I was honored to receive an eARC for A Wolf in the Garden. This review is honest and freely given. Publication Date: November 30, 2023!
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A Wolf in the Garden is Allegra Hall’s debut novel and book one the Unravelling Monsters Universe series. This book follows the story of Ellie and Van as they adjust to the world post Unravelling, an event in which Earth’s glamor disappeared, unveiling supernatural beings. Tropes and themes include: second chance romance, forced proximity, fated mates, a MMC who is both a werewolf and a wolf shifter, paranormal Earth and supernatural beings, cottage core New Zealand, Māori representation, knotting, monster peen, fast-burn romance, magic and danger, grief, and more.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
Ellie’s life is finally amazing: she moved to an island, has her dream job, built her own cottage core oasis complete with a tiny house, and has a small group of friends. But she’s been keeping a secret. Evander’s life is a mess: he just moved back to New Zealand after buying a winery in desperate need of renovation, split from his natal wolf pack, and has been missing Ellie for nine long years. His wolves demand they find their mate – now – and then Ellie serendipitously falls back into their lives. Now Evander will do anything he can to keep Ellie safe, if only they understood the threat against her.
This is such a lovely debut novel! The setting for this book is very enchanting. I love the way the author describes Motuwai Island and its native flora and fauna. The overall concept of the Unravelling is really cool. I really like the idea that there were people in the world that donned their human glamour knowingly, while others had no idea that a paranormal being was hiding in their DNA. I’ve never read another PNR where the MMC is half werewolf, half wolf shifter, having two different shifted forms. I thought this was a unique detail to have in the story and the monster smut was fantastic.
Ellie and Van’s journey is definitely one of self acceptance and forgiveness. A large portion of this book is spent on Ellie trying to marry her human heritage with her paranormal heritage. I think this is a reflection of the struggles that mixed-heritage humans face, in real life. This is something I think a lot of readers will relate to. Likewise, Van has some identity issues himself, namely with being a “mixed breed,” as well as an Alpha trying to juggle the needs of all his people.
I am super grateful to have had the opportunity to read and learn more about New Zealand and Māori culture. Definitely recommend to PNR lovers!
So There’s This Book 