Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Legend Of The White Wolf, Terry Spear--REVIEW

Legend of the White Wolf



By: Terry Spear

Werewolf Series, Book 4
Sourcebooks, Inc



Mass Market
Price: $6.99

Publication Date: February 2010




  • His Wild Side Comes Out With a Vengeance…

    Is She The Hunter Or The Hunted…

In this fourth in Spear's werewolf series, Private Eye Cameron MacPherson and forensic scientist Faith O'Malley are both on quests that lead them into the world of magical wolves, mystery and murder.

Cameron arrives in wintry Maine to search for his partners in his P.I. business who are late returning from a hunting trip, and runs into Faith, there to locate her ex-boyfriend who stole her father’s research. But Cameron and Faith instantly are attracted to one another and keeping their business on a strictly professional level doesn't have a snowball's chance of succeeding in a toasty fire-warmed cabin, the couple snowbound and the setting perfect for an unplanned tryst.Together, the two tumble into an icy world of mayhem where myth, legend, and reality merge, changing their lives forever.




"The vulpine couple's chemistry crackles off the page, but the real strength of the book lies in Spear's depiction of pack power dynamics, as well as in the details of human-wolf interaction."

Publishers Weekly


Arctic Wolf in Full Winter White




My thoughts:

Anyone who knows me, knows I love animals. God knows, I have enough of them, including the privilege of having had Micah, a grey wolf, from pup to death (12 years). My favorite animal is the Wolf and the Cougar. My mother says I always told wolf stories and my favorite one was where I could drink a magic potion and become one.


So, when I had the chance to review Terry Spear's Legend Of The White Wolf, I jumped at the chance. One of the main reasons is I know Terry makes it a point to accurately portray wolf behavior. I've read many of the articles she's written about her research. This is not an easy task when writing werewolves. It's all too easy to fall into what everyone else has done rather than make your own world. Terry makes a very believable world and her wolves and the pack dynamics are very accurate.

I hadn't had the chance to read the other books in her series although they were on my To Be Read list. I came in on this series with her fourth book. No worries as it stands alone. There some reoccurring characters, but Terry skillfully introduces them so you know who they are without scratching your head and going, huh?

Terry captured my interest in the first page and I read this book in one sitting. She writes a Romance with a real bite to it and it is a fast paced, exciting story with a hefty dose of action, suspense and mystery. You have disappearing people, murder, kidnapping, questions as to who's behind it all. Is it the wolves or a strange group of so-called hunters? What's with Cameron's missing friends and Faith's faithless boyfriend? Who's chasing Faith on snowmobiles the hunters or the pack and why?


What's different about this book is one, the Wolf pack doesn't hide in this story but lives in the open among the community. There are some who have no real idea of who or what they are, but many do, including some of the local Indians. Two, both the hero and the heroine are fully human when they begin this adventure. Both tough and skilled in their respective fields. They each have their own agenda and it leads them straight into the world of Mythical creatures with consequences that will change them both forever.

I liked both Cameron and Faith. The sparks between them are fun and build expectation for the romance. Some secondary characters I really liked was Gavin, Cameron's partner and Leidoff (Oh yah, I'm looking forward to his story, yum).

Legend is well written and kept me turning the page. Terry writes hot sex (get out your fans, ladies because you’ll need one) and gives a satisfying ending.


Simply put:
  • I loved the book and it's one that will be sitting in my personal library and soon joined by the rest of the series.



I have two copies of Legend to give out to commenters today. It's well worth the commenting to receive one!

Excerpt:

As soon as she reached her room, she struggled to get the key card to work, then gave the door a shove. The room was dark and cold. She fumbled for the light switch, but when she turned on the lamps, the bedcover wasn’t pulled back from the pillow, nor was a gold foil-covered chocolate waiting for her either. And of course the ice bucket was perfectly empty. She wondered if Cameron got the special treatment because he was a big tipper, or just an incredibly smooth-talking hunk.


She sighed and rolled her bag next to the bed, then headed back for the door. She might as well get this over with before she finally settled down for the night.


Glancing at her watch, she hadn’t realized how late it was already. Probably too late to order anything from the kitchen. But if she ate at this hour, the food would most likely just sit like a lump in her stomach when she went to bed anyway. She knocked on Cameron MacPherson’s door.


While waiting for him, she closed her eyes and yawned. Man, she was ready to skip the shower and just collapse in bed.


The door squeaked opened. Wearing only a pair of stone-washed jeans that looked incredibly soft, no shirt, and his feet bare, Cameron smiled, but he hadn’t brought her parka to the door. He looked every bit as sexy as when he was wearing only a towel.

“Are you sure you don’t want to have a bite with me?” He motioned to the tray on the table.


The old werewolf movie with Jack Nicholson was playing on the television, and by the sound of the growling, she envisioned he had shapeshifted and was fighting the bad wolf, if she recalled the movie correctly.

She gave Cameron a tired smile. “Under other circumstances, maybe. I left my parka here?”


“You look like you could use a meal and the kitchen’s closed by now.” His voice, deep and pleasing, sent little chills of expectation through her.


But she resisted the temptation and held out her hand for her coat. “Thanks, but I’m fine.”


He retrieved her coat and gave it to her, his hand brushing hers in a sensuous way, which made her skin heat again. She thought he looked a little wistful that she’d stay and keep him company, but she figured if she did, she would melt right under whatever spell he seemed to cast over her. It wasn’t like her to be that attracted to a guy she’d just met. She glanced down at his hand, no wedding ring. When her gaze returned to his, he was smiling broadly.


Usually a lot less obvious than that when she was scrutinizing a man’s marital status, although he might be married and just not wear a wedding ring, she felt her skin heat even more. “Thanks,” she quickly said before she made any more of a fool of herself, turned around, and left his room. But as soon as she reached her door and slipped her hand in her jeans pocket, she realized she didn’t have the key.
~*~*~*~*~


Terry Spear is an award-winning author of urban fantasy and medieval historicals. She also writes true-life stories for both teen and adult audiences. She is the author of Winning the Highlander’s Heart and The Vampire in My Dreams (young adult). Spear lives in Crawford, Texas.

A retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry Spear has an MBA from Monmouth College. She originally hails from the West Coast but now makes her home deep in the heart of Texas.

You can find Terry at the following places: Terry Spear's Website

Wickedly Romantic Blog

Casablanca Authors Blog

Fierce Romance Blog

Facebook

Shifter Romance Blog