Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Calla is slated to be the next alpha for her pack of werewolves, but only if she mates with rival pack leader Ren. Surprisingly, this is okay with her, until one fateful night when she impulsively saves a human boy from a deadly bear attack in the woods. Now Calla is unsure of everything in her life - from her place in the pack, to the truths she has grown up believing to be true. To top it off, with the upcoming Blood Moon celebration, time is running out for Calla to figure out her role in the larger events at play.

I wasn't sure if I was ready to read yet another werewolf book, but the cover of this one is so stunning, it was hard to ignore. All in all, I was pleased with the result. There was some interesting Latin and Samhain lore that was new to me. The mystery of betrayal was deep and engrossing. And I really liked Andrea Cremer's writing. Unfortunately, there were also a lot of elements in this book that prevented me from totally loving it. One, I was unsure how such large packs of werewolves could co-exist so easily with humans (especially in a town like Vail, Colorado). Wouldn't someone else have noticed the vastly different students? Two, I couldn't always follow the love triangle between Calla, Ren, and Shay. It seemed she wasn't really into either boy until she was physically near them. The romance felt mostly awkward, at least until the end. Last, it annoyed me a little bit to know that Calla was supposed to be an alpha in her pack, but she didn't actually have any power over what was going on around her. I wanted a stronger central female! As I mentioned though, it wasn't all complaints for me. I loved Calla's friend Bryn. And pack members Mason and Neville would be great starring in their own spin-off novel! By the last third or so of the book, my brain let go of the faults and I really enjoyed the ending suspense. Perhaps the best part of this book is the open ending, teasing the reader with hints of the next book!

Overall Rating: 4 Stars