Archie's Accidental Kidnapping

Hounds of the Hunt #1

by Toni Griffin

Hounds of the Hunt: Book 1

NEXT BOOK: Pyro's Accidental Shooting

Long nights hunting supernatural beings means little time for love in Adze's life. He and his pack mates are what protects Melbourne, and Australia, from the things that go bump in the night—very real spirits and demons who prey on humans.

Every day Archie's life is consumed by work as he desperately tries to pay back his student debt and a loan a boyfriend took out in his name. Tired and alone, he dreams of a future with someone to love and hold him through the night.

One fateful encounter with a nephilim gone bad changes both their worlds forever. Now Adze just has to convince his heart mate he didn't actually kidnap him.
​
Please note: Archie's Accidental Kidnapping has undergone extensive edits and rewrites since Toni is gearing up to continue the series. In addition, the series has been renamed so as not to confuse it with another.

The plot has changed, the world is different, 41,000 words were added, BUT the one thing that hasn't changed is Archie and Adze.

Genres: Paranormal, M M Romance, Fantasy, Romance, Shapeshifters, Audiobook, LGBT

268 pages, ebook

First published August 28, 2013

About the author

Toni Griffin lives in Darwin, the smallest of Australia’s capital cities. Born and raised in the state she’s a Territorian through and through. Growing up Toni hated English with a passion (as her editors can probably attest to) and found her strength lies with numbers.
Now, though, she loves escaping to the worlds she creates and hopes to continue to do so for many years to come. She’s a single mother of one and works full time. When she’s not writing you can just about guarantee that she will be reading one of the many MM authors she loves.
Feel free to drop her a line at info@tonigriffin.net anytime.

Reviews

[Len Evans Jr · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was just what I needed at the moment... fun, sexy and paranormal. Adze and Archie are great fun and hopefully we will see more of them in book two, even though that is Pyro's story. The story over all had plenty of action and a nice amount of suspense. I really loved the way the author handled Archie and Adze's relationship, having it move forward at what I thought was a realistic pace considering all Archie had to come to terms with. Gotta say I think Adze's gift to Archie was adorable and sweet as hell. All in all this book was extremely enjoyable from start to finish and one I did not wish to put down.

[NeRdyWYRM · Rating 3 out of 5]

So-So

This is a revised edition and I could tell a lot of work went into it, so I'm not inclined to pooh-pooh it too much.

The good:

The "world" is interesting. By that I mean that the hellhound shifters on Earth fighting supernatural baddies is a fun premise.

The setting is awesome. I love books set in Australia for some reason and will forgive a lot of niggles in lieu of that. Irrational, I know.

The alpha-dog characters were a rowdy, slightly immature, carefree bunch of fun.

I liked Archie. He was solid gold. Sweet, smart, uber-responsible, and believable.

The niggles:

I'm left with a lot of questions about how hounds from Hell are crime-fighting do-gooders. Are they from Hell because they did something to end up there? Are the working off a karmic debt? Were they purposefully created (or naturally exist) to do good things from the arguably wrong side of the fence as some balancing force? How/why do they stay Earthbound and for how long? If they have to go back to Hell do any acquired mates go with and what would that be like? What are the advantages of being mated? Hellhounds are long-lived; humans are not, so ... does mating address that? See ... questions.

The setting wasn't as dynamic as it could have been. It was short on detail and aside from dialogue idiosyncracies and place names, the story really could have taken place anywhere. This was a lost opportunity for deeper development.

The character interactions sometimes felt stilted or forced. Like try-hard forced. The banter and convos came across as more scripted than natural as if their parts were written as what someone should say in certain situations and environments instead of what real people would actually say (and in what tone) in the same circumstances were they possible outside of the world of fiction.

The character development in terms of personality and psychology (behavior and dialogue) was a little weak. It came across as kind of B-movie and reduced Adze and his pals almost to caricatures, which was unfortunate.

This was an entertaining read with missed or neglected opportunities for depth. I would read the next one, but I'm not heavily invested and these are taking up space on my mental "fluff" shelf for when I'm bored and need an easy read that won't evoke a lot of unpleasant feels.

It could have been better. It also could have been worse. All in, it was so-so.

[Kathleen]

Clumsy, simplistic writing. No thanks.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read the original and loved it. But this expanded version is all the better for the adds. It’s a complicated world now, with hellhounds patrolling cities to take care of run amok Nephilim, Djinn and other creatures that go bump in the night. And like all peacekeepers, the hellhound pack is run ragged with too many bad guys and not enough of them to go around. Adze and his pack are tracking a Nephilim serial killer. Tracking the killer, Adze gets there before the killer can get his next victim into a getaway car. When Adze catches the scent of his mate coming from the victim, he’s torn. He doesn’t want to let the killer go but he can’t leave his mate unprotected. In the end, he protects his mate, taking him back to his home.

The last thing Archie remembers is arms grabbing him, so when he wakes in a strange place with a man he doesn’t know, he assumes it’s the kidnapper. And what if the stranger resembles the fantasy man from his dreams and there’s a spark of attraction when the man is near. What if the guy only wants to protect him? Archie is independent and wants to stay that way…maybe?

I loved the back and forth between Adze and Archie. And the two cents that is thrown in by the rest of the pack makes you laugh. There’s lots of teasing in between the serious jobs of tracking the bad guys. The world built here is well written, sucking you in. The plot keeps you turning the pages. As characters, the pack of hellhounds is varied and fun loving, but serious about their job. Can’t wait to meet more of them as the series progresses.

[Qin · Rating 1 out of 5]

A hell of a botched job! For a book taking place in Melbourne, I did not get any Australian vibes and local colouring, not even intermittently; nor does the lexicon make the flimsiest attempt to sound like Aussie English. The world building is as lazy, hazy and noncommittal as they come. Mrs Griffin flatly considers that allusions to Hell reiterated à la Goebbels and evocations of, say, Hellfire or the century-long sequence of caretakers that anchored on Earth the paranormal heroes amounted to the required explanation of the paranormal mythology of the Hounds and their arch-enemies, Incubi or Nephilims, both of whom could as well have been written as interchangeable pawns, for all their indistinctive attributes. As for Hellhounds, here they are nothing more than massive, black dogs with a telepathic link in shifted form and the ability to conjure Hellfire out of thin air and then contain or snuff it out. Their team behaves in their human garb as a bunch of rowdy teens, whose stereotypied antics swell the incipit of the story well beyond the utility of such trite material qua pertaking of character building. On the plotline and romance, the most that can be said is that both do the barest minimum, crippled as they are by the utter lack of imagination conspicuous everywhere between these covers, and which never comes out more starkly than in the atrocious writing. Seldom in a book have I encountered so many instances of wrongly divided and punctuated clauses and such fondness for run-on sentences; both traits can only be explained as the oral style of an author who writes as she talks, viz. in shamelessly subliterary fashion. Here is a brief sample which, I reckon, adequately epitomizes her manner (or lack thereof):

"Cacus had already baked a large batch, they didn't really need any more, otherwise Adze would have put a stop to them.

Adze shook his head at his friends they were all as bad as one another. He turned his back on the bunch of them and walked out of the room. Adze knew how this would end and didn't feel the need to stand around and watch. The sounds of Daevas howling as Cacus tickled all his known hot spots followed seconds later. Adze grinned like a loon, content his pack mates were all right.

Having had his fill of idiocy Adze went looking for the only other sane one in the bunch, Pyro. Adze loved all the guys like they were brothers, but sometimes they could get on his nerves. He knew they were just relieving stress which is why he left them to it and walked away. The search for Pyro was fairly short-lived as the man was still relaxing on the couch in peace."

Add a kindergarten-level use of inflections and vocabulary (e.g. Adze's assistant is called by him "the broad" seemingly as a pet name) along with a propensity to drop necessary words, a blatant ineptitude at focussing on the one character for an entire chapter, and an orogenesis of frustrating verbiage (such sentences as this one are aplenty, disregarding the repetitions of the same idea, as Mrs Griffin appears to perpetually assume that the reader will have lost her thread:

"Archie raced in, the door bouncing open against the jam. Whatever. It could stay open. Archie turned the tap and jumped in the shower before questioning his choice of actions. Ice water rained down on top of him, momentarily stunning Archie. No, it wasn't icicles spearing him relentlessly, just water. Archie wasn't too manly to admit that he might have screamed as the freezing water hit his skin"),

and you will get a furious reader who struggled to remain onboard the goshammer-thin plot and ridiculous narrative.

[Diane Dannenfeldt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have liked more background on the Hell Hounds. Why did they come into existence, why are they from hell if they are really the good guys, etc. Hopefully we will get more in future books. I did like both MC's. Archie in the beginning did grate on me but I got over it pretty quickly.

[Leaundra · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounded up to 5

[Light · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 / 5 Stars

Easy and very quick read with enough action to keep you entertain. The characters were funny and what you can expect in a fluffy shifter book. I liked the unusual name the mates received, it was pretty cool. There's no much drama going on and it's mostly related to the circunstancies around the mating between Adze and Archie.

Everything's solved pretty quick and the characters can concentrate in their newly-found relationship and give us some steamy times. The rest of the characters add their own humor to the story and makes me wonder who will find their mate next.

Overall, I had a good time reading it even if I felt it was too short. I look forward to the next story.

[The Novel Approach · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a refreshing take on the paranormal genre, and I loved the idea of Hellhounds being assigned on earth to protect humanity and send the truly evil paranormals into Hell where they belong, as well as exploring other kinds of paranormals than the usual witches, vampires and werewolves. The author gradually built up our knowledge and understanding of her world from the first chapter where the hellhounds are on a hunt. I also loved that they didn’t immediately meet leader of the pack Adze’s mate immediately. This allowed us time to get used to the world and a feel for the characters.

So, when hard-working and seemingly boring Archie does meet Adze, he turns the whole thing on its head. Particularly, as in most soulmate books where a kidnapping (accidental or otherwise) occurs, it can annoy me that often the paranormal reveals his nature, soulmate accepts it or faints, after which their attraction is too strong, so they have sex and then everything is okay—let’s just brush past the whole kidnapping to begin with. The author, this time, had Archie show his true spit-fire nature and acted in the way I have always wanted these confused mates only being introduced to the supernatural now to act—which was not to put up with this shit.

He forces Adze to woo him properly and ask forgiveness for his ‘accidental’ kidnapping, and it was fantastic to see that relationship building and not jump straight to insta-love. Instead, the pair grow to know each other and develop a strong bond outside of their soulmate bond. I also loved that Adze didn’t allow his new knowledge of who his soulmate, or Cor Coeunt as it’s called here, to distract too much from his job hunting evil. While he makes sure his Cor Coeunt is safe and looked out for when walking to and from work, he still makes sure to patrol and hunt for the Nephilim serial killer they were looking for when Adze and Archie met.

The hounds seemed to really feel more human and relatable, especially since Adze was just as lust clumsy as any other guy would be instead of the supernatural grace seen so often. His packmates care but persistent teasing was just what I would imagine a big family to behave. Overall, this book took everything I loved about soulmate books and paired it with what I love about romance stories. Can’t wait for the next in the series.

Reviewed by Jenn for The Novel Approach

[Duncan Husky · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

There's a really good book hidden in here somewhere. Unfortunately, it's covered by enough issues things became problematic for me. I really liked the characters, and there is a lot of potential in the pack of hellhounds that Adze leads, even if I never felt of an understanding of Adze's character. Archie is great, though. He's an everyday guy whose work is his life; he's deeply in debt due to the indiscretions of a past boyfriend and has to work two jobs to make ends meet. He's a smart, independent man who makes a good foil for Adze's overprotectiveness.

The world-building is minimal, but I can roll with it. I would love to know more about the supernatural elements which are hidden from our world and how they work, but we're not given much to go on. I was left with a lot of questions - we know what happens when a supernatural being goes bad, but what about when they're good. Do they even know they are supernatural?

On top of all of this, we come to the basic elements of the story, and that's where I started to have problems. Apparently, this was originally a short story that was fleshed out into a full novel. This may explain for the unevenness in tone that completely took me out of the story. It's a cute story about Adze courting Archie, until suddenly it gets a whole lot more grim. After that we suddenly switch back to a lighter touch in a series of scenes that are WAY too detailed and bog things down.

Then there's the editing. If a story is good enough I can overlook a lot of sins, but the number of misplaced commas, sentence fragments, and outright incorrect word choices ("The feeling of safety they imbibed every time they were around wrapped Archie up like a blanket..." Imbued, perhaps?) made it clear that this needs a lot more editing. On a side note: I've had three years of Latin. If someone mentioned the phrase "Cor Coeunt" colloquially, I wouldn't have any idea what the hell they were talking about (and depending on their accent I might be appalled at their use of a vulgarity!).

If the blurb intrigues you, then by all means give this one a shot. I will probably pick up the next book to see where things go.

[Violet Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first book in The Hounds of the Hunt Series. A riveting book the writing was amazing. I read this book in one sitting it was so good. I loved this book, it was a balanced story and the flow was great. The detail is what made this book. I frequently complain about books that need to add detail. This one had it to a perfection. The story didn’t leave you hanging with a lot of questions. However, it gave openings for the future books in the series. I did have some questions about Archies ex-boyfriend, but they weren’t necessary for the story. The setting is in Australia and there were a few things that I had to guess about not being for there myself. But they were not an issue at all. The plot was entertaining and it was steady throughout the book. I found the story and characters captivating. The characters were well developed and thought out. Archie a human and Adze a hellhound are the MC’s of this book and heart mates. These characters are fantastic, I loved Archie and all of his comebacks to the events in his life. I also loved how protective and caring Adze is. There was humor, kidnappings, hellhounds, a hospital, police, a serial killer, nephilims, hellfire, friends, a picnic and so much more in this book.

Here is a quote from the book, “I call you that because that’s what I was taught. From generation to generation, we’re all told that for every Hound created there is a Cor Coeunt—a heart mate—that once bound together can never be broken apart, even in death. It is said that a hound and their mate are perfect for each other, and I have to tell you, Archie, I believe you to be pretty damn perfect for me. Even if you are stubborn as all get out make me want to strangle you.”. There is more but you will need to read the book which I can highly recommend. I can’t wait for the next book. I voluntarily read an advance copy of this book for an honest review.

[Shymsal · Rating 1 out of 5]

I struggled with this one, but it went by really quickly. Not a good sign. I only read complete books really fast in two very different instances - either I LOVE them and just can't stop, or they pain me, but not enough to make me stop and delete them. On to the story:

First off, the main characters' relationship and characterization. Adze and Archie are soul/true mates which is something that needs to be handled well to be palatable to me. In some ways, it was. I liked that Archie didn't roll over immediately and scream "Take me!," like some "mates" do. He actually fought at first because he thought Adze and the other hounds were kidnappers. I like that Adze had to court him. But I wish I felt Adze had had more agency about it. He was like *sniff* - It's HIM! and done.

The secondary characters presented other characterization difficulties that limited my enjoyment. I didn't really get a sense of who the individual hounds were. Adze's pack was not written as a collection of separate people come together for a single purpose, so much as individual parts of a single organism that acted and spoke exactly alike. They may even have been described as different people at some point, but I didn't get a sense of it. They could just as easily have been named Hound A, Hound B, etc., as far as I was concerned. With characterization like that it didn't thrill me to know the author intends to write a romance for each of these mostly faceless drones. There were even obligatory side characters for the reader to consider as potential partners. Sadly, though they occupied mere paragraphs, they were more interesting.

This may be more another reader's speed.

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dream lover meets nightmare scenario

I really enjoyed this book! I am a bit of a sucker for paranormal romances, butI really liked the different theme going on here- hellhounds! Not one I've ever encountered as a lead and it worked well!

Adze is the leader of his lack of shape shifting hellhounds. His heart mate turns out to be a one Archibald Hennings, goes by Archie. Hellhounds have the job of keeping him and safe from things that go bump in the night. When one of those things, a serial killing nephilim, targets Archie, Archie and Adze meet under less than ideal circumstances.

This is not a blatant insta-love story which I enjoyed. Adze is immediately all in because as a hellhound he knows Archie is his mate and devotes his whole heart to him. As a human though Archie doesn't have that immediate knowledge, and getting knocked out and kidnapped doesn't help much either. The story focuses well between the hounds trying to hunt down the nephilim and Adze wooing Archie.

This book was a pleasure to read from start to finish. Not only did it build the relationship with a nice slow burn, it also told a truly complete story. After the action it would often be assumed that all was good and the story was done, but instead Griffin took us on the journey after that. Already in love with these two, that harsh but fulfilling after was an excellent way to tell such a complete story, leaving me with no doubts about the two and an excitement for upcoming books!

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very easy almost simplistic story. There is not much flesh to it. No background as to why the hellhounds are patrolling the earth hunting down other errant beings.it feels like a back story is missing. There is some attempt to fill in bits of information but it’s intermittent. Having said all that it’s still an enjoyable story. The team of rowdy Hellhounds transform into human but do their hunting in as massive black hounds. Archie is targeted and the hellhounds take him to protect him. Now that’s where it gets a little more interesting. Archie certainly keeps Adze on his toes and makes him work for the right to be his mate. It certainly is different from usual shifter stories. One I think will either be loved or hated.
Joel Leslie’ narration makes the story for me, I have a feeling that it’s the narration that makes it much more fun than if I had just read it. Archie comes across as such a feisty person, ready to put his mat in his place. Joel Leslie excels at making a group of characters distinct from each other pulling out character traits that makes them stand out.
copy provided by the narrator in exchange for an honest review

[JenCW · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story was a fun read.

Adze and his fellow pack mates are hellhounds, chasing down supernatural beings that go bad. Archie is a sweetheart, who ends up on the wrong side of a nephilim serial killer. Adze saves Archie, but refuses to leave Archie unprotected, especially while Archie is still unconscious. Their wild ride starts with Archie thinking Adze kidnapped him.

I loved Archie. He was a nice guy, who worked hard and had a great attitude through everything. Adze and his fellow hellhounds were pretty cool too. I loved how patient Adze was considering all that happens in the story to delay their mating. The humor was great, and these two MCs were sweet together.

The world that the author has created is intriguing and different. I love all the supernatural beings that come up and can't wait to see what future books bring us with Adze's packmates, further world building, and the powers that all these supernaturals have.

[Skye Blue ☆*~ﾟლ(´ڡ`ლ)~*☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining.

There are a lot of unanswered questions.
The framework of the world is set, but there are a lot of things that haven't been explained.
If this was a standalone I would rant and rave. This is a series, so it might be nice getting those answers over time.

Hell hounds fighting crime on earth...and there's a possibility they may be forced back to hell? Why would hell want crime stopped?

The characters are likable, but not charismatic. I didn't connect with the characters.
I felt like I really really wanted to be immersed in the world, but fell short.

A lot of potential here. I love the idea of the Hell Hounds. They seem like a fun pack.
Right now, there wasn't anything that stands out from a basic formulaic shifter story, other than the species, but with all the potential that has sparked though out the book I hope that future stories in the series build on that. I'll have to read the next book to find out.

I like the cover art.

[Lioness7 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to admit that I picked this book up because it was one of Toni Griffin's, and I usually love her works. I can't say this is one of those. I have had this book for a long time and didn't realize she had rewritten it and expanded it. That would have probably helped me feel like it wasn't so rushed.

I have to say that the biggest thing that bothered me about this book was they way angels were described. I didn't like that at all. I wish I hadn't been so hasty about blindly following an author. I wouldn't have read this had I seen it had to do with angels. I don't like reading about them in books because they go against my beliefs usually. I went ahead and finished reading this because it was part of a challenge, but I won't read more of this series.

I will say that I will still read books by Toni Griffin though. I've just learned my lesson the hard way.

[Juniper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Archie is a nice, normal human working two jobs to make ends meet. Adze is a nice, not-so-normal hellhound working hard alongside his pack to keep Australia safe from supernatural wrongdoers. Archie is Adze's fated mate, so everything should be great, right? And then Adze accidentally kidnaps Archie, and the adventure really begins. This book offers an interesting blend of the lighthearted -- the hellhound pack's interactions with each other, Archie's early interactions with Adze, the supernatural -- hellhounds, nephilim, etc, and the dark-- torture, murder, kidnapping for real. For the most part, it all works together, although Archie and Adze's relationship development gets a bit compressed by, and lost in, all the drama. Overall, however, a good read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Tj · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was a little clunky and repetitive...but..I liked. The pairing of an accountant and a hellhound is imaginative to say the least and is surprisingly funny at times.

It was humorous when Archie (god his awful full name) basically told off a hellhound. Most sane people would have been shaking with fear after discovering hellhounds are real or questioning their own sanity. Not Archie. He further shows questionable judgement when he takes time to have a shower and brush his teeth before trying to escape.

Much like a first date, the book had some hits and misses but shows promise. The writing flowed better in the epilogue, and now that the awkward “first date phase” is over will hopefully continue to improve in the second book. I like the world the writer is trying to create and will give the next book a go.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting take on Hellhounds.

Accidental Kidnapping is set in a world where nephlim run amok, faeries cause mayhem, and dinner destruction. Enter the Hellhounds the supernatural police force charged with protecting the world from paranormal forces.
Archie is working 2 jobs to escape crushing debt. Adze is on the trail of a serial killer nephlim. Adze saves Archie and in any other story the mate pull would have cleared all problems. The pull is strong, but Archie is way too stubborn to allow his dream man walk all over him. Lust is all well and good, but love takes time.
This is an excellent story with good pacing and interesting characters, both main and the secondary characters that are in the story.
I look forward to the next in the series.

[Stephanie W · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a combination; a human and a hellhound.

Archie - going through life, one day at a time. Trying to pay off debts; one student loan for him and the other taken out by a boyfriend...in his name. Not exactly the best idea of a trusting relationship. Daily life is wearing on him. He longs to have someone hold and love him they way he deserves.

Adze - worker bee and supernatural hunter. Working with his packmates is one thing. Longing to have love is another.

An unexpected clashing of their worlds and Adze discovers Archie is his fated mate. As if fate wasn't hard enough on them, Adze has to also convince Archie he is not his kidnapper.


**I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.**

[llv · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3 stars

I enjoyed this book well enough. I really liked Archie. I love a character with a bit of spunk to him. I liked Adze well enough. Wasn’t sure how to pronounce his name and that bugged me a bit. I found myself more interested in his team mates truth be told. I really loved the interaction between their handler Matti and Adze. It was a highlight of the book for me.

Overall, I thought the story was okay just nothing spectacular. It did get me interested in this world that Ms. Griffin has created and I am looking forward to reading the next one in the series.

[Lasha · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I really liked the concept of a pack of Hellhounds hunting down rogue supernatural beings. Archie was a fiesty main character, who stood up to his mate and didn't back down. While I liked the overall idea and world building, I felt the love story needed more explanation to make it work. The reader didn't find out any of Adze's backstory and his and Archie getting together seemed rushed. However, despite this, I can see promise in the series, so I will be continuing with the second book.

[Amber · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun light read without a lot of substance to it. The hellhound team was fun with their banter and play. Archie and Adze also had their hilarious moments especially in the beginning when Archie think Adze kidnapped him. This could have been a better book with more attention to the world building. Hellhounds policing Earth is an interesting idea but sadly the book doesn't really back up the premise with much details. Even how Adze and Archie's relationship is suppose to work isn't laid out very well.

[SFBookReviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Archie's Accidental Kidnapping is the first book in this supernatural series and an excellent read. It tells the story of Archie who is Adze's mate and is kidnapped and how they eventually find their HEA. There is an interesting mix of characters including the hellhounds. The book is full of snark, some angst and has a strong story line along with the gay romance. Can't wait to continue reading the series and see the rest of the pack find their mates.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Kkhmonrai · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the concept of this book, with a pack of hell-hounds protecting humanity from rogue supernatural beings. The world-building is really great. I loved Archie and enjoyed watching the relationship between he and Adze develop. There are some really funny moments. However, I wasn't really expecting how dark it would get. The descriptive blurb should warn about the dark nature so other readers don't get surprised. I thought it would be more humorous than it was.


I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Esther Alayeto · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love these Hellhounds! Adze and Archie are outstanding characters who meet when Adze saves Archie from a seril killer and in the process realizes that Archie is his mate! I love how Archie doesn't immediately give in to Adze and really makes him wait and work for it. All of the characters are just wonderful, I cant wait for more books in this series to read more about each one of the Hellhounds.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader copy f this book.

[Suzanne Irving · Rating 5 out of 5]

This m/m romance book is a great read. Fairly lighthearted except for the kidnapping it follows a group of hellhounds as they rid Australia of various supernatural creatures that have gone bad and finding their fated mates along the way. Lots of action and intrigue with only a little bit of kissing and more. If m/m romance is something that you like then try this series.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Nautica Heddlesten · Rating 5 out of 5]

DEFINITELY 9/10
I loved this book!! I have listened to other audiobooks by Toni Griffin, and I have to say that I am not disappointed!! Archie is my favorite character, and it hurt to hear what he went through, but Adze is definitely the right mate for him. I just wish that their story was continued in another installment instead of the second one focusing on another Hell Hound. Other than that, this book is awesome, and Joel Leslie as the narrator was exceptional!!

[Eric Westfall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read Ms. Griffin for a while, so I'm glad to be reminded of her, since I first "met" her with the Holland Brothers series, which I enjoyed immensely. This was an interesting "take" (as the expression goes) on hellhounds, and an enjoyable read. It lays the groundwork nicely for the start of a new series...and I'll certainly read the series. You should, too.