You Better Not Make Me Mad!! "Discovering Her Wolfen Heritage" By Missy Martine

Determined to make a new life for herself, Maddie Bowers travels to her late grandfather's cabin in Wyoming. When she was a little girl, she was first introduced to her grandfather's wolf and is delighted to find the wolf still living in the nearby woods, and that the wolf remembers her.

Remus has known Maddie was his mate since she was young. But a tragic accident and a cruel doctor kept them apart. Now that she is back, it's up to him to help her control her secret abilities and accept the truth about her heritage. The love between Maddie and Remus will be threatened by a jealous woman and Maddie's brother's partnership with the evil doctor that kept her confined for so many years. Can Maddie and Remus realize their destiny before it's too late.

I really love paranormal romance and I particularly like shifter novels. When I read the publisher's blurb for this book I was delighted because there are lots of shifter novels out there, but it seems to me--and I could really be off base with this opinion--that lots of shifter books are getting all mixed up with other stuff--demons, vampires, oddball "weres" of one sort or another.

This novel is a straight forward wolf shifter story and it turned out to be a really delightful book and a story that I enjoyed.

This is a story that is, in every sense of the word, a romance between a reticent, not-very-confident young woman and a kind, understanding, sort of patient Alpha. He has been waiting for Maddie for years and has been aware of the trials through which her family put her simply because they were freaked out by her telekinesis. Instead of celebrating her gift and supporting her efforts to learn how to control it--what ever happened to putting a child like this in touch with others who have the same gift--they turned to a doctor who filled their heads with negative information and promises to help Maddie learn control. Control? Drugs, you mean. Now she is on her own, thanks to the efforts of a conscientious attorney, but her brother is still listening to the doctor who wants Maddie back in his clinic and under his total control--because of her telekinetic abilities? Heck no! He wants to study her DNA as a possible shifter.

Remus Wind River is a wonderful man. Friend to her grandfather, caring and judicious Alpha to his pack, Remus has worked behind the scenes to make a safe place for Maddie so that he could claim her as his mate. He wants to claim her only after she chooses him, after she develops affection and connection to him, and not out of hand as his inner wolf is demanding. He is man who knows about her heritage--her grandmother was a shifter--and he understands her fears. He listens to her and he speaks carefully so that she is not frightened. Even though he and his brothers know that the dominant female of his pack has been trolling for Remus for quite some time and resents his assertion that the "little human" is his mate, this wiley female wolf is determined to get Maddie out of the way so she can be Alpha-Femm.

There's lots to like in this novel--deep sense of family and community, a beautiful and endearing love story between Maddie and Remus, the loyalty of the pack to Maddie, even though she is human as far as they know, and the sense of being special that they give her as Remus' brothers work together to keep her safe, the sense of empowerment that gradually become a reality for Maddie through Remus' love and because he manages to convey to her that she is special. Even in paranormal stories there are lessons to learn as we see this story unfold. There is always a reminder that even good people make serious mistakes, like Maddie's brother who would never let go of his over-protective stance, his fear that Maddie would be judged "weird" by society. In his inflated concern, he was used to hurt the person he was supposedly trying to protect. There is always the reminder that often the people we least expect to do so can help, can be allies in tough settings. A new member of Remus' pack was an important factor in helping Remus and his brothers to keep an eye on the jealous woman who was seeking to hurt Maddie. And don't forget that it is one's own inner sense of worth, of having a right to one's own place, to live as an equal, to express fully who we are will ultimately the difference in the way we live, in the choices we make, in the validity and fulfilling qualities of our relationships. Certainly Maddie found that out, even as she was able to be in touch with her "inner wolf" for the first time when her life was on the line.

This is one of those books that is fun to read the first time and it is equally enjoyable the next time through. Well-written, with characters who stand out, whose edgy qualities make them worth remembering, and with a story that is not so simplistic that it could have been told in 20 pages. This is a story that involves Maddie's past, her present, and her future. And at the center of all that is her relationship with Remus. Lovers of paranormal romance will find this to be a very good reading experience. It is a book that has been around for a few years, but it is still fresh and contemporary. I give it a rating of 4 out of 5.

Down But Not Out . . . Table For Three by Missy Martine

Cass Abernathy is forty-three and she's getting a second chance at life, and maybe even love. She's finally divorced, after years of abuse, when she learns an unknown uncle in Oregon has left her his estate, and more importantly, his house. Filled with hope for her future and excited to have a place of her own, Cass heads west not knowing what she'll find.

What she finds are hot and sexy twin brothers intent on making her a part of their lives. It's too bad they're so much younger because they bring out feelings she's never had before.

Meanwhile, there's someone else interested in Cass' inheritance, and he's willing to do whatever it takes to make sure he wins. Will Cass overcome her fears and open her heart to the two men who love her, and will she discover the truth about her inheritance before it's too late?

Three people and three disillusioned people, all hurt and deeply wounded over the course of their past because of failed love relationships. Cass Abernathy was verbally abused and finally physically beaten in plain sight of her neighbors, and for that little loss of control, her ex-husband landed in the hoosgow. But the real imprisonment was Cass's--she had spent the next two years in hiding, working from home as a data entry specialist, quietly trying to stay out of sight of her ex's family, having been cruelly threatened by her ex-brother-in-law on the day her divorce became final.

Now it appears that she has a chance at freedom in several forms: freedom from her self-imposed imprisonment and freedom financially so that she can live in peace after 23 years of humiliation and systematically being emotionally and psychologically dismantled. An uncle, the brother of her mother and a relative previously unknown to her has left her a legacy--a house and to hear the attorney tell it, a small bank account.

Now we come to Matt and David, identical twins who have each been divorced after very unhappy marriages. What they really want is to share the love of a good woman, a dream they both held on to until it appeared too large a fantasy. Now they are both back in their home town of Mountain Vista where they catch a glimpse of Cass and immediately both men begin to wonder--in fact grasp the faint hope--that their dream of a polyamorous relationship may still be possible.

There is quite a cast of characters in this book--not too many to keep track of--some are good, and some are not so good. Oliver, her uncle's attorney seems to have another agenda apart from his legal responsibilities to the estate; Serena, the paralegal working for Oliver is bound and determined that Matt and David belong to her although they openly refute her claim. Robert, Matt & David's attorney is the kind of professional that sees what needs doing and does it and is one of those legal eagles who figures out what's best for his client. All in all the action between these characters is interesting as the story strands are woven to make up the tapestry of the tale.

I liked the three main characters a lot. But this story is really about redemption--renewing and rebuilding hope, reclaiming love and rejoicing in its possibilities and its joys regardless of age of situation. Ms Martine has crafted a story that speaks openly about the long-term damage that comes from abuse, even if it is "only" verbal or psychological. Those kinds of wounds most often take far longer to heal than the physical ones. The author makes this comment about this story:

"Cass' story came to life as a way to encourage women of all ages not to give up on finding true love, and to keep their minds open to all possibilities. After surviving an abusive relationship, she's able to open her heart to a different kind of love. She gives her heart to not one, but two sexy brothers."

Arising from an abyss of pain and self-doubt, it took the love of two kind, caring, genuine and loyal men to convince Cass that she was worthy of love and could find the resources within herself to give it back generously. This is a wonderful love story and worth reading. I highly recommend it to those who really want to experience a fictional tale that will leave you warm and fuzzy. I give this novel a rating of 4 out of 5.