Publisher: Penguin Intermix
Publish Date: Out today
How I got this book: NetGalley
She never saw this coming…
Brynn Atwood is a low-level Magus whose unpredictable precognitive powers have made her an outcast among her people—and an embarrassment to her highly-regarded father. After a frightening vision in which her father is murdered by a loup garou man, Brynn decides to prove herself by finding the killer, and stopping them at any cost.
Her target is Rook McQueen, the son of a small-town loup garou Alpha. Despite being the youngest of three, Rook is first in line to inherit the role of Alpha, a duty he isn’t sure he’s capable of fulfilling. When Brynn finally meets Rook, she doesn’t expect the attraction that draws her to him—and him to her.
No longer believing him a murderer, Brynn and Rook strike an alliance to find her father’s real killer. But when his older brother is targeted by an unknown enemy, Rook will have to choose between his growing feelings for Brynn and his duty as the future Alpha of his community.
*Blurb from Goodreads*
I’m always after a new paranormal romance book, especially one with shifters. I was really excited about this book, and I can’t wait to read more in the series.
Brynn is a Magus whose power of precognition is unreliable at best. When she sees her father’s murder, Brynn makes it her goal to find the man who kills her father, and find a way to stop him. It doesn’t matter that Brynn’s father doesn’t believe her, or that Brynn’s investigation has led her to a loup garou, she is determined to do anything and everything she can to make sure her father survives.
Rook is the youngest son of the Alpha, but as a black wolf, he has the ability to take over the pack. But meeting Brynn and hearing about her father and her precognition, Rook finds himself falling a little for the loup garou enemy. And as their worlds collide together in the threat of war, Brynn and Rook will have to decide if their relationship is enough to weather the storm.
I really enjoyed Meade’s writing. I’ve never read her before, but her other books have been on my TBR list, so I’m glad I took the chance on this new series and new pen name. I thought her writing was really well done, the world building was super interesting, and the romance was strong, while also giving the book an urban fantasy feel.
I really liked both Brynn and Rook as individuals as well. Brynn was so focused and so devoted to finding a place for herself in her world, and yet she was constantly shut down by everyone she loved. Her father never thought she was good enough, and she was always fighting for a chance to prove herself in his eyes. Although she was disappointed by him time and again, she didn’t let that color the love and adoration she felt for her father. I loved that about her. I also loved the way she really let herself grow once she immersed herself in the pack. She let so much of her true nature out that she really blossomed and became a force to be reckoned with.
Rook was somewhat similar to Brynn in a lot of ways. However, while he had the love and devotion of his family, he was more lost internally. He wasn’t sure of his place in life, what he wanted to do, and he let that fear and insecurity guide him. But like Brynn, once he was paired with her, he really started trusting himself and his gut and became the man that he knew he could become. He learned what was important to him, and what kind of decisions he could and couldn’t make for his family and pack. I thought Rook was a wonderful hero because of that.
I really liked all the secondary characters as well. I am super excited to see how this series progresses and how the war between the loup garou and the Magus develops and forms over time. I’m anxious to see what Meade has in store for the series overall, and think the potential for this to become one of my favorite PNR series is high. I love that it has a strong UF/romance vibe, firmly in the camp of both genres.
All in all, I’m so glad I took a chance on this series and Meade’s writing. I love the world building and can’t wait to find out how these characters and this series develops. I’m anxious to see how Brynn and Rook navigate the new relationship they carved out for themselves, as well as how all the other characters find their mates.
I give Black Rook a B+
Ooh this looks really good. I was eyeballing it earlier. *Adds to list*