by Penny Angeles-Tan | Oct 20, 2022 | Book Reviews
I started reading Bite-Size Luna by Ashleigh Dana Burnell out of curiosity, partly because I knew it was a prequel to the A Queen Among series but mainly because the title intrigued me.
Gabrielle from Xena: Warrior Princess played by Renee O’Connor
The main character is Sorrell. In my head, I was visualizing Gabrielle from Xena: Warrior Princess with the sais. She is diminutive in stature and an Omega, which means she has a wolf but cannot shift. But despite this, she is a warrior, trained by her dad, and wants to be a warrior for the pack. Her weapon of choice: sais. Sadly, their pack does not recognize Omegas as equals and is not included in training.
The new Alpha of the pack is Alden. He did not agree with many things his father, the former Alpha, imposed on the pack. He planned to make some changes, including warrior training for all, including children. He believes that the only way to be sure the pack is safe is if everyone in the pack has the basic skills (at least) to protect it – and the most vulnerable pack members, like the children, are always the ones more likely to get hurt.
He also wanted to change the prejudice his pack has against Omegas. Just because they are unable to shift does not make them any less than the others. Omegas are not servants or slaves. They are mutolupus just like everyone else. He spots Sorrell in the forest training in secret, mimicking the drills below, and is instantly attracted to her. In his heart, he feels she is his mate, but she is still too young to know it.
Ashleigh Dana Burnell’s world feels the same but different at the same time. This is mostly because of the different terms she used in place of the ones most people are used to. Where most authors would call fated mates simply “mate”, she called them “animai”. Where others would just say “werewolf”, she called them “mutolupus”.
I don’t think it is a big deal since authors can basically do whatever they want in their made-up world and as we read, we just get used to it. To be honest, I kept reading “animai” as “animal” so it often made me pause as it didn’t make sense.
Ashleigh Dana Burnell categorizes Bite-Size Luna as a “novella” as it is longer than a short story at 30 chapters. I’ve read shorter stories on Goodnovel but of a different genre.
Bite-Size Luna by Ashleigh Dana Burnell is fun to read. Set in the 70s, it has humor, romance, frustrating characters, new monsters, and unexpected friendships. You can find this jewel on Goodnovel. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Oct 19, 2022 | Book Reviews
I posted a quick recommendation for Mated to the Alpha Twins by Jane Doe on 12 May 2022 on my Facebook and Instagram accounts but I feel like I wasn’t really able to give enough information for a decent review.
Aurora St. Claire is, to all intents and purposes, an orphan. Her dad is still alive but she has never met him. Her mom, who she is now living with after her grandmother passed away, is married to an alcoholic bum and both of them treat her like a waste of space. When her mom is at work her stepfather would hit her and would make sexual advances. Therefore, at an early age, Aurora started working part-time jobs to get out of the house, while at the same time, supporting herself and saving money for college.
Alec and Kane are twins and the kings of campus. The boys wanted to be them and the girls wanted to be with them. From the moment they bumped into Aurora there was something about her that drew them.
Since Alec and Kane are wolves they knew it was the mate bond. The thing is, while they shared most things, as twins are wont to do, they have never shared a woman in the past. But the mate bond tells them that both of them are her mates.
Aurora finds herself strangely attracted to both despite their playing with her and seemingly bullying her. As the story progresses so many things are revealed about Aurora’s true nature, her connection with the boys, and later, the realities of the shifter world. While the story is set in high school for the beginning part of the story, I hesitate to categorize this as YA/Teen as the steamy scenes are just way too steamy! This story needs an 18+ rating.
Jane Doe tells a great story but really needs a good editor. If you can forgive the many grammatical and spelling errors then you will surely enjoy Mated to the Alpha Twins by Jane Doe. You can find it on Goodnovel and on Wattpad, I believe.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Oct 18, 2022 | Book Reviews
I started reading Alpha Bully by Sam Crescent because I was curious to see how Marshall, an Alpha wolf, who bullied Scarlett, a human, intended to win her over. After all, he bullied her terribly for the last 5 years.
Marshall was just one of many people who bullied Scarlett, mostly because of her body shape. She wore loose, baggy clothes, and no matter how much dieting she did, she just couldn’t seem to lose weight. “Chunky girl” and “Piggy” were just two of the horrible nicknames other students in her school called her.
Rather than fight, as usual, our bullying victim just suffered quietly and in tears. Pffft!
After Marshall discovers that Scarlett is his mate he suffers pangs of regret and worries that he won’t be able to win her over. After talking with his dad and his best friend Jack he decided to just do his best.
As the story progresses it is interesting to see how much effort he is really putting in to try to get Scarlett. What I didn’t quite comprehend was how quickly it seemed for her to start accepting him. She expressed her doubts internally, but she still let him get away with doing things like holding her hand and putting his arm around her shoulder … on day 2 of school!
In my culture that is moving too fast, but the setting is not here, so I can only assume that in the U.S. kids just move and accept that fast. Here, he would be lucky if she even made eye contact.
That aside, the story is actually enjoyable. So much so that I bought the next book when I discovered it was about his best friend Jack and his mate. Marshall’s being a werewolf is almost incidental for most of the story.
Alpha Bully by Sam Crescent is book 5 of the Alpha Shifter Collection. It is available on Amazon in Kindle format for $3.99.
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Oct 17, 2022 | Book Reviews
Sinful Temptation by Kathleen Hayat is a forbidden romance. Emma Belle Richardson is a smart human 18-year-old student who is treated as an outcast in her school. Xander Colt is her Math teacher who is secretly an Alpha werewolf.
Emma is mocked for her body shape, her brains, and her quiet demeanor. She prefers solitude and often finds an empty classroom to have lunch in rather than go to the cafeteria. Despite being “a nerd” she and math don’t get along, which I find weird. After all, the stereotype often is a high proficiency in most, if not all, academic subjects, where math and science are usually where they excel.
Xander is undercover as a math teacher in Emma’s school. In reality, he is a werewolf and an Alpha of a powerful pack and his enemies think he is dead. As math teachers go he really knows his stuff but looking at him “math teacher” is the last thing you would think. He is tall, good-looking, muscled, and looks like he should be walking the runway. As the girls would say … he is a god!
Their worlds collide when Xander actively seeks out Emma in school, seemingly bullying her. I’ve heard of students bullying other students, but teachers?
Xander can’t help himself. While he isn’t the nicest person, he is inexplicably drawn to Emma … especially since discovering that she is his mate. Since Emma is human, she feels a strong attraction to him but does not recognize the mate bond. All she knows is, she is his student and what Xander is doing is wrong and taboo.
Their relationship starts off rocky and continues to be so until the truth is revealed and acceptance happens.
From the way the author writes, I can tell that English is not her first language but I can forgive the faulty grammar and incorrect idiomatic expressions when the story development is engaging … I still wish she would get a good proofreader or editor, just to make the book even better.
Sinful Temptation by Kathleen Hayat is book one of the Alpha’s Lethal Desire series which you can read on Goodnovel. And also on Booknet for $2.99. Enjoy!
by Penny Angeles-Tan | Oct 16, 2022 | Book Reviews
I don’t always understand why stories are cut up into several books but I would assume it has to do with how long the story is. But in the case of Seduced by the Alpha Wolf by Kaycee Kline, I feel that it could have just been one book. The first book is made up of 177 pages while the 2nd book (which continues the story) has 82 pages. It makes sense in that the second book is a different chapter in the lives of Marie and Adrian.
Marie is in college and was looking for a job she could do while on break. She applies for a job as a live-in companion to a reclusive billionaire and, at the first interview, was immediately hired.
Adrian is the said reclusive billionaire. Unbeknownst to Marie, he turns into a werewolf (more like a lycan, actually) every night. When his parents died he was raised by his aunt who later decided she wanted him as her lover. When he refused she cursed him so that he was a man in the day and a werewolf at night … 2 separate personalities as well.
Kaycee Kline’s werewolf is a man with wolf-like features and bigger. Think of this story as a take on Jekyll and Hyde meets Beauty and the Beast, except in the daytime, he is the prince. As the story progresses Marie falls in love with both the man and the beast and … I will let you read the rest.
One thing that bothered me about the story is that Adrian had no pack. Wolves, by nature, are social creatures so he must’ve been very lonely.
Reading both books is important if you want to complete the story but book 1 can stand on its own.
Seduced by the Alpha Wolf by Kaycee Kline books 1 and 2 are available on Amazon. Book 1 is free! And Book 2 is $2.99. Or you can get the complete set for $2.99. If you have a Kindle Unlimited account, you could read them for free with your subscription.
Aurora St. Claire is, to all intents and purposes, an orphan. Her dad is still alive but she has never met him. Her mom, who she is now living with after her grandmother passed away, is married to an alcoholic bum and both of them treat her like a waste of space. When her mom is at work her stepfather would hit her and would make sexual advances. Therefore, at an early age, Aurora started working part-time jobs to get out of the house, while at the same time, supporting herself and saving money for college.
Marshall was just one of many people who bullied Scarlett, mostly because of her body shape. She wore loose, baggy clothes, and no matter how much dieting she did, she just couldn’t seem to lose weight. “Chunky girl” and “Piggy” were just two of the horrible nicknames other students in her school called her.
Emma is mocked for her body shape, her brains, and her quiet demeanor. She prefers solitude and often finds an empty classroom to have lunch in rather than go to the cafeteria. Despite being “a nerd” she and math don’t get along, which I find weird. After all, the stereotype often is a high proficiency in most, if not all, academic subjects, where math and science are usually where they excel.
Marie is in college and was looking for a job she could do while on break. She applies for a job as a live-in companion to a reclusive billionaire and, at the first interview, was immediately hired.
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