WALK ON THE WILD SIDE - Christine Warren
The Others, Book 5
St. Martin’s
ISBN: 0-312-94791-7
June 2008
Paranormal Romance

Tennessee and Las Vegas, Nevada and Environs - Present Day

When the Others (Vampires, faeries, demons, wereanimals, and the like) revealed their existence to the human world not so very long ago, it didn’t mean much to Kitty Sugarman. After all, she’s just a country girl who will probably never even meet a vampire or any of the Others. Of course, that was before the car accident when the desperate desire to free herself and save her mother compelled Kitty’s inner lioness to reveal herself. Suddenly Kitty finds out her name may have been a joke of her mother’s (not just a shortening of Katherine), and her father, Martin Lowe, isn’t dead as she’s always been told. He’s alive and well, Felix of the Red Rock Pride in Nevada, and he wants her to come for a visit. Well, Kitty’s grandparents did a fine job in raising her, and she has no real yearning to meet family that ignored her for decades, but the whole lion shifting thing is proving to be unpredictable. Maybe visiting just long enough to get control of her newly discovered powers would be a good idea.

Marcus Alexander Stuart (second in command of Red Rock Pride and heir to the Felix), Max to his friends and pride members, isn’t so sure now is the right time for his Felix’s long lost daughter to be coming for a visit. What with Martin Lowe’s illness (along with Martin’s ex-wife and children’s attitudes about Kitty) and the recent trouble with a nomad (male lion without a pride) scheming to take over Red Rock, well, there’s just plenty of trouble at the moment. Then Kitty steps off the plane, and suddenly Max discovers one more complication, Kitty appeals to his baser instincts in a big way; she may even be his mate.

The phrase “going for a WALK ON THE WILD SIDE” takes on a richer and deeper meaning in Christine Warren’s latest novel of The Others. Kitty isn’t a wild type of gal. An assistant librarian who knows the best way to collect eggs without getting pecked and thinks removing an eighteenth-century manuscript from a protected vault is risky, she faces a lot of changes when she discovers that she’s half Other. Now that her lioness side has come out to play, the instincts she didn’t even know she had are popping up all the time, creating situations Kitty isn’t sure she’s ready for. One of those is the incredible attraction she feels for Max. Sure, playing with the overgrown cat could be a ton of fun, but Kitty doesn’t belong in Vegas and Max will never leave, so where exactly does that leave their relationship in the future? Max has never before felt the emotions and fierce protectiveness Kitty brings out in him. Females are fun, and yes, he knows someday he’ll have to take a mate and have cubs, but is now really the best time? And can the very innocent Kitty stand up to the threats she’ll surely face if she stays in Red Rock? It doesn’t take long for Max to decide, yes, she can handle it, as long as he stays by her side night and day, loving and protecting her, which frankly, doesn’t sound bad at all. Will Kitty and Max become the partners to lead Red Rock Pride into the future, or will their enemies win in the end?

This book wouldn’t be nearly as interesting without its cast of secondary characters who are both lovable and mean. Kitty’s father has regrets about not meeting her before the cancer overtook him, but he sincerely believes she was raised in the best possible place, safe from the machinations of his ex-wife and the unscrupulous cubs they had together. Drusilla Van Diemen (said ex-wife) is a lioness determined to protect her children, even though they’re adults now and quite capable of taking care of themselves. Nadalie and Peter are Kitty’s half-siblings, and after meeting them, Martin’s decision to keep her away from them and Drusilla makes perfect sense. Lonnie Sugarman is Kitty’s beloved papaw and he’s a wise man (also good with a shotgun). Misty is Kitty’s mom; yeah she lied to Kitty about Martin, but underneath her constant search for love and careless behavior, I’m sure there’s a good woman who did the best she could at the time. Okay, I’m not sure, but hey, she was smart enough to let her parents raise Kitty.

Don’t miss this skillfully written book, and even if it’s your first foray into the world of The Others, I promise you won’t be lost. You will be compelled to seek out the rest of the books in the series; www.christinewarren.net has the complete listing. Another fabulous addition to The Others, WALK ON THE WILD SIDE will grab your attention from the very first page and won’t let go until the end. Get your copy today.

Lori Ann