The following includes a voluntary and honest review of an
Advance Reader Copy provided by the author.
Blurb:
We all have tragic backstories in today’s world.
I wake up chained to the wall of a dark cell aware of two things: I failed my sister, and I smell my enemy.
When I’m taken to meet Dare, the alpha of the Silver Tip pack, I’m sure I’m about to lose my throat. The last thing I expect is for the Alpha to recognize me as his fated mate. No way is he going to let me go now, and I still have to find a way to rescue my sister.
As I plot my escape to save her, I find that if I leave, Dare could be killed by power-hungry members of his pack. And now he’s more to me than my fated mate—my heart is involved. With time ticking by on my sister’s life, I have to make a choice I never thought I’d face—my sister’s life or my mate’s? That’s if I can survive the undead shifters intent on killing me first…
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POV:
Megan Erickson
Natasha Snow
Silver Tip Pack, book 1
Paranormal / Were-Shifter
M/M
Bisexual
232 e-book pages
1st person alternating
Rating: ????????
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Review:
As per my regular reading habits, I’m typically only brave enough to dive into paranormal books when an author I love has captivated me (repeatedly) with relatable and realistic contemporary.
Megan Erickson fits that bill to a big ol’ capital T. So, when I learned she was delving into werewolf shifters, I never gave a second thought to my eager desire to follow her down this path. And, upon finishing this book — after a fanatically rabid read-thru followed by some deep thought and introspection — I can emphatically say: I AM HERE FOR ALL THE BOOKS.
But, I’m not without my quibbles.
I know I’m not an authority in any realm of paranormal, I’ll cling to newbie status as long as I possibly can. I think this ultimately means there’s enough cognitive estrangement on my part that an author might have a better chance of leading me, though somewhat begrudgingly, to a whole new world and I won’t question too harshly the laws of nature as I know them.
However, don’t mistake me for being so easily won. It takes a lot of work and a gentle hand to convince me to suspend disbelief. While I need compelling words painting a complete landscape of the setting I’ve been led to, it needs to be a gradual dispensation of details carefully woven throughout the story that is subtle and artful enough to trick my mind into this new reality of the unreal.
Here, I felt as though I’d been plunked quite violently into a strange futuristic other-world due to an unfortunate mishap with a time machine. Details and rules and history of this futuristic place where humans no longer exist flew at me fast and furious in such a way that I was a bit overwhelmed from the onset — and I’m not entirely certain I needed it all so quickly or thoroughly in the first few chapters.
Ya know what? That’s my only gripe. And I get the feeling that Megan was so excited to tell this story and bring us into this world with her that she truly couldn’t help herself with covering all the bases with an eagerness.
Truly, this was a lovely, lovely story of a rapid-fire sick-hot bonding, as I understand the varieties of were’s are apt to do, with a slow build to love, trust, and partnership that cemented a Happily Ever After.
Reese and Dare are locked together early as fated true mates. They’re opposites and slightly different species on the were spectrum. They’re about as unlikely a match as it gets. Trust is an early and lasting concern on both sides as Reese hasn’t known freedom or peace of mind since early childhood. Dare is an Alpha whose primary focus is protecting his pack at any cost — this stranger within his walls sharing his bed could destroy them all.
There are secrets — a few lies of omission that are strung along throughout the story. And, as much as I typically loathe secrets and lies, the heartfelt reasoning of the characters made absolute sense…even though I may have shouted TELL HIM at my kindle a few times.
I loved Reese and Dare together more and more as the story progressed. Despite their differences and ongoing lack of trust, there was an underlying current of kindness, reserved hope, and curiosity that was palpable and engaging.
Also? This is HOT AS FUCK. I mean…. BELIEVE ME when I say that even though we’re entering the winter months keep a fan and cool drink at hand, you’ll need them. For a good while there’s all manner of shit-hot fucking in an animalistic pheromone-overload-instinctual-fated-mate sort of way where these two simply couldn’t help themselves. Then…then though it turns into that raw, emotional passion that is two souls seeing each other and loving each other for exactly who they are — home.
This story has all the things that ultimately make me a very happy reader. There is tons of emotion, all of them. There’s adventure, action, a goodly bit of suspense, great writing that I know to expect from this author, lots of character development, and (begrudgingly on my part) a fantastical future-world of were-beasts I was able to believe in, care about, and want more of.
The side characters were the whipped cream and sprinkles on top for me. From Dare’s brother and esteemed and comical members of the guard to Reese’s siblings, there is enough foundation for many, many books to follow.
My initial grievance aside, I’m beyond excited to see where Megan takes us next in this series.
Excerpt:
Dare’s eyes flashed. His fingernails were still curved into claws, his canines descended, and a dusting of fur still covered his shoulders. He looked wild and a little feral. “Shift.” His voice was garbled, and I backed up a step, dipping my head as I whined.
He took a heaving breath and the fur on his shoulders disappeared. His eyes closed and when they opened, they were nearly black. “Shift,” he ordered again.
My body obeyed.
Never in my life had anyone been able to command me to shift, but Dare could. His command was a swell of power that I couldn’t deny. My bones cracked as I shifted back to human form, then I collapsed onto my stomach and panted as I tested my limbs. My ribs weren’t even tender.
Fuck yeah, shifter power.
I rose to my feet, shaking out my arms as I lifted my head to meet Dare’s gaze.
His teeth were bared, eyes cycling between green and black like a two-toned tornado.
He moved so fast, I didn’t even see his arm, didn’t realize he was in motion until a hand wrapped around my neck and claws dug into my throat. He hauled me against him, and with my feet not touching the floor, the only thing I could do was clutch his shoulders and wrap my legs around his waist.
“Mine,” he growled against my lips.
Not gonna lie, I was fucking terrified. Dare was only half there, his Were pulsing inside his skin. I didn’t know his Were, and I hoped to hell Dare had enough power to stay human.
I shifted my hands to grip his face, my fingers digging into his scalp as I rutted against him. The mating instinct overtook all my other thoughts. So, despite my terror, I was hard as hell. “Yours,” I muttered back.
That seemed to appease the Were, because Dare’s eyes stopped flickering, finally resting on green.
His chest rumbled, and he pressed our lips together—hard, punishing, furious—before delving his tongue inside.
The kiss was possessive and all-consuming. While I’d fucked around plenty, I’d never been kissed in my life, so I didn’t know how to deal with it. My head was spinning, my body on fire, ass clenching in anticipation for being taken. I wanted it. God help me, but I wanted him to pin me down and fuck me until I broke.
I wanted to be owned.
So I kissed him back, pushing against his tongue with mine, gnashing his lips with my teeth, which only seemed to spur him on harder.
The room tilted, and then Dare was looming over me, my back against the mattress as he gripped our cocks in one hand and began to pump. My cock was leaking pre-come, coating my stomach and mixing with Dare’s pre-release.
His shoulders bunched as he held himself above me, his attention on stroking us. His gaze lifted to mine, and when our eyes met, I was thankful they were green. He peeled his lips back, revealing his sharp teeth. “I love the smell of you, but it’s wrong. It’s all wrong.”
Great. I prepared to have my throat ripped out for mistaken mate identity. “What?”
“You don’t smell like me yet.” He ran his nose up the column of my neck and then nipped my ear. “I can’t be around you anymore without imprinting my smell on you.”
“Make me smell like you, then.” I reached down to grip his balls. “I’m all healed now. Take me.”
In the far recesses of my brain, I knew this meant the life I had planned for my brother and sister would change. But I couldn’t help it, not while Dare’s scent was in my nostrils, while his power was surrounding me, and as his hand left my cock to swirl through the wetness on my stomach.
I was going to be mated. To a Were. And there was no going back.
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About the Author:
Megan Erickson is a USA Today bestselling author of romance that sizzles. Her books have a touch of nerd, a dash of humor, and always have a happily ever after. A former journalist, she switched to fiction when she decided she likes writing her own endings better.
She lives in Pennsylvania with her very own nerdy husband and two kids. Although rather fun-sized, she’s been told she has a full-sized personality. When Megan isn’t writing, she’s either lounging with her two cats named after John Hughes characters or… thinking about writing.
Social Media: Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads | Amazon
In Focus series
Trust the Focus
Focus on Me
Out of Frame
Overexposed
Bowler University series
Make it Count
Make it Right
Make it Last
Mechanics of Love series
Dirty Thoughts
Dirty Talk
Dirty Deeds
Gamers series
Changing His Game
Playing for Her Heart
Tied to Trouble
Leveling the Field
Cyberlove series (co-written with Santino Hassell)
Strong Signal
Fast Connection