Before I give my review of Sun Crossed, the third (of 4) books in the Zodiac Wolves series, I'm going to provide you with the highlights from the first 2 books. My main reason for making the review a separate post is because, while the first book was a little trope-y, it sucked me in and I stayed up way too late finishing the second book. I'm giving the first book a 3.5While it's not the end of the series, it's the end of the books centered on Ayla and Kaden. Ayla is our protagonist. Kaden is her love interest and Alpha.
Ayla began her journey in Book One (Moon Touched) abused by her father and abandoned by her human mother. Even though she's the daughter of the Alpha, everyone in the Cancer pack abuses her (save her best friend, Mira, and her brother, Wesley). People use slurs like half-breed and beat her up for fun. She has to scrounge for leftovers and maybe clothes from Goodwill. The action commences when most of the pack travels to the Convergence. This is a meeting of all the Zodiac packs (there's 12), where any animosities are put aside for the duration of the gathering. It's overseen by the Sun Witches, benevolent guardians who bless them as children and guard them from Moon Madness, and who help anyone of age (22) to be freed from the impediment that prevents their shifting.
This year, it's Ayla and Mira's turn. Ayla's hopeful that she'll also meet her mate -- there's a ceremony for that, too. It would finally give her a pack brand, a place where she belongs and someone to love her. The shifts happen without a hitch, new infants receive the blessing to protect them from harm (and Moon Madness), and fated mates are revealed. During the mating ceremony, gold light from the Sun Goddess -- courtesy of the Sun Witches -- will land on those she has chosen as fated mates. Mira ends up mated to someone in the Pisces pack. (Bye, Bestie!) Ayla isn't so lucky.
You see, there's a feud going on between her pack and the Leo pack. They're the largest of the Zodiac packs and they hate each other. The mate that the Sun Goddess gives her is none other than the son of the Leo pack alpha (!), a guy named Jordan who has really perfected sneering 'half-breed' so it's the most cruel and demeaning. They both resist, but at the handoff, the alpha of the the Leo pack refuses to take her. Words are exchanged and then the carnage begins. Her father is ripped to shreds right in front of her (yes, there's spray) as the rest of the Leos to attack. The Sun Witches, who are supposed to ensure no violence, stand by and do nothing.
Jordan chases Ayla, because killing her will get rid of their bond, but she's able to escape 'one of the strongest wolves of all the packs' by jumping between different patches of moonlight (a heretofore unknown ability). At one point, Wesley sacrifices himself so she can escape. (Sad, sad.) Ayla makes it to the Pisces pack, but they refuse to get involved and drive off. Ayla is rescued/taken hostage by the alpha of the Ophiuchus pack, a pack that was rejected by the Zodiac wolves because of their allegiance to the Moon Goddess. (And because they're the Serpent Bearers.) The Alpha, Kaden, is only a couple of years older than Ayla. His parents were killed by Leos, which is why he became Alpha at such an early age.
At first the Ophiuchus treat her as a prisoner, chained up in a dungeon, and try to interrogate her for information. (She doesn't know anything, so they're not very successful in gathering intelligence.) After several days, Kaden offers her membership in the pack (when she proves trustworthy) on the condition that she agrees to act as bait for the Leos. (Because of the mating bond, Jordan will eventually be able to find her, since he can 'sense' where his mate is. They plan on using that to lure the Leos out and then slaughter them.)
Ayla moves in with Kaden and Stella (Kaden's sister who is about Ayla's age). She's no longer chained, but she has constant surveillance from the guards. Kaden's grumpy. Stella is super cool. While she's proving herself, she also has to earn her keep, which means cleaning bathrooms and other gross things. Among the Ophiuchus, she feels acceptance and family for the first time.
She starts learning to defend herself (training hand-to-hand with Kaden, hubba hubba). There's a connection, between them, but Kaden doesn't want to explore it BECAUSE SHE HAS A MATE (the mating bond is supreme and inevitable because his childhood sweetheart broke his heart when she met and eventually chose her fated mate). After she passes their test (they go to the mall without Kaden and offer her the chance to run), she's inducted into this band of misfits. But the Leos used that outing to track find their settlement. They attack with the Sun Witches helping break Kaden's wards (Did I mention that Kaden can do some Moon magic?). Jordan finds her and offers her a choice: be his mate and go with him or they'll won't burn the women and children to death. Guess what Ayla chooses, crushing Kaden's heart and ending the book.
Overall, it felt a little tropey in the beginning, but then it finds its legs. By the end, I was engaged and eager to read Book Two.
My rating: 3.5/5
Book Two, Star Cursed, begins with Ayla has a prisoner. They want her to reveal her moon magic and Jordan wants to seal their mating. Ayla resists while Jordan wines and dines her. When she refuses to mate him, his true character is revealed (the nice guy was all an act) and Ayla is forced to participate in the mating ceremony (overseen by those Sun Witches). They tie her down with the plan of Jordan raping her in order to seal the bond. Before they do the nasty (they're both really nude), Jordan's mother tries to stop this abomination by interrupting and revealing that HE'S HER HALF-BROTHER! and they can't mate. The Sun Witches don't care. But luckily, the calvary rides in and Kaden saves the day.
Kaden & Co. travel to the Ophiuchus backup settlement and Kaden is obstinate in clinging to the idea that she CHOSE THE LEOS AND HER MATE OVER HIM after she said that she wouldn't. Eventually he gets his head out of his arse, er, ego, and gives in to her pull. He claims her (yes, there are now sexy times), names her Alpha female (even though she's still mated to Jordan) in front of the pack. There's a challenge by one of his friends (Tanner) who objects to going to war with the Leos (even though he, along with everyone else, has been training for the day when they go to war with the Leos) and Ayla successfully defends being Alpha female.
During the course of this book, we find out the story of how the Ophiuchus was cast out (for siding with the Moon Witches), watch them strategize how to take on the Leos, discover that Wesley is alive (one of the Virgo healers brought him back from the brink of death) and Wesley is now the alpha of the Cancer pack. Wesley reveals that their father paid the Sun Wolves to mate Ayla with Jordan (there's an email trail) and it's not the only mating that the Witches have arranged. Like the Bene Gesserits, they've been manipulating things for years, to weaken the packs and take back control over all the wolves. Ayla and Kaden come to believe that they're really fated mates and make that commitment to each other.
Ayla and Kaden reach out to potential allies and set up a meeting at their Father's old hunting cabin, to take place during the eclipse. Cancer (Wesley), Sagittarius (the betas who happen to be Kaden's first love and her mate -- yes, it's awkward and a bit annoying because Eileen tells Ayla that the mating bond can't be denied, no matter how much you want things to be otherwise), Pisces (hi, Mira! who might actually be Wesley's fated mate, but they're going to leave it alone because Mira's now pregnant), Libra (also a young alpha, but one who got the title through challenge rather than because the old alpha died), and Capricorn (they find Cancer's new company problematic). The Pisces alpha apologies to Ayla for abandoning her in her hour of need and vows that Pisces will be cowards no longer. The Gemini pack (always led by twins, of course) and the Virgo pack (the healers and only pack that's matriarchal) don't show up and the rest of the packs (Aquarius, Ares, Scorpio and Taurus) have allied themselves with the Leo pack.
Things are looking mostly positive: Wesley reminds them of what happened at the Convergence. Eileen testifies to the truth that the Ophiuchus pack gain their wolves as children, don't suffer from Moon Madness and don't need a spell to find their mates. There's a tense moment when the Capricorn beta insults Ayla (half-breed mated to Jordan!) and Kaden tells the beta that he *will* show Ayla (also an alpha) respect. It's obvious that the packs are having trouble reconciling the truth with everything they've been taught. After Kaden and Wesley declare that they're allies, Pisces steps up and says they're in (after revealing that it was Kaden's men who helped free his nephew and mate after the Leos moved in and held them hostage.
Sagittarius values its independence and is hesitant to commit, but they decide to stand with the alliance. Capricorn declares that they'd rather endure subjugation than ally themselves with the Ophiuchus, but they'll honor their alliance with the Cancer pack. Libra still wants to see about diplomacy, and then... the Sun Witches and the Leos attack again (darn mate bond).
The Sun Witches want Ayla alive (everyone else can dies) and unfortunately, Jordan's able to grab her. Kaden tries to come to her rescue but the Sun Witches fired their beams of light at him and he goes down and doesn't get back up. Ayla's overcome and her power manifests in a huge wave of silvery light that knocks everyone out. Even the Ophiuchus magic licking can't get his wounds to heal, because he's nearly dead.
Ayla's explosion allowed the Moon Witches (they've been looking for her for a long time, since her mother wasn't a human but a Moon Witch) to find her and they take her away (but leave a dying Kaden) to Lunatera, a dimension of the Moon Mother. Their leader, Celeste, promises to show her everything if she cooperates. Once she learns to use her magic (it's been hodge podge up till now), they can also return to the exact moment that Ayla left, so that she can save Kaden's life.
An improvement on the first book. I stayed up way too late finishing it.
My rating: 4/5 stars
Now that I've summarized the first 2 books, I can get on with my review (and slight rant) of the 3rd book in the series, Sun Crossed.
Please note, the main characters have sex in every book, so if you have a problem with steamy content and don't do what I do (skip it), then this series is not for you.
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