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can_i_read's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
craftingrama's review against another edition
1.0
I was beginning to think I was listening to a script for a 2 bit porno instead of a book. I think I spent more time rolling my eyes and wondering when the story was going to get going but it really didn't, just ages of unadulterated sex and little else. The narrator didn't help any either and should read bedtime stories instead of actual books YAWN.
see_sadie_read's review against another edition
3.0
This was fine for what it is. But it should be kept in mind that what it is is a bit of erotic fluff written over a decade ago. The Paranormal Romance genre has come a long way since then, but Feehan’s The Awakening is an example of what it used to be. Heroes were meant to be predatory and virginal heroines swooned and became ‘aware of their femininity’ (code for sexuality) in their presence. It tiptoes awful close to the men-writing-women meme sometimes, even though it’s obviously something else entirely. But the descriptions of all but anthropomorphized breasts can comes close.
There’s not much to this honestly. The plot is just a backdrop to paint the angst and eventual sex on. The relationship is based on sexual attraction and the mythical shifter mate bond. It didn’t light me on fire in any manner. But, again, it is what it is and should be judged accordingly.
There’s not much to this honestly. The plot is just a backdrop to paint the angst and eventual sex on. The relationship is based on sexual attraction and the mythical shifter mate bond. It didn’t light me on fire in any manner. But, again, it is what it is and should be judged accordingly.
melodicfate's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars.
It seems I'm on a Christine Feehan kick this year. This book makes the third series of hers I've read something in. This one is all about leopard shifters. The setting was in the rain forests, which was very well-described. Maggie came there because a lawyer who worked for the hero, Brandt, informed her that she'd inherited the estate of her parents, who'd died when she was a child. Brandt orchestrated her coming there because he knew she was his mate. I thought he was high-handed, but he learned his lesson. I liked him because while he was an alpha male, he also had a gentle and poetic side and knew when to say sorry. I loved Maggie because she helped to save animals and was very compassionate. She could also admit when she was being foolish.
Overall, I found this to be an interesting introduction into a new paranormal world. I love the idea of the leopard people protecting and preserving the rain forest and the animals who lived there. The romance was rushed as it only took place within a few days, but I can overlook it because they're fated mates. I plan to continue with this series at some point, for sure. Can't wait to meet more leopard people!
It seems I'm on a Christine Feehan kick this year. This book makes the third series of hers I've read something in. This one is all about leopard shifters. The setting was in the rain forests, which was very well-described. Maggie came there because a lawyer who worked for the hero, Brandt, informed her that she'd inherited the estate of her parents, who'd died when she was a child. Brandt orchestrated her coming there because he knew she was his mate. I thought he was high-handed, but he learned his lesson. I liked him because while he was an alpha male, he also had a gentle and poetic side and knew when to say sorry. I loved Maggie because she helped to save animals and was very compassionate. She could also admit when she was being foolish.
Overall, I found this to be an interesting introduction into a new paranormal world. I love the idea of the leopard people protecting and preserving the rain forest and the animals who lived there. The romance was rushed as it only took place within a few days, but I can overlook it because they're fated mates. I plan to continue with this series at some point, for sure. Can't wait to meet more leopard people!
naughtynicky's review against another edition
5.0
The Awakening is a short novella and is a prequel to the amazing Leopard People series.
Everytime a new book comes out in this series, I re-read the whole series so you can imagine how many times I have read this.
Maggie is lured back to the place of her birth in the middle of a rainforest.
Brandt is is a predatory male who knows the secrets of her birthright. He also knows she is his mate and wants her where he can be near to her and claim her.
This book is filled with sexual tension, especially when Brandt brings the mangoes and ice into play.
Everytime a new book comes out in this series, I re-read the whole series so you can imagine how many times I have read this.
Maggie is lured back to the place of her birth in the middle of a rainforest.
Brandt is is a predatory male who knows the secrets of her birthright. He also knows she is his mate and wants her where he can be near to her and claim her.
This book is filled with sexual tension, especially when Brandt brings the mangoes and ice into play.
councillor's review
1.0
I was excited to read this short story after finding it more or less accidentally on the internet. It is available for free, and the story's summary was able to catch my interest. People turning into leopards? Sounds cool! So did I think before I read it. However, I didn't read a well-developed fantasy story with some elements of romance, as I initially thought. No, it was what felt like a porn story. Fortunately, the story was not too long and I have reached the last line after something like two hours.
First off, to say something positive about it, the atmosphere was wonderfully developed, and I felt like I was part of the rain forest, hearing the monkeys, feeling the leopard's presence, being surrounded by insects. Christine Feehan used a lot of words to describe the setting, which did not bother me at all.
However, I don't even know how to express my feelings about those two main protagonists. Maybe I should return to the story and count how many times the female protagonist's breasts were mentioned (fifty-one times) or how many times the male protagonist experienced an erection (ten times) - on not even fifty pages. Feehan included a lot of steamroller tactics in order to make the reader realize how much Maggie and Brandt are meant for each other.
As if that matter of fact would not have been obvious enough without this sentence.
Wait ... what?
Girl, you don't even know him for twenty-four hours. *headdesk* As if this was not enough, she already felt sexual tension before even getting to know Brandt, just by the feeling of his presence, and during their first confrontation, as she feared he might want something bad for her, she did not try to run away or get help, no - she actually ached for relief and wanted to have sex with him. Seriously? Knowing him for something like five minutes and fearing he might be a danger to her, she wanted to have sex with him? I get that they seem to be connected by some paranormal phenomena, but it does not change the way I feel about the protagonist - that she is dumb, boring and one-dimensional. The story actually seemed to define its characters by their sexuality. It was fantasy, of course, telling a story about shapeshifters and a paranormal romance, but very, very weak fantasy used to write a more or less innovative story about erotism.
First off, to say something positive about it, the atmosphere was wonderfully developed, and I felt like I was part of the rain forest, hearing the monkeys, feeling the leopard's presence, being surrounded by insects. Christine Feehan used a lot of words to describe the setting, which did not bother me at all.
However, I don't even know how to express my feelings about those two main protagonists. Maybe I should return to the story and count how many times the female protagonist's breasts were mentioned (fifty-one times) or how many times the male protagonist experienced an erection (ten times) - on not even fifty pages. Feehan included a lot of steamroller tactics in order to make the reader realize how much Maggie and Brandt are meant for each other.
He smiled at her, and a thousand butterfly wings brushed at the pit of her stomach.
As if that matter of fact would not have been obvious enough without this sentence.
Fascinated, she propped herself up on her elbows to watch his throat work as he swallowed the ice-cold liquid. He was so sexy, the simple act took her breath away. Just drinking water. And how had he managed to get her to trust him the way she did? She trusted everything he said with an instinct, a knowledge, that he was telling her the truth.
Wait ... what?
Girl, you don't even know him for twenty-four hours. *headdesk* As if this was not enough, she already felt sexual tension before even getting to know Brandt, just by the feeling of his presence, and during their first confrontation, as she feared he might want something bad for her, she did not try to run away or get help, no - she actually ached for relief and wanted to have sex with him. Seriously? Knowing him for something like five minutes and fearing he might be a danger to her, she wanted to have sex with him? I get that they seem to be connected by some paranormal phenomena, but it does not change the way I feel about the protagonist - that she is dumb, boring and one-dimensional. The story actually seemed to define its characters by their sexuality. It was fantasy, of course, telling a story about shapeshifters and a paranormal romance, but very, very weak fantasy used to write a more or less innovative story about erotism.
scostner's review
3.0
This novella introduces the Leopard People, which have since become a favorite series for many Christine Feehan fans. In this story, Brandt Talbot has schemed to bring his prospective mate, Maggie Odessa, to the rain forest where she was born. He plans to introduce her to her ancestral home and have her live there with him, in the leopard lair that her parents belonged to before their deaths.