Fated mates, sinister plots, and claiming one’s own identity. This steamy shifter story has got great bones and haunting howls!
Title: Onyx Flame
Series: N/A
Author: Morgan Elliott
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: September 15, 2021
Heat Level: 3/5
Pairing: F/M
Length: 250 pages
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Tags: Shifters, fated mates, pack, alphas
Content Warnings: Violence, gore, death of secondary characters, sexual assault, rape, domestic abuse
Blurb:
Paige Bradshaw has been heartbroken one too many times. The most recent betrayal has her swearing off love. But fate laughs her feeble attempt to escape the snares of love, further complicating things by bringing Alpha Colin into her life. The Alpha who is a hopeless romantic and would do anything to have his mate, even if she’s unsure of him. He could never hurt her, right? Danger sets its sights on the young wolves throwing them into a blood-soaked maze of secrets. Their lives begin to crumble as they untangle the web, unknowingly pushing them closer to a killer that no one saw coming.
My Review:
Readers of Paranormal Romance, and in particular, shifter books will enjoy this tale. Elliott has made strides to ensure the toxicity of a lot of the “Alpha” male stereotypes in PNR Shifter books didn’t seep into her debut novel. Paige is our main character. She’s flawed, coming into her own, powerful, and more than capable of holding her own, and protecting others.
Destiny and fate play key roles in Onyx Flame. Mates are instantly recognized by the wolves inside the human, and once discovered, are identified by a specific scent that is undeniably enticing to their other half. Roles within the pack are the typical alpha, beta, omega structure, but I personally found it refreshing how often those who held these positions broke away from their ‘place’ within the pack.
There are several rather steamy scenes! So those who love a little spice with their shifter tales will enjoy these bits – and the main relationship endures several ups and downs with trust issues the underlying hurt between the two main characters, Paige, and Colin.
The novel is told from several different viewpoints, and each wolf is two different entities – their human selves and their wolf spirit – both with different names. Make sure you pay attention to the connections and names. Although this meant there were lots of individuals to keep track of, it was interesting to watch the dynamics play out between the human character and their wolf spirit. They were not carbon copies of each other. In fact, the wolf spirit was often quite different.
Sinister plots were afoot as well, and I often found these aspects of the story to be packed full of drama, tension, and strife, keeping me flipping the pages.
I know Elliott is working on book two. It will be interesting to see where she takes the pack!
My Rating:
Purchase Links:
Meet the Author:
Morgan Elliott is a witchy mortal who has a passion for the weird and supernatural. She is a Texas native. When she’s not writing, you can find her delving into true crime, watching old slasher movies, and parenting. Her new book Onyx Flame is available now!
J.P. Jackson 