Red Wolf
(Shifters Unbound #10)
by Jennifer Ashley
Publisher: Berkley Romance
Publication Date: May 2, 2017
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Rating:
Lupine Shifter Dimitri has always had to defend himself to other Shifters. As a red wolf, he’s not considered a “pure” wolf, and the battles have honed him into a tough fighter, a champion of the fight clubs. Jaycee Bordeaux, a leopard Shifter, is Dimitri’s staunchest defender and oldest friend. Dimitri is determined to turn that friendship into a mate bond.
Jaycee loves that idea, but she knows that a mate bond can’t be forced. And when Dimitri and Jaycee are called on to go undercover to protect collared Shifters, she knows the dangers ahead will make or break their future together.
My thoughts…
Dimitri and Jaycee have been friends since they were cubs. Technically, they’ve been inseparable since they’ve been cubs. So it was no surprise that Dimitri mate-claimed Jaycee in a previous book. However, when they are sent to another shiftertown to go undercover to figure out what’s really going on in the area, their mate-bond is threatened. Apparently the two have found themselves smack-dab in the middle of some sort of shifter cult and they want to include Dimitri and Jaycee in their ranks… only problem is, they want them un-mated. That way Jaycee is free to help their rag-tag group reproduce little pure-bred babies with other leopards. These two have to make the tough decision to go against their Alpha and call off the mission or go ahead with the plan and break their mate bond in order to get closer to the enemy.
Red Wolf is sort of a friends-to-lovers story. We met these two a couple books ago and saw their romance blossoming. Now, that’s not to say that you have to read the other book in order to read this one. In all honesty, it took some jogging of the memory for me to remember that I’d met these two before. It’s been a while since I read the book they were in and I have read many books since then. So, with that being said, you can read this book right from the get-go if you wanted to.
Not only is this a paranormal romance but because of the whole crazy cult that Dimitri and Jaycee are trying to infiltrate, there’s some danger and mystery as well. There’s clearly something up with these shifters but you’re not overly sure what it is. Then when it hits you, you’re still kind of at a loss as to what’s going on. There’s just so much developing in this story that it kind of opens up a new story arc for all the characters of the Shifters Unbound series. A major conflict that I’m interested to see where it goes.
One thing that I loved about the story was the house that Dimitri and Jaycee stay in while on their mission. It’s apparently a haunted house but I feel like it’s more magical than haunted. I wont lie, at first it was a bit scary and I wasn’t overly sure about the haunted house but then I kind of wanted them to stay and live there and keep the house company. I felt sad for the house. Yes, you read that correctly. I was upset for the house because I didn’t want it to be lonely. It’s weird, but true. You see the house wasn’t just a house, it was kind of like a secondary character. It protected them when they needed it, pushed them when they were being pigheaded, and was really a being in itself. I hope that we see that house in the following installments. Again, I know that’s weird but if you read this book you will understand where I’m coming from.
All in all, Red Wolf was an enjoyable read. It stood on it’s own, added another element to the whole story arc, and we got to see some recently featured characters make a return. While it may not be my favorite thus far, it was still a great read.
Favorite quote…
“Dimitri’s mate was rescuing him by carrying him off like she would a cub. The alpha make inside Dimitri should have been offended-if it wasn’t so fucking funny.”
Previous reviews from Shifters Unbound
White Tiger
Guardian’s Mate
This sounds very interesting. I have not read too many paranormal, I need to read more. Great review!