3.7 stars
This is the long-awaited fourth book, and I liked it better than the other three. The plot centers on Brody, the Alpha of the Donovan brothers’ pack, and Alison, a waitress at the local diner who (as everyone but Brody seems to know) has been in love with him for years.
Early in the story, Brody realizes Alison is aware that he struggles with reading and she is covering for him. At first he is a little angry to have this secret out, but soon he realizes she will keep it to herself and therefore he can now hire her to assist him.
Working together in close proximity makes Brody aware that Alison is his mate, but due to an ugly secret he carries, he does not feel deserving of her. One day, he reveals the secret, half-hoping to push her away, and half-fearing that he will succeed.
Meanwhile, the mayor of a nearby town is running for re-election and seems to view stoking fear of shifters in the human population as his ticket to success. When a man who knows Brody’s secret threatens to reveal everything to the mayor, Brody and Alison are faced with a challenge to the pack’s safety, and to their relationship.
The books in this series are all pretty short and at 157 pages, this one is the shortest. But the brevity worked to its advantage. Most of the annoying aspects of the world building I detailed in my post on the previous books are still there, but for the most part, they aren’t dwelled on. Instead the author focuses on the romance and on the suspense plot. The latter is also more compelling than the suspense plots in the other three books, because Brody is at the center of it, rather than a villain.
Werewolf biology still requires suspension of disbelief; werewolves never get sick and heal quickly from everything but silver. As well, only males can be werewolves, and so their female offspring are human (cue eye roll). Additionally, Brody’s thoughts described him as at war with his wolf and this conflict never got a satisfying resolution.
However, I really loved Alison’s quiet, steadfast love for him and the way she stepped up when she needed to. I also loved Brody’s determination to come home to her when they were separated late in the book. The resolution to the suspense conflict was fresh if a little bit rushed. This one gets a B-.