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The Sacred Order #1

Charlotte's Pride

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She thought she was rescuing them, but they'll be the ones to free her.

Charlotte works for the Sacred Order a very exclusive laboratory that deals in protecting all of mankind, not that Charlotte is sure just how they do that. One day she gets a glimpse when she notices a trio of big cats a cheetah, a tiger, and a lion all being abused and experimented on. She takes matters into her own hands and steals them intent on delivering them to a sanctuary. But those plans are destroyed when she wakes up to a man licking her cheek and two others beside him claiming they are the very cats she rescued. Now she has to risk her job, her best friend, and even her life if she wants to help these men get home. But will she be able to follow through or will she be the one that ends up in a cage?

this book contains adult situations including steamy scenes, adult language, and graphic descriptions. It is intended for an adult audience

346 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 5, 2021

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Maria Warren

29 books47 followers

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Profile Image for OneDayI'll.
1,599 reviews44 followers
September 11, 2022
Charlotte is a janitor at a facility. Usually all she sees is messes to clean. One day she sees 3 large cats: a tiger, a lion and a cheetah. When she sees the videos of how they're being tortured she knows she has to help them escape. No animal deserves to be treated so cruelly. And why would a research facility that helps humans need large cats?

Spoilers ahead.
This is the most odd and disjointed story. I get a brilliant janitor. Not everyone has the people skills to match their tech skills. But just walking up to wild animals that weight several hundred pounds? Nope. Crawling into a cage with them to release their collars? Nope. Computer skills don't equip you for giant cat taming. She giggles when one licks her cheek? A cheetah is a large cat, even if leaner. And the claws don't retract. If it pushes on you, you get cut. And if it gets in your face, there's fear not giggles. So, the premise of this just fractures from the start. And the whole POV of Jamie, her friend, interspersed is odd, too. It gives us insight on the team hunting her but for a supposedly smart woman she has to know that Peter is drugging her or controlling her behavior somehow. Especially after she learns more about him. And to turn over an entire coalition of cheetah to the ones she knows had already tortured 4 to death? Including children? Just to get her groove on with Peter? Ew. Not exactly sexy or sympathy inducing. I made it to 60% before giving up. When the tigers made Charlotte consumate her relationship in order to help save their own streak from the Order I was done. Not exactly self preservation is it? And the steam felt forced. They stopped for lunch rather than continue running. Charlotte, the tech genius that works for a high tech company, doesn't think that her car might have a tracker? The high tech company had easily accessible files? Not one other human has ever seen off things and beings being tortured? Those who clean see everything. And no matter how much bleach is used you can smell where blood regularly is spilled. Morgues never quite smell clean because of this. I'm not sure where this book was going but it meandered so long to get there that readers lose interest. And forced steam isn't a hook. They never had a plan, other than seek help. They're far too impulsive and easily distracted. They seem to have forgotten about the device housed in Salem. The dual Charlotte/Jamie POVs is odd. She's supposed to be helping them she's more or less a burden, letting them do for her but not asking how she can learn to do for herself. And she got shot by something that tore her shoulder open and poisoned her but within 2 days she's ready for wild mattress tango and not a single mention of how she and her clothes recovered so fast. And Sage came off as much too childlike for the relationship he wanted. I liked the idea of rescuing shifters and then taking down the corporation that was doing so. The fleshing out lost something, a lot, in translation.
Profile Image for Jackie.
2,554 reviews
September 12, 2021
DNF - quit at 25%
I just had a really hard time with this book. It really needed somebody to do some checks on things, somebody in the book referred to the cheetah as a Jaguar, as an example. There weren't a lot, but the ones I stumbled over pulled me out of the story. The cheetah was just to over the top unbelievable with his behavior, the tiger was just not likable, the lion standing around in a dress just made him ridiculously hard to take seriously in any way, and to keep being referred to as small for a lion didn’t help. Charlotte was not a believable character & I really didn’t get where I liked her enough to want to continue reading. Her friend Jamie is one of those toxic friends everyone should cut from their lives. Nothing about this book made any sense, from the company “Sacred Hearts”, to how the girls were janitors & some how Jamie gets promoted, to how the company got a hold of feline shifters, to how the shifters seem to not know about the human world (like clothing). Everything was just thrown together, it made this feel like a first draft or something. I needed more, maybe clarity, to even pull the plot together to want to continue.

At my age (approaching 60), life is way too short & my time is too important to force myself to read a book I'm not enjoying, especially when there are so many other books out there waiting to be read.
Profile Image for Emily Pennington.
20.8k reviews361 followers
June 22, 2021
Charlotte and Her "Cats" . . .

Charlotte is employed by the Sacred Order, a laboratory that claims to protect mankind. Charlotte will soon see what they call “protection” is a lie. She notices three big cats (cheetah, tiger, and lion) that are being experimented on. She feels a strong urge to free them and get them to safety at a sanctuary.

Along the way, she wakes to find a MAN licking her cheek! Apparently the cats are shifters: Sage, Salem, and Aramis. Stealing them away puts her in great danger since these are not “animals” and the laboratory will want their questionable actions covered up immediately. Can she escape and return them to where they came from or at least get them far away from the Sacred Order? What is in store for them along the way?
3,227 reviews25 followers
June 21, 2021
Charlotte helps three abused big cats escaped from The Sacred Order.
Charlotte works as a cleaner in The Sacred Order building and does not seek to get promoted but her friend Jamie is the opposite and has just got another promotion. While everyone is celebrating that promotion Charlotte finds three large cats a tiger, a lion and a cheetah that have been badly abused and after using the computer in Jamie's office she releases their chains and opens the cage doors. Going back to them she manages to hide them in a crate before anyone comes in. The next morning she wakes up in the company of three strange men.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Profile Image for Fiona.
2,762 reviews32 followers
July 16, 2021
Charlotte’s pride was a fantastic story, Charlotte is employed in a facility as a janitor although she has the intelligence to circumvent their security systems and their computer programming. One night she discovered three animals locked up in a cage, one was lion one was a tiger and the other was a cheater she lets them loose and she discovers that they are shifters. There are multiple steamy moments throughout this story but lots of action and suspense. Charlotte and her three mates endeavour to conquer the perpetrators of the facility that are set out to destroy all shifters in the world. These Demons want to be in control. But the story doesn’t just in there, it continues on in Angela‘s pack.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
4,663 reviews9 followers
June 22, 2021
Charlotte's Pride, a well written book 1 in The Sacred Order Book Series is a unique, Shifter Romance with interesting characters. The story has well-crafted scenes, storyline, and intriguing characters. These characters have unique personalities, histories, and realistic interactions. This entertaining story has the following: mystery, twists, turns, adventure, action, danger, love, and steam. It is a great shifter romance book that will keep you engaged throughout. A must read

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
1 review
June 8, 2021
Thoroughly enjoyed taking this journey with Charlotte as she is drawn into the world of cat shifters and the chaotic environment of a demonic institution whose end goal still isn’t completely clear yet. The story left me intrigued and interested to continue on with the second book in the series. Plenty of heat for the romantic pairings makes it difficult to choose a favourite with each partner offering something unique. So few shifter novels focus on big cats I really felt this one stood out amongst the standard mated wolf/rejected/rescued mate story and gave something very refreshing.
3,270 reviews20 followers
June 19, 2021
Wild Love x3

Take three wild and dominant cat shifters and tell them they share a mate? The sparks will fly! I enjoyed the parts of this story that featured Charlotte and her mates Salem, Aramis and Sage. It took me a while to get on board with Jamie sharing air time, but it all comes together in the end (and that’s all I’ll say - no spoilers). An exciting read, and I’m looking forward to more in the series!
26 reviews
July 11, 2021
Three mates

Love it. There is suspense, love, betrayal, and action. The Order is strong and1 human is going to take them down at all cost. But three cats will help her and fall in love with her also. I can't wait for the next book in this series. Need to see our people in the next book also.
Profile Image for Azalea Hudson.
Author 5 books56 followers
September 21, 2021
Three alpha cat shifters find their mate in a human girl. Charlotte, a sweet but strong girl who’s happy with her life as a janitor of a facility she never paid much attention to. She has her flat, her books, food, and the job pays her bills. But everything changes when she finds three wild cats locked in cages, ready to go under tests by the Order, and if they are lucky enough, come out alive. And something in her drives Charlotte to save them.

The book follows two paths for some time. Charlotte’s and her friend Jamie’s. I didn’t understand the division in the beginning, but as the story flows, you see the importance of both paths. Jamie takes you to the malevolent and corrupt side of the organization, showing the readers how bad is the place and their animal testing agenda, preparing the readers for what’s coming. And of course, it made me think the hell testing animals are put through every day in big corporations and we don’t even pay attention to it. 

I read another book by Maria Warren, and I love how she designs the characters' personalities. Aramis is the patient, down-to-earth lion who tries to make things work. Salem, the dominant of the three, a tiger who suffered the most with the experiments, and has a hard time falling for a human, a species he despises. Sage, the youngest of them, is a playful cheetah who can’t help himself but lick Charlotte’s face whenever he gets a chance. The characters get absolutely distinct traits, but when they are put together, the magic happens. They complete each other in their qualities and flaws, making their interaction enrich the plot, a gift to the readers. It’s not an easy feat putting together such intricate characters in a RH and come out a winner. But the author does! Believe me, it’s amazing!

The book is fast-paced, steamy, and the boys’ relationship with Charlotte is priceless. You suffer with their struggles and laugh with their antics toward one another to get Charlotte’s attention. It’s a splendid story with a great ending, and I loved every minute. It’s the fist of a series. Some questions remained unanswered. I can’t wait to read the second one of the Sacred Order.
Profile Image for Books+Coffee=Happiness Blog.
276 reviews12 followers
June 18, 2021
The cover art and book description lured me in, but the book didn’t live up to my expectations. I will say I enjoyed the ending and the book ended much stronger than the first 75% of the story. The twist in the last scenes was well done.

So what did I dislike?

Charlotte didn’t come across as a particularly strong heroine until the last few scenes, after two of her mates vanish. Through the bulk of the book her character is very flat. The author did a great job with the arc scenes, but elsewhere I just couldn’t feel the characters’ emotions.

The three cats were… different. Throughout the book, the cheetah is referred to as a cub and the lion as puny. The tiger is a jerk, but is the closest to what I’ve come to expect from cat shifters. The other two are whiny at times and playful at others. I had a hard time connecting with them much less liking them.

Charlotte’s supposed best friend comes across as controlling and selfish. With friends like her, who needs enemies? I disliked her character far more than even the bad guys. Even her role at the end wasn’t enough to redeem her (not to me).

The storyline… a group of various demons, a werewolf, and an angel are supposedly trying to rid the world of demons. Naturally, Charlotte’s mates are the ones they want to destroy the most. It felt like every paranormal creature was tossed into this book in one way or another, but it didn’t add to the story.There was too much trying to be crammed into too few pages. It was a bit chaotic.

As much as I wanted to like this book, it’s going to be a hard pass from me. I had to force myself to finish, and I’m glad I did or I’d have missed those last few scenes - which were the only good parts. The dialogue, lack of cohesion, and flat characters make it rather clear the author is still new to her craft. I’m sure she’ll grow as she writes more and hones her craft. She’s just not quite there yet.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
67 reviews2 followers
August 29, 2021
I made it thru but I have no idea how. The main character was not strong. She got bullied into things. The relationship with the guys was a disappointment. No relationship building and they were whiny and bullish. I would’ve left them a long time ago. It was just blah. I didn’t really care about any of them. Could’ve been so much better.
Profile Image for Pixie Auri.
Author 2 books12 followers
August 10, 2021
Charlotte’s Pride is a great reverse harem book with a dash of animal-testing activism. Alright, that is not the main topic of the book, but it was certainly something that caught my eye. The book tells the story of Charlotte, a young woman oblivious to the true nature of the company she works for. She should probably have seen it coming, considering the company is called ‘Sacred Order’, but no one seems to find that suspicious.
She is working as an unaspiring janitor with crazy tech skills, until she finds three cats – a cheetah, a lion, and a tiger – locked in a cage. As she’s struck by a need to free the animals, the story truly begins. We soon find out that the big cats are actually shifters, imprisoned to be tested upon by the corporation.
Here, I must congratulate the author on the boys’ personalities. Reverse harems can be complex when establishing the relationship between the characters, but the way she presented each of their nuances got me hooked.
Sage is my favorite, with his immediate bond to Charlotte and inability to stop licking her face. Salem is by far the most troubled of her mates, refusing to accept help from a human and rejecting their connection at first. Aramis falls into more of a slow burn category, but by the end of the book his devotion to Charlotte is both undeniable and heart-warming.
I must mention I wasn’t too fond of the way the story was divided in two threads, following both Charlotte and her best friend, Jamie. I understand why the author chose to do it, since Jamie’s story was showing the side of the evil corporation and building tension with their wicked plans. But I found myself eager to go back to Charlotte and her harem, because the plot was fascinating on their end.
Fast-paced and alluring, the book is just the first of the series, but I loved the way Maria Warren wrapped it up. She closed most plot points, providing a fantastic win for the good guys, but also allowed some questions to go unanswered, making me crave the next book already.
Profile Image for Mel Rivers.
125 reviews4 followers
January 29, 2025
3.5 stars!

I loved the characters, but I wish their relationship/romance was developed more. Salem, Aramis, and Sage the MMCs were my favorite. Their banter and personalities really kept me reading. I felt like the tiger Salem had a spark there with the MFC, but the Lion and Cheetah’s relationship were thrown in hastily. With that being said the spicy scenes were very well written and smutty 🥵🥵🥵 10/10. The duo POV between the best friends was interesting. It was an easy way to see what the villains side was up to. However the dual relationships happening was a bit jarring and confusing at times. The ending left a lot of questions unanswered and honestly I was a little disappointed with it.
All in all a good read.
Profile Image for Linda Thomas.
842 reviews9 followers
September 14, 2022
Charlotte rescued three big cats, a tiger, a lion , and a cheetah from tormented research center

Charlotte had unknowing rescued three shifters. Big cats, a tiger, a lion ,and a cheetah. They turned into big men that all claimed her as mates. She was set on tearing the research center apart to rescue the rest of the shifters left behind. Also to find out what happened to her best friend Jamie who was being influenced by the dark angel from the center. Highly erotic, well written definitely adult only.
118 reviews
September 11, 2022
Great Shifter Romance

If you're a fan of steamy shifter reverse harem stories you will love this book! Great story line and interesting characters. I would love to have more on the story line but I thought the book was a great story. You get involved in the characters and their story. I'm sure you will enjoy the steamy characters and their love story. I am looking forward to reading more from this author and her books. Because this book left me wanting more of this series!
Profile Image for Christy deSade.
473 reviews11 followers
May 1, 2023
Horribly disjointed

Honestly, this didn't even read like a first draft. It was more like the author wrote scenes separately and then just put them in order. The world building was nil, there was no real character development and the POV changes were jarring since there was no indication prior to them happening. The writing itself was very stiff and none of the characters had realistic "voices". This was a waste of time and energy to read.
Profile Image for valorie grogan.
22 reviews
June 25, 2023
Demons, the devil, long boring stupid beginning chapters... A Horrible HOT disappointment ga

1 of the worst books that I have read in quite a while absolutely horrible. So much is going on and tell your absolutely everywhere and confused demons the devil where wools vampires sucks everything horrible put together to make a mess please do not wish your tab oh and make sure you read your bible after this.
235 reviews1 follower
October 16, 2023
Charlotte

Charlotte works for the Sacred Order Organization as a cleaner. Her best friend Jamie also worked there but she was a rising star of an employee while Charlotte was comfortable in her position.

That is until Charlotte sees the big cats in the caves and learns what the Sacred Order is doing to them. Charlotte decided she was going to rescue these beautiful animals from this faye.
Profile Image for fred jones.
1,792 reviews11 followers
March 27, 2024
Good one

I couldn't stop reading this one. It's not a great book but there is something about it that makes you continue. The story and writing are good, the characters work well if a little thin and I liked the world building although some of the scenes didn't quite ring true, an intelligent woman climbing I to a crate with three what she thought were big cats. However as I said I had to finish it and will be reading more of these.
156 reviews4 followers
September 10, 2022
Great storyline!

I really liked the originality of this storyline- paranormal erotica/ romance including shifters, Demons, Angels, and a leader for the next book in the series. Needs a bit more editing and proofing, which is the only reason it's 4 stars instead of 5.
684 reviews3 followers
September 26, 2022
Charlotte is just there to clean when she rescues a lion, cheetah and a tiger

Charlotte just can’t leave these beautiful big cats to be tested and experimented on. She is rescuing them when her life gets turned upside down. Great characters and a good plot I recommend this book
845 reviews2 followers
October 5, 2022
In to hell

For trying to make a deal he and his pack signed there beaths,and Mary is out to trap them on what a fool.these stories just get better with each book.I would like to say thank you for all your hard work and may fortune smile 😃on you always 😁
Profile Image for Lisa.
69 reviews
July 31, 2023
Interesting and annoying.

I have never read a book so slowly,because of how annoying some of the male characters are....if i had superpowers i would teach "Salem" a lesson or two about the power of a woman.....anyway its interesting though i would not want to read it again.
533 reviews
September 28, 2023
Two humans meet shifters and inhuman beings! Who are experimenting on shifers!

Two women are best friends! Something comes between them! Shifters who bring about love! An angel ,demons, werewolves, vamps! You name it!
Profile Image for Olivia.
549 reviews2 followers
September 28, 2023
I didn't like this book at all. The characters were all very one dimensional. Also a lot of the book went on about how Charlotte was being controlled when in actual fact Jamie was, although she treated Charlotte like she was a pet. I definitely won't be reading any more books by this author.
Profile Image for Kassey J.
544 reviews1 follower
December 12, 2023
Yeah, no, this wasn't for me. It read as a weird wattpad story. The flow was slow and all I could think was man the fmc friend isn't a friend at like all nor does she have any kinda intuition whatsoever. Yeah no I stopped reading at page 40.
602 reviews2 followers
June 9, 2021
Not a cliffhanger, but the story doesn't end. It leads to the next book. Rather boring. Won't continue series. 3rd person.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews

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