A satisfying end to the series, but some of the writing was a bit jumpy for meWarning: This review might contain what some people consider SPOILERS. Rating: 6/10PROS: - I’ve seen Alfred in the earlier books, and because he’s always viewed through other characters’ eyes, he always seemed to me like he was nothing but a brat, someone who causes trouble just because he thinks it’s fun. This story gives the real reasons why he’s always so surly and makes him into a more sympathetic character.- Caden’s submissive tendencies are illustrated in a lot of sweet, subtle ways, like when he thinks, “The world was a better place when he was allowed to ease Alfred’s way in it.”- I liked seeing the characters introduced in the earlier books as they made appearances in this one, especially since they’re all settled into their own relationships now.CONS:- I’m not a fan of manipulative characters, and that’s how Caden comes across early in the story. It took quite a while for me to warm up to him when I saw him being so sneaky around Alfred and both of his alphas.- Many times, one of the two protagonists makes a decision as a direct result of his partner’s actions, and I wasn’t always able to understand which action had led to that particular decision. For some reason, the cause and effect of such things seemed disjointed to me.- In several different sentences, the word “span” is used when I felt as though the word should have been “spun” (“Alfred’s upside-down view of the courtyard…suddenly span”; “The world span”; “His head span from a harsh blow”; etc.). I looked the word up in the dictionary, wondering whether it was simply a Britishism that I’m not familiar with, and it does say that the word “span” is a “simple past tense of spin,” but it also says that the usage is archaic. Regardless of whether or not it’s technically correct, it drew me out of the story numerous times because I found it so jarring.Overall comments: I’ve enjoyed this series, so I felt the need to read this final volume of it. It didn’t blow me away, but it was a nice way to spend an evening. This book contained light BDSM in that there was a clear dominant and a submissive in the main couple featured. Albert has been acting out in the pack and no one can really get him to behave. Gunnar, the Beta, was selected to mate with Albert because Betas are usually perfect matches for troublemakers. However, the last book obviously threw that plan out the window when Gunnar fell for the Omega of the pack, Talbot. In this book, Gunnar's brother, Caden gets the chance to court Alfred once Gunnar mates with Talbot. I found this story interesting because we finally find out why Alfred acts out and it's not what I expected. Again, Caden and Albert seem like a perfect match and I felt the connection between them from the varying points of view. I enjoyed this book in this shifter series.
What do You think about The Love Of A Mate (2011)?
My least favorite in the series, which is a bummer because I was really excited for Alfred's story.
—january26
