This steamy werewolf romance book shows how tough it can be for two alphas (m/f) to have a relationship even with the help of the moon goddess-given mate bond. I did receive a free advance reader copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Title: Alpha VS Alpha
Author: S. Lexi
Category: Paranormal romance featuring werewolves, witches, and vampires
Series or Stand-alone: Alpha VS Alpha can be read as a stand-alone but is part of an inter-connected universe featuring the children of a previous book.
HEA: This book features a happily-ever-after ending.
Publication Date: June 11, 2023
Overall Rating: 4 out of 5 stars - see below for my full review
Fade to Black or Behind Closed Doors: No, there are steamy scenes
Spice Level: 2.5 out of 5 chiles with male/female scenes. This book is plot-driven with several steamy scenes.
Readability: This book could have used a bit more proofreading in the copy I received but it wasn't to the point that it was annoying for me to read.
Themes: Some themes in this book include: shifters, frenemies to lovers, mate bond, light BDSM, kidnapping, and mate rejection.
Available On: Amazon - including Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, paperback, and hardcover at the time of this review
Synopsis from Author:
Sophia and Rider are set to take the alpha titles of their respective packs when they turn nineteen. Although their families are close, the two have clashed since they were kids because of their strong personalities.
Where Sophia is impulsive and outspoken, Rider is a planner and domineering.
Sophia doesn't believe in fate; she prefers to carve her own path when it comes to life and love. In contrast, Rider believes in fate but expects the Moon Goddess to pair him with a sweet, innocent, submissive mate who will obey and depend on him for protection.
When rogues start attacking packs at random, Rider and Sophia are forced to work together to deal with the rising threat.
The chemistry between the two burns hot, but their strong personalities make working together difficult. Will they be able to find a middle ground? Or will they kill each other before the rogues get a chance to?
Will Rider be able to tame the little spitfire named Sophia, or will she stand her ground and resist him"
What happens when vampires and witches take notice of the looming war and team up with the rogues? Will Rider and Sophia have what it takes to save their people?
Secrets regarding Sophia's royal bloodline will be discovered, which draws unwanted attention in her direction. Will Rider be able to protect her from the new threats? Does Sophia even need protection?
This is a standalone dark paranormal romance.
Trigger Warning: This book is spicy with some graphic scenes. There is also a decent amount of violence and foul language, making this book ideal for an audience of 18+. A full list of triggers can be found at the beginning of the book.
My Review
This isn't the first book I've read by S. Lexi and having enjoyed the previous books so much I definitely looked forward to reading Alpha VS Alpha.
Pros
- Lots of action that isn't always found in your typical werewolf romance
- Strong characters that aren't pushovers
Cons
- You might get annoyed with the main characters before you fall in love with them
- Story goes in multiple directions with multiple characters
This book features children from the main couples in the inter-connected universe created with The Alpha's Fiesty Mate.
Unfortunately, that book is only available on the pay-per-chapter app Dreame. However, this is certainly a stand-alone book that can be read on its own.
If you haven't read a werewolf romance book before, the opening chapter does a good job of explaining how the universe works without drawing things out if you're already familiar with how things usually work.
I will admit that while I enjoyed reading this book and give it a solid 4 stars, it's probably my least favorite of the four books I've read by Lexi.
If I hadn't already read this author's previous books, it might have ended up as a did not finish for me, but I hung in there and was pleased with the ending.
So, what turned me off a bit with this book?
This book features a main couple, Sofia and Rider, that have known each other since they were young children.
Instead of being the best of friends, they are a bit more like frenemies, at least until they become close to the age (19) of being able to sense their fated mate.
Since Sofia and Rider are alphas, they're both very confident and strong-willed which obviously creates obstacles in a potential relationship that will require compromise.
I normally really enjoy this kind of character in books, but both of these main characters really tried my patience multiple times in a way that didn't exactly make this book a page-turner for me because of their repeated immaturity and selfishness.
I almost got to the point that there would be no pleasing redemption arc for either main character.
Luckily through various twists and turns our main couple finally figure things out, grow up and develop a bit, and end up with a lovely happily ever after, even if it takes some time, pain, and groveling.
If you enjoyed The Alpha's Fiesty Mate, you'll like that the main characters of that book do make some brief cameos throughout.
There are a number of side characters mentioned throughout the book, mainly friends and enemies of the main characters.
I felt the number of them toed the line of being too many, including feeling the story of at least one couple could be fleshed out to be its own book.
But Lexi did a good job of interweaving them throughout the main story to add more twists and turns without detracting too much from the main characters.
Overall, while it may not be a book I'd read a second time, I did enjoy it and recommend others to read it. I look forward to what Lexi writes next.
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