Title: Coveted
Series: Coveted #1
Author: Shawntelle Madison
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Format: eBook, 320 pages
Published: April 24, 2012
ISBN #: 9780345529183 / 0345529189
Genre: Urban Fantasy
My Copy: NetGalley
SOMETIMES WHAT YOU COVET IS IMPOSSIBLE TO KEEP.
For werewolf Natalya Stravinsky, the supernatural is nothing extraordinary. What does seem strange is that she’s stuck in her hometown of South Toms River, New Jersey, the outcast of her pack, selling antiques to finicky magical creatures. Restless and recovering from her split with gorgeous ex-boyfriend, Thorn, Nat finds comfort in an unusual place: her obsessively collected stash of holiday trinkets. But complications pile up faster than her ornaments when Thorn returns home–and the two discover that the spark between them remains intense.
Before Nat can sort out their relationship, she must face a more immediate and dangerous problem. Her pack is under attack from the savage Long Island werewolves–and Nat is their first target in a turf war. Toss in a handsome wizard vying for her affection, a therapy group for the anxious and enchanted, and the South Toms River pack leader ready to throw her to the wolves, and it’s enough to give anybody a panic attack. With the stakes as high as the full moon, Nat must summon all of her strength to save her pack and, ultimately, herself..
Let me start off my saying that I. Did. Not. Like. This. Book. In fact, I barely finished it. Now, let me fill you in on the why. The main heroine is extremely hard to like. She comes off as flat, selfish and judgmental, not to mention the fact that she seems to care more about her Christmas ornaments than her family. The main plot line barely makes a ripple; it’s so mundane that’s it’s almost invisible. And finally, there’s zero spark between Nat and her love interest, Thorn. Coveted is weighed down by unnecessary details and contains next to no substance. This book definitely wasn’t my thing. The werewolves couldn’t even save this one.
Natalya Stravinsky is a hard character to connect with and an even harder one to like. I thought that her OCD would make her “real”; shed some light on the mental disorder, or at the very least, be amusing in a quirky kind of way. Unfortunately her hoarding problem was just plain annoying. Madison doesn’t explain the what or the why’s behind her Christmas ornament obsession but instead bores readers with the useless details surrounding the acquiring and the storing of her decorations. A riveting read this does not make. Then there’s the fact that instead of being sensitive to others’ problems Nat is extremely judgmental. Who is she to turn down her nose at a potential date or to criticize how someone dresses? She needs to take a good look in the mirror before she insults others.
The main plot line is barely identifiable. Apparently the Long Island pack wants her dead. We’re not really sure why; it’s not like Natalya’s a big threat or anything. The reason is blurted out towards the end almost as an afterthought and the “big reveal” only gets a one sentence explanation. The whole thing seemed rather trivial to me. I think that it would have been helpful had Madison filled readers in on the why a little earlier on in the story. It would have at least given some context to the werewolf war and how someone as weak as Nat became their prime target.
The romance (if you can even call it that) between Natalya and Thorn fell short. The majority of the male characters in this book are underdeveloped. Other than the occasional emotion from Thorn, he’s very two dimensional and as a result, it’s hard to understand the attraction between him and Nat. Also, the fact that mr. zero personality totally eclipses sweetie-pie Nick is a shame. There’s an insane amount of prets introduced in this first installment but none of their abilities are explained, no background info is provided and I’m still not entirely sure whether humans know of their existence or not. There’s countless huge gaping holes in the story that make Coveted an extremely frustrating read.
This book is very much character driven thanks to Nat’s first person POV narrative and because Kept promises to be more of the same I am having a hard time committing to reading the second book in this series. I’m sure that there was some good in Coveted but I had a difficult time finding it buried underneath all of the irritating flaws.
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  My Review |
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!
As soon as I read the blurb I was walking away. The whole Christmas ornament thing really got to me. But at least you gave it a try. This is one I am glad I skipped though.
@Amber I @ Awesomesauce I’m all for thinking outside the box but this book’s way outside it. LOL
@Carmel @ Rabid Reads
WOW. Didn’t like it….
Makes me what to give it a try. I don’t know why but sometimes negative reviews make me want to try books more than 5 stars.
I’ve got it through NG so if I don’t like it there was no $ wasted. LOL
@Jennifer TheBookNympho It’s funny how sometimes negative reviews sell more books than positive ones.
Oh I’m sorry it wasn’t for you. It’s funny because a friend recommended it to me two weeks ago. I haven’t buy it yet and now I’m glad I didn’t. I don’t know if it’s for me I understand your problem.