Smolder (Signet Eclipse) [Mass Market Paperback]

Too many French words and names and the concept that werewolves are the bad guys while vampires are the good guys just doesn't sit well with this reader. In all of the supernatural you're going to have good and bad both in the groups; you're not just going to have one grouping that is just all ultra-evil and nothing else. I just found the book boring and difficult to follow. Maybe if I spoke French and knew more about the country I'd like this book more, but as a supernatural story it fell flat to me. Singling out one group over another to be the bad group is just poor planning and poor form. There should at least have been some werewolves who were helping.

Countess Catherine Marais is from a long line of werewolf hunters. Besides that, one of them killed her father long ago and every time Catherine puts one down, it's like a strike for the good guys. Catherine never really wanted to do anything else with her life but now she is in love and needs to discover if it's possible to follow her heart and still do her job.

Ian Morgan is a vampire who loves Catherine with everything he has, but he also has respected her wish to remain human and do her job up to now. Ian knows the danger that Catherine faces every time she is called out to deal with a werewolf. This time Catherine facing a bit more danger than normal, and Ian has made arrangements to be on hand if she should need him.

When a French werewolf lives long enough to identify one of the hunters as a woman, and gives a general description, Catherine faces exposure and her worse danger to date. When Catherine and her partner discover that the French werewolves know of a female hunter, they will need to discover just how many werewolves might have figured out the truth about Catherine's vocation and destroy them before they can come up with a plan to destroy her. Timing, experience, and luck will come into play if Catherine and Ian are going to discover just how far their love can take them.

Love can develop in unexpected places when you fight the paranormal. Smolder shows Catherine that you need to grab love with both hands when it appears, because sometimes time can be too short. Catherine follows in her father's footsteps every time she is called upon for an assignment, which could kill her. Ian has lived a long time and seen many things, but what he really wants is for Catherine to say she will finally be his forever. I wondered just how Catherine was going to combine her vocation with her passion for Ian from the beginning. Then, as I watched the story unfold I wondered if Ian and Catherine would even get a chance to explore their love. Luckily, both Catherine and Ian are very good at what they do and are - which was apparent when one wrong move could have destroyed more than just their chance at forever. I did discover that love comes in many packages as I finished with Smolder. If you are looking for a paranormal with a different look at love, and all things that go bump in the night, you can't go wrong with trying Smolder.

Jo
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

In France, hunter Countess Catherine Marais and her partner Paul DuJardin have killed many werewolves, but near Rouen they wound one who escapes. Soon afterward Lupus Magnus of France, Louis Chavenne calls a meeting of his species to warn them if they fail to act now the well financed team of Marais and DuJardin will leave them extinct on the continent. Especially nervous is Lupus Minor of Ile de France Gervais de Maury who knows Catherine and her late father; killed by Monfort a werewolf she slew (see Devour).

With a bounty on her head, Catherine worries the Insitut that has financed her efforts will close down. Meanwhile her two century old vampire lover Ian Morgan wants to keep her safe from the sudden hunting of the hunter. He offers to change her, but she hesitates while also insuring her niece in love is not huntress bait to trap her as their Prey.

This contemporary paranormal thriller is fast-paced from the first hunt and never slows down as the French werewolf community unites against the huntress. Filled with action and a deep look at the world of the Loup de Garous while also containing a terrific romantic subplot that enhances the prime story line, fans will appreciate the latest Catherine Marais' saga.

Harriet Klausner