Raised by Wolves by Bridget EssexRaised by Wolves by Bridget Essex is about Becca Swift, the heir about to take over her mother’s werewolf pack. At least, that’s what her mother keeps telling her. The only problem is that Becca doesn’t want to. She enjoys her low stress job and low stress life, and the last thing she wants is to fight her mother for dominance. Enter a gorgeous woman at a bookstore, Loren.

Little does Becca know that her mother is about to invite Loren to dinner, and a family dinner is not exactly a human friendly activity. They are, after all, a rather wild bunch.

Will Becca be able to keep her secret and will her mother finally persuade her to fight for dominance?

The Characters

The story is narrated entirely from Becca’s point of view so you get glimpses into how she perceives the other characters. Becca herself is a woman of little ambition with a domineering mother. She feels frustrated that her mother wants her to take over the pack when all she really wants to do is enjoy her time with her new romantic interest, Loren.

The chemistry between Loren and Becca is undeniable and very sweet. I loved how cute they were together.

Rob is Becca’s cousin and a sweetheart and I just wanted to give him a big hug. He is the black sheep of the family, which is particularly bad when you are from a family of wolves.

The Writing Style

It takes a little getting used to the writing style because it is written in the first person. This limits the story a little because you can’t see what is actually going on with the other characters. Having said that, the story revolves around Becca and a particular series of events, so for this it worked.

The Narration

Maria Marquis did a good job of conveying Becca as the cocky werewolf she is.

I could have used a little more differentiation between the voices as I became confused at some points as to who was speaking. It wasn’t terrible though and I enjoyed the audiobook.

Pros

I enjoyed the humor in the story. The events were funny and the romance was a delight.

Cons

Not a huge con but I don’t really like the cover picture. I do like the font, though.

The Conclusion

It’s fun, it’s light and has a lovely romance involving a woman who works at a bookstore. What more could a girl want?

This is the perfect listen when you want something not at all taxing.

Excerpt from Raised by Wolves by Bridget Essex

“Bad day, huh?” I rolled my eyes at Rob so hard that they’re in danger of falling out. Then I snort, blowing upwards; a stray wisp of jet-black hair flies up and out of my face.

“Yeah, you could say that,” I mutter, winding up for another punch. My fist connects with the punching bag, and then the thing is sailing through the air because my fist connected with such force that the chains holding the punching bag in front of me creak. I step away from the swinging bag and pivot on my feet, shifting my weight backward to prepare for another punch, my fists held close to my face.

Sometimes, there’s nothing more satisfying than pummeling an nonliving thing into submission. And this punching bag? It’s on my list today.

Rob takes a quick step backward, narrowly avoiding the swinging bag as he leans against the wall across from me, his brows raised. “Geez, Becca, what’s gotten into you?” he asks, looking at me askance and then gazing worriedly up at the ceiling the bag is suspended from. The ceiling groans as the bag swings wildly. Rob’s gym, Wolf Strong, is set up in the lower half of an old factory, roaring twenties era, and some of the beams are sturdier than others.

I hold out my hands and grab the bag, stilling it. Then I sniff. “Oh, I dunno,” I tell him, gritting my teeth. “I’m just taking out all of my familial aggression on this poor, sad bag.” I pat the leather; then I take a step back, crouching down into my punching stance. “You know it’s just a regular day in the life of Becca Swift,” I say, “when I feel the urge to destroy all of your gym equipment to take out my aggression.”

And then I punch the bag again. This time, the punch is so hard that the bag flies sideways, and dust begins to fall down from the beam above us. We both look up as the beam complains–loudly–and then we regard one another with wide eyes.

“Dude, this is my gym,” he tells me, his voice high-pitched as he flicks his gaze upward again. “And I really don’t want to be replacing that ceiling anytime soon.” He sidesteps a bit of plaster that falls down from the ceiling, nearly hitting his head.

I bite my lip, stretching out my arms for a minute as I massage one shoulder with a leather-gloved hand. “Eh, you worry too much,” I joked weakly, with a wink. “Really, you don’t have to sweat this. “You outfitted everything to be extra durable just for moments like this.”

“You mean moments when werewolves get crazy aggressive?” he mutters, his eyebrows twitching. “You know, I’m thinking I might need to take out another insurance policy because of you,” he tells me then, leaning against the wall and shoving his hands into his jean pockets, his eyes narrowed as he watched me go right back to punching furiously. “Although, I have to say–you’ve got good form today. Been practicing?”

“Nope,” I grunt, delivering a volley of controlled, sharp jabs to the bag. “Here’s the trick: I always have good form when I’m really mad.”

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[tweetthis]“I’ve got ninety-nine problems,” I tell him with a sidelong grin, “and my family is all of them.”[/tweetthis]

Bits and Bobs

  • ISBN number: 9781530216574
  • Audiobook Publisher: Rose Star Press
  • Narrator: Maria Marquis

Bridget Essex Online 

Note: I received a free review copy of Raised by Wolves by Bridget Essex. No money was exchanged for this review. I will always review books as honestly as possible and on occasion I refuse to review books.

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