Circle City (Lord of the Wolfen: Book 1), by Alisha Paige

Title: Circle City (Lord of the Wolfen: Book 1)

Author: Alisha Paige

Sub-Genre(s): Paranormal

Publisher: Self

Publication Date: March 27, 2011

ISBN #: Unknown

Format: eBook from Author

Reviewer: Laurielu

Rating: 3 Cups

Blurb:*

On the edge of civilization, there is a place called Circle City, Alaska. The last town before the Yukon Flats gives way to frigid desolation. When Zoe O'Brien, a secluded widow, kills a crazed mother wolf and saves the only cub from sure death, she ignites a war between the Wolfen Clan and the Kontar Clan. The wolf people have been enemies of the dog people for centuries and the cub she takes in is heir to the Wolfen throne. Taken prisoner by the Wolfen for murder and kidnapping, Zoe is forced to see and do things with creatures she never knew existed, held against her will in a world she both desires and fears. Axl Wolfdorn is coming of age, ready for his Unleashing and on the hunt for his Moonswan, the female he will choose for the Chase and the royal Feral Consummation. But how can he consider bonding with a mate when the only scent deep within his nose is the tangy scent of the woman who saved his life, the very woman who forced his clan into war, the woman he must now kill to avenge his mother's death?

Review:
Circle City by Alisha Paige is a paranormal novel that constructs a story made up of deep passion, brutality, and hunger for acceptance. The story and terminology are intricate and intriguing with an edge of darkness laced into the plot. This reader was lead down a path into a world unlike any shifter book I have read in the past.

The story hits a brutal pace from the beginning. The hero and heroine of this novel are Axl and Zoe. Zoe saves a wolf pup (Axl) from certain death by destroying a she-wolf that is obsessed with killing all of her young. Because Zoe has saved the only living heir to inherit the title “Lord of the Wolfen”, she has unwittingly gotten herself caught up in a world she had no clue existed. She is taken prisoner by Wolfen where her ultimate punishment will be dispensed by Axl. To save Zoe, Axl has to think fast to save her life. In order for him to do so, he enmeshes Zoe deeper into the Wolfen world. She takes like a trooper at first. Then, as the story progresses, she begins to question the state of her life.

Alisha Paige pushes the limit on a reader’s comfort level when it comes to the darker side of paranormal romance. She definitely edges into very sinister territory when it comes to sex, drugs, and violence. Those of you who like your stories with some morbidity thrown in, you will enjoy this story immensely. Those of you who like a “fluffier” tale would do well to avoid this story. However, I enjoyed having my limits, as a reader of the paranormal, being stretched to encompass a more foreboding story.

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*Blurb Courtesy of Goodreads

**Disclaimer: This book has been provided to C&R Romance eBook Reviews free of charge by the author. No money has been exchanged for the review of this eBook. This review reflects the opinion of the individual reviewer and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the other C&R reviewers or this blog’s administrator/editor.