Dire Needs by Stephanie Tyler

Dire Needs by Stephanie Tyler

Book stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Signet
Release date: April 24th 2012

Series: Eternal Wolf Clan #1

Source: Personal Shelf

Reviewed by: Christine

Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository

The full moon is their mistress. They are predators of pleasure and pain. Feared by humans, envied by werewolves, the Dire Wolves are immortal shifters, obeying no laws but their own bestial natures. Once they were many, but now only six remain, a dangerous wolf pack forever on the hunt…

Rifter leads the pack, embracing the lifestyle and ethics of an outlaw biker even as he battles an ancient enemy who has become a new, powerful force. But with his Brother Wolf raging inside him, howling to be unleashed, he needs to satisfy his hungers. And when he meets a drop-dead gorgeous blonde drinking alone in a bar that caters to both human and inhuman, Rifter’s primal instinct is to claim her.

Gwen has her own desires, long unfulfilled. She hopes a passionate night with the leather-clad, Harley-riding biker will ease her suffering. The seizures that have wracked her body her entire life are incurable—and they’re killing her.

But none of that will matter if Rifter can’t stop the growing threat to them all–trappers who are determined to enslave humankind and use the Dire wolves as part of their nefarious plan.

Dire Needs had a very intriguing premise: a gang of bad assed biker werewolves. So I was very excited and pre-ordered it. Unfortunately, I was a bit disappointed. Don't get me wrong, it's not a terrible book.

Rifter is one of the last Dire wolves and the King of a group of six warriors. They are suppose to keep the normal werewolves in check and protect them from the weretrappers. The weretrappers are a group of humans and witches intent on finding a way to destroy the weres and Dires.

The first part of the book is very heavy on world building and introduction into the world and history of the Dires. While the world in principle was well-conceived, the descriptions were repetitive after a while. Still, there is potential to make it a very intriguing series, if the introduction and history are less prominent in the next book.

The characters were likeable. Among all the characters introduced, I liked Gwen best. She's dealing with what she thinks is a fatal sickness, thus making her behavior and reactions very realistic. It was admirable how she handles her situation and absorbs her introduction into the paranormal world.

Rifter however is a whole other story. He fulfills all the classic tropes of an alpha male. What bugged me most about him was that he basically spent the whole book thinking about having sex with Gwen. His pack is in total chaos, they are threatened by the weretrappers and in the middle of a political mess, yet all the while he has a rather one-tracked mind. Not a trait that inspires a lot of confidence in a leader. Maybe it's just me, but I had a hard time warming up to him. As a consequence, it was also difficult for me to care for the relationship between him and Gwen.

All that I could have overlooked, if there had been an original, engrossing story beside the romance plot. Unfortunately, everything about Dire Needs felt like I've read it somewhere before. I'm only going to list a few of the things so that I won't spoil anything for those of you who still want to read the book: the Dires is a band of wolves that are faster, stronger and more aggressive than normal wolves. They are lead by an unwilling king. There's an organization out to kill them and other weres. Gwen's has unexpected family ties to the Dire wolves.

There are so many other details that reminded me very much of other popular PNR series and those reminders kept me from being totally lost in the story and hooked by it.

Like I mentioned before, Dire Needs is not a terrible book nor is it particularly bad written. For me, it was just not memorable enough and didn't stand out. If you're looking for a book very similar to the Black Dagger Brotherhood with shifters instead of vampires, you might really like Dire Needs. If you're looking for a original, fresh paranormal romance, try a different book.

Here’s an excerpt for you to form your own opinion!

Posted by Christine at 06:39

 Penguin, Review, Stephanie Tyler, werewolf  7 People left their mark

Christine lives in Munich and studies psychology to find out what makes people tick. Hopelessly addicted to books, she can often be found reading the latest urban fantasy and paranormal romance novels. When she´s not reading, you can find her going to concerts, at a swimming pool or riding horseback through Andalusia with her older sister.