In the Werewolf?s Den
AUTHOR:  Rob Preece
PUBLISHER:  Books for a Buck PUB DATE: 
GENRE:  Romance w/ Spec Elements ISBN: 
REVIEWED BY:  Jody Wallace on 07/01/06 EISBN: 

Warder Danielle Goodman is a highly skilled soldier responsible for keeping the impaired in their zones and hunting them with lethal force when they escape into normal territory. So she?s pretty disgusted when her new assignment is to babysit the impaired Dr. Carl Harriman, a werewolf, while he works on a cure for the plague that turned normal humans into magical beings like elves, vampires, weres and trolls some odd years ago, devastating society. Danielle is forced to live in Dallas?s impaired zone as Carl researches, an experience she expects will be dreadful, but she begins to learn things about the impaired and herself that the Warder Academy certainly didn?t teach. And she begins to learn that Carl is very?intriguing, and very much a man. When she?s caught between her training and her newfound knowledge, what path will she choose?

While the moral parallels drawn between DEN?s hypothetical landscape and actual societies that have included segregation are simplistic, the premise of DEN is still interesting, distinctive enough to capture the imagination without requiring a degree in cultural anthropology. The worldbuilding isn?t onerous or infodumpy, and the heroine is sort of like early Anita Blake before she caught Mad Homping Disease. The novel has an overall post-apocalyptic feel, which is unique in the field of romance. The action is well choreographed and convincing, and the growth of the relationship proceeds at a believable pace, which may not please readers expecting a sexed up sizzler just because the book includes werewolves and vampires.

The science aspect of the plot, with the plague research, is not as heavy as folks into that sort of thing might like, and I don?t recall any mention of what has happened outside the US borders. The story takes place in the microcosm of the Dallas area, which is fun, even if it left me wanting more. There are some sections that are sketchy and transitions that are abrupt, so the book isn?t perfect. However, it kept me up several enjoyable nights, and I?m a picky reader. Priced less than most ebooks at $3.99 from Books for a Buck, I can definitely say it?s worth the price and also worth checking out the author?s other work, which I plan to do forthwith.

Read Chapter One, Then Buy This Book, Baby!