Friday, May 18, 2012

Paradise (Island Wolfman 1) by Brannan Black

Summary:
Marooned. Alone with only the voices in my head -- and an island full of sex crazed wolfmen... They call this Paradise? Really?

What started out as a romantic cruise -- a last ditch effort to save our fading marriage -- turned ugly when my wife, Cecily, dumps me off me on an island in the middle of the Caribbean. To be fair, the virus was turning the men into monsters. All the men got left behind, to keep the women safe. But did she have to look so happy to get rid of me?

Immune to the virus that's ripped our world apart, I'm the only human left on this damnable island. I'm a slightly neurotic forty-year-old college professor playing Robinson Crusoe on the Island of Dr. Moreau.

"Oh please, Ari. You're far from Robinson Crusoe. He was a real man."

Oh, and my wife? She's still nagging me, if only in my mind. And now there's a certain wolfman after me who just doesn't understand I'm not looking to switch teams. Then there's the heat and humidity, wild wolfmen ready to attack, and a hurricane looming on the horizon.

Island life is far from paradise.

Reviewer: WhiteDaisy
Ari was on the run, on the run from a crazy wolf/human hybrid. They are man-beasts who don't shift back and forth and were changed by an insidious pandemic. A virus turned men into monsters. While running, Ari explains what chain of events led him to being marooned on an island. Ari was a forty year old tenured professor and he came to be on a cruise ship with his wife "Cecily", who insisted they had to go on a cruise to save their marriage and reignite the passion. But because of the virus all men were left on the island. The woman population stayed on the cruise away from all virus twisted men.

By running from a wolfman, Ari nearly falls off a cliff, but happened to grab a vine and held on to it for his dear life. Ari was saved by the same pack, who were running after him through the trees and bushes. The pack of wolfman fought over him, some wanted to eat him and a trio, they were the strongest ones, Grigori, Zack, and Zeke, wanted Ari's help. They wanted Ari to teach them what to eat, because they didn't know which plants were poisoned and which were healthy. The wolfman's explanation, why they hunted him down and nearly killed him was simple. Ari ran away so they had to hunt after him, then after he was pulled up the cliff Ari fought them and the wolfmen saw that as a challenge, so they had to win.

Ari wanted to make a bargain with the pack, he will teach them what he knows and then they will let him go. But the pack didn't understand Ari, why did he want to be alone, if they could protect him. Zach the wolfman who was drawn to Ari didn't like this at all. Ari saw he would need to teach this gang of thugs, what a real pack should be. That the strongest of them should treat all member with respect and protect each other. In Ari's belief it wasn't right, that the strongest of them hurt and starve those who were below them just because they were weak.

Ari was so funny, he talked in his head with his wife and with himself and described his current situation as "His life among the wolfman". Sure, Ari had always been drawn to the male population, he knew he preferred men in his bed, but Ari didn't want to be a disappointment for his parents. This fact prevented Ari from doing something about his inclinations. Ari married Cecily and had children, even if he never truly felt happy. Ari knew that everything Cecily’s voice said was really just his subconscious speaking. At the end, Ari took off his ring as a goodbye to his wife and I really liked that. To begin something new with Zach, Ari needed to close his past.

In general this new series is truly interesting. We have many different pack member and Ari, who is the only one who can teach them to stay half human. I liked Zack and Ari's relationship. We saw how Zach wanted and needed Ari as his mated pair, but didn't want to scare Ari away. And Ari was unique on his own. A bit sarcastic but amazingly interesting. I enjoyed how the main plot developed, how Ari started to change the pack of thugs into a real pack. I'm giving 4.5 stars.

Publisher: Changeling Press
Review Courtesy Of: ManicReaders

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