War of Hearts

S. Young, best known as Samantha Young, will take you on a roller coaster ride with her debut into the Paranormal Romance genre!

Thea Quinn is a 25 year-old powerful supernatural whose on the run from a sadistic man named Jasper Ashforth. See, Thea doesn’t know what she really is and Jasper wants to use her for his own personal gain.

So Ashforth seeks the help of Conall MacLennan, the alpha of the last wolf pack in Scotland. Conall is great at tracking and he’s willing to hunt Thea in order to save his baby sister whose plagued with a blood disease that’s slowly killing her as Thea’s blood is the cure.

Conall’s main objective is to bring Thea back but he doesn’t count on the sudden chemistry that develops between him and her. It’s truly explosive… And with time, Conall begins to see that Thea is not who they say she is while Thea discovers her true origin along the way.

War of Hearts was such a great read! I was constantly on the edge of my seat. It was addicting with a sweet, sweet slow burn feel. PNR is a genre that is dear to my heart and I’m so happy to have read this one. I’m hoping for more books in this world #fingerscrossed.

I was lucky enough to read an advance copy of War of Hearts and this book has reignited my love of paranormal romance! Conall MacLennan is my new favorite possessive alpha hero and Thea Quinn is my new favorite feisty tough heroine. The chemistry between these two was off the charts and I stayed up late into the night turning the pages. Definitely one to add to your TBR list.

When I found out Samantha Young was releasing a paranormal book I was so excited. One of my favorite books by her is Slumber, so when I saw she was going back to the paranormal/fantasy side of her writing I was so here for it. War Of Hearts was such a good read and I just loved it from start to finish.

Thea and Conall are both such great characters. Thea is incredible. I loved her strength and determination and I loved that she could lay everyone out flat. She was a force to be reckoned with. And Conall is a grumpy alpha werewolf and naturally I loved him. He was so gruff but also so sweet and once he decided how he felt about Thea he didn’t hold back. He melted my heart at times. I also loved the way their relationship grew. It was a delicious slow burn and enemies to lovers. Their chemistry was insane and I just really loved them together. Also I love how their relationship was so balanced and had such a give and take. Conall is still an alpha, but being an alpha doesn’t mean you’re a controlling jerk at all times, he respected Thea and her decisions even when he wished she would just stay in bubble wrap.

And while the romance is wonderful, the action and suspense also delivered. The story to this one keeps you on your toes and it’s hard to put down. This isn’t a short book but I devoured it. It has a real addictive quality to it and it was hard to stop reading once I dove in. I loved all the action in this one and I love how it complemented the romance side so well.

War Of Hearts was a great read and I really hope we get to go back to this world. Conall and Thea’s story is complete but there is definitely room for more stories in this world.

War of Hearts was a touch slow out of the gate, but quickly becoming quite the captivating read! I loved Thea and Connall! Thea’s abilities had so many facets to discover and poor Connall, he bit off more than he realized, but it would be the best mistake he made. Both for him and his sister.
The romance between Connall and Thea was a genuinely fab slow burn, allowing both characters to get to know one another, even under duress, in the best way possible.

Overall, this was a surprising read! I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but War of Hearts was a great mix of everything-mystery, action, hidden history, secrets, and a fated-mates romance that will melt hearts while Thea and Connall take names and kick butt;)

I was in the worst book slump of my life. I knew I needed to get through my “stuff” so I could read this ARC. When I say down to read War of Hearts, i was worried I wasn’t going to kick my slump. 3rd POV is difficult for me to connect to. But Young is one ofy favorite authors so I knew if I gave it time, I would be able to connect with Thea and Conall. And I did. I loved both characters and their journey to overcome all the hurdles in their path. I really hope we get more Thea and Conall adventures.

So this is Samantha’s first delve into the PNR world, I was very intrigued by the blurb and with PNR being one of my favourite reads I just couldn’t resist…. glad I didn’t, this really was an excellent and addictive read, and quite a different take on things which made the read very interesting, the world she has built was very well done and I really enjoyed this. Even though its a standalone read, there is a lot of scope for more out of this world.

Conall is the Alpha and Chief of the last werewolf pack in Scotland, he loves his pack and his family, hating that he has to watch his sister suffer from a lycanthropic disease for which there is no cure. He is due to meet up with another pack from America and arrange to have a mate, a business dealing really to strengthen both packs, not something done for emotions.

Conall is contacted by a businessman who says he can cure his sister, but in order to do so must use his unique tracking skills to find and fetch back a young woman who has murdered the businessman’s wife and lots of other people since then. Proof of the cure is shown to Conall and he makes and unbreakable contract to retrieve her, anything to enable him to cure his sister.

Thea has been on the run for the past 6 years, living by any means possible in order to evade being caught by Him. She knows she is different from normal people, but she has no idea just what she is. She has special powers and she is strong and fast, killing people they send to capture her when necessary, but really just trying to stay alive and free. But when Conall turns up and captures her things take a different turn. She knows he has been sent to take her back, but others are also after her, and they end up fighting together to stay alive, learning to trust one another, and fighting their attraction for each other, which proves to be too much to resist.

A brilliant story line, action packed with a wonderfully strong heroine and and equally as strong Alpha male, they really were perfect for each other, their chemistry was very intense but was more along the slow burn lines, which didn’t detract from the story. I loved the world and the paranormals in there, the wolf shifters and their family and pack values and how they interacted with the human world, then you have the other paranormals like the vampires and witches, which we don’t learn an awful lot about, but this certainly leaves it open for more books in this world. Definitely worth the read whether your a hardcore PNR fan like me or not, I think you would really enjoy this and should give it a go.

As always I am going to do my best to be spoiler-free.
I can’t recall ever reading any of Young’s previous works, but after reading the blurb for War of Hearts I knew I couldn’t pass this one up.
Fantasy and Paranormal are my go-to genre and I have read a lot of different variations and visited some pretty creative universes but what Young offered?
A whole new universe that changed the paranormal game.
The story is a first in series and sets up the direction for future episodes. Young does a fabulous job of keeping the details exciting and keeping the reader engaged as she sets the foundation for this series.
Her characters were an absolute blast to journey with.

Thea is innocent in so many ways. Yes, she is one bad arse supernatural of unknown origin who has had her innocence cruelly ripped from her and lost those she trusted ( if you are a paranormal junkie you will most likely pick up on the clues but be careful which direction you lean toward). She has spent years running, hiding, living in fear – doing what she had to survive. When she is faced with being dragged back to her past she fights even if she has to leave a bit of carnage in her wake. She has no intention of bellying up for some stuffy holier than though werewolf mercenary.
Lawds I loved that girl.
Despite everything she has faced she still had a kind and caring heart – but don’t let that fool you – I would NOT want to get on her bright side (pun intended – no, you have to read it!)

Conall sort of pissed me off in the beginning. He knew something felt off but he let his ego and well his emotions make his choices.
I get it but if he wants to play the better man card he can’t pick and choose when it suits him best. I admit he has good reason to be arrogant but watching him get knocked down a peg or two – wholly entertaining

Conall agrees to acquire Thea in exchange for the cure to save his sister. I’m so wanting to rant about what a blind fool he is at this point but I won’t . So off he goes on a neck-breaking adventure.
What can go wrong? Right?
Strong Alpha vs evil bad girl… good always win. Yes?
Men

Loved the little back and forth between our h and H. They are both so darn stubborn.
The story line is solid, easily setting into motion future episodes
All the suspense and action I enjoy in an engrossing read with just the right amount of romance at the right time

I’m looking forward to seeing where they take us next.

OMG I love Paranormal and all my paranormal authors doesn’t have any new releases. So when I saw Tillie Cole raving about this book, I knew I had to have it. And I was not disappointed. This book was awesome.

Thea Quinn is 25 years old and on the run. She looks like a perfectly normal human being but she is anything but normal. She has abilities that she doesn’t even know how it works or where it came from. Now she is on the run from someone really evil and trying to survive by living in the shadows, relying on her supernatural powers to warn her of any evil after her.

Conall Maclennan is the alpha of the last werewolf pack in Scotland. He is loyal, honerable and has lots of responsibilities on his shoulder. His sister is dying and there is nothing that can save her. Until a businessman comes along and has a cure and all he needs to do is find a dangerous women named Thea Quinn and bring her to this man. Being one of the best trackers that shouldn’t be too hard for him. But that is easier said than done. Thea is not going to be a willing captive at all. And its not like he is the only one after her either.
Things aren’t what they seem with this women and he has never met someone as fierce or strong as her and not to speak about her abilities. How will Conall handle his attraction to Thea and not to mention all the danger around them?

This book was filled with lots of action, amazing slow burn romance. Great world building and amazing characters. All I can say is I hope this is not the last paranormal book from this author and we get to see the other characters in this story also get their own stories. Definitely worth 5++ stars

What happens when one of your absolute favorite romance authors writes a paranormal romance?!?!

Well….if you’re me, you get swept away into a world unlike your own and you revel in the characters’ rich histories, their unexplainable, otherworldly connections and skillsets, and their absolute magnificence when it comes to what they’re willing to do for those they love and how those actions help to define exactly who and what these characters are.

I know that War of Hearts is classified as an enemies-to-lovers’ storyline, but I never saw Conall and Thea as true enemies, not in the way that most would define that idea. These two start off as strangers and then are put on different sides by misleading information and lies. Conall’s disdain forThea stems from a litany of false facts, so while yes, he took issue with Thea and what he deemed as her ‘reprehensible’ acts, the truth wasn’t that difficult for Conall to see once he stopped viewing the world in only black and white and used his instincts and his ability to read people to perceive exactly who and what Thea is, his entire life was turned upside down, in both positive and negative ways, making every action he took, every command he gave a choice between his sister and the woman who has become more to him than any other one has.

Even though Conall frustrated me a bit with his closed-minded views on various aspects of life – ones that were eventually explained the further I read in the story, I was completely captivated by him the second S. Young introduced him to readers. He is definitely a man’s man, even if he is a werewolf. He exudes a commanding presence and he demands respect at all times, unwilling to allow anyone or anything to act in ways unbecoming of a clansman/woman. I loved how Young slowly unraveled Conall’s control when it came to the pull he felt toward Thea, a being who was supposed to be a means to an end, a tracking job that would benefit him greatly and would also keep the world safe against a woman he believed was a danger to society.

For everything that Thea has been through, for all the unknowns she can’t find answers to, the fact that she still views humanity the way that she does and understands that not all people are like the sadistic bastard who used her for his own maniacal needs is amazing. She’s done things she’s not proud of and things she wished she didn’t have to do, but they needed to happen so that she could survive and no one can fault her for those actions. At the heart of Thea is a ferocious fighter who helps those who cannot help themselves regardless of all that she herself has suffered. And the fact that she doesn’t trust easily or truly understand how to show positive emotion fits how she has lived for so long on the run or in the hands of someone who wanted her for purely selfish reasons.

The connection between Conall and Thea is almost instantaneous, despite the fact that they don’t see eye-to-eye on many things and then as the story unfolds and the truth is told and learned and accepted, their bond only fortifies further, changing the dynamics of both of their lives for the better, despite the push and pull that still exists between them due to their alpha demeanors and behaviors. It’s a battle of wills, of strength, and of passion with these two and all of that plays out extremely well among the pages of War of Hearts.

The way that S. Young uses research, journals, and history to unravel Thea’s origin story was a unique way to figure out what she is and what her life was meant for and once all of the truths are gathered and understood, where it leads not only Conall and Thea but Conall’s clan as well as those who want Thea dead is filled with suspense, action, and declarations that brought everything together in a way that not only complemented the story line but also showed how Conall and Thea were where they were both meant to be – by each other’s side.

I truly hope this is only the beginning of S. Young’s foray into paranormal romance. I had so much fun reading this story and there are many secondary characters who I would love to know more about, especially a certain alpha female and Conall’s beta.

4.5 Poison Apples

WAR OF HEARTS is the first instalment in S. Young’s contemporary, adult, TRUE IMMORTALITY paranormal romance series focusing on thirty year old, Alpha and Chief of Clan MacLennan Conall MacLennan, and twenty-five year old, Thea Quinn.

Told from dual third person perspectives ( Conall and Thea) WAR OF HEARTS follows the building relationship between thirty year old, Alpha and Chief of Clan MacLennan Conall MacLennan, and twenty-five year old, Thea Quinn. Conall Maclennan has been tasked with bringing in a killer; a young woman of unknown supernatural origin but a woman who has been identified as the killer in a series of deaths across Europe. Unbeknownst to Conall, Thea has been targeted by someone from her past, someone who is desperate to bring Thea under his control. What ensues is the continental journey of Thea and Conall; the building relationship between Thea and Conall; and the potential fall-out as Thea finds herself facing her own mortality.

Thea Quinn lost her parents at an early age and therefore has no idea as to her natural heritage. Raised by an abusive and sadistic man, Thea’s escape from imprisonment meant our heroine must remain under the radar without relationships or friends. Conall MacLennan is about to discover that the woman he has been contracted to bring under control is his fated mate. Unaware of the truth, Conall must come to terms with the possibility that his mate is a killer, and unable to control.

The relationship between Conall and Thea is one of immediate attraction but begins acrimoniously as Conall finds himself battling between head and heart as it pertains to the job at hand. Thea is not what she appears to be, and when the truth is revealed, Conall must protect the woman with whom he will fall in love. The $ex scenes are intimate and passionate, without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters many of whom are members of Conall’s Pack. We are introduced to Conall’s sister Callie and her soon to be husband James; hunters Grace and Angus MacLennan vampire Vik; North American Alpha Peter Canid, and his children Richard and Sienna; Jasper Ashforth, and his son devon.

WAR OF HEARTS is a story of family, responsibility, power and control. The premise is fast paced, engaging and entertaining; the character are energetic and dynamic; the romance seductive and captivating. WAR OF HEARTS is an exciting, imaginative and inventive tale of fated mates and happily ever after.