A London Werewolf in America - I read it

I recently read a book whose very title had me interested in reading it.

I saw the movie, American Werewolf in London years ago. So what kind of story could the reverse be about? A fine romance, if I may say so. I liked it enough to write a review.

What do you think??

Title: A London Werewolf in America
Author: Pat Cunningham
Publisher: Siren Bookstrand
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal
Length - #pages : 227


Review: The answer to what does a werewolf and a witch have in common is nothing and everything. Finding out what they do have in common and how they get to that point is a great read.

Darinda is the heroine. And she does earn the title of heroine because of all the things she has to do to keep herself alive as well as the hero. She doesn’t do martial arts, she doesn’t use a gun nor does she have to act like she’s got something to prove. She’s an ordinary woman living in a supernatural world and she just happens to have a bit of magic about her. Her familiar is deceptive and affective – just wait until the plot gets really hot – her friends are varied, funny or helpful, and she has a way with cards. She also has bucketfuls of integrity and loyalty which serve to not only garner respect from this reader as well as the hero, but serve to ratchet up the sensual tease and heat during the courtship. Not that she sees it as that, nor was it meant to be a mating intent. Just by the way she acts, the decisions she makes and the friends she’s made, she put herself in a position to be accepted by the very people who shun humans as being less than them. Darinda perseveres because she’s got guts, class and doesn’t run from the truth of her feelings. I enjoyed her character.

Roderick is a werewolf. In this world that Ms. Cunningham has created, humans are considered inferior but no less important as diversions, technological and societal movers and shakers which allow the supernatural communities to blend in and benefit from -- much to the detriment of some of the characters in this story. As for Roderick, he’s a misplaced alpha being forced to do as his mom says. His mother makes Mommy Dearest look like Mrs. Brady from the Brady Bunch. How he managed to stay sane and not become a bully is a testimony to his character and the strength of his inner alpha. I absolutely enjoyed the slow, gradual buildup of his character’s falling in love with Darinda. Being a guy, Were or not, he messes up and thinks with his partner ‘down South’, which presented this reader with some wonderful insight into both Roderick and Darinda.

The conflict is internal – want vs. oath, and external – who is trying to kill everybody? The mystery dogs their footsteps and Darinda ends up doing a lot of the sleuthing. It was refreshing to see a woman in a strong role without losing her femininity or brains. The villains are well couched in distraction and misleading clues, yet the author drops little hints along the way. Not that I figured it out until Ms. Cunningham wanted me to. It was a fascinating reveal. And something happened that totally caught me and one of the characters completely by surprise. I enjoy being astounded.

I thought the writing was tight, the dialogue flowed smooth and true to character, and the sensual dance between Roderick and Darinda as they fell in love was page flipping – will she or won’t she? I thought the secondary characters were well placed and described, and each contributed to the plot and story overall. I giggled when it was revealed just who Darinda was named after. In fact, her pixie buddy and her cat were oftentimes amusing and great fun in the scenes they appeared. I smiled many times throughout this story.

If this were to appear on a review site: I'd rate it a 4 1/2 on whatever scale they use if it's 1 out of 5. So, I'd say I was pretty happy with it. And when I'm happy with/about a book, I share. It's one of My Favorite things.

:-)