Bitchery reader Ciar Cullen wrote:
I’ve been trying to figure out the name of a shapeshifting romance that’s now pretty old. Maybe smarter bitches can tell me. It’s pretty hackneyed stuff—a cabin in the woods—I can’t remember why the woman ends up there. Surely she’s running from something in her past.
She sees (or hears) a white wolf. She meets a man, who ultimately tells her he’s the wolf. He’s handsome, etc., and the sex is good, so she overlooks the fact that he’s a wolf.
I remember reading this one and thinking WTF? A guy is a wolf? Who the hell reads this stuff? It was very Nora Roberts-ish in the writing, in fact Nora was about the only person I read back then, so I’m wondering if it was possibly her? Can we blame her for this seemingly unending trend?
Can you help? I’d love to read it again, because I think it’s a precursor to a genre I loathe. I want to see if I still think it’s ridiculous. I hate cabin-in-the-woods with wolves stories.
Ciar tells me this book is at least 10 years old, and may be among the first werewolf books published. So – ring any bells?
~Can we blame her for this seemingly unending trend?~
Hey! LOL.
I did write a cabin-in-the-woods (Oregon), in category. With wolf—but not werewolf. Shape-shifting witch, part of the Donovan series I did for Silhouette. Enchanted.
Susan Krinard wrote a whole series of werewolf paranormals back in the early nineties I know there was one where a woman ends up at a cabin in the woods with a guy. I think she ultimately discovered she was a shapeshifter too? Ah according to amazon I think it may be Prince of Wolves.
The only ones I know of ( aside from LaNora’s- of course 😉 ) are the “Moon” series by Lori Handeland. But since most of these were written after 2000, I doubt they apply here.
( Since13- Yup! That’s about when I started reading romance 🙂 )
Sounds like Susan Krinard’s Prince of Wolves.
Okay, Nora’s off the hook! I know the Donavan series, so that’s not it :o) BTW, I just reread my absolute favorite Nora book called “The Reef.” I bet I’m the only person on the planet for whom that is my #1 Nora read. Got me through my husband’s bout with pneumonia, and inspired me to often set my stuff in exotic places.
I will check out Prince of Wolves. I bet it doesn’t stike me as so odd now.
Ok, my first Nora book… “This Magic Moment”, 1983. Pierce is a precursor to Roark. This book hit all my right buttons! I still have the original book in my archives.
Oooh, are we talking first Nora books? NIGHT SHIFT. Then NIGHT SHADOW. Batman as the hero of a romance novel. Yum.
My first Nora was Montana Sky. I hate westerns. At the time, I hated romances. After Montana Sky, I started buying every book by her that I could find. I think I’ve got ‘em all now, including Naked Came The Phoenix
I think I might know: woman is a biologist, or one of those natural scientists. The white werewolf guy is the head ranger on a private nature reserve in Louisiana; owned by an elusive old man. The woman was born in PA-part of a witchy coven. When she was very little, the townspeople burnt some of the witches. Girl’s father was not a witch-but someone upstanding in the town (I never did finish the novel, so I don’t know who he was…but anyone want to guess it was the elusive old rich man who ones the nature reserve?). There’s more, but does that sound like the one? If so, when I get home I’ll let you know who wrote it and the name. Unless another smart bitch knows….
Sorry, that should LA, not PA.
Pretty sure it was the Krinard, although it was a DNF for me. The Stanislaskis, all of ‘em in a single volume, that I devoured in a single gulp—addicted ever since. But Ciar, have you READ Blue Northern? LaNora’s chef d’oeuvre—at least so far.
I can’t possibly pick my favorite Nora – there are simply too many to choose from. The trilogy I got back to most often though is The Dream series.
Also recently re-read Carolina Moon. The first time I read it I was only so-so on it. This time I just LOVED it.
No Randy, that sounds wrong, but thanks for asking. There were no witches, and I’m pretty sure it was in the Northwest.
“But Ciar, have you READ Blue Northern? LaNora’s chef d’oeuvre—at least so far.”
Do you mean Northern Lights? I LOVE IT!! I have it on audio as well for long car trips.
One book I wish they would put on audio is “Carnal Innocence”. They have an abridged version but I want the whole thing! Abridged is an evil word and deed…
My fave Nora is Honest Illusions. I can actually quote from that book. Max reminds me a lot of my own father. I named my child from that book. (Also from Star Wars and Cool Hand Luke, hubby wouldn’t let me include the Callahan part—he’s Scots.)
My first Nora was so long ago I don’t even remember, but I know it was category.
The one with the witches in LA is Rebecca York’s Witching Moon. But it came out in 2003 so it’s not the one Ciar is trying to remember. I agree with the Susan Krinard guess because I read that book and seem to remember thinking that the plot seemed staid even though I now like Paranormal Romance.
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The Reef is not my favorite Nora book, but it’s probably in my top 20. And my dad loves it. (He lived for years on his sailboat in the Caribbean and had is scuba license/certificate and all that, so he loved the story and the setting.)
My favorite Nora book is Honest Illusions. LOVE Luke and Roxy.
Are you talking about the one with the book of spells/curses, or whatever it was. The one where the werewolfie ex-girlfriend turned him all furry, and now he needs this girl stuck in his cabin (after a car accident, I think?) to fall in love with him so he can break the curse and be all human again?
And there’s people getting ripped apart all over the place, but its the crazed ex who’s doing it, while he chains himself up every night so he can’t hurt anyone?
I think she boffs him while he’s in wolf-form. All I could think was, “my dog drinks from the toilet—do you really want that guy’s tongue in your mouth?”
It sounds a little like Kate Douglas’s first Wolf Tales book. Furry foursomes ensue from there, though, so you’d probably remember…
I’ve been visiting this site, and laughing my head off, for ages, but I’m finally de-lurking here. This doesn’t seem like it will be too off-topic.
“Carolina Moon” was my very first Nora book, which I read at the tender age of 13 (thanks to my mother’s friend, who gave it to me). It blew me away. I was hooked. I next read Nora’s Irish “Jewels” trilogy, and about halfway through the first one (still one of my all-time favorites), I was pretty certain that Ireland was the place for me.
I’ve got a drawer in my dresser full of romance novels, now. (Drawers full of books, and not clothes? Oh yeah.)
When I saw the way this thread was swinging, I couldn’t resist poking my head in. Back to lurking!
Hey Ciar, The Reef is my favourite Nora as well! I read it for the first time after I learned to scuba dive and I just adore it.
Gosh, all kinds of hugs from the bitchery.
Thanks.
My first Nora was… I want to say it was called
Private Scandals.
I didn’t really get all the Nora lurve after that one, then I read the Three Sisters trilogy and fell in love.
I read something like this a few years ago. It was pretty dark. I think the wolf/man was a mercenary or para-military type and there were people trying to kill the heroine. They blew up the cabin and h & h had to hide in the woods. Sound familiar? I am thinking this one was not so old but it could have been a reprint or from someone’s backlist, or a library book. If It wasn’t a library book I should still have it. I will go look after the kiddies are in bed.
Was it Secret of the Wolf by Rebecca Flanders? I remember her “Heart of the Wolf” trilogy (followed up by Shadow of the Wolf and Wolf in Waiting) when it was first published as part of the Silhouette Shadows line. They were reprinted in 2002 or 2003, but first came out in the early 90’s when werewolves weren’t yet thick as…well, fleas on a dog. 😛
Anyway, I think the heroine hits him with a car and goes after him thinking she’s hit a dog and ends up with a hot guy instead. And there’s a cabin, I’m pretty sure.
Nope. Not it. The story I remembered wasn’t even a whole novel. It was part of an anthology. Lori Handeland wrote the story I remembered and there were stories by S. Kenyon and L.A. Banks as well. The book was “Stroke of Midnight.”
The Reef is my favorite, too. You are not alone! And I don’t even scuba.
La Nora’s hottest sex scenes, though, IMHO.
Sheesh, you guys are so young. My first Nora was Irish Thoroughbred, when it came out new, and it was so totally great I glommed all two of her previous books. I think that was sometime back in the early 80s, when I still had a perm and big glasses. *shudder*
I’m totally jumpin in on the LOVE NORA bandwagon here. I love all the trilogys; Irish Jewels, Three Sisters, and In The Garden are my favs. Always take half a day off when she has a book coming out, run to Target on the way home, and have the book FINISHED by 10 pm. I have made them unpack boxes on Tuesday afternoons to find my book! CANNOT put her books down, and she’s one of only a couple authors I can say that about. Haven’t gotten into the J.D. Robb’s though. Not into the whole future thing, and like to read books in the correct order. One gal at Costco one day asked me about the Keys series (OH—another Fav!), and I told her it was awesome! She was saving the first two books to read until the third came out. Was she nuts?? How can you not start to devour that the moment you get in the car???
I forgot to leave my Nora love last night. She first hooked me with the Key trilogy. I think I have read about 1/3 of her published novels. As long as I have Nora backlist I can always find something to read.
My favorite Nora book is almost always the last one I read so currently it is “High Noon.” NOBODY does Beta heroes like La Nora!
Gotta get High Noon. Just bought Naked in Death for my e-reader this week – yes, I’m a Roarke virgin 🙂
Angie,
I gotta recommend the JD Robb series. It’s not scifi. I really think you’ll quickly get over the future aspect, because Eve and Roarke are AWESOME!!!
And since we’re still on La Nora Lovefest-Naked in Death was my first Nora. And I was hooked. Then I got my mom hooked. Now, we buy up Nora wherever we go!
I think it was maybe krinard too. My first Nora-Hot Ice when it came out.. I still love it.
Hee my word is wrote 79-how appropriate.
I don’t remember the names, brain dead here, but my first Norah’s were the ones set on the Eastern Shore, with the makeshift family of boat-building brothers. I was living in Baltimore at the time is why I bought them in the first place.
After that I pretty much loved everything I read of hers. Isn’t it great that she’s so prolific?! ;+)
As for the wolf book, not a clue. Sorry.
Verification: youre83
Geez. Do I look that bad?
My first Nora was so long ago I can no longer remember what it was. But add me to the list of never missing a New Nora title.
My dad was addicted as well. He’d read everything at least once. Even when he was sick, he’d still read Nora!
I think my favorites are the Three Sisters trilogy.