Release Day Review ~ Chosen Pride by Mary Calmes

Release Day Review ~ Chosen Pride by Mary Calmes

Title: Chosen Pride
Series: L'Ange: Book Three
Author: Mary Calmes
Release Date: December 26, 2016
Category: Paranormal: Werewolves/Shapeshifters
Pages: 240

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Jon Slade finally met his mate, but instead of it being the happiest day of his life, it became the saddest when wolf shifter Kelvin MacCurdy chose his obligations over their fated bond, leaving Jon to pick up the pieces of his shattered dreams. Lucky for him, Roman Howell, his boss and the owner of L’Ange, saw promise in the forlorn lion and put him to work so he wouldn’t have time to sit around and lick his wounds while he waited for his wounded spirit to heal.

Then the wolves make an official visit to L’Ange, and Jon finds out Kelvin’s pining for him is taking its toll on his position as the king’s champion. Though Kelvin’s training and the expectations of others steer him toward an intended mate, Jon has an unbreakable hold on his heart, and it’s no longer possible for Kelvin to keep himself from where he truly belongs.

But the conclave brings more than Kelvin to the château. It also brings a challenge to jackal alpha Quade Danas, a threat that Quade and Roman, Arman and Linus, and Jon and Kelvin may have to fight in order to keep L’Ange’s family intact. Jon never wanted to lead a pride, but the loyalty and devotion to one is ingrained in him. Kelvin was raised to punish anyone who questioned his king, but the calling to protect others runs through his veins just as deeply. To come out on the other side of the battle together, Jon and Kelvin will have to hold the darkness of solitary pride and broken hearts at bay—and find strength in belonging to something bigger than themselves.

4 Stars! 

Now this is a complicated Shifter story. You really have to be familiar with the series to get the full impact of the story (in my opinion). It's been a long time since I've read the 1st book and I didn't read the 2nd book in the series. While I enjoyed Chosen Pride, I was lost at the make-up of the Pack dynamic and the types of shifters at first. Some of the world building was confusing and foreign as well.

With all of that, though, truth be told, I really enjoyed it. I liked the characters (although I didn't fall in love with them) and thought they had wonderful chemistry. Jon really reminded me of a lion and he was funny and snarky and just the right bit of arrogance.

Kelvin, while originally made me angry turned out to be sweet, strong and fun. He broke my heart many times with the way he was treated by everyone other than Jon and the L'Ange residents. I wanted so much for him to see himself as more than just an animal and it was great that Jon seemed to immediately become his champion.

The two were great together once they finally couldn't resist one another. I will add, though, that there are moments when I almost felt like it was all based around sex. While I don't generally mind a lot of sex in the stories, Chosen Pride seemed to have it in abundance and it was taking away from the characters and how they interacted. That's probably my only complaint and what kept me from fully loving the characters.

I would recommend this book for those who are fans of the series and Mary Calmes. I will warn readers though that this is very much part of a series and to get the complete picture, it would be best to be familiar with the previous two books.

*Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by the author/publisher for my reading pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.*