Wednesday 27 June 2018

REVIEW - BORN WILD - WOLF HOLLOW SHIFTERS BY NIKKI JEFFORD

Title: Born Wild
Series: Wolf Hollow Shifters
Author: Nikki Jefford
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal, Paranormal Romance, Sci-Fi,
                Dystopian, Post Apocalyptic
Release Date: 27th June 2018

BLURB from Goodreads
FOR THREE YEARS, HUMANS FORCED THE PUREBLOODED WOLF SHIFTER TO FIGHT HIS OWN KIND

After escaping his human captors, Wolfrik returns to Wolf Hollow covered in scars and hostility. He wants nothing to do with pack politics and refuses to play nice. 

AN INJURY ISOLATED THE SHE-WOLF AND LEFT HER VULNERABLE

Ever since Kallie’s foot was permanently maimed in a vulhena attack, she’s been relocated to the den where Palmer—the pack’s elder and council member—is after her to become his third mate.

A heated encounter with Wolfrik gives Kallie an idea. If she can convince the wild wolf to be her bedmate, Palmer will finally leave her alone.

But when an unexpected bond forms between the pair, Kallie may have bitten off more than she can chew. Is the aggressive pureblood too damaged to settle down with a mate?

REDEMPTION MAY COME TOO LATE

Forced to face his inner demons, or lose the woman he loves, Wolfrik must confront the past he’s tried so hard to forget. But the past is about to catch up to him and old enemies could doom the entire hollow.


PURCHASE LINKS

REVIEW
After reading Wolf Hollow and then Mating Games I couldn't wait for Born wild especially when I read that the central characters were to be Wolfrik and Kallie. I already loved Kallie from the previous books and was desperate for her to have some happiness after been so cruelly injured by the vulhena when out on patrol. So there was no question of if I wanted to read this book, I had to read this book.

This cover is in a purple hue, which I love. The first thing you notice on the cover is the shirtless male figure of Wolfrik, with his head down as though worried about something. I think the male figure is a great match for the character of the imposing, serious, brooding Wolfrik. There is the moon featured in the background which we know is tied to the wolves representing the times of their claiming, mating and fertility ceremonies. There's the lone wolf howling to the left hand side of the cover and the back drop of the trees and woodland that surround Wolf Hollow. This cover would definitely have me reaching for it from a book store shelf to read the blurb, so I'd say it does its job very well. The cover also fits well with the covers of Wolf Hollow bk1 and Mating Games bk2, I bet these books look fantastic on a bookshelf together.

Once again like the previous books in this series the genres I have found for the book are Dystopian and Post Apocalyptic, which are both suitable to describe the genre but are the less prominent within the book. The world that the shifters and humans are living in is a post apocalyptic one where humans are a rarity, and food, clothes etc are in short supply. The genres that I'd say the book clearly fall into are Paranormal, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, and Shifters which is where the majority of the book plot lies.

This book begins with a flashback to when Wolfrick was imprisoned by the humans and made to fight in a pit for the humans amusement but that isn't the worst of it, he was also forced to degrade himself further by procreating with the unwilling female shifters the same disgusting humans had captured and held against their will. We learn that it was Hawk, the head humans sister, Sparrow that finally helped Wolfrik escape in an act of both defiance and revenge on her brother when he dumped her dead shifter lover, Eric, in her bed.

Back to the present date setting of the book where Wolfrik is back in Wolf Hollow but scarred mentally & physically. Wolfrik is also devasted further by the fact Sasha has moved on and found herself a new mate. Another thing that further irritates Wolfrick is that the mate Sasha has chosen is a half breed shifter/wizard and so considered to be much more lowly than the purebred Wolfrick. Wolfrik insists on keeping himself to himself and initially turns down a position on the council as well as steering clear of the females of Wolf Hollow considering them to be a hassle he can do without. Then he notices a certain female. . . and his mind begins to slowly change, maybe a female could be fun, then a little later he thinks perhaps he would like a mate, maybe even children in the far future. However each time he takes advance step he makes towards integrating into Wolf Hollow pack, something happens to shake his belief and he ends up even more distance than he was to begin with.

In the Wolf Hollow council there are changes happening, with new members who wish to make a stance against the more archaic rules of the pack and pushing forward changes that they believe should be made in order for their pack to continue on for further generations. The changes begin to happen in this book but not before some of those more set in their ways members of the pack protest and have their say at the council meetings. Prospective changes are put to the vote on more than one occasion and it seems some members of the council are going to be pushed into a new way of doing things.

When a human female wanders into Wolf Hollow territory, she brings danger to the whole pack. It is quickly decided the human should be kept prisoner away from den and main area of Wolf Hollow. This female arriving promises inevitable danger to those in Wolf Hollow from her brother Hawk and his human friends and the destruction and possible deaths they will bring. The Wolf Hollow families are sent to a safer place to hide until the inescapable battle is fought. In the end there are two battles fought between the humans and shifters.

I loved Kallie from the moment she was mentioned in this series. In this book she is still pining after Raider and being pestered by one of the elders of the council to become his third mate despite politely, then firmly refusing. Kallie needs to come up with a stronger, more permanent way of saying no once and for all. Kallie looks around for potential bed partners that are of high enough standing in the pack that the elder will not be able to bully them into allowing him to pursue Kallie their new bed mate. 

I adored the relationship that grew between Kallie and Elsie. Kalllie is like a big sister figure to Elsie, she likes the honest and cheeriness of her. Though Elsie soon confides in Kallie about the curse placed on her father and her years ago. Elsie explains what she intends to do and as Elsie has swears Kallie to secrecy. Kallie agrees she will stay silent but suggests perhaps if Elsie approached her brother Tabor, maybe he could help his younger sister and the problem of the curse.
I truly adore the character of Elsie, shes so upbeat and see's the good in every one even those who have slighted her family in the past. She is full of fun and seems to be able to lighten the mood of any shifter she comes into contact with. Elsie is still quite naive and young in her ways, though when it comes to her curse she knows exactly how she intends to handle it and I for one hopes she succeeds!

I also grew to love Sparrow though really wasn't keen on her at first due to her association with Hawk and his other human men. It soon becomes apparent that Sparrow actually feels a lot of empathy for the shifters and doesn't agree with how her brother holds them against their will and forces them to both fight and procreate against their will. Sparrow actually identifies with being somewhere she doesn't want to be. Sparrow can move around the human settlement but is not allowed past a certain boundary and is almost always under the watchful eye of her brothers henchmen. In one way she is better off than most because no one dare touch her because of who her brother is. Having said that her brother can and does turn against his own sister at times and in the past has ordered his human men to beat up Sparrow to teach her a lesson when she does something to displease him. It also seems that Sparrow is judge by who her brother is so never truly sure who is a friend because of Hawk and who is genuine. Poor Sparrow loses the one person she confided in, but it is this last blow from her brother Hawk. Initially Sparrow considers killing herself in various ways but then she remembers a conversation she had with one of the caged shifters described, wishing to get back there one day. Something clicks in Sparrow that gives her the courage, or maybe more the attitude to simply walk away from her life with her brother in search of a better place.

My immediate thoughts upon this finishing this book were, Oh wow! Amazing! Brilliant! The series that gets even better with each book!! Totally adored Kallie! and Sparrow too. Looking forward to the next book in the Wolf Hollow Shifters series.

So what more can I say about this great book? When can I have more? Is it going to Elsie's story will she get the shifter she has taken a liking too? What will her brother have to say when he finds out about her curse and her preference for a mate who resides in, and is part the Wolf Hollow shifters? The book has you asking so many questions and there are so many variable ways the series can go from here. 

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