“Get me the next book now! Desperately hungry for more. Absolutely loving this series. 5+” ~ DM“This book was everything that I wanted, needed, coveted and awaited.” ~ Elysian Fields In the seductive follow-up to A Pack of Blood and Lies, Ness Clark’s heart and legitimacy are again put to the test.She thought the fight was over, but it was only just beginning.At the end of the trials, Ness Clark … over, but it was only just beginning.
At the end of the trials, Ness Clark has earned her spot in her all-male pack and has won over her new Alpha, Liam Kolane. But her place amongst the Boulders and at Liam’s side is compromised. First when her cousin, who’s become enemy number one, claims Ness helped him elude his death sentence. And then, when August Watt, Ness’s childhood friend and confidant, comes home to Boulder, Colorado.
Although August’s plan was to pledge himself and return to active duty, he finds himself incapable of leaving. This becomes problematic for Liam and Ness, because a mating link has clicked into place between Ness and the ex-marine. If not consumed, the link will fade, but that’ll take months. How long and hard can two people fight a physical attraction that renders their bodies unreceptive to anyone’s but their mates?
Ness is tired of fighting, tired of having to prove herself worthy of her pack’s trust and of her Alpha’s affection. But when an enemy pack arrives and threatens the Boulders, she has two choices: step aside and let the wolves who have pushed her away fend for themselves, or step up and help them fight the newcomers.
Ness has never stepped aside…not for anyone.
Why would she start now?
** Not suitable for children under 15.
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“A Pack of Vows of Tears” is the second instalment in “The Boulder Wolves” YA/NA urban fantasy paranormal werewolves romance series by Olivia Wildenstein.
Ness (FMC) was exiled from the Boulder Pack for over six years, just to come back in time for late Alpha Heath Kolane demise and challenge his son Liam for the Alpha position in a fight (supposedly) to death. Ness managed the impossible, she has earned her own spot at the pack at Liam’s side, but the real struggle begins right now, because having a spot is not the same as finding a place between the all-male pack. Liam might be dating Liam, but her inner wolf follow her own will when bonds with August, on whom Ness has a crush since childhood. As the romantic menage à trois mix with the social pack dynamics, thing get complicated real fast.
Olivia Wildenstein’s story is interesting, easy-to-read, with great charters and a solid plot that explore the difficult relationship between males and females in the pack and due to the target audience YA & NA, abstains from the oversexualized narrative often used in the werewolf genre… a refreshing and welcomed detail. While the book depicts a classic romantic triangle, it is more to the story that mere paranormal romance, making the pack dynamics take an important part in the plot.
Fast paced, action packed with secrets, twists and reveals galore that continues straight after book one. There is a love triangle too, if you’ve read the first book, you know who I’m talking about as I’m not going to mention names (if you haven’t stop right now because you need to read “A Pack of Blood and Lies” first).
Honestly I’m totally rooting for one the guys, he seems perfect for Ness and treats her with love and respect. I mean, I know she is young and trying to find her feet in her otherwise all male pack who frustratingly keep doubting her, so why is she questioning their connection? The other guy, although he had his faults in book one, I liked him a lot too, but he has turned into a complete selfish a-hole, but he keeps getting inside her head for some reason, although I love the fact that Ness does not instantly forgive and forget. That ending….. heartbreaking, but a shocking dick move results from it. The man in question really needs to get his hot head out of his backside and do what is right for his pack and for the girl he is allegedly coveting.
You might think from that I didn’t like this book, but you’d be wrong, I loved it. It was enthralling and I couldn’t stop turning the pages! For me it is a sign of a great book when the characters and their actions get under your skin and make you feel everything alongside them and this is exactly what Olivia Wildenstein has done! So yes, I’m angry at one of the key characters, I don’t like what he has become and how he hurt Ness, but I’ve read this authors books before and she knows how to turn a character around, so I’m sure the third book is going to be a page turner too. I still want Ness to get the guy I’d choose and not the one taking advantage of her youth and insecurities, but who knows what twists are yet to come as new Boulder pack alpha Liam makes his stand against the enemy pack in his territory. I’m going straight on to find out.
Rating 4.5 stars
Shocking!!!
WTH happened in this book???… I was so in love with Liam and now
And then all this Creek’s s**t, revealing who is behind all that’s been happening with Everest, the escort agency and all that shady business!!!
Poor Ness, so confused between her feelings for Liam and the mate bond with August… I’m not sure how to feel about this triangle, as I really was rooting for Liam
But I can’t deny how well written this book is, how it played with my emotions, how I couldn’t guess what will happen next neither stop reading… Going straight for the next book!!!
A Pack Of Vows and Tears picks right up where the 1st book left off and was just as good. I get pulled right into this storyline. The audio narration is well done and enjoyable to listen to.
Looking forward to more
An uninvited, unexpected love triangle weaves through the veins of this book. There isn’t as much action as book one, here we are more focused on relationships and how the decisions from the first book have molded and changed not only the characters, but how the characters see and interact with each other. There is a lot going on under the surface, and by the end, it comes spilling out in multiple ways. There’s almost a schizophrenic undertone to the Boulder pack, with their “we take care of our own”, which is great, but then whiplashes into accusations and anger with just one horrible event. The emotions ran high in this book, tension, heartache, happiness, love, fear, confusion, all on a rollercoaster going for a ride. Looking forward to seeing how this all unfolds In the third book.
Just as I feared a “Sarah J. Maas” was pulled. Fortunately it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be, but I am never a big fan of either triangles or switcheroos. To this book and author’s credit though, it was handled as well as it could have and at the end of the day I am okay with it.
I was so in love with the romance in the first book, and with Liam the new alpha and Ness finally with a place in the pack. It was a bit of a sucker punch with August stepping into the picture and changing things up. However, change was slow, in a good way and unlike Sarah J. Maas’ case of ACOTAR it felt natural and not forced. The things that transpired, both between Liam and Ness and her and August was intense, dramatic and heartbreaking (in a good way) and in the end I couldn’t help but root for August and Ness together instead. And when the book started to build up to that I was glued to the story.
I of course still had some issues with the triangle (if you can call it that) like at some places it felt a bit out of character, but not so much so that it became unrealistic. It also helped that this drama was backed up and strengthened with everything else going on in the story with the Creeks, Everest and the pack. As much as I am usually anti triangle I could not only get passed it with such a suspenseful and thrilling read, but I also kind of liked it in this case, mainly because it managed to flow so naturally with the plot. It even gave a stronger romance and had me invested in the story from start to finish, sometimes in anticipation and some times admittedly in anger. All in all though, with the cliffhanger of an ending and an overall compelling storytelling, it would be rude to give A Pack of Vows and Tears anything less than four stars.
I loved it.
I was a bit angry when I read the premise of this book because I loved Liam in book 1 so much that didn’t want him turning into the not so good werewolf but after reading this book I still love him and understand better the mating bond between Ness and August. I guess it was inevitable.
Ness is more bearable in this book and the great plot and awesome secondary characters make this story totally worth reading. The writing is wonderful and keeps the interst during the whole book. Mysterious disappearances, murders, accidents, dangerous situtations, surprises, fights, family, friends, love,… everything is included in this story. It’s so entertaining that I almost read it in one sitting.
Best moments belong to Lucas and Sarah, they’re becoming the best (not) couple. I’m definitely going with next book.
Desperately needing the third audiobook to drop like now. Lol
This was such a incredible listen. I was hooked from the beginning of the book till the very end.
The second book starts off where the first book ended. Everest is still missing and the pack is looking for him. There are a couple of bombshell revelations as well as other happenings that happens in the pack community that just leaves you shocked and wanting more at the end.
Yes, there is a love triangle but the way the author writes it-it actually doesn’t bother me much. I’m actually disappointed in Liam. I would like to smack him around. August is such a gentle wolf. We shall see what happens next but I feel like I have an idea as to what will happen next. Looking forward to the next installment dropping on audible.
5 stars for A Pack of Vows and Tears by Olivia Wildenstein. This is book 2 in The Boulder Wolves Series. I am loving this series. Picks up right where book 1 left off and wow is this book a doozie. August was supposed to return to active duty, but he can’t. Ness and August have developed a mating link and don’t seem to want it. I am however not a big fan of Liam. I think he has hidden motives and I don’t trust him. I can not wait to see what happens in book 3.
Loved this follow up. So worth the wait and more. Filled with adventure, awesome and vibrant details and exciting characters that are amazingly strong and intriguingly familiar. The story is compelling and so engaging you won’t be able to put this book down
As I read and thoroughly enjoyed A Pack Of Blood And Lies and loving it so much I gave it 4 stars, I knew I had to read book 2! The cover would certainly catch my eye even more that bk1 as the orange on this cover is even brighter than the first book.
This picked up right where book one left off. I found that I slipped right back into the plot with the characters I already loved. Poor Ness Clark is continuing to try hard to both prove herself to her pack and settle in finally becoming one of them. Ness is also still stuck between two mate shifters, but if you thought that was bad enough it very quickly becomes even more complicated when Ness and August realise, they have been blessed the old and rare “mating bond”. It also becomes apparent very rapidly that Liam is most certainly not happy about this latest development. Just as all that is kicking in, there is a larger problem for new Alpha Liam! It seems Everest has run off rather than face what he has done. Even worse he has stolen the packs supply of Sillin. Sillin is a medication that prevents a shifter from actually shifting. It can also be used if a shifter has ingested silver so is a vital thing to have when there are so many threats around to the pack. When the “love triangle” learn that distance/absence can make the mating bond lessen and eventually end it seems everything will be solved when August goes back to the marines. Sadly, for August and his family, his mother, Isobel is seriously ill and he decides despite the mating bond she needs him to stay close to both help his father, Nelson, run their furniture business. Ness ends up helping out at the furniture business her father helped to build, though the Watts insist on paying her a good wage for doing so. It also aggravates Liam, thinking Ness is spending more time with August Watt. Naturally Ness and August reminisce about when they were younger, they share a lot of history together from when both families went on picnics etc. The job also helps to take Ness’s mind off the fact that the pack have voted to punish Everest by death at the hands of his own pack!
Soon Liam has more ammunition to throw at Ness when he finds an incriminating text which suggest Ness tipped Everest off that the pack were after him. Naturally all this puts extra stress on the relationship between Ness and Liam. The mating bond also makes it difficult to even kiss and get a little steamy between Liam and Ness so they break up. Things go from bad to worse in terms of any possible future relationship between the pair when Liam vows he will wait for Ness, and she happens to walk in a room as he is walking into from a bedroom with his hair all tousled having just slept with another girl.
The Inn is put in a kind of limbo with Everest gone and Ness’s Aunt Lucy being questioned in pack elder Eric’s basement, the rather large task of running it falls on Ness. Despite knowing she is integrating with the pack she is shocked when some of the females married into the pack turn up at the Inn to help her. Everything is once again upset when it is revealed that in the event of Everest, Ness’s cousin the Inn has to be handed over to Shifter Hunter and murderer of Ness’s father, Aidan Michaels!! There is also something else even bigger and more shocking revealed about Aidan Michaels but….my lips are sealed you need …yes need to read this book!
Another strain on the pack is the fact various of its members have smelled Creek Shifters in the area. In fact, when there is a car accident and yellow paint is found on the vehicle all signs point to the Creek pack running the vehicle off the road. The Boulder pack and the Pine pack manage to coexist with each other so its not great surprise when they join forces to meet the Creek Pack Alpha…..the Female Alpha!! When the Pine Pack Alpha, Julian Matz challenges the Creek Pack Alpha. . . things become dangerous very quickly.
The characters I loved the most in this book were Ness and as I think we got the chance to see and learn more about August I adored him even more in this book than the last one! I enjoyed being offended on Ness’s behalf by Liam who clearly didn’t believe her when it came down to her word about the fact, she hadn’t text Everest to warn him Liam and some other members of the pack were coming after him. I really wanted him to be wrong about Ness texting Everest which according to Liam was a betrayal of him and the pack. However, when needed later in the book, it is Ness who ends up putting herself on the line for the pack.
Another character I came to feel a fondness for in this book was Uncle Jeb. All he had to go through, being embarrassed and ashamed of his only child, Everest. Yet at the same time knowing it is not him that will decide on his son’s fate. He accepted the pack would decide, vote and carry out whatever sentence and punishment thought appropriate. Throughout all this upheaval Ness thinks she needs to sort out her living arrangements herself, knowing with being under 18 she needed to be with an appropriate adult. Ness was both happy and grateful, when Evelyn told her she and Frank wanted her to move in with them and they would be her guardians until she was 18. Ness is pleasantly surprised when her Uncle Jeb announces they are moving into another place he owns. It is also rare that shifters divorce, preferring to mate for life, but Uncle Jeb announces he is divorcing his wife Lucy!
So how did I feel when I finished reading A Pack Of Vows And Tears? My reaction was Oh wow! What an ending…..when can I read more? I started this one with a clear idea of who I wanted Ness to end up with, but now I am all the way back to being confused and torn about which shifter should end up with Ness! Maybe whoever doesbt and up with Ness could pair up with Sarah. ( that is unless Sarah is paired off with Lucas) So many hot shifters making Oodles of ‘book boyfriend’ material!
One last word if you love shifters (like I do!) you seriously need to start reading this series now!
Excellent fast paced story that I couldn’t put down!
“If you kiss me, then you can’t leave,” he murmured. It took me a moment to make sense of his words. “Why not?” “Because you can’t feed a starving man, then take away his food.”
Not as fast paced as the first one, but full of twists and turns that keep you hooked till the very end. I can’t wait for the third book.
This series is so unpredictable and will keep you on the edge of your seat, desperate to know what is next. There is a love triangle that will confuse your mind and destroy your heart. Another great read. I cannot wait for the next one!
An emotional rollercoaster full of thrills, excitement and pure perfection! I’m speechless and struggling to find words to justly describe the emotional, engaging depth of this story. The writing is beautiful, the story is complex, and the characters are relatable and evoked all kinds of feelings in me. I loved the mystery and twists within the storyline and am still deciphering several. I can’t wait for the next book and if you enjoy shifter books at all, this is an absolute must read!
So just finished book 2…. that was intense. I am so loving this series, can’t wait for book 3. Seriously I’m so excited to find out what comes next. I’m so loving August and totally want to strangle Liam.
Fantastic read, well written with a great plot and characters. I was engrossed from start to finish. This book is an action packed, fast paced, edge of your seat read with twists and turns you won’t see coming! I couldn’t put this book down! Ness is more confident and stronger and her relationships are more complicated with Liam and August. I cant wait to read the next book…..absolutely love this series!
This second book in the series has ramped up the angst and tension ten-fold. Ness is still fighting her mating bond, still figuring out where, if at all, she fits in Liam’s life, and still trying to find her cousin. Things are much like the first book…until Olivia Wildenstien shakes things up in the most devastating and fitting way possible. Personally, I’m actually stoked about how some of that shake-up settled. I enjoyed the twists and hard lefts that were delivered. And I also appreciated that Ness remained true to herself even amidst the heartbreak, doubts, anger, and confusion. She’s still a strong female character and because of her strong personality and all she goes through it’s easy to forget she’s only 17. The reader is reminded a few times of her age, which helps when she’s being wishy-washy, or too angst-filled, to remember that that’s pretty true to character for a teen. Especially, when you throw in all the mitigating factors of everything that’s going on or is still on-going. I really liked the way Olivia keeps pushing all of the characters to their limits in this book, and making them face the things that scare them or fully anger them in order to reveal to the reader, or in some cases disguise, character motivations. And with the way this book ended its safe to say I’m 100% team August as well as 100% ready for the conclusion of this trilogy
This series is getting better and better. One you think one thing is going to happen they totally throw you for a loop and change things up. Ness is so torn between two males that she doesn’t know what to do. Liam has her so unnerved that she runs to August her fated mate. I hope hope that in book 3 we get to finally see who she chooses. I’m rooting for both if I get a say is how it turns out. Lol. I give it 5 stars. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book as an Advanced Reader’s Copy.
So…yeah. I didn’t adult today and this is the reason why!
Literally I couldn’t physically put this down! The will she and the won’t she killed me!!!! I like Ness, I truly do. But holy crap! This is one of those edge of your seat reads, just because there is no telling what is going to happen next. This book showcases how depression affects everyone differently. There is also quite a bit of manipulation, just like the previous book.
I sure hope the next book comes out soon. I don’t think I can handle the wait.