so we’ll hope the author chose the term intentionally after taking all of that into consideration.

I also ended up googling the skinwalker legend. As the blurb indicates, this is the main source of conflict between Blaze and Logan, once Logan finds out Blaze has been hiding this part of himself. The only reference I could find was part of Navajo lore, which was what I remembered and why I jumped over to a search engine. It could also be part of Shoshone lore, as my search was cursory; I just couldn’t find it.

Aside from the whole potentially evil skinwalker angle, the way-too-brief conflict that came out of the big reveal felt a bit off. There was no moment of “holy crap, is that even REAL?” It went straight from “maybe he’s an evil witch who bewitched me into loving him” to being more about the lying. Yeah, discovering your lover is a shifter would be a shock, but why be angry about the secrecy from a near stranger? I mean, how dare Blaze not reveal this potentially dangerous secret he’s kept his whole life after knowing Logan for a few days. They’d practically known each other a WHOLE WEEK by the time it came out. Blaze is clearly a terrible, horrible person for not trusting Logan completely after that lengthy acquaintance (FYI – that’s sarcasm, friends).

Not to mention the fact that Logan is technically DATING SOMEONE ELSE. I’d warn you that this is a spoiler, but it isn’t really, as it hardly seems to matter to Logan. The boyfriend character is so minor, I’m not even sure why the author bothered with him, except to make me like Logan less. Mr. Boyfriend doesn’t do anything, never shows up beyond a phone call early on in which he *gasp* wants to be with his boyfriend, even though Logan told him he couldn’t come on the trip. Logan thinks he’s annoying and clingy and is actually planning to break up after the phone call, but never manages to get around to it. In fact, Logan cares so little for the poor guy that he never mentions him at all to Blaze. Not even after the whole secret-keeping flare up in which Blaze apologizes profusely for not telling Logan he’s a shifter. Logan doesn’t bother to return the honesty favor, and plans a happily-ever-after without ever mentioning he actually has a boyfriend waiting for him to come home. But don’t worry, at the end of the book Logan decides he’s definitely breaking up with that one dude. For sure.

I also thought that Blaze as alpha could have been given a bit more page time. It was a huge missed opportunity for his character, particularly given the somewhat inexplicable title of the book. Blaze basically becomes alpha by accident when he kills the current alpha. And he doesn’t kill the alpha because the guy’s a murderer (which he is), and it’s the right thing to do and will likely save more lives. Blaze does it to save Logan—which, you know, AWWW—I guess. But seriously, Blaze is a Navy SEAL, has already figured out this guy is behind at least two human corpses, and has SEEN HIM IN TOWN and identified him as the murderer. He just keeps minding his own business until Logan goes out into the shifter’s territory against Blaze’s advice. That’s not really all that heroic; it’s actually kind of cowardly. Beyond knowing he doesn’t actually want to be alpha, we don’t see much of Blaze in the position after he introduces himself to the beta after the fight.

Apart from my issues with the plot, and the disappointingly minor conflict and resolution in the climax, there are some awkward phrases and terms that really threw me out of the story. The worst offenders were involved in the love scenes (including cringe-inducers like “manhole” and “butt banging” in a serious context), but I also found words used incorrectly like “carrion” to refer to vultures instead of “carrion eaters” that made me wish an editor had taken a closer look at the text.

Overall, Awakening the Alpha was just okay. If you want a light, low-drama, cotton candy kind of offering, this might work for you. I was hoping for a bit more out of it.

Reviewed by Cassie for The Novel Approach Reviews
Profile Image for Christy.
4,446 reviews127 followers
January 31, 2014
I enjoy finding new authors, to me, and hearing their voices and seeing the worlds they create. When it's a shifter story then I'm really in happy, happy, joy, joy land so I was excited when I cracked open 'Awaking the Alpha' by Carolina Valdez. The description of Blaze and Logan sounded intriguing but I guessed there was going to be more to the story than what it said.

Blaze is a retired Navy SEAL sniper who came home to his birthplace to teach as a weapons instructor. He is also a wolf shifter who has spent so many years as a human and suppressing his need to shift, even during the full moon, that he wonders now whether coming home was the best decision. Logan is a Shoshone who has come back to Yellowstone to spend time with his grandfather. Raised primarily in the white world, Logan is comfortable there, but his grandfather taught him what it means to be Native American, and he respects the traditions.

As Blaze and Logan begin to explore the fierce attraction they have, something else begins to hunt them. When the final confrontation happens, Blaze has no idea how Logan is going to react to his dual nature, all Blaze knows is that he'll do whatever it takes to protect the man he's fallen in love with.

Logan is shocked and horrified thinking Blaze is an evil witch, a skinwalker of Native American lore, and Logan leaves Blaze's home where he's been staying to spend some days with his grandfather. But Logan can't just leave this relationship without sitting down and discussing what has happened with Blaze.

This was a good book, and I would have loved a little more background on the shifter lore. I did enjoy the Native American interactions and the romance was very sweet.

NOTE: This book was provided by Amber Allure for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Profile Image for Dawn.
246 reviews15 followers
July 30, 2016
I received a free copy to read and review for wicked reads review team.

This book didn't do it for me sadly.
The blurb reads that Blaze and Logan have an instant connection. It's a magical connection but I just felt that the characters were a little flat and didn't really have much chemistry together.

I liked that it was told from both POVS so we could see what was happening with the other characters.

However this book was too slow paced for me as I felt it dragged towards the end :(
Profile Image for Crystal Marie.
1,483 reviews68 followers
November 2, 2016
At first, I wasn’t sure if I would like Awakening the Alpha. I asked to review it because I’m a sucker for books with Native American mythos in it. But the beginning totally and utterly turned me off. A whole chapter on guns and shooting. Seriously? I considered DNF’ing it after the first chapter and my mind was set on “OMG I don’t want to read this book.”

Once Blaze and Logan got past that scene and got into the actual story… It was pretty good.

Blaze is a shifter who hasn’t shifted much in over two decades. His parents were alphas and his wolf is still strong, but as a SEAL, he just didn’t have much time for it. And he liked keeping himself separate from his wolf. He works just outside of Yellowstone teaching people how to shoot. Logan is a world-famous artist, full Shoshone, and while he lives in San Diego has come up to Yellowstone to spend time with his grandfather.

Once the first chapter was over, I loved the look at Logan as he talked a bison to leave the road and of the small look into the Native American community he spent a few years in as a youth.

The story heated up with Blaze and Logan unable to stay away from one another. I liked Logan’s caution. I did not like Blaze’s assumption that just because he liked to be an exhibitionist, Logan would too. As if everyone would just because it’s one of his kinks. As I have the same kink, I can understand the excitement of it, but I don’t expect people I date to have it or believe that once they get a taste they will love it. Pfft!

The last half of the book is the part that really got me going. Once I passed the 50% mark, I couldn’t stop reading. The scene where Logan found out what Blaze is was intense and yet very quick. I felt sorry for him. I mean, “Hello! Your new boyfriend shifts into a wolf.” I’m not surprised he threw up when he got back to his car.

The ending felt abrupt. They kind of, sort of, agreed to live there because of Blaze’s new situation, but Logan still talked as though they could go anywhere they wanted except for a few days around the full moon. But there’s no way Blaze can leave for that long a time. So whether they will end up with an HEA? That’s up for discussion. But it definitely had an HFN.

Reviewed by a-nony-mouse for Crystal’s Many Reviewers
*Copy provided for review*
Profile Image for Ali.
2,100 reviews17 followers
August 8, 2016
A Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Review An Alisa Review:

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Logan and Blaze come from very different backgrounds. Logan’s Native American heritage and teachings give him a different view of the world from many while Blaze has always really hidden who he was from the world. They both feel a deep connection to the other very quickly.

When Logan finds out Blaze is a werewolf, he begins to rethink everything he knew about Blaze because of teachings from his youth. It takes some deep soul searching for him to be willing to talk about his concerns and see Blaze again.

It took a bit for me to connect with the characters, not quite sure why. Chapter 1 is more of a preface to me and I kept trying to connect it to the MCs to it, but that doesn’t come until a bit later. Once I really got into the story I could see how open Blaze and Logan were with each other while still holding a bit back. I’m not sure they ever really resolve the problem, it’ more of both of them just saying okay we’re good. I also didn’t like that there was never a real ending to the “relationship” that Logan had back in California and no mention of it to Blaze either.

Cover art by Syneca Featherstone is wonderful and perfect for this story.
Profile Image for Ro Dubose.
254 reviews
November 2, 2016
Former Navy SEAL sniper Blaze Canis finds out the hard way that trust is a part of love. Keeping secrets from his lover, Native American Logan Swift Rider almost destroyed their relationship shortly after it began.

Awakening the Alpha is a budding interracial romance. The setting is Yellowstone Park with some interesting history about the area including the dangerous animals the tourist is likely to encounter.

Blaze is an alpha werewolf who chose not to be the leader of a pack because he is gay. The thought of mating with a female was unacceptable for Blaze so he chose instead to join the Navy. Now that he has retired, Blaze misses the friendship of his military unit.

Logan left the reservation to become an artist. Also being gay, Logan could not carry on the Shoshone’s expected tradition of marriage and fathering children. Logan continues to speak his native language at times as well as remembers some of the myths learned as a child. It is one particular native myth that caused a major misunderstanding between Logan and Blaze.

Carolina Valdez has created an amiable saga that I enjoyed. I found the Shoshone tribe history especially interesting.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews

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