Savage

First of all, I want to say that this is NOT an YA book. Not even a late YA book. It's totally an adult book, even if a mild one, so please keep that in mind. I had no idea, so I was surprised when certain things happened the way they did.

Anyway.

I must say that I liked the setting. St. Augustine, Florida is my favorite quaint town in Florida, and I really wish I could live there. I'm in love with the Old Spanish quarter :))

So, my review..

The story was (in my opinion) original. I haven't read many shape-shifter books, especially when the transformation is into cats, so that was a nice idea. But, I kept thinking that the Christian, the male through whose eyes we see and hear everything, would transform. And he never did, so that was show more sort of disappointing.

There were certain things that felt weird to me though. Like, purposefully searching for the jaguar, and trying to befriend it. I don't think that a person in their right mind would do such a thing, even if they did believe the cat saved their life.

Other than that though, I think the story was told nicely. The world building was pretty accurate. And the characters sounded realistic enough.

I didn't like Christian very much, to be honest. At least until the turning point. He sounded like a spoilt child, and perhaps that's exactly what he was. He acted like everything he wanted, he had to have - be it a thing or a person. He was egotistic, stupid and selfish. He irritated me soo much! Until he sort of grew up and decided to finally act like a man with responsibilities. Which happened in the last couple of chapters or so.

Of the female characters... I can't say I was really impressed by them. Heather was okay, for a spoilt daughter of an eye surgeon. And then there was Aiyana, and her family of females, who were just weird, with their powers and all.

I read "Savage" rather quickly, and enjoyed it. Perhaps you'd enjoy it too. :) show less

I've read books on vampires and werewolves. I have never read a book about were-jaguars until now.

Willow Rose brings a unique paranormal romance into Savage when she introduces Christian from Denmark into southern Florida. A rich and snotty new family have taken him in. He has an unfortunate meeting with two angry alligators. But to top it off it is saved as he dies by a jaguar. Coming back from the dead, he finds himself suddenly with powers he never had before nor wants now. It doesn't help that the black sheep of the neighborhood keep catching his eye until he can longer hold back and finds himself in love with a girl that will change his life.

I found the beginning of the story a little slow, not boring just slow. It describes the show more young man as he arrives in America and introduces the reader to his past to better understand him. The story really picks up once he arrives at his new 'family's' estate and from there it goes at a very good pace with the alligator attack and such.

Speaking of alligators....That part was curious to me as alligators do not just attack. They only do so if someone is near a nest which would mean there would not have been two of them or if they were too familiar with humans. Also, if Christian had a dog smell on him, they could have attacked thinking he was a good meal. A little better explanation of that might help me, but that's me coming from the deep south.

The plot is well thought out and obviously leaves it open for book 2. There are sexual scenes that are not extremely graphic, but graphic enough that only adults should be reading it. There is some language and violence though the violence is minor when I compare it to other books I read.

I found this a very interesting read with characters that had some depth to them and a plot that had a lot going for it. It wasn't one that kept me glued to the pages, but it kept me wondering about it when I did step away from it which in turn brought me back eagerly.

If you like paranormal romances, this is a book you should consider trying out.

Note: This book was provided as part of a book tour with no expectation of a positive review. show less

*RECEIVED THIS BOOK FOR A REVIEW*

Savage is a pretty good book. Albeit, it did take me a while to get into it and I did get thrown a few times while reading, I was intrigued and stuck through it til the end. We have Christian, 22 years old and recently moved to Florida from Denmark to go to med school. On his first night in Florida he went out with friends and was attacked by alligators in the swamp, but was saved my a jaguar. And ever since his attack, he's felt like he owes his life to the jaguar and also inherited a few special traits that he didn't have before. He can hear voices in his head with flashes of images and has premonitions. He doesn't know whats wrong with him and thinks hes going off the deep end and about to be sent to show more a loony bin, but finds himself on the front doorstep of his neighbors who welcome him with open arms. And he soon finds out that these women are special like he is.

To say that I loved this book would be pushing it. But, I did like it. I was definitely intrigued and read this book in a day. I wasn't and still am not a big fan of Christian. He's...ahhh, not my cup of tea. I feel he's kind of bipolar in a way. He's clingy to an extent and has the emotions of a woman on her menstrual cycle. I couldn't help but like him in the beginning and as I continued to read, I just couldn't stand him. The other characters are debatable. I didn't love them, but I didn't dislike them either. They kept the story going for me.
For me, I'm gonna have to say that it was the story that made me keep reading. I wanted to find out more and I wanted to dig deeper and find out more about the jaguar and its connection to the 5 women.

I've been on the fence about this one. I would recommend this one. It's not at the top of my list, but it's not a bad book. Pretty entertaining and interesting. I just didn't connect with the characters as much. show less

I received an eBook copy from the author for purpose of honest review. I was not compensated for this review, and all conclusions are my own responsibility.

Not your average paranormal story; Christian is hearing voices and having premonitions of evil to come. The only answers can be had, come from the house next door and the family that lives within, shunned and gossiped about. Weaving a thread of shape shifting, Native American lore, premonitions, telekinetic powers and the lore of the Fountain of Youth – the story weaves a tale that allows Christian to find a direction for his life while accepting, if not embracing all that he has learned about the world that now surrounds him.

The story tries to weave in a baseline of tolerance show more and acceptance with a touch of the ‘death is nothing to fear’ pacification of many life after death stories, although it is incorporated in a far less clumsy way than often happens; although there were some passages that could have done with another round of edits; the writing was competent and the integration of legend and revival of a thought to be extinct tribal line of Native Americans with a taste of the worship beliefs is a surprising and well researched addition, if brief. All in all, the book is a good lead-in for a second installment: and I am curious to see where the author goes with book 2 in the series. show less

Savage is the first in the Daughter of the Jaguar series, about Christian, a 22 year old Danish who was sent to the US by his father to study in Medical School, and how his life turned upside down after he was saved by a jaguar.

I liked it but I don't loved it as much as I wanted to. The book was good. It has great moral lessons, great plot and setting, but I don't know why, I feel like Christian was a little shallow with his decision making. I know it must be the mindset of the people in that era that affected his character but still it doesn't feels right for me. I like Aiyana and her family, though, because they were so hippie.

All in all, it was a good book. I guess, I just don't understand male's perspective that much and especially, show more the mindset in that generation. show less

I have this review and more at my blog for a book tour, go see all the extras, first chapter too. Concise Book Reviews By Michelle
http://concisebookreviewsbymichelle.blogspot.com

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author as part of a book tour in exchange for my honest review.

Wow, this book was amazing. Let me say now, this really is not a YA book, just want you to know, due to the adult relations in it. But mature teens may enjoy this too.

This book has a good over all lesson to learn, and I really liked that about this book. It is also told in a different way than most books I have read. Its really told from an older Christian, telling his tale from his early 20’s and on. Like a flashback, but found this to be a show more nice way to read about it too.

I have never read a whole book from just the male’s perspective. I thought it was pretty cool, and it wasn’t like the few I had read, its totally male, very nice.

This book does start off a bit slow, and its about half-way into it, before anything supernatural happens, and I will not spoil that for you, lets just say, its quite interesting.

I really liked when Aiyana came into the story, and her family, and loved all their unique names and the meanings of them.
This book will really tug at your heartstrings. I do not want to tell too much about it, except that it really, really is worth reading. Its an amazing story overall, and it had me thinking about it when I was not reading, and dreaming about it too. It just really stuck with me in a way no book has for a long time.

You need to give it a try, I promise you will not be disappointed.
5 out of 5 stars for me!

Summary:

The year is 1983. Christian is 22 years old when he leaves his home in Denmark to spend a year in Florida with a very wealthy family and go to med-school. A joyful night out with friends is shattered by an encounter with a savage predator that changes his life forever. Soon he faces challenges he had never expected. A supernatural gift he has no idea how to embrace. A haunting family in the house next door. A spirit-filled girl who seems to carry all the answers. An ancient secret hidden in the swamps of Florida. One life never the same. One love that becomes an obsession. Two destinies that will be forever entangled.

Savage is a paranormal romance with some language, violence, and sexual situations recommended for ages sixteen and up. show less

A young man, destined to be a medical doctor travels from his home country to america to study. While in the states, he meets people his own age and befriends them, along with the daughter of the couple he will be staying with. On a trip into the Florida swamps, the young man comes across a jaguar that saves him from an untimely death. From then on, the jaguar becomes an obsession. But that is not the only obsession, the young ladies that live next door also peek his interest. And what they hide in their home will forever change the man's outlook on life in general.