Book Review: Creature Feature by Poppy Dennison and Mary Calmes

Title: Creature Feature
Author: Poppy Dennison and Mary Calmes
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy from publisher
Published: March 2013 by Dreamspinner Press

Diagnosis Wolf by Poppy Dennison
Thanks to his good-for-nothing brother, Andrew Hughes is up to his eyeballs in debt and needs a job fast. When a nursing position opens up in Myerson, Arizona, Andrew has no choice but to take it, despite a warning about how difficult a patient Caleb DiMartino can be. Andrew can deal with a little trouble—but Caleb’s strange family, the armed guards, and the unknown cause of Caleb’s mysterious illness may be beyond his skill set.

Landslide by Mary Calmes
For three years, paranormal courier Frank Corrigan has been working for incubus demon Cael Berith. Cael knows Frank is his mate, but Frank is pretty sure Cael doesn’t even like him, never mind want to spend the rest of his life with him, so their personal relationship is at an impasse. When Frank’s sister, Lindsey, gets bitten by a werewolf she's sleeping with—and possibly witnesses a murder—Frank rides to her rescue. If he’s lucky, he might just save his love life too.

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: Really enjoyed this double-feature book with one good romance and one stellar romance both with strong paranormal worlds.

The Set Up: Diagnosis Wolf features Andrew whose slimy brother stole all his money to pay gambling debts forcing Andrew to take a job caring for a mysteriously sick man. In Landslide Frank has been a courier for the incubus demon Cael for three years while Cael claims they’re mates. When Frank’s sister is bitten by a werewolf and witnesses a murder, Frank rides to the rescue with Cael at hand and their relationship will change.

Why I Read this Book: In my interview with author Rhys Ford she mentions she just finished this book and really liked it so I had to try it.

The Stories: I adored the romance between Frank and Cael in Landslide because of their incendiary sexual tension. Cael is a thousand year old powerful demon who never expected his mate to be a human so he reacted badly to Frank when they first met. Frank thought Cael’s reaction was one of disgust since he’s a man with handles to love and has kept Cael at arm’s length in the ensuing three years. These men know each other well so their sexual tension is delicious. One of their kisses was more erotica than most sex scenes I’ve read. I really enjoyed watching Cael convince Frank that he values and loves him no matter that no one else has in Frank’s life. Cael is vulnerable to Frank which is at odds with his incredible power that he unleashes when Frank is threatened and I loved this juxtaposition.

The plot forces Frank and Cael to travel from Long Beach to Arizona to help Frank’s sister, Lindsay, after she’s bitten by a werewolf and witnesses a murder. I liked this plot because it brings Frank home to his family and friends and shows Cael firsthand how Frank was maltreated by them. This offers Cael real insight into who Frank is and why he needs Cael. The plot also showcases the complicated paranormal work the author created where paranormal creatures live side by side with humans but by different sets of rules.

Diagnosis Wolf is a classic MM shifter romance but I still enjoyed it. Andrew’s brother stole his life savings and ran up his credit cards so he’s struggling and takes a job caring for a rich patient with a mysterious illness. Caleb is the patient and immediately attracted to Andrew. This romance isn’t wow for me but the attraction is believable and enjoyable. For me the best part of the romance was the epilogue where the author shows the men’s commitment to each other after they’ve been together for some time.

The plot is fast paced but predictable as Andrew’s brother’s gambling debt plays into why Caleb is sick. It’s not all that unique of a plot but it was still pleasant enough and kept my attention. I did really like Caleb’s father as the pack Alpha and how he interacted with human Andrew. It seemed realistic, well, as realistic as a story featuring a man learning about werewolves can be!

IMO: This is an above average MM read that I really enjoyed, especially the second feature. I recommend this fun double-feature with strong romances and good world building.

J9’s Rating: