Review: Shadowing Mace by Cheyenne Meadows

Author: Cheyenne Meadows

Pages/Word Count: 117 Pages

Pages at a Glance: Relatively short book with hot characters and even hotter sex.

Reviewed By: Jennifer

Blurb: With his brother away at a conference, alpha wolf shifter Shadow finds himself paired with IT analyst Mace, the one man he can’t stand. Stuck with the partnership due to his pack leader’s order, Shadow can only count down the days until his life returns to normal. He’s a loner. Period. No matter how much his inner beast protests.

Mace isn’t thrilled either, but can’t resist the temptation to push all the surly alpha’s buttons, even as he fantasizes about what could be. Flirting with danger, he’s determined to make the best of the situation, if he can only get Shadow to give in to both their desires.

Unfortunately, a twisted revenge-seeker has other plans. A series of events rocks the entire pack, leaving innocent people hurt and fear running rampant. Both men are thrust into the chaos, working tirelessly to track down the culprit before someone winds up dead. The pressure of trying to stay a jump ahead, with absolutely no clues, pushes them to the brink. Add in a burning hunger for each other, and their world begins to crumble around them. With no other choice, they have to trust and depend on one another in order to have a chance at solving the mystery and saving lives.

Review: Finally, a book about wolf shifters who act like a pack with traditional pack rolls in place: alpha, beta, omega. I was so excited to start this book, as it jumps right into the story with Shadow being less than thrilled with his new partner, Mace, after his brother, Ian, is called away on assignment. What follows is a rollercoaster ride of beta wolf Mace pushing all of alpha (and pack leader’s son) Shadow’s buttons.

I loved the dynamics between Shadow and Mace. Mace is aware of his status as a beta wolf, and the very real danger pushing Shadow too far poses, but he treads that line carefully for the good of his alpha. He is well aware of the pressure Shadow faces as not only an alpha but the son of the pack’s leader, and as such, he does what any caring mate would do. Even if they aren’t mates.

Pack politics play a large roll in this book as well. Not only is it deer hunting season for the humans, but someone, or something, is threatening the pack, and it’s up to Shadow and Mace to figure out who or what is causing all of the chaos. They work together in increasingly close quarters to solve the crisis, but it’s the close quarters that eventually drives them together rather than apart.

The sex in this book is steamy. While not BDSM, there is a level of dominance and submission fitting with the wolf politics. Shadow and Mace also have some wolf-like physiology concerning their, ahem, lower parts, that make their coupling not only more violent, in a sense, but more intimate as well. Not going to lie, but I did the research and found out that the knot is in fact a real thing dogs—and wolves—have while mating. So, score one for the author on including that. It made the story that much more real for me somehow.

I highly recommend this shifter book to any fan of the genre, or even non-fans who are looking to get into it. You’ll be hard-pressed not to enjoy Mace and Shadow and might, perhaps, like me, wonder if the author will be releasing another book with these two heroes.