Book Review: Reaper’s Vow by Sarah McCarty

Title: Reaper’s Vow
Series: Shadow Reapers, Book 2
Author: Sarah McCarty
Genre: Historical Romance, Paranormal Romance
Sensuality Rating: Steamy
Source: Review copy provided by publisher
Published: March4, 2014 by Berkley Trade

Ever since his cousin Adelaide disappeared, Cole Cameron has been searching for her—and for Isaiah Jones, whom he blames for her kidnapping, after a hellacious fight in town involving—if the stories of drunken saloon goers were to be believed—men who changed into wolves. Being a practical man, Cole doesn’t believe it.

Then he is rescued from a pack of strangely intelligent wolves by none other than his quarry, Isaiah, who brings him to a hidden valley where the Shadow Reapers have settled, where he is reunited with Adelaide—and where he finds the beautiful Miranda.

Miranda was once a captive of the enemy pack of Rogues. Now a werewolf herself, all she wants is to protect her daughter and try to forget the husband she lost. But Cole’s not about to give up the greatest desire he’s ever felt in his life. And he’s vowed to make Miranda his—no matter what stands in his way

Reviewed By: J9

In a Nutshell: I enjoyed this historical paranormal with a strong romance and an ending I didn’t quite see coming.

The Set Up: Cole Cameron left his ranch in search of his cousin when he thought she was kidnapped. Rumors are that his cousin’s husband isn’t human but that doesn’t stop Cole from barging into the Shadow Reapers’ town in search of his cousin. There Cole meets Miranda who was forcibly made a werewolf and is trying to keep her daughter safe in this strange new world. Cole and Miranda’s attraction goes against pack law but Cole is willing to fight for what he wants.

Why I Read this Book: I adored book one in this series with an OCD heroine and her lone wolf hero. I had to wait FOR-EV-ER for this book two.

What I Liked: I liked just about everything in this book. Cole and Miranda were good leads and their romance full of passion but also emotional intimacy. I love when Cole shows Miranda that life is worth living, complete with laughter and love. Miranda is barely holding on as an evil werewolf is trying to take her as a second wife. Cole is a protector but also an empowerment for Miranda which I especially appreciated. The romance here isn’t forced or manufactured but seemed to flow easily between these two mature characters. This means they don’t tease each other sexually or emotionally only to pull back but instead the drama is external as they figure out how they can make a relationship work.

What I Also Like: The secondary characters of Miranda’s daughter (adorable plot moppet) and Cole’s cousin and husband are great additions, as are some of the other Shadow Reapers. There is a mysterious werewolf that I hope will have his own book soon and Cole’s brothers that I’d like to see featured as leads in their own HEA. I love communities in my romance novels and this book gives that to me.

The Shadow Reaper town isn’t all good or all bad and has lots of mystery and drama which worked for me. Miranda is being “given” as a second wife to a corrupt werewolf by the council and how this resolves was unexpected but made the novel. Even the resolution of Cole being human and Miranda being a werewolf turned out a little differently than I expected.

What I Didn’t Like: I didn’t like the epilogue. Too much happened in such a short span and gave me a little whiplash. I’m not opposed to what happened just that I didn’t see the lead up in the book to this epilogue. Sure, the relationship check in between Cole and Miranda was good but plot-wise I wanted a little more build up.

IMO: I will absolutely await book three in this rare historical paranormal series, even if it takes years.

 

J9’s Rating:

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