Author: J.D. Tyler

Review: Phoenix Reborn by J.D. Tyler

Posted May 9, 2016 by Holly in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Phoenix Reborn by J.D. TylerReviewer: Holly
Phoenix Reborn by J.D. Tyler
Series: Alpha Pack #7.5
Also in this series: Cole's Redemption
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: March 15th 2016
Genres: Fiction, Suspense
Pages: 103
Add It: Goodreads
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three-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

From paranormal romance star J.D. Tyler comes a sensual tale of the Alpha Pack—a top secret team of Navy SEALs with supernatural abilities...   Wolf shifter and Firewalker Phoenix “Nix” Monroe has finally met his ultimate Bondmate—Alpha Pack nurse Noah Brooks. Unable to accept his own sexual identity, Nix rejects Noah despite the intense attraction he feels towards him.   By the time Nix realizes he has cast aside the love of his life, it may be too late to save Noah from a terrifying enemy...   Includes a preview of Chase the Darkness   Praise for the Alpha Pack Novels   “Shifter heroes whom readers will fall head over heels for.”—New York Times Bestselling Author Angela Knight   “Rapid-fire…red-hot.”—Publishers Weekly   “Amazing characters, wonderful drama...hot and to die for.”—Dark Faerie Tales

There’s a lot of angst packed into this short story. Nix and Noah are mates, but Nix has been avoiding Noah and pushing him away for some time, because he grew up with an uber religious father and he doesn’t want to accept he’s gay. He’s fine with being bi, but to come out as openly gay is hard for him.

Noah is convinced if he can just get Nix to spend some time with him, Nix will realize how good they are together. When Noah is attacked and wounded, Nix takes him home to care for him..and Noah’s dream comes true, they connect and Nix realizes how wonderful it is between them. But he still can’t accept Noah publicly, and that really begins to bother Noah.

Noah figures if he can just prove he’s good enough, Nix will finally mate-claim him. When an old enemy of the pack suddenly strikes again, Noah is caught in the crossfire..and Nix realizes he’s wasted precious time.

I’ve been reading these books intermittently and out of order. I feel like I’ve missed some major things by not reading all the books, but I wasn’t so lost I didn’t feel like I could keep going with the story. I liked both Nix and Noah separately, but together they needed a lot of work. Because of Nix’s upbringing, it was understandable why he had such a hard time accepting his mate was a man. That didn’t excuse his terrible behavior toward Noah, however, and I admit there were several times I wanted to smack him.

Noah was openly gay and more than willing to mate with Noah, but I wish he’d been a bit more confident in himself. That Nix made him feel like he had to prove himself – be better than he was – before he’d be a good enough mate really made me angry, at both of them. I wanted Noah to recognize his own worth and tell Nix to shove it. Instead he kept trying to prove himself.

In this case, I think the sex came at a detriment to the romance. When they were together they were having sex, and it felt like that was all there was between them. We saw flashes of the couple they should be, but there wasn’t enough focus on their emotional connection as there needed to be to make their One True Love believable.

Ultimately, I think it was the page count that really hurt this story. If they’d had a bit more time to develop their relationship, I think it would have been more believable.

For all that, this wasn’t a bad read. I easily fell into the story and, like I said, I liked both Noah and Nix. I just didn’t completely buy their romance.

3 out of 5

three-stars


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Review: Cole’s Redemption by J.D. Tyler

Posted March 24, 2014 by Holly in Reviews | 0 Comments

Review: Cole’s Redemption by J.D. TylerCole's Redemption by J.D. Tyler
Series: Alpha Pack #5
Also in this series: Phoenix Reborn
Publisher: Penguin
Publication Date: March 4th 2014
Genres: Fiction
Pages: 352
Add It: Goodreads
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Ripped Bodice | Google Play Books
three-half-stars
Series Rating: three-stars

Once, they were Navy SEALS. Now they are the Alpha Pack: a top secret team of wolf shifters with Psy powers who take on the darkest dangers on Earth. But sometimes the greatest danger lies within their own hearts....
Healer and black wolf shifter Zander Cole has survived horrors that would have broken a weaker man. But when a battle leaves him deaf and his powers dimmed, Zan is devastated. Believing himself to be a burden to his team, he sees only one option: leave the Pack forever.

White wolf shifter Selene Westfall knows pain—she is certain her father was responsible for her mother’s death. And she lives to exact revenge. So when she is challenged by a savage black wolf, she puts up a vicious fight—only to become the black wolf’s Bondmate as a result of his bite.

Two damaged souls—one filled with hatred and one who’s lost his reason for living—are forced together as they come to terms with their unlikely, turbulent bond. A love neither expected may be all that stands between them and a killer trying desperately to keep the past dead and buried....
From the Paperback edition.

This is the first book by J.D. Tyler I’ve read.

Selene Westfall has one goal – to find her father and make him pay for killing her mother and abandoning him. The last thing she expects is to be attacked by a black wolf while she’s stalking her father through the words. Strike that, the last thing she expected was to find herself mated to him. But all is not as it seems and there’s more to the story of her father than she thought. There’s also more to the beautiful black wolf she finds herself mated to.

Zander Cole was severely injured while trying to help his pack. Now he’s weakened and can’t use his healing gift the way he needs to, which makes him – at least in his eyes – a liability to his pack. While he’s struggling with whether or not to walk away, the last thing he ever expected to find was a mate. Especially the angry, long-lost daughter of his alpha. Even though he’s struggling with his place in the pack, he can’t deny he’s pleased to have found his mate; someone to love and to be loved by in return.

But a deadly killer is on the loose, and the whole team is needed to uncover the truth, which doesn’t leave a lot of time for get-to-know-yous. Plus, there’s the small problem of Selene wanting to kill his alpha…

I really liked the world Cole has built. The Alpha Pack is interesting and I enjoyed learning about the different members. I think not reading the previous books in the series hindered me a bit. I felt a bit lost at times, especially about key plot points. I’d recommend reading the books in order.

The suspense plot was engaging and kept the story moving forward. I’m generally not a fan of romantic suspense, but I thought this one was well done.

Something about the romance bothered me. I can’t quite put my finger on what. Maybe it was how fast they fell into each other without seeming to have much of a connection? Or maybe it was the fated-mates thing? I’m not entirely sure. I just had a hard time connecting with that part of the story.

I look forward to reading the other books in the series. I’m also looking forward to where Tyler goes next.

4 out of 5

This book is available from Berkley. You can buy it here or here in e-format.

three-half-stars


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