My Fiction Nook: Review Tour: Alpha Heat by Leta Blake

Saturday, May 19, 2018

Review Tour: Alpha Heat by Leta Blake

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Length: 130,000 words approx.

Cover Design: Dar Albert @ Wicked Strange Designs

Heat of Love Series

Book #1 - Slow Heat - Amazon US | Amazon UK

Blurb

A desperate young alpha. An older alpha with a hero complex. A forbidden love that can’t be denied.

Young Xan Heelies knows he can never have what he truly wants: a passionate romance and happy-ever-after with another alpha. It’s not only forbidden by the prevailing faith of the land, but such acts are illegal.

Urho Chase is a middle-aged alpha with a heartbreaking past. Careful, controlled, and steadfast, his friends dub him old-fashioned and staid. When Urho discovers a dangerous side to Xan’s life that he never imagined, his world is rocked and he’s consumed by desire. The carefully sewn seams that held him together after the loss of his omega and son come apart—and so does he.

But to love each other and make a life together, Xan and Urho risk utter ruin. With the acceptance and support of Caleb, Xan’s asexual and aromantic omega and dear friend, they must find the strength to embrace danger and build the family they deserve.

This gay romance novel by Leta Blake is the second in the Slow Heat universe. It’s 130,000 words, with a strong happy ending and a well-crafted, non-shifter Omegaverse. It features alphas, betas, omegas, male pregnancy, heat, and knotting. No cheating. Content warning for brief sexual violence.

May 15 - The Novel Approach, OMG Reads
May 19 - Love Bytes, My Fiction Nook, Cupcakes and Bookshelves, Mainely Stories
May 20 - MM Good Book Reviews
May 21 - Making It Happen, Dog-Eared Daydreams
May 22 - Bayou Book Junkie
May 23 - Mirrigold, Bayou Book Junkie, Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words, Rainbow Gold Reviews, Diverse Reader, Wicked Faerie's Tales and Reviews, V's Reads, Oh My Shelves, Lillian Francis, Sexy Erotic Xciting, Kimmer's Erotic Book Banter, Gay Media Reviews
May 24 - Joyfully Jay

Heather's review:

OMFG, I can't believe I ended up going from confused as F to in love with this story.

I decided to jump into the story blind without reading the first story in the series, which was a little bit of a mistake. For one, I've never read a non-shifter story with alpha/beta/omega dynamics before, much less one with knotting and m-preg! Talk about out of my comfort zone... but little kinky me was up for the challenge. *wink, wink*

I'll admit, I had no idea what was happening for the first 50 pages or so. I had to get to know the world, the characters, and the feel for the power dynamics. I bet if I had read the first story before it would have been much easier to figure out what was happening, but I caught on after awhile.

After a somewhat rocky and slow beginning, I started to get into the groove. And it was groovy. I found it to be super hot, super intense, and just really amplified in all ways. I knew Leta Blake wouldn't let me down.

The book is also not quite M/M/M, but it's also not quite *not* M/M/M. There is an unusal relationship there that Leta Blake manages very well. I also loved the inclusion of an asexual, aromantic character. I really enjoyed what that brought to the story.

I think the story interwove some compelling concepts, with the ideas of not quite fitting into your body, your role, and your lot in life. The characters were really complex, and I liked the dimensionality of them.

I had a few small issues, the length of the story being one of them (it's a loooong book) and I wish the main couple spent a little more time together before going to the "love" place, but overall I was extremely happy with this one. Another winner from Leta.

** A free copy of this book was provided by the tour organizer in exchange for an honest review. **

Author Bio

Author of the bestselling book Smoky Mountain Dreams and the fan favorite Training Season, Leta Blake’s educational and professional background is in psychology and finance, respectively. However, her passion has always been for writing. She enjoys crafting romance stories and exploring the psyches of made up people. At home in the Southern U.S., Leta works hard at achieving balance between her day job, her writing, and her family.