Monday, June 16, 2014

Manic Monday Review - Reluctant Alpha (Love Slaves of the Alphas #4)

by Shannon West
4 Stars


Hey everyone, and welcome to Manic Mondays on my blog! I don’t know the author, but I really enjoy her work. I’ve read all the books in this series and loved them. This is the last one, so far. 

This is going to be a day dedicated to authors. I may post book reviews on some Mondays, it might be author interviews on others. It could be new releases, or just my thoughts in general. I'm hoping it'll be lots of fun, whatever or whoever shows up for Monday lol.

Now, a quick note on the book reviews. If I post it on here, then just know I liked the book. I will not be posting a review that's not at least a 3 rating. I'm not going to bash what are basically others who are in my peer group. No nasty reviews happening here. :) And the reviews I'm posting are already on my GR shelf too.

So, let's get this Manic Monday started lol!
~ ~ ~ ~
Bio:
Shannon West is a bestselling author of M/M romance. She currently lives in the South with her husband and large family. A lover of M/M romances, she began writing them with a male partner to add authenticity to the love scenes, but graduated to watching videos online and reading everything she could get her hands on. She loves men and everything about them, and believes that love is love, no matter the gender. A huge proponent of gay rights, she is a member of PFLAG and supports equal rights for everyone. Though there are never enough hours in the day, she tries to work every day, giving in to the demanding men in her head and writing their stories. She’s easy like that. She loves traveling, reading, watching scary movies and is totally hooked on that zombie show on TV.
Her website is www.shannonwestbooks.com

Blurb:
Handsome, young Kai is living a lie. On Scythia, male children are “rejected” so his mother, the queen, hid his true sex all his life. On this planet of Amazon-like women, he’s been able to hide out, but his mother needs to get him safely away from the planet, arranging a marriage to the powerful Lycan alpha. Lucas likes men but is being pressured to find a female and have an heir. Reluctantly, he agrees to meet Princess Kai, and is shocked to discover Kai is no princess, but a handsome young man! Instantly recognizing him as his bloodmate, Lucas is still furious at the deception. He mates with Kai and takes him home, but the lies between them threaten to tear them apart. Kai is still harboring a terrible secret—one that will destroy his world if it ever becomes known.









The Manic Monday REVIEW:

A life of lies. That’s what Princess Kai has lived. He’s born into a world that ‘rejects’ males, and his mother, the queen, hides the fact that the princess is actually a prince. On this world, females rule. On this world, the prevailing thought is males are defective. Women must reproduce—can’t keep a race going without kids, you know—so the women only mate with men from other planets. They stay with the men long enough to get pregnant, then return home. Then things take a dark turn. If the baby is male, then he’s ‘re-assimilated’ by the priestesses, to be reborn as a girl. We can all guess what that means. Kai avoids this horror because his mother hides the fact he’s male. So, Kai is raised as female.
So starts the half-truths and misunderstanding.
Lucas is the Alpha of Lycanus 3. There is pressure brought to bear on him to mate. He must continue his line. Problem is, he prefers males. An arrangement between him and Kai is made, to which Lucas reluctantly agrees. Imagine his surprise when he responds to the pretty princess. The princess Kai is his Fated mate, and Lucas is more than a little confused. That soon turns to suspicion. There’s something not quite right about the princess. When he figures out Kai’s secret, he’s not a happy Lycan. In fact, he’s furious. He’s been played and he’s not happy with that, either. His feelings make it hard for Lucas to trust Kia. And Kai isn’t helping matters since he’s keeping secrets, but he worries about how Lucas will react if he ever finds out the truth.
The coming birth of another royal baby changes everything… because that baby is male, or a non-person as males are called.


This one is a little hard to read. It’s a bit darker than the others because of the subject matter. It’s one of those books you’re either going to love or hate. I’ve talked about how the werewolves act in this series, so that’s not a problem for me. They take Alpha to a whole new level. They’re stubborn, heat-headed, and sometimes… they do things in the heat of the moment they shouldn’t. They aren’t perfect, but then, very few of us are.

~Michelle