Moon Burning
By
Grade : C+

The sheer number of paranormal releases can be staggering sometimes. Many of them sound like the same old, same old to me, so when one looks a little different or intriguing, I feel almost honor-bound to give it a try. Moon Burning is about a shapeshifting pair (the hero’s a wolf, heroine’s a raven) who fall in love despite their opposing clans. a paranormal Romeo and Juliet, if you will.

Sabrine has been sent on a secret mission for her raven people. Their sacred stone, necessary for their coming of age ceremonies (where clan members receive their full powers) is missing. She believes it may have been taken by one of the Donegal clan, so she has been sent to retrieve it.

Backing up a bit - which you pretty much have to do where world building is involved - this series takes place in a Scotland where shapeshifting wolves dominate the clans, though not all humans are aware that there are wolves among them. Other shapeshifting types are on the outs, and believe that the wolves are conspiring to kill them all. All of these peoples have italicized, paranormal-sounding names that I am just not going to bother with.

Barr is laird of the Donegal clan, though he is really a Sinclair. The king sent him to take charge of the Donegal clan because it was a complete train wreck. So he is negotiating complicated clan politics - the former laird is still among them - and werewolf politics. He finds Sabrine after she is shot out of the sky by one of the Donegals (who has been taught that ravens are unlucky). Sabrine shifts in mid-air so that she falls to the ground as a naked woman. Barr is immediately attracted to her on every level, both human and wolf. He recognizes almost immediately that she is his true mate. Convincing Sabrine of that is another matter.

So in a nutshell, here’s what is going on: Barr is in love with Sabrine, who is in love with him. They soon sleep together. Barr is ready for every kind of commitment possible, but Sabrine is less sanguine. She wants to find the missing sacred stone, and she also discovers that there are dual raven-wolf shifters secretly living in the pack. Oh, and she can’t tell Barr that she is a raven immediately because she doesn’t know if she can trust him. Meanwhile, the old laird and his cronies are plotting to overthrow Barr and harm Sabrine.

That’s more or less it, but it takes a long time to set all of that up and explain the whole world. This wasn’t exactly uninteresting, but there’s a lot to take in, and it takes a lot of time to tell it. It makes the pace of the book somewhat uneven, since well over half of it takes place in an extremely action and info packed day and a half. I thought the idea of raven-wolf politics was an intriguing one, but a steady diet of italicized fae creatures would probably drive me crazy.

Sabrine and Barr bond to each other quickly, but it does take her some time to trust him. This is pretty understandable, since she has seen her kind slaughtered by those they trusted before, and her clan prejudice against wolves is long-standing. Nonetheless, it’s a nice romance. If you’re tired of commitment-phobic heroes, you’ll likely enjoy Barr. He knows what he wants right away, and his efforts against the former laird are honorable and heroic.

The secondary characters are well-drawn. Sabrine befriends Verica, the clan healer who is a raven-wolf shifter. Verica has an interesting backstory and relationship herself, and her romance is nearly as satisfying as the primary relationship.

On the whole I found Moon Burning a pleasant read, if not a brilliant one. If you have room for a shifting creature or two in your reading life, you could do worse.

Reviewed by Blythe Smith
Grade : C+

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : February 24, 2011

Publication Date: 2011/02

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Blythe Smith

I've been at AAR since dinosaurs roamed the Internet. I've been a Reviewer, Reviews Editor, Managing Editor, Publisher, and Blogger. Oh, and Advertising Corodinator. Right now I'm taking a step back to concentrate on kids, new husband, and new job in law...but I'll still keep my toe in the romance waters.
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