Synopsis:
After sorceress Alexandra tries to kill her insane
father, her fae uncle expels her from the Otherworld in an attempt to keep her
safe. Living among humans, she keeps her connection with the supernatural by
working for vampires and werewolves.
When she stumbles upon a hurt werewolf pup her
efforts to heal him inadvertently break the bonds tying the young lycan to the
pack, making her his new alpha.
This is the least of Alexandra’s worries though,
for back in the Otherworld her father has not forgotten her. He dispatches an
assassin to kill her. But just who is this mysterious foe, and what will their arrival
mean not only to Alexandra but to the delicate balance of the world?
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Inspiration, how and where I get it
I’m often asked how I come up with ideas and my
first reaction is to stare at the person who posed the question, because I
cannot see how people don’t have a head full of ideas. Or how it feels to not
juggle several plot bunnies at the same time. Then I remember that the question
is honest and that not all people are creative in the same way or used to
toying with and transforming their thoughts into stories, that they do not live
in a world of their own, like I do.
For me, it doesn’t take much to come up with
something to write about. A headline in the paper, a song, a short conversation
with a friend, or, why not, a challenge of some sort, and voila, a story is
born. I take that spark and turn it into a plot or a character. Or, as it was
the case for the first book of the Taking Chances series, Nature of the Beast, I
found a title I liked and had to come up with a story that fitted. And sometimes
the trouble is you have the perfect title, but you cannot make up your mind on
the story because you feel none of your ideas will do it justice, or you think
of saving it for a later, for a different kind of story. Crazy, I know, because
I’ll probably forget the title or the idea I was saving for later long before I
get to use it.
Coming up with the story of Nature of the Beast was different. I didn’t get the spark signaling
that new idea, that new plot bunny. I had the characters for so long in my
head, they are almost like my imaginary friends. I practically grew up with
them. They’ve starred in so many different scenarios I can’t even remember half
of them. What I do remember is how much I loved Sean and Alexandra and how well
David fit them when he came into the picture, because he wasn’t there to begin with.
At first there was only Alexandra, who made her appearance when I was in my
teens, followed shortly by Chris and Sean. A couple years ago, came David and I
fell madly in love with him.
With such wonderful characters, I knew I had to
write their story. It was difficult in the beginning. Carrying them with me for
so long made me reluctant to share them with the world, but in the end I felt I
had no choice. So here we are, at the beginning of Alexandra, David, and the
beautiful strange man that holds both their interest. I hope you will all like
it as much as I do.
I liked the characters, as they were interesting
and varied. I really liked Alexandra as she is a strong female character who
also cares about the people in her life. She also has her flaws that she
struggles with, and these were very apparent throughout the story. These struggles
just made her an even stronger character in my mind, since she didn’t just get
over her issues, but had to actively work against them and will likely continue
to do so throughout the series.
My
Review:
3 stars
I liked the characters, as they were interesting
and varied. I really liked Alexandra as she is a strong female character who
also cares about the people in her life. She also has her flaws that she
struggles with, and these were very apparent throughout the story. These struggles
just made her an even stronger character in my mind, since she didn’t just get
over her issues, but had to actively work against them and will likely continue
to do so throughout the series.
However, there were so many characters thrown at
you that they were hard to track at times. There would be mentions of
characters (“my lycan friend”, “the angel after who I wasn’t supposed to lust”)
who hadn’t even been introduced yet coming out of nowhere. Or characters would
be introduced that seemed important, but then never mentioned again. I don’t
know if this is because they will become relevant in future books in the series,
but I wasn’t a fan of the way it was handled, because it came across awkwardly
in the story, confusing me, the reader.
The action was constant and exciting while the
mystery behind what was going on was very intriguing as well. However, there
were pacing issues throughout the story, and sometimes the events occurring
didn’t add up or make sense to me. This book also didn’t focus on romance,
though there were hints of it. At times, it felt like the author was trying to
focus on romance, and then she would just change her mind. This also affected
the pacing of the story and hurt it.
I think the biggest issue with the story is that
it was the start of a series. The author was trying to introduce so many
elements that will likely be addressed in future books. Because there was such
an info dump with little explanation or resolution, it affected the quality of
the story. However, while the story did have its flaws, it also set up an
interesting series. The world the author created is fascinating and I can’t
wait to learn more about it. The ending was also intriguing because while the immediate
mystery throughout the book is solved, there is a greater overarcing mystery
that is revealed at the end of the book, as well as the mystery behind
Alexandra’s future romantic partners. Because of this, I am eagerly looking
forward to book 2 to see what happens next.
About the Author:
Born in Romania, land of the Iele and Vlad the
Impaler, AIMEE BRISSAY has spent all her life surrounded by books. She has
ridden side by side with d’Artagnan and The Three Musketeers to retrieve the
Queen’s diamonds, set sail on the Erasmus in search of the Japans, fell in love
with Rhett Butler and roamed the Wild West along Old Shatterhand. She has
walked on the footsteps of the Olympian Gods and searched for Zalmoxis’
sanctuary in the Carpathians. In her mind, she’s never been the damsel in
distress but rather the knight in shiny armor fighting for a cause.
With a background like this, turning to writing
was no surprise.
Aimee discovered erotica early on in life and has
never looked back. Now she can write anywhere, even in a crowded room or a busy
subway station, but she loves solitude.
When she’s not at her evil day job, she can be
found writing or playing with her cat. She welcomes messages from readers and
promises to answer all of them as soon as possible.
Aimee Brissay can be found at:
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