Review by Gabrielle
Get in touch with your primal side with Willing Prey by Allie Oleander.
Favourite Quote:
Anticipation thrums through me, mixing with anxiety. I love the woods, and I used to love being hunted by my ex-husband, Keith. But that’s different than being stalked through the forest by a near stranger. I’ve met Shane a few times, and he was…intense.
Book Synopsis:
Post-divorce and buried in student loan debt, Claire Collins eagerly enters a spicy business agreement with an acquaintance who wants to explore his primal desires. The deal is simple—thirty days as his sexual prey, $30,000 in her bank account. All she has to do is give Shane Underwood the hunt of his life.
Claire’s a physical education teacher and perfectly happy to spend her summer having wild, kinky sex instead of working her usual serving job. But once they cross the tree line, she realizes how little she knows about the corporate lawyer paying her to be his prey.
Shane is different in the woods. Brutal. Devastating. Feral.
That’s okay with Claire—she is, too. And she’s sinking her teeth a little deeper into Shane’s heart every time he catches her.
Review:
I love a good dark romance occasionally, and I thought this one might fit the bill. To my surprise, it wasn’t all that dark, and even had a number of incredibly sweet moments. To be clear though, this book is definitely on the steamier end of the spicy spectrum. It explores a kink called primal play, where one partner hunts the other. Things can get pretty rough, so if rough sex scenes disturb you, this will not be the book for you.
Exploring a kink that is new to me is one of the delights of reading romance. I get to learn more about it in a safe way. Primal play is not one I was super familiar with, and it made for a fun read.
One thing I really loved about the book was the clear consent expressed on both sides. While I can enjoy a dark romance, this is one area that I struggle with sometimes. Happily, this was not the case here and I enjoyed the sex-positive vibe of it as well. If you are a fan of Katee Robert, you might dig this too.
I really enjoyed both characters. The story is told in dual POV so we really get to know both of them. Claire is just coming out of a divorce that has left her broke. With a big student loan to repay, she jumps at the chance to spend her summer off being prey for Shane. Not only will it pay off her debt, but it sounds pretty fun too. She has a bit of experience with primal play so she is aware of what she’s agreeing to. She’s also already met Shane, as he was a colleague of her ex-husband. Meanwhile, Shane is a man obsessed. I love me a “he falls first and hard” trope romance, and Shane has it bad for Claire. He can be socially awkward, but he’s smart, driven, and definitely swoon-worthy.
From what I can understand, this was originally a novella that has now been expanded into a full length book. It’s Allie’s first although it doesn’t feel like a debut. I’m excited to see what she writes next. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for future books.
If you’re looking for something a little different, try Willing Prey.
Thank you, Berkeley Romance for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
