Summary: Cecily and Luke, childhood sweethearts, are reunited at a country house party. Luke has been at war for the past four years and has returned home a different man, determined to push Cecily away for her own good. However, the hunt for the mythical Werestag, a local legend about a half-man / half-beast creature that roams the woods, serves to pull them closer and closer together...Cute, fluffy. It's very short (83 pages on my Kindle), but a nice fix for romance junkies who like historical romances with paranormal themes. I don't know as I entirely bought Luke's turnaround at the end of the story (he was pretty cruel and resistant to Cecily for most of the story), but such is the nature of novellas. It's so hard, in such a short amount of pages, to write a fully fleshed out, angsty romance. IMO, this is a short, pleasant read -- something to read on your lunch break. A dark night, a deep forest, and a legend....throw in lots of clever banter, some great characters and you have a fun way to spend an hour or two.I love Tessa Dare's writing -- even when I hate the characters I still love her style. She's witty, clever, and her books contain a fair amount of humour, which I love. She is very good at setting tension between H/h, and she writes chemistry and steam like nobody's business.I loved the premise to this story, and although I found it to be a bit uneven it was still pretty enjoyable. I liked the secondary romance better than the main one, and anyone who loves the "frenemies" trope will love it too. My biggest complaint is that the Hero seemed to me to do a 180. First he was a complete bastard (and had some GREAT lines), then he morphed into this tragic, tortured type then into a regular King of Romancelandia by the end. I liked him better at the beginning. All in all, a fun treat for fans of Tessa Dare, and a good introduction for new readers.
What do You think about Zärtliche Schatten (2000)?
Great short romantic story written as always beautifully by Tessa Dare.
—Sobad
a cute short story. It really could have been more than what it was.
—Sam
I enjoyed this short story as I do all stories by Tessa Dare.
—ekhorisi
