Category Archives: Paranormal

Heart of Atlantis by Alyssa Day
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Title: Heart of Atlantis*
Author: Alyssa Day
Series: Warriors of Poseidon
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Berkley
Format: E-book & Paperback
Date/Year: December 4, 2012
Reviewed by: ElaineReads

*This book was provided to the reviewer by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Summary from the publisher:

As a war wages between the immortals of Atlantis and those of the vampire realm, a Poseidon warrior fights to save his world—and the woman he loves. And no risk is too great.

The desires of a high priest.

Alaric, Poseidon’s High Priest, has made a vow to Quinn, the woman he loves and the leader of the Resistance: to save her friend Jack before his last bit of humanity has been drained. Should Alaric succeed, there’s one intimate danger: he may lose Quinn to the love of the man whose life he saved. But damn Atlantis to the nine hells, he’s willing to put Quinn’s wishes first, regardless of the consequences.

The warning of a threat reborn.

The final jewel of Poseidon’s trident has turned up in the hands of mysterious Ptolemy Reborn, who claims to be descended from Atlantean royalty. He’s about to reveal to the world that Atlantis is real, positioning himself as king. But this magical terrorist is bent on chaos. The only warrior who can stop him is following his own path, driven by the even more powerful force of love. Atlantean powers over the sea could prove just as cataclysmic—for Quinn’s love, Alaric might drown the entire world.

My Musings:

I have been reading the Warriors of Poseidon series since the first book, Atlantis Rising, was published in 2007. There are now eight books as well as two novellas available in anthologies. I did not know, however, that this book was the final book in the series until I was close to the end. And I am not happy about that. Each time I re-read this series, I fall in love with it again. I hate the idea that there will be no more warriors and the women who keep them in line.

Alaric is the very scary high priest of Poseidon. His responsibilities have caused him to pull away from his friends and his life is extremely strict and lonely. Did I mention that an integral part of being the high priest is a vow of celibacy . . . that has lasted for hundreds of years? When I say Alaric is lonely, I really mean lonely! Of course, that is before he meets Quinn, the human rebel leader against all the monsters that are trying to enslave humanity, who also happens to be the sister of the wife of the High Prince of Atlantis.

Confused yet?

Quinn has been fighting the monsters since she was a teenager and is certainly not interested in becoming involved with a control freak like Alaric. Fate, however, has other plans for them.

Throw in a tiger shapeshifter that refuses to shift to human, a half demon-half Atlantean usurper to the throne, and a surfer dude portal and things really get interesting.

I loved the story between Quinn and Alaric. Both of them have been emotionally damaged by the things they have had to do in their pasts and neither of them feel worthy of being loved. Watching them find their way to each other was wonderful, although I thought Quinn needed to kick Alaric’s posterior a time or two . . . or three. He was so determined to stick with his role as high priest.

My only problem with the book is that I felt it tried to tie up too many plotlines at one time. There was so much going on that it was hard to keep track of who was doing what. I also thought the sex scenes were excessive. Sure, Alaric has been celibate for hundreds of years, but after a point they interfered with the story.

This is not a book that should be read as a stand alone. You really, really need to read the entire series including the novellas to appreciate everyone’s story. You will not regret it. As I said, I have read the series more than once and loved it every time. I will miss the warriors, but you know, Prince Aiden will need his book one day.

Read the series. You’ll understand.

Ratings:

Overall: 4 stars
Sensuality level: 3

ORIGINALLY REVIEWED ON SEDUCTIVE MUSINGS

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Title: * Mate Claimed
Author: Jennifer Ashley
Series: Shifters Unbound #4
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Format: Paperback
Date/Year: October 2012
Reviewed by: ElaineReads

*This book was provided to me by the publisher for review.

Summary from the publisher:

Eric Warden knows that half-Shifter wildcat Iona is passing for human, living without a Collar in the human world. He also knows that if she does not acknowledge her Shifter nature and her mating hunger, it could kill her. Iona finds the mysterious and dangerous Eric, a wildcat and leader of his Shiftertown, haunting her dreams, but she vows never to “come out” and take the Collar, fearing backlash against her mother and sister for hiding the fact that she’s Shifter. But Eric is a compelling Shifter male, and Iona’s hunger calls to him.

My Musings:

Eric, who shifts into a snow leopard, is the leader of the Las Vegas Shiftertown. As such, he is responsible for a community of cat shifters, bear shifters, and soon to move in, wolf shifters. Eric was introduced in previous books and comes across as the strong, silent type. He does not have to prove he is dominant with violence. His presence alone ensures that everyone follows his orders.

Everyone that is but Iona.

Iona is a half shifter – half human living in Las Vegas. No one outside of her immediate family knows she is anything but full human. In this world, being a shifter means you are a second class citizen and are forced to wear a pain inflicting collar and live in Shiftertowns. Is it any wonder she has concealed her shifter side all these years?

Eric accidentally discovers Iona’s secret and knows for her own safety she must move to Shiftertown and join their society. Of course, safety is not the only reason Eric wants Iona to embrace her shifter half. He really likes the way she smells!

Add to the romance that is developing between Eric and Iona a dominance challenge from the leader of the wolves that are moving into Eric’s Shiftertown. Graham makes Eric look easy going, he is so aggressive. (I cannot wait for his book!)

Although this is book four in the series, it is actually the seventh to be published. There are three novellas which fall between main books. Being the compulsive person I am about series, I had to read the first six books before I could read this one for review. I am so glad I did. I cannot imagine anyone being able to follow the complex storyline without the background of the previous books. Many of the characters from the previous books show up in this one and their roles are not always minor.

Because of that, I not only recommend this book, I recommend the entire series.

I cannot wait for the next book to be published. It is titled Tiger Magic and scheduled for release in June of 2013. And yes, we got to meet the tiger in this book.

All I can say is “lions and tigers and bears, oh my” and don’t forget the wolves are coming to town as well.

Ratings:

Overall: 4.5
Sensuality level: 3.5 (No toys or kink, although there is a reference to a scene where they are in shifter form.)

–This review was originally posted to Seductive Musings.–

Savage Hunger by Terry Spear
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Title: *Savage Hunger
Author: Terry Spear
Series: Heart of the Jaguar, #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Format: ebook
Date/Year: October 1, 2012
Reviewed by: ElaineReads

*This book was provided to me by the publisher for review.

Summary from the publisher:

In the heat of the jungle, jaguars are clawed, dangerous, and hungry for love. With hopes of overcoming night terrors and thanking the man who saved her life, Kathleen McKnight returns to the Amazon. A jaguar at heart, Connor Anderson doesn’t just protect her, but wants to claim her for his own.

My Musings:

This is the first book I have read by Terry Spear, but it definitely won’t be the last. Savage Hunger is the beginning of her new series titled Heart of the Jaguar. I have read other series featuring jaguar shapeshifters, but Connor is in a class by himself.

Male shapeshifters are generally portrayed as aggressive and dominant . . . very much the alpha. Although Connor is definitely alpha in regards to his streak of protectiveness and very possessive of Kathleen, he is also tender and loving. He cares about Kathleen. He doesn’t just want her.

Kathleen is a former Army officer who suffers from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. She was captured by drug runners in the Amazon and suffers from nightmares a year later. The main thing she remembers about the experience is being rescued by a jaguar.

Hmmm . . . I wonder who that could have been.

She returns to the Amazon in hopes of alleviating her nightmares and becomes separated from her guide. Fortunately, Connor and his sister Maya are there vacationing and rescue her – again.

I only had one real issue with this book. I thought that Kathleen accepted the existence of shifters far too easily. She was also very calm when Maya tried to turn her into a shifter.

I have a soft spot for shifters and cannot wait to start on the author’s wolf series. She is also writing a sequel to this book which will feature Maya. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find out anything about a publication date for Maya’s book.

UPDATE – The next book is Jaguar Fever and will be released August 2013.

Ratings:

Overall: 4
Sensuality level: 3.5 (No kink, but definitely explicit)

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Destined Mate by Katie Reus
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Angela has been hiding from Knox for decades. She knows how much the Alpha werewolf hates vampires and cannot face the idea of her former lover killing her. Only the kidnapping of her friend gives her the courage to risk her heart and her life by seeing him again.

Knox has hated vampires since they destroyed his family centuries before. He believes they are all evil and should be killed on sight. That is until his lover is turned against her will.

He has searched for her for decades without success and suddenly she is on his land and in his power. Can he convince her that his feelings about vampires have changed, but his feelings for her never have?

This story was a quick read at slightly over sixty pages. Although the forbidden relationship between a vampire and a werewolf is not unique, the author develops the story well in regards to how the pack does or does not accept Angela.
Most of the tension in this book has less to do with Knox convincing Angela that he still loves her as it does with Angela not understanding his reactions as a werewolf. That is not much different than human women not understanding human men . . . now is it?

My only reservation with this story is that it is a story. I would love an expanded version that explores the dynamics of Angela’s vampire tribe and Knox’s werewolf pack. I would also like to see more of how the female werewolves accept her as their Alpha female.

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