Crystal Lake Pack by Candace Wondrak – A Book Review

Posted May 24, 2020 by Booksandblurbs in PNR, Reverse Harem, Reviews / 2 Comments

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Crystal Lake Pack

The Complete Series

by Candace Wondrak
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Slow Burn, PNR RH
Available on Kindle and Kindle Unlimited

Down & Dirty

All three of Candace Wondrak’s Crystal Lake series are included in this collection, along with a Novella that features the heat and first the third book was missing. Shifters, mages and death – all in one easy to read collection, free on Kindle Unlimited

What is it about?

(Blurb from GoodReads)

After being expelled from college due to some fantastical circumstances, I come home and find my life has been a lie. As in, I’m not human. Never was.

I’m a shifter. A wolf. My mom fell in love with my dad and ran away from her pack, but they’ve come to bring me back, to show me the life I missed. It’s wrought with danger, multiple mates, and forbidden romance…and the worst thing about it all?

I think I like it.

I think, missing wolves aside, I want pack life.

But I’ll never get a normal pack life as long as the Crystal Lake pack and its alpha are being plagued by a mystical, crazy death priest, so I choose to do what I can to help my future family. I might be the only hope this pack has at survival, you see.

Want to know a secret?

I’m not just a shifter, either. To fight a death priest, I’ll have to meet him head-to-head with magic.

Note:

Crystal Lake Pack: The Complete Series includes Limitless, Undying, and Evermore, and has been rewritten from the trilogy’s original release. It is now in first-person point of view. This is a slow-burn, why choose romance. This collection also includes a never-before-seen steamy novella detailing the night of the claiming, along with her firsts with each of the guys.

Thoughts on Crystal Lake Pack

I didn’t read these when they first came out, so I cannot comment on the changes – either in perspective or events (if there are any?), but from a new to the series reader stand point, it was quite good. It ebbs and flows like most Shifter Romances do, with a few additions that made me smile, laugh and even grimace. Her mom… with the Alpha? No, just no. *shudder*

The scope of the tale is solid and entertaining, though there were a few nitpick items that bothered me. First, Addie…. alright girl, I love you, I realize you are going through some crap, but you CANNOT DO EVERYTHING ON YOUR OWN! I mean, seriously? It would be one thing if the chit had a solid plan, but noooooo….. self sacrifice is the name of the game and the bull headedness of the actions set my teeth on edge, in so many ways.

The other issue I had? Sarah, Addie’s mom. She comes across like she WANTS to be loving and dovey, but some of the things she says, to her own daughter, belied that care. I just couldn’t like her, even though I tried.

Pros:

All three books in one! No waiting!!
Character growth.
Maze. Can I lick him?
Forest.

Cons:

A few pacing issues.
Her choices… ugh!!! She is both adult and immature, impulsive and careful… I just don’t get her.
Her parents. No. Just no.
A few tense changes or editing mistakes, no biggie.