This RITA® Reader Challenge 2013 review was written by Fran. This story was nominated for the RITA® in the Best Paranormal Romance category.

The summary:     

Finally free of her suffocating marriage, widow Daisy Ellis Craigmore is ready to embrace the pleasures of life that have long been denied her. Yet her new-found freedom is short lived. A string of unexplained murders has brought danger to Daisy’s door, forcing her to turn to the most unlikely of saviors . . .

Ian Ranulf, the Marquis of Northrup, has spent lifetimes hiding his primal nature from London society. But now a vicious killer threatens to expose his secrets. Ian must step out of the shadows and protect the beautiful, fearless Daisy, who awakens in him desires he thought long dead.

As their quest to unmask the villain draws them closer together, Daisy has no choice but to reveal her own startling secret, and Ian must face the undeniable truth: Losing his heart to Daisy may be the only way to save his soul.

And here is Fran’s review:

So Moonglow is a confirmed werewolf book, although lycan is the preferred term in this universe.  I happen to love werewolf books—I might even consider myself a connoisseur of things werewolf-ey—so I was predisposed to enjoy the novel.  There are familiar tropes present but with some curve balls tacked onto the end, giving the book a fresher feel.  A quick caution: because the paranormal aspect is an active character in the novel, I’d encourage non-subgenre fans to be aware before they click the buy button —there’s too much preternatural to ignore.

Often paranormal romances (in my experience) end up using the supernatural elements as simple garnishes for the romance, but Ms. Callihan has her love arc thoroughly integrated with her world.  She strikes the balance necessary for an engaging story without compromising the development of the relationship or the emotion.  I’d give her a 6.5 out of 10 on the angst scale—the characters Tell Each Other Things but the mutual trust and foundation for love is always apparent to the reader.  Her wolf pack dynamics (and how lycans fit into the greater world) are interesting, and they’re revealed as the book unfolds.  The interactions are not especially complicated but do, however, make sense and provide interesting conflict.

Scent plays a huge (and awesome) role in this book.  Our hero is a lycan with heightened senses, and our heroine is a self-proclaimed “nose”:

“Your valet uses champagne in his boot polish mix— very ingenious of him as your boots are like mirrors. He draws your bath with oil of rose hip and sweet orange, which makes me believe you suffer from dry skin. You wear Le Homme Number 12 from Smithe’s, an expensive cologne featuring essences of vetiver, amber, and sandalwood. And though its popularity among nobs might lead me to confuse you with another, one cannot overlook your natural scent, which is a subtle mix of meadow grass, fresh rain, white wine, and well… you.”

Ian stared at her with his mouth surely agape. She did not flinch, though a fetching pink flush colored her cheeks. He snapped his mouth shut. “Fuck me,” he breathed with genuine surprise. So rare that anything truly shocked him these days.

Her flush grew. “Thank you, but no.”

Ian shook his head to clear it. He felt dizzy, as though he’d been running and had come to a sudden stop. Jesus, but this woman kept him on his toes. “I’d say you were bamming me if it weren’t all true.”

Notice the joke.  The humor is peppered throughout, often initially at the expense of the hero’s virility—if you catch my drift.  *winks saucily at reader*

Next, the characters.  Our hero, Ian, is the brooding lycan, cursed with lonely immortality and a wounded past.  He’s handsome, a tad rakish, and charming.  But what exactly gives him that rich, full-bodied, memorable hero taste?  He treats our heroine, Daisy, as an equal.  Can you imagine?

“Northrup?”

“Mmm?”

“I apologize. For not telling you about the perfumer before I went to find him. I am not…” She took a deep, coal-tinged breath. “I am not accustomed to having a man finding me worthy of being a partner.” His gaze made her heart pound and her fingers shake. She hated feeling so exposed but found she hated his hurt and disappointment more.

“I would say that it was your previous partner who was unworthy.” Really, he took her breath away at times.

Me too, honey.  Me too.  Yay guys who trust women to make smart decisions and handle themselves!

Daisy is fantastic.  She comes into an awesome power that’s both beautiful and terrifying.  She’s witty, snappy, and refuses to take a back seat in the action.  She’s an experienced lady actively seeking pleasure in the first few pages of the books…which I always find refreshing.  And she’s got a dark past of her own.

Also great in this book: no quick fixes.  The h/h recognize that they have issues, but embrace them.

Her throat ached as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “It might never fully go away, Ian.”  She searched his face for any sign of wariness. “These old fears. As much as I try to change, I might fall back into darkness now and then.”

Gently, he threaded his hand through her curls, spreading them about her. “We are all imperfect creatures, love. I don’t want perfect. I just want you.”

And:

“God, I am a hypocrite,” he said. “I tell you to let go of the past when I cannot release mine.”

Her hand was in his hair, stroking, petting. “Perhaps there are some things we can’t let go of, but simply accept as over.”

He would. If she was his future, he would accept the past for her.

I’m totally convinced they will face their inner demons as a team and come out on top and still in love.

And the ending.  I love that the ending wasn’t a 100% magical story-book ending.  Not exactly harsh, maybe jagged.  But still it was happy.  A believable ending for a paranormal romance…not that that’s an oxymoron or anything.

Now, all that being said, I don’t think I’ll ever read it again.  Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed it.  I didn’t have any major problems and I don’t regret spending $6.35 and four hours of my reading time on it.  I would definitely recommend this book.  But because it didn’t strike me enough to pick up again, I’ve got to give it an A-.

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