Primal Bonds by Jennifer Ashley
Shifters Unbound, Book 2
Berkley Sensations
Paranormal, Shape-shifter
ISBN: 978-0425240786
Reviewed by Jo




To get out of her shiftertown, Andrea Gray had to agree to being mate claimed without ever seeing the man.  But Andrea is willing to risk anything to be allowed to move to her aunt’s shiftertown.  After all, Andrea isn’t your normal wolf shifter, she is also half Fae and as such, looked down upon by all.  In the shiftertown she has lived in, all Andrea can expect is to become mated to some male who will only want her to be a breeding machine and even then her kids will be looked down upon.

Sean Morrissey is second in command to his brother in their shiftertown.  He is also a feline shifter and the town’s Guardian.  Being Guardian means that having a female shifter agree to a mating isn’t really likely.  When Sean gets a chance to mate claim Andrea, sight unseen, he jumps at it.  After all, Sean has some idea of what to expect since Andrea’s aunt lives next door to him.  Hoping that they would be agreeable to each other, Sean is immediately attracted to Andrea when they first meet.

Andrea definitely finds Sean sexy enough but she is hoping to discover something of herself before taking the mating step.  A couple of the things she really wants are a sense of independence, and to know who her father is.  Changes are coming to all the shiftertowns, and now suddenly, it seems that humans are taking pot shots at them but is that really all that is happening?  As Sean and Andrea are beginning their mating dance, danger is surrounding them from all fronts, or so it seems.  Help might just come from one of Andrea’s wishes but is it help the couple can truly trust?  Things are looking pretty bleak for Sean and Andrea but the other shifters as well. But isn’t that about the time the sliver lining shows?

When two souls agree to the ultimate blind date, it’s just the beginning of an adventure of a lifetime.  Primal Bonds brings Sean and Andrea together just when life as they know it might be broken forever.  I have been looking forward to this next book and I have to say that shockingly, it was almost better than the first one.  I loved the sexy humor between Sean and Andrea, and watching them figure out just what their relationship would be and how.  I also loved that they were able to accept the one another’s needs to be what they were.  While the main story was focused on Sean and Andrea, the side stories were just as engaging and told me a lot of just where this world was heading.  I have to admit that I read the entire book in just a few hours because I seriously did not want to put it down and was a bit sad when I reached the last page.  The final revelations were just mind blowing, and have me waiting on the edge of my seat for the next book in this series.  Primal Bonds has sexy adventure with a backdrop of danger and humor that made it a real page-turner.  What more can I say without giving it way – Only that it is a keeper and of course Joyfully Recommended as one you’ll be reading often.

While you can certainly read Primal Bonds as a stand alone novel, I’m betting that you will go back to grab Primal Mates to discover the beginning of this intriguing world.