Title: Cursed Mates
Author: Cara Marsi
Publisher: Noble Romance Publishing
Published: December 2010
My Copy: Book Lovin’ Bitches eBook Tours
Nick Radford is a reluctant werewolf who’s been fighting the Beast within for nearly 500 years. He’s never killed a human, but the Beast is gaining strength and Nick may not be able to ward off his inner demon much longer.
Kyla Yaeger is an elite were-hunter with a scarred past. Her life’s mission is to slay the werewolves that slaughtered her parents. Her quest has brought her to Maine, where she’s been summoned to destroy the werewolf terrorizing the quaint little village of Heavensent. The last thing she needs is to get distracted by her mysterious—not to mention hunky—new neighbor, Nick Radford.
By the time Kyla learns Nick is her target, she’s already fallen for him, making her task of killing him that much harder. She is torn between her love for him and her duty to kill her sworn enemy. Nick fights his forbidden love for Kyla, knowing she is duty-bound to kill him. Kyla and Nick must join forces to fight an even bigger threat—one that will destroy all humanity. Only by their combined powers, can they destroy the evil and bring an end to a centuries old curse.
Cursed Mates has everything that I look for in a werewolf book; a kick-ass female lead, a sexy were and a cool story. Not only does this novel have great action in and out of the bedroom but it also paints a bigger picture. One about destiny, true love and faith. However, in the end I was left with mixed feelings. There were a few elements that for me, really took away from the book. They weren’t in my opinion necessary to the storyline and if they’d been missing I would have enjoyed reading this novel a lot more.
The plot is original and I was pleased with its scope and depth. The author skillfully explores the past and adeptly ties the protagonists histories to the present. Everything that readers need to know in order to fully appreciate the story is covered in a way that’s not only informative but also captivating. All of the main characters have colorful pasts and reasons for why they’re living the lives that they are. The characters are well developed and you’ll never feel lost. The pace fits the storyline well and all of the puzzle pieces show up and fit together in a natural order.
Nick Radford is definitely drool worthy. He’s got the looks, the confidence and the whole knight in shining armor persona going for him. His past is a sad one and as a result he’s just trying to do the best that he can to do some good in the world. Radford fully expects his immortal life to end in flames but, he plans to take the demon who’s responsible for his lot in life with him as his final act. There’s also plenty of hot and heavy action between Nick and Kyla. So not only is he a great man but he’s also a great lover! Yes, I may have a tiny crush on Radford.
Aside from the great plot and yummy hero there are a few less than desirable elements in this book. I felt the story had a sort of native american side to it that didn’t fit into the action very well. In the midst’s of danger, Kyla would light candles, take a bath and consult her “spirit guide”. Like most visions, they’re cryptic and not very helpful. I just found it ridiculous that in the middle of a fate-of-the-world battle the heroine’s big move is to soak in bubbles. Secondly, there’s a lot of drama between Nick and Kyla. Which is not unusual in paranormal romance, but in this case I found it tiresome. They’d argue over the same issues over and over again. There was little to no growth on the romantic end of things. The relationship between the two main characters just went in an endless loop. Kyla and Radford felt like a Hollywood couple in that they’re on-again/off-again through the whole book until the ending.
That being said, I did enjoy this book and think that it’s a worthwhile read for fans of the genre. If spiritual visions are your thing then you’ll definitely find something in this story for you. However, I found that this element took away from the tale and because of it I didn’t enjoy this novel as much as I could have. Just when things were getting juicy the spirit guide would show up to throw some water on the fire. A good read overall but it had the potential to be great.
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About the Blogger
I review Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance books with a focus all things werewolf. Based out of Ottawa, Canada
Owner, designer and main blogger behind Rabid Reads. Avid book reader, snowboard bunny, video gamer and Supernatural fan. I love all things paranormal, werewolves especially. Oh, and I’m Canadian, eh!
Great review!I may add this on to my pile.
Very nice review, Carmel. 🙂 I think it depends on how I’m feeling when and if I should come across the book on whether I’ll pick it up or not. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
DJL
djlibrarian@gmail.com
Laurie, thank you.
And thank you, Rabid Reads, for reviewing “Cursed Mates.” I’m enjoying my blog tour.
Great review! l can never get into spiritual things so think l would struggle with that but this does sound good =)
DJL & BooksforCompany, thank you for visiting and for posting.
Great interview, I might consider reading this as a short read.
lilazncutie1215[at]yahoo[dot]com
This book sounds really great. I must read it. Tore923@aol.com
Jeannette and Tore, thank you for visiting and for posting. I hope you enjoy “Cursed Mates.” I had fun writing it.
Great review! It is disappointing when one or two elements of a book take away some of the enjoyment of reading it…I guess the spirit part is just not for everyone
http://twitter.com/#!/gloriousbooks/status/48449597487583232
m-hussein at hotmail dot co dot uk
I am scheduled to read this book soon next month I believe and I will keep in mind what you have said when I read it
vampiremistress2010(at)gmail(dot)com
Interesting! Thanks for the review Carmel! =D
Thanks for posting, everyone. I appreciate Carmel’s review and I think she did a good job. I also appreciate the opportunity to participate in the fun blog tour.
Hmmmm… I think with the a kick-ass female lead, a sexy were and a cool story I would be able to overlook the somewhat Native American aspect to it… Well, maybe! 😉
Thanks for the great review Carmel! I will have to check this book out!
PS. I tweeted about this post! (@AverysBookNook)
@Laurie – Thanks! Oh no, the pile. LOL 😉
@DJL Happy St. Patrick’s Day to you too!
@Cara Marsi My pleasure, thanks for stopping by!
@BooksforCompany Good to know that I’m not the only one who’s not on the spiritual bandwagon!
@jeanette8042 Cool but it was a review. 😉
@Tore Let me know how it goes!
@Books Glorious Books Yeah… it was a bit of a downer. 🙁
@BLHmistress Let me know what you think!
@Larissa Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
@Avery Hehe keep me posted on how the “over-looking” goes. 😛
Great review, however this just doesn’t look like my cup of tea.
Vivien
deadtossedwaves at gmail dot com
I have not heard of this before. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Great review.
tweet – http://twitter.com/#!/DonnaS1/status/48984976221417472
bacchus76 at myself dot com
@Vivien I understand. Sometimes you just have to say no!
@donnas Thanks for the tweet. 🙂
Thanks for this review, I tweeted about it: http://twitter.com/#!/Syki/status/50837142729007104
Syki
sykorova.p@gmail.com