Wild About You (Love at Stake Book 13)

I so wanted to simply title my review "CRAP", however, I was able to reel myself in. What on earth happened with the love at stake series - Howard's story should have been MUCH better. The entire story was lame...

I expect some chuckles and a great read - I got nothing. I can only hope that the next installment is better.

I bought this book because of all the positive reviews and I was looking for a new paranormal author to start reading. Was really hoping this one would be good, but its honestly one of the worst I have read this year...and I have gone through a lot of bad books lately. ;(
Howard, a supposedly hunky and SMART ware-bare falls in love with a girl on a TV show that fixes old houses. His friend finds out and manages to get the girl, Elsa, to agree to fix their old house and that is how Howard finally meets her. What follows is a really long and drawn out pseudo-romance of which Howard constantly makes a fool of himself to get his girl, and Elsa goes back and forth about how she feels depending on how the wind is blowing that day. Add in some unnecessary drama that has nothing to do with the real story and just makes the book longer and you have book that takes way to long to read and leaves you really hating both characters by the end. Which I have say...rarely happens to me so I gotta give props for that.
From the reviews I have read it seems like the "Love at Stake" series is captiviating. I get that sometimes there is going to be one bad apple in the bunch. But this one scarred me just enough to not really want to find out about any of the other characters.

elsa is boring, the stupid things she says and the weird relatives and the whole story in general is worthy of 4 eye rolls, enought to make you dizzy. This is just not worth your time. Minimal romance. The vengeance story should have been the main focus.

Just to much talking and not enough action or romance, the book didnt get good until I was at 70%. I hate when you state the same thing over and over and over again. I was skimming through hoping the book would end.

Had the release date marked on my calendar because I love this series. This book was just as suspenseful heart warming as the others. Read the book in under 2 days now just have to wait 6-12 months for book 14.

Wild About You - Kerrelyn Sparks
Love At Stake Series Book 13
Howard Barr has been in the picture since the first book. The big man who was usually eating bear paw donuts. Just there in the background. Now we get to see the inner workings of the big guy and what makes him tick. Some things from his past must be settled before he can look to the future, a future that has just turned much brighter.

Elsa Bjornberg's life is about to change when her TV show gets a call to remodel a house in the Adirondack Mountains. Something is calling to her the further they get into the forest. Almost like she belongs there. And when she meets the handsome man who is actually taller than she is....all seems good. That is until his touch ignites something in her and not in a good way.

Kerrelyn also gives us a look inside Shanna's head. She has been a vampire for three months now and we see her struggles as a mother who dies each day and has no control when it comes to protecting her children during those hours. This book has some very unique incidents that are so different from any of her other books. Once again showing the authors unique abilities in writing an intriguing story that holds the readers attention from beginning to end.
**Sexual situations
**Received through Edelweiss for review

In the Wanted: Undead or Alive, we last saw Howard chasing after werewolf packmaster of Alaska, Rhett Bleddyn, who disappeared with some vampire help. We find our why in Wild About You. Rhett Bleddyn like Howard is from Alaska. We learn right away that twenty years ago, on the night of the senior prom, Rhett was responsible for the death of Howard's first love and during the ensuing fight it was believed that Howard killed Rhett. Howard was then banished from Alaska. Now Howard knows that Rhett didn't die that night and Howard wants Rhett to pay for what he has done.

While Howard is away, Tino Draganesti lets out a secret to his mother which involves Howard's dream girl. After a little snooping, Shanna learns that Howard's dream girl is Elsa Bjornberg a/k/a the store Ellie from International Home Wreckers. Shanna has been unhappy about having to leave her White Plains home and move to the Dragon Nest Academy. So she decides to kill two birds with one stone and she invites Elsa and her team to renovate the carriage house on the grounds of the Academy.

When Howard returns from Alaska, he is not happy with Shanna's meddling, but he won't turn down the opportunity to get to know Elsa in person and see if she is the same person he has fallen for in his dreams.

Elsa has never felt dainty and feminine until she meets Hot, Hunky, Handsome Howard Barr. She realizes why Howard is so big when she sees him change into a grizzly bear. Howard will have his work cut out for him trying to convince Elsa that he is really a teddy bear at heart.

Elsa is very excited to work with Howard until she begins having dreams right after meeting Howard that are too like the stories that her aunts used to tell her about a family curse. What is worse is that soon Howard realizes that the curse sounds too much like the curse his grandfather tells stories about and both legends end the same--with the beast killing his lover.

Do they have to toss away the greatest love either has known? Neither want to believe that a curse can tear them apart, but should Elsa and Howard resist their feelings for Elsa's safety or fight together against the dangers facing them?

Kerrelyn Sparks works her magic again. This time for sweet and cuddly Howard Barr. Howard has been around since the first books, always in the background, always as someone the group can depend on and we start to see Howard emerge from the background in Sexiest Vampire Alive when Howard goes with Gregori and Abby on their mission.

I would have liked to see a little more romance between Elsa and Howard since she did spend a lot of time being afraid of the family curse and coming to terms with Howard being a were-bear. This mixed in with the side story of Rhett Bleddyn and Elsa coming to terms with her family issues, we had a lot of ground to cover in the 236 pages we were given and the romance was only squeezed in between all the happenings.

Howard the cute cuddly Kodiak Bear shifter meets his curse, heart first. Finally, the series's Pooh bear finds some happiness.
Howard's HS sweetheart was killed, a werewolf was missing presumed dead, and he was blamed and banned from his people. He has worked for the vampires as their day guard for years and when they hear of his interest in a certain home improvement celebrity they hook them up in secret. When a hot burning curse wakes up old tales and old fears Howard brings out the picnic basket. (Yes, a picnic basket) He works his romance, he runs from Aunts and falls hard but when a previously dead were-bad-guy shows up alive and even more wicked everything changes.
Fun, funny, sweet, and very interesting with the addition of yet another para-something special to add to the family. Howard will leave you with a smile.

Wow! I freely admit to stalling about reading this installment in the series. Something about Howard just didn't strike me as sexy or interesting. Maybe it's because he always comes across as a bit of a big teddy bear or fatherly figure to the many people he protects. Either way, I was wrong. I should've picked this book up the moment it came out because it was a wonderfully entertaining read!

Howard is trying to tie up loose ends at home. I don't recall if we got any information about his past before, but this book will certainly fill in any gaps. While he tries to purge his demons, matchmaking meddlers are working to bring him and his longtime TV personality crush, Elsa (the sledgehammer wielding home renovator) together. I love these books, so I give them a certain amount of leeway when it comes to build up of the romance. They tend to go from zero to love in very little time. Here, we get a little mix of courtship and "fated mates" type romance. Either way, it's 100% hot. This book really changed the way I see Howard, and it's like I get a whole new character out of it.

Elsa and Howard were a well matched couple in this world, and I can easily see how they fit perfectly in the universe. As a bonus, we also got little tid bits from the stars of previous books. If you've never read a book in this series, I think you could probably start from this one, but why would you? They are all so good, you should start from the beginning and enjoy them all in order!

Wild About You A Paranormal Romance with a dash of Mystery and a bit of humor. Entertaining and amusing, the story of Howard Barr the were-bear and Elsa reads smooth and easy.
This is the 13th book in Kerrelyn Sparks Love at Stake series. Each book in this series takes on very different elements. This one is a sweet romance of Howard's secret attraction to Elsa and his courtship of her. There is a mystery surrounding Elsa, her aunts and a curse that is a part of Howard's ancient family history.
There are a three components that slowed the story down for me. The fight scene could have been more intense. Elsa seemed at times to be fearful. The intimate scenes could have used more passion and detail.
Wild About You (Love at Stake Book 13)

Title: Wild About You

Series: Love at Stake bk 13

Author: Kerrelyn Sparks

Genre: Paranormal

Handsome Howard...
Hunky Howard...
Hot Howard...

It's not every day that Elsa Bjornberg feels delicate, not when she hosts a home renovation show where she can effortlessly demolish a kitchen. But from the moment she meets Howard Barr, this bear of a man makes her feel like a woman. And the way he looks at her, as if she were a pot of honey he'd like to lick...

Howard is not like most men. For one thing, he's a shapeshifter. And he always thought his celebrity crush would never amount to anything more than drooling at Elsa on TV. When his meddling vampire employer gets involved, the star is suddenly within his grasp--and within a hair of her life. For an ancient curse forbids their newfound love, and Howard is suddenly torn between his desire for her and his desire to keep her alive.

Ever since I discovered this series I haven't wanted to know more about Howard and it is finally time to discover more about him.

One of the things I like about this series is the humor and angst that always happens in these books and let me tell you there was those moments in this book.

Howard has always been on of those characters who is there but that we don't know much about. All of that changes however in this book.

Howard is haunted by events that happened when he was a teenager that shaped the rest of his life. While he wasn't happy about living in exile he was content because he thought the person responsible for his exile was dead. When he discovers that to be a lie all bets are off. He's now determined to rectify what happened to his family.

He's also been harboring a secret tv crush on Elsa, a woman strong enough to handle his bear.

Elsa hasn't had an easy life, but she's ok with where her life is at. That is until she meets Howard and then all bets are off. When her aunts show up determined to keep them apart because of something had happened so far in the past no one was sure what exactly happened between Elsa's ancestors and Howard's.

The odds for these two seemed insurmountable, and both Howard and Elsa are determined to protect the other one by staying away, even as they are drawn to each other. With the help of Howard's meddling cousins, and Shanna Howard's boss the two are given times they swear they will cherish forever as they part.

One of the things I love most about this series is the humor and angst that happens not only to the main characters, but also that happen as a direct result of the interference of the other characters, and there is plenty of that in Wild About You.

We also get to see more of the struggle that Shanna is having adjusting to being a vampire, and her mom's struggle as well.

If there is one thing I would like to see it's Shanna's brother show up. He's been mentioned in past books but we haven't seen him.

Overall this was an excellent addition to this series, and I can't wait to see what happens next.

Grade B+
Review by: Heather

[...]

I developed a soft spot for Howard Barr (the were-bear) over the course of the last few novels so was really excited that he would meet his match. Howard has a crush on THE Elsa Bjornberg. Heard of her? Me neither. Elsa is a host of a home renovation show and Howard watches the show religiously just to see her in action. His employer, Shanna Draganesti, decides that he needs a little nudge in the right direction and so invites Elsa and her crew to renovate the Draganesti pile.

Howard is a teddy-bear of a guy, which makes sense as he can actually shift into a Kodiak bear. He is shy so it takes us a long time to get to know him beyond his love of donuts. Howard was banished from his home in Alaska after the death of his girlfriend. He accepted his fate because of the power of a rival clan and resigned himself to living alone. When his arch-enemy Rhett Bleddyn reappears, Howard decides to get his revenge once and for all. Many alpha males would charge in and damn the consequences - Howard though decides to systematically break Rhett by destroying everything he holds dear before moving in for the kill. I was pleasantly surprised by this ruthlessness. No idea why Howard looks grey on the cover though.

Elsa looks like an the storeian but doesn't have the heart of one. She's self-conscious about her size and Howard's affection throws her. It takes her quite a while to work out whether she wants to pursue a relationship with him and she is tempted to give up when faced with her crazy aunts' disapproval. Elsa is a victim of a curse and has this tattoo on her body that burns when she comes into contact with Howard. Common sense dictates she stay away but our favourite were-bear is oddly compelling.

This is a filler novel in many ways as it doesn't develop the war with the Malcontents. Instead we have a classic tale of revenge juxtaposed with a new romance. At times the two halves didn't mesh properly but when they did (towards the end), it was really entertaining. I particularly relished the berserker back-story and how it impacted on the modern feud.

"Wild About You" isn't exactly brain food but it is really fun. If you are in the mood for a light and fluffy paranormal romance, this might just do the trick.

Book: Wild About You (Love At Stake series #13)
Author: Kerrelyn Sparks
Rating: M (Mature Audience - nothing out of the norm for a romance novel)
Bookshelves: Alaska, bear, fiction, Love At Stake series, Kerrelyn Sparks, New York (upstate), old wives tales, paranormal romance, romance, shapeshifter, werewolf
Setting: coastal Alaska, upstate New York
Characters: Howard Barr, Elsa Bjornberg, Roman Draganesti, Shanna Whelan/Shanna Draganesti

Synopsis: Howard Barr is a former football playing hulk of a hunk who secretly lusts after the the storeian Nordic beauty, Elsa Bjornberg. Blonde and beautiful, Elsa works for a DIY home-wrecking/remodeling TV show that has taken the job of revamping (pun COMPLETELY intended!!) Shanna and Roman Draganesti's cabin near the Dragon's Nest School. Shanna and Roman (as vampires) can't oversee the remodel of their cabin during the day ... but Howard (head of security at the school) can. Howard is FLOORED when he sees Elsa, in person, for the first time. For the first time in ... ever ... Elsa feels like a feminine woman around a man. Howard is a huge, six-foot-six beast of a beautiful man with gorgeous eyes and hands that makes Elsa want to forget the stories her family passed down from the old country about the berserkers who would eventually kill her. Howard's biggest problem? He's a bear-shifter ... and one of the berserkers that Elsa's family has warned her about. Can Elsa give in to her feeling for Howard? Can Howard save the beauty he's come to love ... even if it's from himself?

Review: I love, love, love, love, love Kerrelyn Sparks and all of her books in the Love at Stake series. This was a great book that finally tackled Howard's story. I've been waiting for Howard's tale since I started reading this series a couple years ago. The only problem I saw in this book, I actually remember more compassion and emotion coming from Howard in some other books that only mentioned him as a side character. Sparks is a fantastic writer but I feel like Howard needed a little more attention and to be a little more rounded. I just think Howard was almost a little too flat. But Elsa was perfectly rounded. I can't wait to hear more about them as the series continues on.

In my opinion, this book gets:
5 out of 5 stars
Perfect ... just perfect.

Like so many of Sparks' novels I instantly fell in love with the latest installment of The Love at Stake series. Shy, quiet Howard transforms in his starring role into Handsome, hunky Howard and I loved every second of it!

Wild About You read a bit different than previous installments in the series. Not in a bad way, but there was just more of a serious tone and less laugh out loud moments than I'm used to in a Sparks book. We get an insider look at how Shanna Draganesti (How to Marry a Millionaire Vampire) is dealing with her newly undead status. (Let's just say if there's a such thing as post-vampire depression, she's got it bad.) Fortunately, to take her mind off her own troubles she throws herself into the role of matchmaker for the ever-present, but mysterious, bear shifter Howard.

Throughout Love at Stake we gradually learn more about Howard's past including a heinous banishment from his homeland, a rivalry with the wolf shifter Rhett Bleddyn (baddie from Wanted: Undead or Alive), and a curse that's plagued his kind for centuries.

'Elsa the the store' is the star of a home and renovation show 'International Home Wreckers'. At 6'2 she's used to being an oddity, and an outcast. She longs for a man that can make her feel girly and loved. And Howard delivers. Unfortunately for our loving duo Elsa also has a family curse and it could put a stop to their relationship before it can even start.

If you're a fan of Paranormal Romance I have no doubt you'll love Karrelyn Sparks' entire Love at Stake series including Wild About You. It's fast, fun, and filled with enough drama to make it a winner!

i fell instantly in with the Love at Stake series when a friend bought me the first book and tolled me i needed a little more laughter in me life. every book as been based on the same bases of falling in love. but the each had their own original story line. everybook so far that i have read in the sries was perfect. and this one is almost no exception, but i felt there was something missing in this book. i have not been able to pin my finger on what that something is, but some how it didnt quite feel right. it was almost as if the story was changed before it was printed and the rewritten story didnt have the usual spirit in it. while very good and deffinately a piece of art like the previous stories, i almost feel like it was a little hollow as if this was the secound best copy. i wish i could explain it better. it just felt like it was a masterpiece an artist had done, and then redid it even though it would never be as good as the first one.

This was another fabulous read from Kerrelyn! She created the perfect story for Howard. I loved the new characters she brought into this book, they were well-developed, interesting, charming & lovable (well, the last two really only apply to the "good guys"!). She also added a new paranormal race of people into this book that will certainly add color & many more interesting plot possibilities in her future stories. I absolutely loved the entire storyline. As always, her humor made me laugh out loud; the witty repartee between the hero and heroine was priceless as always. In addition, the suspenseful parts made me squirm and predictably the story's hero became my new favorite. I really liked the heroine too; she was written as a real woman I could identify with, someone I felt could be a good friend. This book was a 100% feel good read! The only way to improve it is to make it into an audiobook!

For me Wild About Youwas on the pretty good side - it was cute and light, but I guess in my current mood cute and light didn't quite do it for me - though it's probably not a actually a problem with the book, but with the reader instead...sigh.

I did like Howard, even though Spark's rebooted him from what he was at the start of the series, and really, except for all the cameos, you could probably read this latest Love at Stake book (it's number 13) without reading the other books since Howard's conflict is off from the main story line bad vamps conflict. I guess if I had a real nit, Howard's crushing on a TV star pinged at my stalker radar a couple of times.