Mm Shifter Romance: Accidental Bonds Review
Accidental Bonds: A MM Shifter Romance by Marie Reynard | Goodreads | Amazon | My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Reluctantly Bonded/Slow Burn Romance
MM Shifter Romance is a guilty pleasure of mine. It’s not everyone’s thing, and that’s totally fine, but I can devour a good shifter romance in a few days. And that’s just what I did with Accidental Bonds, the first book in the Elemental Bonds series by Marie Reynard.
This is a fantastic story. I love Reynard’s writing and can’t wait for more of this series. This is not a new release but I loved it so much I have to post this review so I can sing its praises. You should read this book if you are into shifter romance, slow-burn romance, and aren’t shy about erm.. knotting. Like I said, not for everyone. But it’s for me, okay?
Mage Elijah
Elijah Lauring is a mage in a complicated world where mage councils determine the business decisions mages make and likely have their fingers in lots of mage-related areas. I love the shared universe Reynard continues to paint, full of shifters, supernatural lives living parallel to the mundane world. Complete with ahem, adult entertainment.
Shifter Victor
Victor Mills is the alpha of the Mills pack, in a small town in the northest of the US. Towns with shifter packs in the vicinity have mage shops for their magical needs. Packs need magical wards to protect the boundaries of their territory, among other things, so they employ the services of mages from time to time. Mages and shifters have a complicated and tension-filled relationship though, because of a history of manipulation and entrapment.
Rotten
Victor hires Elijah because something is rotten in the state of Denmark. Or rather, the wards that surround his pack’s territory are sick, and only a mage can help. Victor does not trust mages. He dislikes magic. The reader finds out why later, but at the story’s start Victor doesn’t trust Elijah at all, and their relationship is rocky from the moment he steps foot in Elijah’s store.
An Accidental Tether
Elijah is an incredibly talented mage but everyone can make mistakes. He does. He and Victor forge a bond that neither want, or meant to have happen. Suddenly, Elijah has more power than he knows what to do with, he can’t control his magic, and he can’t make sense of what is happening. Victor and he grow closer as they try to work out what’s plaguing Victor’s territory, and the sexual tension mounts.
Delicious
Their slow-burn is really delicious. I loved their relationship and how it finally came together. While they both start out distrusting of the other, by the midpoint of the novel the reader is rooting for them. The reader can see that they are clearly meant to be. They, however, are a bit obtuse to what’s obvious to everyone else. They’re hot together. Even their subconsious knows!
Lucid Dreaming And Sex Rituals
So much so that Elijah has some incrediibly realistic lucid dreams involving sex rituals, being chased on the full moon, and lots of outdoor sex, so much so he ends up actually bruised the next day. I want that, please! I am flat out INTRIGUED. It’s so hot!
The Pack and the Group-Chat
I adore the dynamics of Victor’s pack betas and especially Kade. He’s a hoot. They obviously respect their alpha but they also give him so much shit. Almost as much as Elijah’s mage friend-group. I really, really wonder who Aran will get with, because has anyone checked to see if he’s not actual sex demon?
Great World-Building
Really good world-building makes everything so plausible and believable, the world Reynard crafts in her books seems so natural it’s almost believable that there is a whole parallel world full of supernaturals just exisiting right under the mundane world’s nose.
MateHub is Referenced!
I loved the nod to Reynard’s MateHub book, which I thoroughly enjoyed and was my introduction to the author. MateHub was such a beautiful surprise! Honestly I was not expecting such a phenomanal story from such a premise. But I was recommended it and flat out loved it.
Sat in the Kindle for a Bit
I downloaded Accidental Bonds as soon as I finished that one a few months ago. I checked, I downloaded it October 19th! I didn’t get around to reading it until now. Kicking myself that I waited. Indeed, I read it voraciously, barely put it down! The second book released the 14th of December. And it’s Kade’s story. Double win. Kade, Victor’s cousin and second in command, is a huge amount of fun in the Accidental Bonds. His story promises to be an incredible read.
Reynard Means Fox, Get It?
I love that the author’s name is fox in French, because it’s a perfect MM Shifter Romance novelist’s name. Well played Reynard, well played.
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