Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by rlbooks8
Racing the Beast by P. Jameson
3.0
I like this series for its fated mates with instantly devoted heroes and the found family feel that the guys have with their wolf shifter pack. This book starts off where book 1 ended, but it does standalone. Punk (h) is in the hospital after being injured at the racing track and Beast (H) has gone to bring her a small gift to say sorry as he feels responsible (he's not). Except, once he's in the same room as her, he recognizes her as his mate. Punk also comes to the pack's house and to work in their shop while she's dealing with a broken leg from the accident, meaning all the proximity. This is character and relationship focused with no big plot. Written in third person, dual POV. No ow/om drama and neither are virgins (both have been celibate for years).
Punk is human and has no idea about shifters. She's also defensive and cautious with new people due to a past assault. Beast was so sweet with how he showed her that she could trust him, he was so considerate and even with his wolf riding him, he reined himself in. The story does move at a very fast pace though, even with Punk's past. Of course, she learns about shifters, not in the best way and in a scene that briefly had me all in my feelings, and has a bit of adjusting to do. But adjusts she does and very rapidly. A little too rapidly for me. I loved the ease of their feelings for each other that also acknowledged how she needed time, but I wish there had been some more page time between her discovery, steamy times, and the end. This book also has one short and interrupted steamy scene and one lengthy scene, which makes sense.
Side characters in the form of Punk's BFFs, Ella (h from book 1) and Annie (the h for the next book) and Beast's pack provide some humor and fun. This is a great group of characters. The guys all have their own trauma that they've had to process since they survived a fire that decimated the shifters in the area, including their families. They tease, worry about, and support each other.
The ending is very much HFN and I really wanted more. I know these characters will feature as side characters for the rest of the series, but I wanted to see them under more normal conditions here, with Punk adjusting to the mate bond, addressing where they'd each live, and all those day to day life things. Still, this was an enjoyable and quick read and I'll likely continue picking them up when I want this fated mate feeling with minimal angst.
Trigger warning: recollections of sexual assault (vague but specific with the emotional impact) and continued mental/emotional handling of this trauma
Punk is human and has no idea about shifters. She's also defensive and cautious with new people due to a past assault. Beast was so sweet with how he showed her that she could trust him, he was so considerate and even with his wolf riding him, he reined himself in. The story does move at a very fast pace though, even with Punk's past. Of course, she learns about shifters, not in the best way and in a scene that briefly had me all in my feelings, and has a bit of adjusting to do. But adjusts she does and very rapidly. A little too rapidly for me. I loved the ease of their feelings for each other that also acknowledged how she needed time, but I wish there had been some more page time between her discovery, steamy times, and the end. This book also has one short and interrupted steamy scene and one lengthy scene, which makes sense.
Side characters in the form of Punk's BFFs, Ella (h from book 1) and Annie (the h for the next book) and Beast's pack provide some humor and fun. This is a great group of characters. The guys all have their own trauma that they've had to process since they survived a fire that decimated the shifters in the area, including their families. They tease, worry about, and support each other.
The ending is very much HFN and I really wanted more. I know these characters will feature as side characters for the rest of the series, but I wanted to see them under more normal conditions here, with Punk adjusting to the mate bond, addressing where they'd each live, and all those day to day life things. Still, this was an enjoyable and quick read and I'll likely continue picking them up when I want this fated mate feeling with minimal angst.
Trigger warning: recollections of sexual assault (vague but specific with the emotional impact) and continued mental/emotional handling of this trauma