Book Review: Howling Heart by April Bostic

Howling Heart by April Bostic
Genre: Adult Fiction (Paranorma Romance) 18+
Date Published: August 8, 2013
Publisher: Eternal Press

The Blurb:

Paige Donovan is an ambitious college graduate who aspires to reach the top of the corporate ladder. She’s climbing fast when given the promotion of a lifetime at a prestigious fashion magazine in New York City. Her bright future comes to an unexpected halt after news of her father’s death. She inherits his old cabin in the Colorado Rockies, and just when she thinks her luck couldn't get any worse, she has a car accident in the mountains and awakens in the small, remote community of Black River.

Soon, she’s engulfed in the mystical world of Varulv---wolves descended from 13th century Scandinavia and blessed by Norse gods with the ability to appear human. Paige is desperate to return home, but never expects to fall for her rescuer, Riley Gray, a charming young werewolf from England who offers her an alternate future with his pack.

Now, she must choose between the career she’s always wanted and the love she’s always dreamed.

My Review:

Howling Heart is the first novel I've read by April Bostic. The beginning of the book caught my attention, and I thought I was in store for a cute story. I like that the shifters are wolves first and foremost, and they are humans second. They have a full wolf hierarchy in place among their community whether they are in human form or wolf form. The history of how the wolves came to be was interesting, although you have some wolves who don't like wolves and humans as mated pairs even though that's basically how their race started to begin with. Without that original pair, they wouldn't exist. So, that didn't make too much sense to me. The characters were a bit juvenile at times even though they are supposed to be in the young professionals age range. Riley was in love with/obsessed with Paige since he met her briefly as a child. He's this strong intelligent guy one minute, but the second he thinks Paige is leaving he turns whiny and cries. This behavior didn't match anything else about his character. On the other hand this was different. We rarely see a male main character act this way. Paige changes her mind quickly and regularly, and she still lets her mom tell her what to do with her life. I don't think she knows what she wants at all. The story started out cute, but then it just turned weird. Around the second half of the book,  more or less, I started to get frustrated. I love romance, but I'm not a huge fan of erotica. I didn't know that was what I would be getting with this book. Usually, I can overlook certain things if the story really has me engrossed and sometimes it's even fun to read(I'll admit *wink*), but sadly not this time. This time around it was just weird. The repeated mentioning of bodily fluids (both his and hers) before, after, and even the status of said fluids the morning after. That's just way more information than I needed or wanted. I certainly don't need it in repetition. There was also a lot of talk of bestiality which was a quick No for me, and I almost stopped reading. Thankfully, they only talked about it. Paige was okay with the idea, so you know it's in their future. The living arrangements were odd. Riley and his sister share a room, which I actually do understand because of the whole wolf pack mentality, but they are also nude in front of each other a lot. So, when his sister started acting jealous of Paige, I started to worry that she was feeling more than sisterly towards her brother. Not the case, thankfully, but it was weird none the less. There were some plot twists, and it was a quick read. All in all, there was just a lot of weird in this book. I know I've used that word a lot within this review, but it sums it up best for me. Howling Heart just didn't sit well with me as a whole. There are many positive reviews on it though, so maybe you'll like it. It just wasn't for me.

Howling Heart by April Bostic was provided to me by the author for review. The opinions are my own.

About the Author:
April Bostic is a New Jersey-based, Adult Romance author who enjoys unleashing her creativity and letting her imagination run wild. Her love of romance books inspired her to become not just a reader, but also a writer. In December 2008, she self-published her first novel, a contemporary romance with a supernatural twist entitled "A Rose to the Fallen".

Her first short story, "Right Here, Right Now", released in January 2012, is an erotic romance with a dash of S&M. The following year, she released two more short stories: a romantic urban fantasy inspired by the Greek myth of Eros and Psyche entitled "Eros, My Love", and a sexy romantic comedy entitled "Love Addiction".

After five years, she released her second novel, "The Howling Heart" in August 2013, a paranormal romance that delves into the mystical world of werewolves and Norse gods. To end her busiest year in publishing, April will release her fourth short story in December 2013, a historical paranormal romance entitled "A Dark Scandal"

To learn more about April Bostic and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads.