How to Howl at the Moon

Howl at the Moon, Book 1

By: Eli Easton

Narrated by: Matthew Shaw

Sheriff Lance Beaufort is not going to let trouble into his town, no sir. Tucked away in the California mountains, Mad Creek has secrets to keep, like the fact that half the town consists of "quickened" - dogs who have gained the ability to become human. Descended on both sides from Border Collies, Lance is as alert a guardian as they come.

Tim Weston is looking for a safe haven. After learning that his boss patented all of Tim's work on vegetable hybrids in his own name, Tim quit his old job. A client offers him use of her cabin in Mad Creek, and Tim sees a chance for a new start. But the shy gardener has a way of fumbling and sounding like a liar around strangers, particularly gorgeous alpha men like Sheriff Beaufort.

Lance's hackles are definitely raised by the lanky young stranger. He's concerned about marijuana growers moving into Mad Creek, and he's not satisfied with the boy's story. Lance decides a bit of undercover work is called for. When Tim hits a beautiful black collie with his car and adopts the dog, its love at first sight for both Tim and Lance's inner dog. Pretending to be a pet is about to get Sheriff Beaufort in very hot water.

©2015 Jane Jensen Holmes (P)2015 Jane Jensen Holmes

Cute, warm and a little bit silly at times

I generally like stories with shifters, werebeasts and all other sorts of part human part animal characters, I also do like classical top/bottom or seme/uke relationships being a gay man who loves big strong masculine guys myself.

So How to Howl at the Moon really did not disappoint, it has nice parts with the animal sides of the characters (and not overdone in my opinion either despite going for certain dog breed stereotypes), Lance makes a nice top who manages to be both likeable and ending up making some mistakes and Tim is, well, just cute in a awkward, dorky way.

There are also a couple of likeable side characters in the mix who feel fleshed out enough to complement the leads. I especially liked Lance's mother with her meddling and antics and the fact that, well, in a way, she managed exactly that kind of being flawed but likeable that I do not see too often with mother characters, who tend to be more often either saintly or smothering.

The sex scenes also were okay, perhaps not steaming hot, but neither awkward, nor too drawn out and definitely nice to listen to.

I also found the bad guys to have a bit more depth than many m/m romances manage.
I could especially recognize the type of Marshall, the weak bully trying desperately to keep someone else down.
It is usually very easy to make a "monster", a mad man, someone utterly alien in hiss evil ways, but just some little words and observations can instead create a bad human being who seems much more real.

Also, I think the narrator did a very nice job and he has a pleasant voice to listen to, I hope to hear more of him in the future.

It is a cute and a bit silly m/m romance, but it is a very nice one at that for sure.

Cute and Fluffy

This is a really cute shifter book with a dogs instead of wolves. The basic story is that Lance is the local sheriff of a small town in California which is full of shifters. Lance is a border collie with a very strong protective instincts. Tim arrives in town to start to rebuild his life and doesn’t know the town’s secrets. So a lot of misunderstandings happen; well-meaning family interference goes awry; some set up for the next couple in the next book; gun fire ensues; and then HEA. I enjoyed it. The narrator does a really good job in bringing the characters to life.

hilarious

Fast paced and very entertaining, this story has all the ingredients to keep anybody hooked... The narration clearly reflects the characters' personalities,and the plot is so funny It made me laugh aloud. Very recommendable.

Cute, sexy, adorkable 3.5 stars

This was a fun, sweet read . First time with the author, narrator and 'dog' shifting. I have read plenty shifting romances, usually the more gritty alpha type so I wasn't sure how I would feel. But it was such a delightful escape. I have to say when Lance is emotionally upset and while trying to give an explanation that turns into a howl I really just chuckled.. it was so adorable. I do favor more muscular tops with bottoms that are sweeter and perhaps smaller so this was right up my alley. But saying that, both characters were not really stereotyped at all. Lance, the cop, was thoughtful and sweet. Tim, even tho timid, had a back bone and was no ones door mat anymore. I have off to download Roman's story!

Cute, enjoyable story

But the pace of the reading was really weird. I had to slow it down and even then I didn't catch section breaks, because they ran into each other.

I'm looking forward to the rest of the series, but might read them instead if they're recorded similarly.

it was cute

If you are in the mood for a light-hearted read then this is for you :) I know it's not your normal shift book but that's what I liked about it. The characters are easy to like and just as easy to fall in love with. I wish there were more books about this cute town full of its fun dogs.

2nd time through---a great Audio

The story is light,sexy and funny. The howling is the best part...and the story. I think I need to listen one more
Time!!!

Adorable

I enjoyed this quite a lot. The writing and narration were both excellent. The pacing was spot on and the plot was good. Tim was goofy and cute, but I only really started liking him when Chance came along. Actually, the same goes for Lance. Even the miscommunication was done well without making me roll my eyes. I thought the outside conflict was going to go differently than it did, but that didn't detract from my enjoyment of it. I bought the second audiobook as soon as I finished and look forward to that one at well. Overall, it was a great book!

Light and Fluffy Fun

This story melts my heart. It is light and fluffy with a heart, and I am an absolute sucker for stories like it, especially when done well: How to Howl at the Moon is done incredibly well. Shifter stories can be hit or miss, depending on the abilities of the author, and Easton scored a hit with this one. The two main characters are an absolute delight - well thought out, very distinct voices, and there was a really original take on the shifter concept that drew me in. There are a few moments of seriousness, which is important when it comes to making a story realistic, but don't come to this expecting a huge, dark, involved plot.

Matthew Shaw was an absolute joy to listen to. The sound quality was excellent, and he gave evocative voices to every character, no matter how large or small their role. I will definitely be looking for more stories he has narrated, and I am looking forward to listening to future collaborations between these two.

A- rating overall...

My Review:
Overall...4.0
Performance...4.0
Story...4.25
The premise of this series is brilliant. I love the idea of the "quickened" dogs and how they become the way they are. Just that entire process sets up some really interesting story starts because most the dogs become "quickened" after some sort of trauma.

But the hero of this story, Lance, didn't become quickened. He was born that way. If I remember right, he's a 4th gen. He also happens to be the sheriff in this small town so he's very protective of his people and leery of outsiders.

So when Tim shows up in town smelling of pot and wanting to start farming, Lance is suspicious. There are too many drug growers showing up in this area of the country. They can't have any of that in his town. So he sets up a facade to get into Tim's house to investigate, with Lance as a dog.

This is one of those books that's pure fun. It's short and sweet and my heart broke for Tim. He's so alone in this world, and the narrator did a fabulous job of inflecting Tim's yearning for a friend and companionship when he's talking to the dog. It seems a bit weird when you think about it, but I liked the fact that these two become true friends when Lance is in his dog form first. Lance in human form isn't a friendly guy, so the fact that he connects with Tim first the other way is important. Tim would have never given the human a chance to get close otherwise, I don't think, because of Lance's gruff exterior.

The whole set-up is fun and I loved the mischief and matchmaking that came from Lance's mother. She cracked me up the whole book.

If you like your books light and entertaining, I highly recommend this one. I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to read Roman's story next. Poor Roman...