Book Review: Johnnie by Cardeno C.

Johnnie by Cardeno C.Title: Johnnie
Series: Siphon, Book 1
Author: Cardeno C.
Genre: Paranormal Romance, M/M Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy provided by author
Published: March 11, 2015 by The Romance Authors

A Premier lion shifter, Hugh Landry dedicates his life to leading the Berk pride with strength and confidence. Hundreds of people depend on Hugh for safety, success, and happiness. And at over a century old, with more power than can be contained in one body, Hugh relies on a Siphon lion shifter to carry his excess force.

When the Siphon endangers himself and therefore the pride, Hugh must pay attention to the man who has been his silent shadow for a decade. What he learns surprises him, but what he feels astounds him even more.
Two lions, each born to serve, rely on one another to survive. After years by each other’s side, they’ll finally realize the depth of their potential, the joy in their passion, and a connection their kind has never known.

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Reviewed by: Crissy

Why I Read This Book: This author is a must-read for me. So no, my fangurl heart couldn’t have passed this up if I’d tried. Plus: Lion shifters.

In A Nutshell: A sweet, sexy, and fun unique take on paranormal romance.

The Setup: Hugh Langley is a Premier lion shifter and leads the biggest, strongest pride around with the help of his Siphon who is the lesser shifter who holds his power. When the Siphon tries to take his threatens the safety of the pack, Hugh is determined to find out why and fix it before Hugh loses his life too. He doesn’t expect the Siphon to turn his world upside down.

What I Liked: Maybe the best thing about this book is that how true to form the cat shifters are. These guys—all of them, not just the MCs—are at touchy, needy, arrogant group. Most of all, Hugh. Hugh is the most arrogant of all, to the point of being a dick. Mind you, he does see to the needs of his pride because that’s the role of a Premier. They don’t do anything else really. But until he wakes up and really sees Johnnie, Hugh is kind of a jerk.

What I Also Liked: You’re probably going to laugh because of the way this sounds, but I happen to like that Hugh is an arrogant jerk. It makes it that much sweeter when he’s taken down a peg or twelve, especially by a lion seen as less than nothing to the pride. What I love about the relationship between Hugh and Johnnie is that there are so many ways in which Hugh sees himself helping Johnnie, but in reality, Johnnie was always Johnnie. The true beauty of this relationship is how Johnnie subtly changes Hugh into a stronger lion, a better man, a true lover. It’s role reversal at its best.

Little is known about Siphons so everything readers discover about this world is revealed anew through Hugh’s eyes as well. I mentioned the way the author makes the cat element so believable, but the world is more than just that. The structure of a pride and their activities all have reason. There are a some basic things that are certain—a pride with a Premier and Siphon will span ages, Premiers are rare and Siphons rarer, and lion shifters are sluts. Okay, there are more rules than that, but if I tell them all to you, you’ll miss out. There has to be some mystery, right? But the lion-slut thing, not a spoiler at all, these men and women like it all of the time—anywhere and any way.

What I Didn’t Like: Two words: Barbed. Penis. Okay, in all fairness the author uses the word “spines.” But this is a real thing and not seemingly sexy or comfortable to me. In fact, it sounds quite painful. I can’t get down with the smexy time while thinking about these “spines” that spontaneously show themselves at the climax of such scenes.

In My Opinion: The world alone is worth reading this book for, well that and the story. From beginning to end, this is a lovely romance full of sweetness and heat and even a little bit of action.


Crissy’s Rating:
4 1/2 Frogs

About Brianna: Supermom by day, naughty reader by night. Addicted to chocolate, Twitter, her iPad, her Kindle, and 99¢ Kindle deals. You can follow Brianna on Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, and Instagram.

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