This was my first book by this author and I was really lost. I love paranormal books, shifters and vampires = *grabby hands* but this book, I couldn't decipher exactly what was going on beyond chasing down a mate who didn't want to be a mate. I missed the romance and the attraction. The pull between mates, mates are suppose to dote on each other, live and die for each other. Not run off and hide.

So, maybe it was just me. I am not sure because I just didn't get the story.

I will consider giving the author another chance in the future, from what I have read from other reviewers Mell Eight books are normally really good. Until next time.. 2 stars

3.5 stars - I won’t go too much into this story because, for one, it’s pretty short and two, the blurb does a good job of describing what it’s about. What I will say is that I really loved Latrans as a character. I loved that he was so willing to give York the space he needed without taking advantage of him. I also really adored the fact that he did everything he could to look out for York and his daughter without really intruding. As for York, I didn’t really like him that much. I felt like he was just a bit of a user so it was hard for me to connect with him after he expected Latrans to help without even wanting to give him the time of day.

I was really enjoying this story but I must say, I’m a little disappointed in the ending. I expected something much different instead of just a hopeful for now. Not even a happy for not, it was just hopeful. Hopeful that the next book will be about Latrans and York and not about anyone else. So while I really loved the set up to the story, my enjoyment was lessened by the fact that this could have been much longer and a little more concluded, IMO.

Overall, I like the story. I loved the premise of it and the fact that Latrans waited so long for his mate to come to him but I didn’t connect with York at all and then the ending was just so sudden and I expected more even though it was such a short story. Even still, I think if readers have liked Mell Eight’s stories in the past, they’ll probably like this one as well.

I know authors hate when reviewers complain that short stories are too short. I get it; it sounds oxymoronic. But I've read 50 page stories that felt complete and I've read 50 page stories that read like someone's left half of them out. This is the latter. It is 48 pages long, but given the plot, character history and world, it needed AT LEAST a hundred pages to feel complete.

The story as stands feels barely sketched out. There is six years of important history that just exists off page, despite being referenced frequently. There is a world of supernaturals that is so poorly drawn that I couldn't even figure out if people were supposed to know about them or not. There were several plot holes that moved the story but made no sense. (What presumably 19-20 year old woman has life insurance for her 19 year old boyfriend to inherit, for example?)

I didn't actually mind Latrans' weird stalkery habits. I actually liked that almost desperate side of him. But I never felt even remotely connected to York. Heck, half the time I couldn't even remember his name. The children are puppets, never given any depth and every woman in the book is described disparagingly for being sexually active.

This is the first Eight story I've read and it was a failure. I've read several good reviews of her other series, but I won't be continuing this one.

Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5

the-case-of-the-wandering-wolvesSix years ago Latrans found his mate—and had to let him go. Now York has returned pleading for Latrans' help. His daughter has been kidnapped and Latrans is the only person York trusts to get her back. But a simple matter of rescue proves to be far more complicated than anticipated, and even having his mate at his side may not be enough to win the day.

I dive right into every Mell Eight book with enthusiasm and a certain amount of expectation on what I'm going to find in her stories. Her imagination almost certainly provides me with something new to think about, great characters and a wildly entertaining story. However, The Case of the Wandering Wolves (Trickster's Eye #1) by Mell Eight did provide some a couple of elements I liked, it mostly had me scratching my head in disappointment. Why? Because there are huge holes in the narrative here and in the thinking of the characters and plot.

It all revolves around the mate bond and what happens when that occurs. Unfortunately here, the mate bonding is between were and human, twice over. In the first pairing... Latrans and York, Latrans first pushes his attraction/need for his mate unto the human with disastrous results. It didn't help that York is closeted, only has the slightest leanings or interest in men (he might be bisexual, a path not investigated here). But Latrans does eventually leave his mate alone, knowing that as a human, York cannot feel the same as he does. Realistic, and totally abandoned when another were/human pair appears later in the story.

That human is expected to adjust to the fact that they are a part of a bonded pair, a fact that shocked me given the factors surrounding that pair's history. (Spoilers) . Its even more unbelievable given York's stilted little speech about forgiving Latrans' stalking bonding behavior etc. at the end of the tale. One, where did that language come from? A therapist? A brochure? It didn't sound like anything the man had said previously in any of his conversations, so it was jarring. Secondly, the child and her welfare. Let's just say, that got a little mixed up here as well. At least in my opinion.

There is a mystery. Two actually. One gets solved fairly quickly. The other? Well the villain is not really never in doubt. The ending is a HFN and this story a set up for a series that seems to revolve around the detective agency that Latrans runs with his friend called The Trickster's Eye (Latrans is a were coyote). I will mostly likely pick up the second book to see what happens. It can only get better.

Cover art is so so. It could also be so much better.

This is a short and sweet story; however, do not expect any romance. Yes, they are mates; however, being human and brought up by very religious parents did not fare well for York. The author does a good job showing the struggle he faces; what he's taught versus what his heart wants. In fact, York has denied his mate, a coyote shifter, for the past six years.

Latrans, like any possessive mate, has kept an eye on York. Making sure he and his daughter Sammy are taken care of. It kills Latrans that he can be nothing more for the man he's destined for. In the end, he's able to save his mates daughter, but something unfortunate happens to York where his life is changed forever.

I cannot wait for the second book to see where the author takes this. I want to see how York feels now that the game has changed on him, and if this will affect his mate. I also wonder what will happen with Sammy and her new status. I don’t know about everyone else, but I really think that this could turn out to be a really good series. Here is to hoping!

Side Note: If you need further clarification on anything, please ask. I am one not to divulge potential spoilers that might ruin it for others. It is just my thing :)

First of all: it was very quick read (kindle shows something around an hour) and it was pretty nice short story for sleepless night. It was enough to keep me entertained, but unfortunately not enough to give me something more. Plot is pretty straightforward, without much of a surprise. World is logical, well defined and neatly explained; it takes a lot from popular culture and it uses popular tropes (ie mating bond that can't be wrong), but it's okay - for story that short, it could not be any different. There is simply no space for being innovative.
Characters are well outlined, but not much more than that (and what's a pity! Both main characters have a lot of potential). - and I'd really like to see them expanded a little.
The manner in which characters communicated with each other seemed to me a bit unnatural - most people, when they are familiar with each other stick rather to names or nicknames, not surnames. (For a better part of the story, I was convinced that York is a name, not surname of the character).
However there is one thing, I actually really liked in the story: stalkerish behaviours were called out and weren't described as absolutely understandable and romantic.

As a first installment of the series (as goodreads shows) - promising.

This is the first story by this author I have read and while I enjoyed it and the writing was fine, there was something missing in it for me. The prologue has us at the end of something where the protagonist Latrans' advances to York, his human mate, are rejected (seven days after his girlfriend has died in a car crash leaving him with a newborn, so ya know, not unexpected).

Then we leap to 7 years later where the little girl has been kidnapped and York, the hitter of the prologue, asks Latrans, the hitter, for help. There is no instal-love of the part of the human, and even at the end after everything that happens, there is a demand for an apology for stalkerish behaviour which is always a worry in magic mates stories, so that was a fun part, but I felt a little bit like there was more to this story. It seems there is a part 2 but I just think this should have been longer. I don't know whether part 2 will be a continuation of this or just another couple in the world, but I don't even get the significance of the series title, unless it is the fact that Latrans is a coyote shifter and they are known as tricksters in mythology?

Not sure how I feel about this story now that I've written all this down.