ARC Review: Feral Heat by Jennifer Ashley

Jace Warden, a wolf from Las Vegas, is in the Austin Shiftertown. He has a plan to remove the sparkling collars from the shifters. Each one is fitted for the shifters to control their anger and feral tendencies. For a chance a pace, the humans have reined in the shifters and the police regularly raid and monitor their gatherings. Deni Rowe, a fellow wolf, is attracted to Jace, but he’s from out of town and they need permission to formally mate. She has two male cubs already. She’s having trouble with her anger and panic attacks after a motorcycle accident. She was targeted by a human. Fake collars are forged by the Fae to fool the humans and free the shifters. They have been told they will go crazy and attack each other without the collars. After a plane crash, Jace’s collar comes off and he realizes it’s a lie. Deni is afraid to be released. Will love help her to trust and accept Jace?

In other paranormals, humans hunt or avoid shifters. This is a different twist by making them involved with the paranormals by trying to control. They treat them like animals. I was surprised the shifters would allow themselves to be collared. They could kill the humans en mass. I didn’t find the process believable. The animals represented are wolves, lions, and bears. In real life, these strong and combative animals would have to be tranquilized to be tagged.

Jace should be more of an alpha. He lives by the rules instead of defying them. He chooses Deni and waits for approval. Even leaving her behind in a dangerous situation. Deni starts strong, but backs away when she should step up. She is part of the search party to find Jace, but still hesitates. There is no suspense or intrigue. With shifters, there is usually a hierarchy, but these are uncertain times. A perfect opportunity for both to step in and assume leadership duties.

Jace and Deni are not an engaging or interesting couple. No building tension or love blossoming between them. The other characters add little to the story. In an effort to write a different story, the author omitted the shifters’ power and allure.

**ARC provided by Publisher**

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