Book Nerds Across America

Mary's Review:

I was a little bit unsure about reading this book.  Nothing against Andrea Cremer but I was not sure if I wanted to get into another werewolf series.  But I gave it a chance AND fell in love with another book series.  Calla, Ren, and Shay (oh, how I adore a love triangle) are characters that you cannot forget.  I can tell you that I am TEAM REN.  Calla is a strong alpha female but Ren (who is to be her mate) is a strong, caring, bad boy. They have been matched to be mates since birth and they have known it all their lives.  Until Shay sweeps into Calla's life and turns it upside down.  Calla always followed the rules until Shay changed that.  However, she still cares for Ren and wants to keep her family and the pack happy, but how can she when she loves another.  On top of all that she has to obey the Keepers, the true leaders of her kind, but she begins to feel that Keepers are not what she thought.  With Shay by her side and still having Ren to be her mate Calla must choose a life she knows or a life of love.

This is a must read for everyone.

Jacque's Review:

I have to agree with Mary on one aspect. When I started reading this book the first thing I thought was....I know exactly why Flo made this selection.  Our Team Jacob girl turned us onto another werewolf series. After only a couple of chapters my opinion changed and I was hooked.  Andrea did not waste any time getting to the heart of the story.

I was undecided as to who Calla should choose, since she had great chemistry with both Ren and Shay.  There were times when I could truly see the positives that both had to offer.  Ren provided a sense of security within a life she has always known.  The Keepers would provide for them and she could maintain contact with her family and friends.  Shay on the other hand, shook up her entire world and allowed her to see life for what it truly is.  By the end, I was 100% TEAM SHAY.  They made an excellent team as they worked together to unravel the mysteries within the relationship between the Guardians (werewolves), Keepers (the masters of the guardians), and Searchers (who are considered to be the enemies of both).

The booknerds have an ARC of Wolfsbane, the next installment in this series, which is scheduled to be released the end of July.  We are BEYOND excited about this fact and can't wait to see what happens next in this love triangle.  Check back for our reviews of Wolfsbane.

Flo's Review:

The thing that immediately struck me about this book when I first saw it was the gorgeous cover! I love the purple tones that somehow bring a richness of color and yet still manage to represent night. I know there is currently lots of discussion going on about changing the covers, and I am in the camp of keeping the original ones.

It didn't take me long to get sucked into the complexity of Calla's world. The tagline on the cover so accurately and succinctly describes her dilemma: as alpha female, she is in charge of assuring the compliance and happiness of her pack...while she sees no way she can make any choices of her own. Nightshade is a longer book, coming in at 450 pages, but it reads like a breeze.

Another strength of this book was its plethora of fabulous one-liners!

As for the great Ren vs Shay debate.....I have to say I am firmly in the TEAM REN camp!  He is the no-nonsense, tough alpha male, but with Calla he is questioning and vulnerable, and I love that he has both sides to him.

Finally, I really enjoyed learning more about the pack as the book went on. We know in the beginning that the meaning of being a pack is having each other's backs, but throughout the book we get to see just how deeply that goes.

...and Holy Cliffhangers, Andrea Cremer! I cannot wait to read Wolfsbane!