Alpha Unleashed (Alpha Girl Book 5)

This episode brings together all the characters in the series as strengthened by their close friendship. It shows how "sticking together" through thick and thin gets the job done, even against great odds. And yet, it leaves the reader at the end wanting to know what the future holds for each of the characters, some as couples and all as very closely bonded friends in their joint fight against negative/bad/evil in the world. This work inspires us to "get together" to help each other -- it is THE only way! I will certainly greet the next episode with eagerness to continue to share the adventure-- Thanks!

I’m pretty sure this is the last installment of this series. Might not be, but Erin summed everything up pretty nicely, so unless Dastien and Tessa are about to jump ahead 10 years and have cubs running around (her, Aileen – IDEA!!!, also – make it a little dirtier ;) ) I can’t see it continuing.

Tessa and Dastien are facing the last hurdle in beating that evil wench, Luciana. She has really taken things too far. The story has some devastating moments, not to key characters, but still. Now that they know she has turned to dark magic to the point where she’s practically a demon and not a witch anymore, they have to take drastic measures to cope and eradicate her existence.

Her friends (great group of friends!) help her figure out how to get her visions back, thus make her figure out how to sleep better at night. Good thing the two are connected. Only now, her fear of losing everything she holds dear is growing exponentially – which fuels the plot beautifully.

Tessa’s cousin, Claudia, has returned from South America with her mate in tow (love those two, btw) and while their insights don’t help the bigger battle that much, there’s definitely a plus by them not being tied to Luciana anymore. This gives some extra witch power to Tessa and the wolves side.

With a rebellion from the inside brewing, they all need to figure out fast what to do, and true to the way the series started – with a bang and packed with action – that’s how it ends, although slightly anticlimactic. I was expecting a little more touch and go moments in the final showdown.

In the midst of it all Tessa and Dastien find the time to complete their mating ceremony, promising they’ll be even more united in this war and in their life together. Their subconscious communication is some of my favorite parts in the book. Just so adorable.

Alpha Unleashed stands up to the title. Tessa is fulfilling her role as Alpha of her kind, her role as pseudo-leader to the witches and her role as Dastien’s mate, and it is all done with no restraints.

The book is written wonderfully, the closure is due and is well executed. A future take of them will be awesome.

** Thank you Sparkle Book Tours and Aileen Erin for a copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Title: Alpha Unleashed - Alpha Girls Book 5
Author: Aileen Erin
Publisher: Monster Ink LLC
Published: 9-22-2015
Pages: 356
Genre: Paranormal
Sub-Genre: Fantasy; Urban; Coming of Age
ISBN: 9780990635277
ASIN: B00BX52A0M
Reviewed For NetGalley and Monster Ink LLC
Reviewer: DelAnne
Rating: Stars

Tessa McCaide has had it up to here with supernaturals.

Luciana may have failed to steal Tessa’s magic, but she’s just getting started on her crusade for magical domination. If her demonic summoning isn’t stopped, it could mean the end of everything.

Tessa’s pack, including her mate Dastien, are ready to fight, but the ragtag group of shifters and witches are no match for Luciana’s power. A little help (and ancient Inca mojo) from Tessa’s bruja cousin, Claudia, may give the side of good a chance if she can make it home in time, but stopping the war is no longer an option.

When witches and werewolves fight, no one wins. Only time will tell who will still be standing after the last spell is cast.

The characters continue to grow and evolve. Aileen Erin evokes the desired emotions from her readers. As the final battle approaches, sides are chosen. The time is coming where only one will walk away. Is Tessa ready? Is she strong enough?

My rating of "Alpha Unleashed" is 4.75 out of 5 stars.

Alpha Unleashed is very likely my favorite of the series. There’s so much happening! The first third or so takes place concurrently with Bruja, so we get to see what was happening back at the compound. Nothing is as it should be. Tessa can’t feel some of her packmates in the pack bond anymore, wolves are fighting with each other, and she keeps having these moments where she can’t wake up, but isn’t exactly having a nightmare. And all of this is happening while Luciana is still out there, plotting who knows what. At least until her entire coven turns up dead, and there’s no way to cover that up from the humans.

Alpha Unleashed is really nonstop action and madness. Obviously Luciana is gearing up for something huge, but I honestly didn’t expect her to do what she did in order to set that up. It was beyond anything she had done up until that point, and for a moment I honestly thought there’d be a magical solution to it. But then as the story moved forward, it was clear that that was not the case. Tessa, the wolves, witches, and Cosette were not ready for that at all. I still definitely had hope that everything would work out!

I would be really happy with Alpha Unleashed as an ending to this series. Nearly everything was nicely resolved, and what’s left open, I could probably live with not knowing (but I do want to know what’s up with Cosette?!?!). I’m certainly not opposed to more though!

*Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher through NetGalley for review. No compensation was offered or accepted.

As a fan of the Alpha Girl Series, my expectations were met and exceeded with this latest installment. Finally, finally the confrontation between good and evil, heroine and villain, takes place and it’s every bit as exciting and nail biting as I could have wished.

Alpha Unleashed is the fifth book in the series and is not a standalone. For a reader to understand what is at stake, to understand the pain of friends lost, horrors visited and challenges overcome, one has to read the entire series, books 1-4, to experience the immense impact book five has for a follower of the plot arc and the heroine, Tessa and her alpha hero, Dastien. It’s told from first person POV and the author never missed a beat because a reader only knows what Tessa knows which left both of us open to the surprises and emotional challenges that pepper the novel.

All the loose ends get wrapped up in this final novel with regards to Luciana. That witch is vile, vindictive, determined and not quite herself; certainly not as any of her coven knew her to be, which is quite the surprise later on in the book. There is good news about Raphael, fascinating intrigue with the introduction of Van and his association with Cosette, Tessa and Dastien’s bond is finally sealed, but not done quite as expected and through it all, Tessa’s family provides the unconditional love and support that gives the heroine strength, and the story heart and grounding. Family is important – Tessa’s family and her pack family, and they’re worth fighting and dying for.

There is action galore especially in the final battle. There are many moments of suspense, of not knowing who will make it, what potions will work, who the enemies from within are, and who else will die. Not to mention the fact that the biggest kept secret is let out of the bag and the ramifications are almost overwhelming for Tessa, who for all intents and purposes, is still a teenager. Talk about growing up fast!

Tessa and Dastien are still wonderful together. The author focuses mostly on their relationship and the action, not so much on their love life, which is fine for me. The strength and support Dastien provides is immense but I adore their bantering, those moments of light humor and teasing and how Tessa is affected by just looking at her hero’s yummy abs. Those were fun scenes, special scenes, and they personified what was at stake if she and her allies failed to defeat Luciana.

Alpha Unleashed totally wowed me. Every question I had, every wish I hoped, all were more than met and I’m a very happy reader. The Alpha Girl Series was discovered by accident and it’s the best book series I’ve come across in quite some time. It’s unique, intelligent, meaty, romantic, action packed and it grips a reader’s imagination. It’s symbolizes the battle between good and evil and even though the heroes and heroines mostly wear fur instead of the requisite white hat, they get the job done. This is a well written novel and a compliment to the rest of the series – the cake topper, if you will. I heartily recommend this novel, and this series.

originally posted at long and short reviews

I've been following this series from the beginning, so when I saw book five was available, I snatched it up! *squee* Witches, vampires, magic and wolves—not to mention not-stop action—what more could a girl want?

Being part witch, Tess has never had what one would call a normal childhood. Meeting Dastien helped make sense of her chaotic world—even if he accidently turned her into a wolf. As she struggles with the new changes in her life, all Tess wants is a chance to spend time with her mate without someone trying to kill her. The witch, Luciana, hates wolves with a passion and will do whatever is necessary to destroy them, even steal the powers of her fellow witches. Tess barely escaped with her life, but others weren't as lucky. Determined to stop the evil spreading across the country, Tess gathers her friends and allies together, but this time, it might not be enough to save the world if they don't find a way to stop Luciana before she literally releases hell on earth.

I can't seem to help myself when it comes to this series. I loved the characters and the world building, and each successive book just gets better and better. Tess and her friends were portrayed so realistically, they came alive on the pages. The combination of action and romance, mixed with a few tough choices, kept me turning the pages faster and faster. Aileen Erin didn't pull any punches with her writing or her characters, and I ended up devouring the book in one sitting. Though the book wasn't perfect, the pacing slowing a bit in some spots, it didn't dim my enjoyment at all. I highly recommend reading the series in order or this book might lose some of its sparkle. I look forward to reading more from this series and this author.

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

ALPHA UNLEASED starts off taking place during the same timeline as BRUJA as well as after. The flow between the two books was well executed and I liked seeing what was happening at St. Alibe’s while Tessa was gone.

Both Tessa and Dastien have grown as individuals and as a couple. I'm really glad that we got to see them mate, finally. It was a long time coming and when it finally happened I thought it was done well, but wasn't what everyone was expecting.

I thought everything written in the Luciana story line well done. She brought a lot of evil, drama and strife to the series and I loved hating her. The conclusion to her story line was well executed with a ton of action and maddeningly evil and shocking circumstances.

So, ALPHA UNLEASHED was the end of Dastien and Tessa's story and I am a bit sad. I really like them as the main characters, but I thought their story ended in a way that could have ended the series and left everyone happy with its outcome. I didn't think I was going to like Claudia as a main character, but I did and the Alpha girl series has a really great cast of secondary characters so I am sure I will love anything that comes in the future.

* This book was provided free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

ALPHA UNLEASHED tied in well with BRUJA, plus the full moon ceremony was a go and the werewolves outted themselves to humans, so Aileen Erin definitely delivered on her promises. Tessa’s confrontation with Luciana was pretty terrific too. As a result, this book had an end-of-the-series vibe to it even though there was an author’s note promising otherwise, just not soon. All those pros notwithstanding, the five installment journey to get here could have been more proportionate instead of this race to the finish.

Tessa & Dastien finally get with the mating which was behind schedule in my opinion, and I wasn’t crazy about the way it went down. It was the werewolf equivalent of eloping, and after all of this talk about THE ceremony, I kinda felt cheated by the lack thereof. And, all of the “good stuff” happened off scene which was a bummer too, but it’s New Adult, so that quibble wasn’t taken into consideration in my rating. Still, Claudia & Lucas’ HEA was better.

Supes’ first public appearance is a common enough theme in Speculative Fiction, and personally I tend to give this particular thread a pass or a fail based on how well its impact on the world at large is described, and the masses reaction to the news. Erin did ok in both of these areas; however, the crunch to get ‘er all done in one installment took its pound of flesh from this fundamental element as well.

Luciana was the only character that was given enough room to fully do her thing. Her evolution as this series’ villain has been solid throughout, and the author really put the pedal to the metal in this novel; from the trail of carnage that the witch left in her wake, to the traps she set-up for the werewolves, and the unveiling of her ultimate objective. Erin may have teased us with lovemaking, but she swamped us with action!

ALPHA UNLEASHED was a good conclusion to Tessa & Dastien’s story.

The beginning wasn't that great, but when they decided to get their butts in gear it was awesome! If you just get past the beginning I promise you will love it. This series as a whole is very entertaining. The ending worked out like I wanted it to. Looking forward to reading any books set in this world in the future.

I've thoroughly enjoyed this series. The first half of the book overlaps Bruja slightly, so there's a bit of repetitiveness as some of the events are re-told from Tessa's view point instead. As the two stories take place on separate continents, it's not much of an overlap and easily blends into the story.

I've loved Tessa's and Dastien's story, and I've loved watching Tessa come to terms with her new world. I can see why the author wrapped up this story line and eliminated this big bad, and I'm grateful she did wrap it up in a way the series can now stand on its own. It seems so many authors these days would just drop them into another situation and string the series along. That being said, there were some things hinted at during the story line that never seemed to fully develop. The story ends right at the coming out party (for lack of a better phrase), and while Tessa is straddling that fine line like her Grandma foretold, it's not the solid footing or the leadership position I imagined when I first read that part. There feels like there was more to come. Yes the story line ended, but it didn't feel totally complete.

This might be the end of Tessa's story for now, but there's enough teasers out there that has me eagerly awaiting when the author wants to revisit this world. I give this a strong 4.5 stars, losing half a star simply because this is the end of the series, but it doesn't feel over.

I loved this book!!! It has action, romance and lots of paranormal stuff. Who could ask for more, lol I can't wait for the next book to come out in May 2016. There is some cursing and makeout scenes but they are clean. I would totally let my teenage daughter read this series of books. They are truly amazing!!!

Although there are still a lot of unanswered questions, I believe they will be answered in the spin off series. Yet, this book ended the battle with Luciana. I am happy with that and the battle was pretty good. However, I thought it would include witches and werewolves across the world, and it didn't. Coming out to the humans was a big step and I am sure that the next books will go into more detail about the benefits/consequences of that action.