Review: Black Rook by Kelly Meade ★★★★

Black Rook by Kelly Meade
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Series: Cornerstone Run Trilogy #1
Publication Date: July 15th 2014
ISBN: 9780698165441
Page Count: 334
Rating: ★★★★
Review Copy: ARC
Reviewed by: Lynsey

   

Synopsis: She never saw this coming…

Brynn Atwood is a low-level Magus whose unpredictable precognitive powers have made her an outcast among her people—and an embarrassment to her highly-regarded father. After a frightening vision in which her father is murdered by a loup garou man, Brynn decides to prove herself by finding the killer, and stopping them at any cost.

Her target is Rook McQueen, the son of a small-town loup garou Alpha. Despite being the youngest of three, Rook is first in line to inherit the role of Alpha, a duty he isn't sure he's capable of fulfilling. When Brynn finally meets Rook, she doesn't expect the attraction that draws her to him—and him to her.

No longer believing him a murderer, Brynn and Rook strike an alliance to find her father's real killer. But when his older brother is targeted by an unknown enemy, Rook will have to choose between his growing feelings for Brynn and his duty as the future Alpha of his community.

I've seen many an author try their hand at a werewolf paranormal romance, often giving only the barest nod of acknowledgement to any kind of lore before basically forgetting they're even supposed to be Weres and getting straight on with the sexytimes - complete with plenty of growling, naturally. But me, I like the details. I think that's what makes a good Werewolf tale so enjoyable; getting to know their origins, their genealogy, their mating habits. How the beast and the man - or woman - relate to one another.  What advantages and disadvantages the Were nature brings to the table. All that good stuff, And here in Black Rook, Meade gave an outstanding spin on all of those aspects, leaving this reader more than satisfied.

And as if that wasn't enough, she also gave us not one, not two, but THREE swoonfully beautiful McQueen brothers to enjoy! Honestly, guys, they're absolutely irresistible. Sweet, sexy, caring, honourable, badass... Oy. In Black Rook, you'll fall in love with Rook, the youngest of the three, and have your appetite more than whetted for the other two, whose books - Gray Bishop and White Knight - are a-coming, don't you worry!

In this particular book, we're introduced to not only the McQueen clan, but also Brynn Atwood, a female Magi with precognitive ability, whose visions have told her that her father will die at the hands of Rook McQueen. She sets out to prevent that from happening at any cost, and is thrown into a world she apparently knows very little about, despite being part of it, and what she does know is skewed and one-sided. Her education on all-thing Loup could have been handled with hostility given the circumstances, but Rook is as gentle as they come. In fact, the way he reacted around Brynn and to his growing feelings for her, and also they way he tried to protect his family at all costs, was absolutely adoraballs. I completely loved him and Brynn both, and wished them all of the good things. And I cannot WAIT to read more on the other two brothers!!

All in all, a very enjoyable read, one I recommend to all Werewolf fans - 4 Stars ★★★★

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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