Mate (Bride #2) by Ali Hazelwood
Serena Paris is orphaned, pack-less, and one of a kind. Coming forward as the first Human-Were hybrid was supposed to heal a centuries-long rift between species. Instead, it made her a target, prey to the ruthless political machinations between Weres, Vampyres, and Humans. With her enemies closing in on her, she has only one option left—if he’ll have her.
As Alpha of the Northwest pack, Koen Alexander commands obedience. His authority is so absolute, only a fool would threaten his mate. It doesn’t matter if Serena doesn’t reciprocate his feelings, nothing will stop him from keeping her safe.
But power-hungry Vampyres and Weres are not the only threats chasing Serena. Sooner or later, her past is bound to catch up with her—and Koen might be the only thing standing between her and total annihilation…
Review: I thought Bride was such a fun read and wasn't sure this follow-up could top it. But I enjoyed this even more!
Listen, sometimes we read to learn. Sometimes we read for the beauty and poetry of the language. And sometimes we read for recreation and leisure. This, my friends, is in the latter category. This is pure entertainment. Was it well written? I honestly couldn't tell you and I truly don't care. I loved every minute of this.
I listened to this on audio and the duet narration was *chef's kiss.* Loved how the male dialogue by Koen was threaded throughout. This felt truly performative. This was 14 hours on audio but felt like half that time the way I flew through it. I even gave myself a massive blister at one point walking in wholly inappropriate walking shoes because I was just so intent on trudging on and continuing to listen to this book.
I absolutely loved the tension that Hazelwood creates between these characters. I am always down for a fated mate situation, but this one is unique in that Koen is resisting the pull to his mate. Meanwhile, Serena has secrets of her own. Loved that this is a story about two people that ultimately are attracted to each other but are kept apart due to forces beyond their control. And love that there were NO miscommunication plotlines in here. This was all green flags for me.
I also loved the way the author handled the whole werewolf thing in this book! By that I mean she a fantastical being feel natural and realistic for me. In keeping with her other books that have a STEM slant, she brings in geneticists and scientists who are studying Serena, who is a hybrid, and also help explain were behavior and biology. It just felt well done to me and added some realism and believability to a fantasy read in a great way.
It was also fun that this book is connected to Bride. We get to see how characters we got to know in that novel are doing, while also getting a more in-depth look at Serena's story, which was introduced in book one.
This was so highly entertaining for me. I honestly have no notes other than to say that obviously, a werewolf romance is not going to be for everyone. This is incredibly spicy with lotssss of explicit content. Probably the spiciest book I've read this year. Not skippable so I would pass if that's not your jam.
Stars: 5
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