I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
Tempting Danger
paranormal fantasy, romance in a Kindle edition that was published by Berkley on October 4, 2004 and has 324 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads or Amazon, Audibles.
First in the World of the Lupi romantic paranormal fantasy series and revolving around Lily Yu, a Homicide detective with a secret.
My Take
It’s a fascinating world that Wilks is creating in World of the Lupi with plenty of back history that Wilks slips in nicely. There’s also plenty of drama with the bigotry the supernaturals face with the tension of all the witch hunts and shoot-on-sight laws.
More tension comes through in the frame job and the Lady’s Chosen with its inherent restrictions, which certainly makes for some interesting times between the suspicious Lily Yu and the surprised Rule Turner. Then there’s all that tension when Lily fears a conspiracy built out of prejudice.
We really get the down-and-dirty of the fears, wonders, and anger with that third person dual protagonist point-of-view from Lily’s and Rule’s perspectives. The Lily who won’t be tied down and refuses to out other supernaturals. The Rule who can’t believe his luck.
Tempting Danger is action-packed as well as character-driven with quite a bit that is unexpected which makes for an exciting read.
If you enjoy the paranormal, werewolves, mystery, and lots of action, go get the Kindle version…it’s only $2.99!
The Story
Those against the lupi and other supernaturals are against the Species Citizenship Bill that is coming up in Congress. They’ll go to any lengths to prevent its passage, including framing the innocent.
Worse, the enemy of the Lady is plotting to return to our world…it’ll be worse than mass destruction.
The Characters
Detective Lily Yu, a touch sensitive, is with Homicide in San Diego. Dirty Harry is her cantankerous cat. Grandmother, Li Lei Yu, is quite imperious. Li Qin is her grandmother’s companion.
The gorgeous, sexy Rule Turner, the prince of the Lupi, is a werewolf and Lu Nuncio for Nokolai. His son, Toby Asteglio, usually lives with Gammy, his maternal grandmother; her daughter, Toby’s mother, is a journalist. Manny is a friend of Toby’s. Crystal is Rule’s assistant.
The Lupi are…
…werewolves who worship the Lady, a goddess who created them to battle Her. In general, the lupi do not, cannot, marry but do their best to sire as many children as possible…because it is so difficult for them to have children. The exception is when the Lady picks a Chosen for one of them. A Lu Nuncio is the acknowledged heir to the Rho.
The Nokolai are…
…the clan are based in San Diego with Clanhome as their, well, home. The Rho is the alpha and Rule’s father, Isen Turner. Benedict is his oldest son, Rule’s brother, and in charge of security. Mick Roberts is another older brother, hostile. Dr Nettie Two Horses is Benedict’s daughter, a medical doctor, and a shaman. Henry cooks and is Isen’s houseman. Frederick is the guard sent with Isen. Other Nokolai include Sammy, Seth, Houston, Devin, Walker, and Pat.
Cullen Seabourne is a fabulously gorgeous stripper at Club Hell. He’s also a werewolf stripped of his clan, a sorcerer, and one of Rule’s best friends. Clan Leidolf is the enemy of the Nokolai and based on the East Coast. Jasper is the Rho of Clan Kyffin.
San Diego PD
Sergeant “Mech” Meckle is a friend of Lily’s, respected. Sean Brady doesn’t play well with others, especially the young female ones. Officer Lauren wants to make detective. T.J. is another friend. Captain Frederick Randall is Lily’s boss. Officer “Irish” O’Brien is with Scene of Crimes. Officers Larry Phillips and Arturo Gonzales are partners and the first responders. Delgado is the police chief. Other cops include the cheeky Crowder and the very immature Tucker.
The FBI
Special Agents Abel Karonski, a practicing witch, and Martin Croft are with MCD, the Magical Crimes Division. Ruben Brooks, a precognitive, is in charge of MCD.
The Yus
Harry Chen is a cousin. Beth is a younger sister; Susan is the perfect older sister who just got engaged. Mother is Julia Yu. Uncle Chan owns the Golden Dragon, a restaurant in the Gaslamp Quarter.
Club Hell is…
…a hangout for the werewolves and their groupies. It’s owned by Max Smith, a gnome. Bet and Ginger Harris (she owns La Jolie Vie, a salon) are some of the women clustered around Rule.
The Church of the Faithful worships…
…a goddess named Azá. The Most Reverend Patrick Harlowe is their leader. Father Hidalgo is one of their priests.
John “the Hulk” and Second are some of the guards. Helen is the Madonna, the bitchy, telepathic Her Holiness, and Her handmaiden.
Carlos Fuentes is a victim; Rachel is his wife. Della is Rachel’s big sister. Erica Jensen lives at 41-C, one of Rachel’s neighbors and a friend. Various witnesses include Stacy Farquhar; Theo; Franklin Booth; Therese Martin, who’s a hooker; Lisa; and, the young Abel Martinez.
I think Doris Beaton is from Lily’s childhood. John is Lily’s sensei. Bishop’s is a cop hangout. Sharon is one of the waitresses. Molly has a sorcerer friend, Michael. Sarah Harris had been Lily’s best friend as a child; Ginger had been Sarah’s older sister. Sarah. Sarah didn’t survive it. Sorcéri are a power, an energy leakage. The Species Citizenship Bill is coming up in Congress; it could save and destroy the lupi. The Codex Arcanum, the Book of All Magic, vanished centuries ago. Dis is what we call Hell. Raven is an Old One. Her or She is how the lupi refer to the enemy of their Lady.
The Cover and Title
The cover is split in a hazy line from top left to bottom right. The pale peach on the left, mysterious with its blurred woman’s face looking at us over her naked shoulder, and the black on the right. To the right of the woman’s face is a testimonial in white. The title, in red, spans her neck. While the author’s name, also in red, is below the winged pendant she’s wearing.
The title has gotta be Lily, for she is always out front, Tempting Danger.
