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Green-eyed Malcolm Cole is a cursed werewolf, an alpha in the most powerful sense who has given up hope for any kind of happiness or peace in his life.

Until he catches wind of Claire.

Claire St. James, Charlie among friends, is an amazing young woman with an incredibly special gift. Cole recognizes this at once and swears on the spot to claim Charlie as his mate.

Of course, he isn't the only one with such plans. Charlie is too precious to let go without a fight, and one of the most powerful alphas in the world has already staked a claim, whether Charlie-or Cole-like it or not.

370 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 12, 2011

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1224 people want to read

About the author

Heather Killough-Walden

61 books2,187 followers
Heather Killough-Walden is a California native currently living in Texas with her husband and child. She is the New York Times bestselling author of the Big Bad Wolf series. Heather’s educational background includes religious studies, archeology, and law. She has traveled all over the world but hopes to one day live in a town with a world-class hockey team. (Let’s Go Pens!) Visit Heather’s website at www.killough-walden.com, where you can sign up for her newsletter. Also, be sure to keep in touch with her and other fans through her Facebook fan page and through Twitter (killoughwalden)!

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
Profile Image for jD.
752 reviews33 followers
March 21, 2011
I think I may have found a werewolf series that I will keep. "The Strip" is the second book of the Big Bad Wolf series. I did not read the first one but for some reason, this synopsis caught my eye so I decided to check it out for a buck. Many reviewers did not like the book because of the level of pain and suffering endured by the heroine, Charlie/Clair St. James. The hero, Malcolm Cole, was apparently the misunderstood bad guy from the first book and a powerful yet cursed Alpha. So we had a heroine, Charlie, catching the eye of Malcolm and another Alpha wolf, Phelan who is the master of Las Vegas. Under a rouse, Phelan gets Charlie and her band to come from her home in Pittsburg to play for six months at his new casino. His intention was to force his mark on her and keep her in his 'slap & tickle' dungeon (minus the tickle) until he broke her spirit. He is without question one evil sick individual. Malcolm sees or scents her in Las Vegas and realizes she is a Dormant female werewolf, very rare. He decides she should be his while also suspecting Phelan probably had plans already. And with that, we're off -- let the pissing contest begin!

Ms. Killough-Walden has a master's hand when it comes to writing physical pain and suffering for these characters. I did notice some readers where taken aback by the graphic torture scenes. Hey, I believe what does not kill ya will make ya stronger, so I wanted to know what a madman would create from his grisly work on Charlie. She survives to become so much more than she was before she spent time in his dungeon. There are a host of other supporting characters including a few from book one. Their backstories and histories where expertly weaved into this book so I felt I was not missing anything. By the time it was all said and done, we had a mess, a cliffhanger, and a couple of new characters to be the hero and heroine of the next book (which is already out). There are twist, turns, and unexpected plot developments that make this novel a work that deserves notice.

If you are like me and have moved werewolves to your TBR pile for the day all other paranormal romance books cease to exist, give this series a try. At $1 each on Kindle, there is no excuse. The story is very creative and there are other paranormal beings besides the wolves. There is hot sex and light humor. It does not have any of the things I dislike about werewolves. They are well written, intelligent, rich, stylish dressers, and tall with unnatural beauty. I'm a fan.
Profile Image for Ctanner.
425 reviews2 followers
February 8, 2011
This second book in the big bad wolf series took a very disturbing turn. I liked the first book and I really liked the "bad" guy in it, Malcolm Cole. So when I read the next book would feature Cole I got really excited. I was very disappointed. The heroine in this book is tortured extensively. It is difficult to read. Malcolm claims her as his mate and proceeds to dominate her in the bedroom literally 12 hours after her torture. I found the whole plot distasteful. I am no prude and I don’t mind violence, but it was the tone of the book that I found depressing and in the end I cared less whether or not the couple stayed together. I will not be continuing to read this series and I am rethinking reading Killough-Walden anymore.
Profile Image for Didi.
865 reviews283 followers
September 13, 2013
The second book in the Big Bad Wolf series was better than the first! The Strip was an adrenaline-fueled, take-no-prisoners story. It focuses on Malcolm Cole, the bad guy from The Heat, who was cleared of all charges and accusations regarding the many murders he was accused of.

I really liked this book and loved Cole. I loved him in the first book even when he was an asshole, and was so happy to be re-aquainted with him this time around with his sexy British accent and smouldering green eyes.
Cole is of course desperately trying to find a mate but is surprised when the chance comes around again, in the form of Charlie, a female-born werewolf who also happens to be a dormant--rare?--YES.

But Cole isn't the only one after her, Gabriel, another strong and powerful alpha is pulling out all the punches and he does so viciously and with no restraint. The man was a glorified sadist. He was evil in every sense of the word, and my heart broke for charlie when she had to endure his form of play.

Of course, there was a ton of violence. And mayhem. And craziness. But as with this authors first book in the series, the heroine undergoes some serious rough times before rising to her calling. I do believe Charlie suffered a great deal more than Lily did in the first book, but she also was stronger by nature as a female werewolf.

I think the women suffer so because this world of magic and supernatural beings is a far cry from humans. Werewolves are animals by nature and only with restraint and control do they manage to live undetected posing as humans. But I believe the author does right. She doesn't sugar-coat the brutality of acquiring a mate and the lengths these male werewolves have to go to to prove their merit and worth. It's a different world, a violent and aggressive world and woman fare no better than their male counterparts.

So, violence, yes, in spades here, but it flows with the world-building, demands it even and I really like it. So glad Cole finally gets his HEA with Charlie. Great book, looking forward to Lucas' story with Dannai, the witch, in Spells.

GENRE: PNR
STEAM: moderate, but strong
POV: 3rd person
CLIFFY: No relationship cliffy but there are unresolved issues to be dealt with in Spells, the third book.
Profile Image for Jennie.
191 reviews61 followers
May 14, 2011
This book was horrible. Firstly, I am blaming Amazon since the discription of this book on my kindle didn't say anything to lead me to understand that this was a "romance" novel. However, the rest of the blame for this rotting piece of sexual horror rests solely with the author.

I hate romance novels. I admit it. I don't choose to read them because they generally make me angry. However, I got suckered into this one unwittingly and once I start a book I have a thing about finishing them (not that it always happens). This was a prime example of sexual stereotypes and glorifying sexual violence. I hate that women write "romance" novels for other women (because let's face it, these books are not marketed to men) that glorify rape and pain. I get that some ladies like it rough and some ladies have a rape fantasy. However, you can have consensual rough sex (hello BDSM)and mock rape if you want to cater to that segment of the population. It disgusts me when men write about rape, it horrifies and pisses me off when women do the same. One in four US women is actually raped in her lifetime, and its insulting and dismissive to portray rape victims as enjoying the experience.
Profile Image for Sadie Forsythe.
Author 1 book287 followers
August 18, 2019
There is a little bit of a story to why I read (or listened to) this book. I recently borrowed The Wolf at the Door (Big Bad Wolf #1) through Hoopla. When you get to the end of a book, Hoopla often gives you a pop-up asking if you want the next book in the series. I really like The Wolf at the Door, so I said yes. However, when I started the book, it was an entirely different series altogether, just one with the same name.

I decided to give it a try though. I like to give pure chance a chance on occasion. Very early on I could tell this wasn't going to be a winner to me. And I wasn't all that surprised. I'm often wary of older PNR. I find A LOT of the content problematic. (The industry is getting better, but anything more than 10 years old is chancy for me. And this one is from 2011, so borderline.) But I stuck with it, determined to finish it so that I could write a full review.

I'd planned to talk about how angry it makes me when what is important about the fated female mate is WHAT she is not WHO she is. How this was strongly highlighted in this particular book by the fact that Charlie probably doesn't have 3 dozen lines of dialogue in the whole thing. What she has to say or think isn't important, only what she is to be possessed. I'd intended to discuss how she and he literally don't know one another, spend no time together and he used magic as mystical rohypnol to remove all agency from her. Thus, making women out to be mindless, malleable objects, rather than people with their own power and desires. I was going to put strong words on paper about how this IS NOT ROMANCE, not matter what the author says.

But the honest to god truth is that after clawing my way through the book and gritting my teeth through sex and sexual scenes that read more as abuse than anything else, I just can't be bothered. It's exhausting and demoralizing to find romance framed in such a way that (if you removed the names) I literally (LITERALLY!) would not be able to tell which scenes involved the sexual sadist who tortured Charlie and which was the 'sexy dominant' mate who was some how supposed to love and cherish the woman he'd never had so much as a conversation with. Both were 'rough.' Both were described using words like "cruel." Both emphasized being unconcerned with hurting her. With the exception of the first scene in the book, with the best friend with benefits, in which it was made explicit that he checked in with her and made sure she was ok during rough sex (involving strangulation), every other scene was rage-inducingly abusive. And I read plenty of S&M, kink-laced, BDSM books. I'm not kink shaming. But that's not what it book contains.

By the time I got to the end, my desire to write an intellectual review of it had withered to despondency. So, I'll just call this tuture/rape porn and be shut of it.

Gildart Jackson did a fine technical job with the narration, minus a tendency to swallow a lot. However, I found that having a man read a book that involved quite so much pseudo-rape and torture of a woman made it feel extra pervy and skin-crawlingly dirty.
Profile Image for Steph.
1,407 reviews2 followers
April 25, 2011
I will start at the beginning as always... this book was the story of Malcolm Cole. Malcolm was the 'bad guy' in the previous book 'The Heat' although he was redeemed in the end. Cole is a tortured soul! He is that guy that always tries to do the right thing and when he does, it always seemes to blow up in his face. Other people see what Cole allows them to see and what he wants them to believe, that he is a bad man. That he cares for no-one, loves nobody and therefor has nothing to lose. Which to all others makes him a dangerous man to cross! However Cole/Malcolm is a caring, devoted man. He is also possessive, domineering and a little arrogant. But I still loved him in this book.
Charlie is a female born werewolf, and a dormant (who can carry children) which is apparently never heard of. She dreams of Cole and another man. Phelan! He was her personal trainer for years (under another name) teaching her to defend herself.
Jesse has been her best friend since her parents were murded by Phelen (unknown to Charlie) and they have fallen into the catagory of frinds with benefits. Charlie is such a control freak that she only allows herself to give up her control during sex! She trusts only Jesse not to truly hurt her.
Cole marks Charlie against her will to protect her from Phelan. (as Daniel did to Lily in the previous book). However she is taken hostage and brutally beaten and even more mentally broken by Phelan! But she does not break and refuses to give her permission to remove Coles mark.
Cole does eventually manage to save her... Once they are alone, their true attraction and physical draw can't be held off any longer. I believe that after being so badly broken down, Charlie needs Cole to hold her and make everything else in the world fade away. However Cole just takes her how he would normally, forcfully and a little agressively. This I was a little annoyed at... I thought he would understand that even though she wanted sex, I think that he should have (without being too cheesy lol) made love to her, held her and showed her she was safe. But she seemed happy with him anyway so I quickly forgot that I was annoyed.
Lily was present a few times and so was Daniel (Daniel not so much) but the few times they were, I loved Lily. She has become so strong. And honestly Daniel annoyed me, I know he doesn't like Cole but he acted like a child in a dire situation. I was a little peeved because I was slightly in love with Daniel before!
Ok so I don't want to give too much more away... but I will say that this book was FULL of action, with a truly amazing set of characters. Witches, Warlocks, Alpha's, the coulcil and a very impressive Overseer! It also had some wicked laughs along the way. I never wanted this book to end!
And book three 'The Spell' looks promising! Read this book people, you won't be dissapointed.
Profile Image for Claudia.
729 reviews24 followers
November 23, 2015
The Strip by Heather Killough-Walden is book two in the Big Bad Wolf series.
It was a story full of violence, action and bad werewolves. The story gets a dimension. The characters work together with the past ones.
Lily becomes the Seer of the werewolves set on helping the ones in need with or without her husband's approval.

The tormented Malcolm understood the wrongs of his ways and his story shows his tender heart. It helped that Lily fought against everyone to clear his name. I actually liked him a lot.
Malcolm "gets wind" of his dormant mate Claire St. James while being transported away to a place where a crime has taken place. He always arrives too late and is unable to save the victims but this time he found his mate.
True to his domineering ways but with a softer side (Lily softened him up), Malcolm marks his mate.

Charlie was a dormant and a werewolf so here the story takes a different turn. With her parents killed she is under the care of Jesse and pursued by another alpha werewolf and hunter Gabriel.
I was not a fan of the sex scene between Jesse and Claire when the whole book had only a little to none romance or sex. It felt wrong and a little cheap. I could have lived without reading it.

What I like about the story is the fact that I get to understand a bit more the world that HK-W has created. There are more characters added to the plot and it's not just the story of a mated couple struggling to come together.

The author makes her heroine go through truly horrible sexual or non sexual scenes and acts of violence. For my side I think that the book would have gotten more stars from me if the violence could have been balanced with tender moments between h and H. This time, Claire and Malcolm did have some time alone but not necessary sweet or enough to give a little room for romance. Charlie spent more time with Gabriel than with Malcolm and that took away the romance part.

The plot though really came through and I like the supernatural world that I am reading. The warlocks, witches and vampires are adding more dimension to it.
Profile Image for Marsha.
3,053 reviews58 followers
June 10, 2012
Normally, I do not like to use profanity; but, what. the. hell? I have read a couple of Heather Killough-Walden books and have really like them. However, I was under the mistaken concept that "The Strip" was another romance novel in the "Big Bad Wolf" series with the emphasis placed on romance. However, what this book is is a vile, vicious, and graphic rape!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let me be clear: rape is not hinted at here, it is written and described in every horrific detail. What in the world was Walden thinking when she wrote this? I had to put the book down and was unable to finish it because I found it to be too distasteful for words. I am so angry because as an adult, I have the responsibility to pick and choose what I want to read. However, how can we make a decent decision when book summaries are misleading and do not warn about the graphic or unsavory nature of the content. If I had a inkling of of what this book was going to be about, I would hav never ever chosen to read it. Now, I am at a loss as to whether to read the other two books in the serie since this one was so awful.

I will not recap the story line for you because there are other out there who have done so already. However, readers be warned............if you are like me and find rape for the sake of entertainment as unsavory as I do, do not read this book.
Profile Image for Sheyla ✎.
2,023 reviews653 followers
May 17, 2011
This is the second book in the Big Bad Wolf series.
This time our protagonist is Claire St James, she goes by Charlie to her friends. She is part of a band and has been hired to play exclusively in a Casino in Las Vegas by the powerful Gabriel Phelan.
Our two alphas fighting for Claire, who is a dormant female born werewolf are Malcolm Cole (the "bad guy" from book 1) and Gabriel Phelan.
Claire has been dreaming of both alphas for years. She tends to attract violent men. She does have a good friend with "benefits" Jesse her attorney who later becomes her guardian. While traveling to another murder, Malcolm is able to catch her scent and is able to mark her using a fake tattoo parlor. However, as in book one she gets kidnapped by Phelan who has been her self defense trainer for years. She has known him under the name of David Reese. He is able to shapeshift.
Gabriel is a sadist who had enjoyed hurting her during many years under the excuse of self defense training sessions. Once he decides to mark her and realizes that Cole found her first, he enjoys torturing her.
I liked Malcolm in The Heat and I liked that he was able to find some peace and happiness. But, I found the torture scenes and the constant threat of rape repetitive and distasteful. And the love scenes unbelievable.

2/5 Fangs
cross posted at my blog http://mrsleifs.blogspot.com
Profile Image for Dawn Ross.
258 reviews15 followers
March 24, 2012
So Malcome Cole is not as Evil as we thought, but he still seems to be really Bad. Can he find his mate? or is he doomed to serve out his cures life alone. Charlie a cute young energetic girl has had to fight all her life. She always had a knack for attracting the wrong type of crowd. The only light in her life was Jessie- let's just say friend with HUGE benefits. When Charlie and her band is offered up a deal of a lifetime to hard to pass up, she leaves everyhting behind to start a new life. Unknownst to Charlie is the fact that she is a dormant. In this new town she meets Malcome Cole who is a mysterious stranger she cant help but feel drawn too. At the same time Charlie has a secret suitor one who she has known for a long time yet remained anonymous of his attraction to her. but when this secret suitor comes out of his hidding spot Charlie soon realizes he is not the man she had thought he was and what's even worse, he is going to do just about anything to make Charlie his. Can Malcome save Charlie? Can he make her his mate? Will charlie ever escape the dark shadows of the werewolf community? Dark sweet and hard pleasure. Skeletons are comming out of the closet. If you can't take it rough this is not for you, but Heather lets you see the dark and light sides to BDSM.
Profile Image for Yodamom.
2,208 reviews215 followers
April 6, 2011
Even better than the first book, Malcolm Cole Alpha Were plus meets Charlie a female he wants as his mate. The problem is so does another Alpha Were and he is one nasty powerful pup. Both are uber sexy, uber rich and powerful. She is strong but is not up to the terrible future she will face. Torture and suffering have followed her for years and it's not over.
Great mystery and adventure, and H.O.T. moments that steamed my glasses.
Profile Image for Angela.
313 reviews11 followers
February 28, 2012
3.5 stars --- Ok again (like the first one) this book is very descriptive and paints a very vivid picture, which can be great at time and relentless at times. The story is really good, I just wish the were and his mate actually got to spend more time together and less time trying to get to that point.
Profile Image for Brandy.
371 reviews27 followers
April 4, 2012
Good book, it was just a tad bit violent, but I still enjoyed it. The one thing that I didn't like about it was that there didn't seem to be a strong connection between Malcome & Charlie, but other than that, it was great. I love a book that I don't want to put down & I definitely felt that through most of this book.
3,416 reviews24 followers
June 19, 2013
Setting: Las Vegas – hotel rooms; the Bellagio fountains; a house; streets; the desert;

Theme: torture (yuck); pain; survival of the strong; physical and internal strength; fate; attraction/rightness/maybe love;

Characters:
‘Charlie’ Claire St James: lost loving parents when she was 12; parents were werewolves, but did not tell her – wanting her to be raised human – though before accident hinted that she needed to learn self defense, and someday she would understand why; she is genetic werewolf (unheard of for female) and a dormant (potential mate who can have baby werewolves); grandfather decided to leave her with human friend of her parents to be raised, but assigned Jessie to watch over her; at 17 attacked, almost raped; Jessie then asked to be able to befriend her (and become her lover/best friend/confidant); she likes rough/physical/bordering S&M sex; she is beautiful; she attracts the attention of guys, and surrounds herself with people she trusts; she is a drummer in a band; she has been taking self defense classes with a man who likes to hurt her, but who teaches her what she feels she needs to know; she has been dreaming – of a man with blue eyes, then a man with green eyes, then a big wolf that chases her;

Malcolm Cole: because of Lily’s testimony to the council, he has been exonerated of being a killer, and held up to be a hero because of the revenge he has enacted on behalf of the victims he is called to (remember the gypsy curse of the last book? – WWII spy, at a Nazi encampment, goes to an older, dying woman, she curses him (thinking him a Nazi) and he has red bands on his wrists, and is teleported to the scene when an innocent is murdered – too late to save the innocent – though he does wreak vengeance on the perpetrator where he can); recognized as powerful alpha; caught a hint of Charlie when in Pittsburg – and feels the need to claim her; a bit (not too much though : ) cautious after his arrogance and cruelty to Lily; follows her to Las Vegas, and marks her – though more subtly than James did – he meets her at a bar, and her interest and a bit of his persuasion (though she is strong and able to block him), he takes her to a tattoo parlor, and has his blood mixed with ink to be used to tattoo her wrist; she feels the magic, knows it is him (he held her still til it was complete, in spite of her insistence they stop), and she runs… he chases, he tries to be reassuring, he finally feels guilty enough to let her go (hiring a cab to take her back to the hotel – bad decision).

Gabriel Fallon aka David Reese: hmmmm… werewolf; special talent is morphing into more than just a wolf – eye color – and bald eagle, what else?; head of the Hunters, seems to have a vision of werewolves ruling the world, and against those who counter that idea; like Charlie’s parents, who wanted to fit in as human – so he killed them, and spared Charlie – intending to make her his mate when the time was right; rich; as David Reese (with black eyes) he is her trainer; as Gabriel Fallon built hotel in Las Vegas, and to get control of Charlie, contracts for her band to play there for 6 months; has her put in suite below his penthouse floor, where she is isolated from the rest; he is out of town when she gets there, allowing Malcolm the time to mark her; heavily into S&M, and torture, and control;

Jessie Graves: werewolf Sentinel; attorney; loves Charlie; knows he cannot ‘petition’ to be her mate unless she dreams of him (she doesn’t) – but at end asks for guardian rights over her; early scene with them and the rough, power, control sex where she is dominated and wants; did not know Reese and Fallon same man – and he is the one that calls in the council to stop her torture at his hands;

Dannai: powerful witch that works with the council; she can heal, and find people, and do lots of magic; she heals Charlie and Malcolm;

Alexander Cavanaugh: werewolf council Overseer; Charlie’s grandfather; flies to Vegas when it is apparent that Fallon is the head of the Hunters; meets Charlie for the first time after she is finally rescued;

Lily Cane / James Valentine: Lily can ‘sees’ some of what Charlie is going to face (only bit by bit), and ‘sees’ that Fallon is the Hunter; she comes to help where she can, both in protecting and in emotional support to Charlie, especially as she faces the mating; she ‘sees’ the hotel blowing up and gets the weres to get the people out to safety;

Vincent Cromwell: wizard; works for Fallon; seems a bit uncomfortable with Fallon – and when captured, gives what information he can to the council; don’t know if we will see him again…

Seth: warlock; dark; looks young, but has old eyes; smells evil; ruthless; has his own agenda, what is it? Alexander thinks he is a half warlock / half ______ that amps his power; he answers the call to assist Fallon in removing the mark from Charlie – which can only be done if she asks for it; he dispassionately watches her torture; he gets angry later on when she elbows/kicks him interrupting his magic; she know he would harm (even kill) her if not for Fallon; next book?

Ulrich: her great – uncle, Alexander’s older brother; working with Fallon (and where we get their agenda); watched (participated?) while Fallon tortured his neice; sees the future in her and Fallon – their strength – necessary for the weres to not just survive, but to flourish;

Malcolm’s pack: Jake, Lucas Cage, Jacob Sampson:
Lucas, next book? – alpha from Australia, under Malcolm’s pack… heads for where a tank of gas will take him on his motorcycle… and Dannai – heads for where a tank of gas will take her in her classic

Summary:
Malcolm marks Charlie – and fights the pull he has to completely take her – he wants her to have some time to adjust, some right to choose; once back in hotel room (mistake by Malcolm), Fallon has Vincent put her to sleep, ogles her naked, sleeping body, and then in the morning, comes in with 4 henchmen, take her to basement torture chamber, where he is happy she refuses to agree to having the mark removed – she figures anything he wants, he should not get… he is cruel, he uses sexual stimulation, he has her whipped, all with witnesses and helpers, and he enjoys it – and she refuses to agree… finally the council shows up, his warlock zaps the three of them to his home outside Vegas; he blows up his hotel; Malcolm, has a short fight with Ulrich – and then puts Charlie’s safety over his need to win; he follows the pull of the mark, on a motorcycle (with Jessie following in a helicopter); Charlie can feel the burn of the mark increasing, and knows he is coming to rescue her… he can’t enter Malcolm’s home, but he sends the motorcycle through the plate window – they head out to the car – he chases;

Finally, interrupted attempts at Seth’s magic (by Charlie), Seth gets the helicopter down… Malcolm knows they cannot stop them, so he and Seth commandeer the helicopter; Charlie shocked again to learn her best friend Jessie is more (her hug, though not as painful (his Sentinel status), hurts…

At Malcolm’s hotel room, Lily takes care of her – gives her new clothes; they talk… she meets her grandfather – and after a bit of distance, she is glad to connect with him… and Lily encourages Malcolm to claim her – and wow does he… not with gentleness, or loving words and touches, but with domination – which fits her just fine;

For some reason she hides the painful bands appearing around her wrists, and Malcolm doesn’t remove his leather bracelets that hide his bands… but when he can feel her distress, he goes to her in the shower – fully clothed, and finally we see the gentle side to him – he holds her… ahhh. He takes her to the Bellagio fountains, and uses his mind control so that nobody sees them, and takes her in a boat into the middle of the fountain (with an umbrella) – wowing her…

But when he touches her wrists, and she winces, he pulls back her sleeves, pulls off his bracelet, and is instantly angry… the red, cursed bands are off his wrist, and onto hers; he calls Lily to yell at her for not warning him, she starts to tell him she just had the vision, and that it is not the same… but Daniel cuts him off, not liking how he is yelling at his wife – then Daniel takes her phone and leaves for a bit (she just goes next door, leaves her baby, and gets on a plane to Vegas – a bit miffed at her husband),

In the meantime, Fallon is staging an innocents death (mother and child – with a bit of torture first for his entertainment) that should call Malcolm to him and where he has laid a trap for him. In a panic, Malcolm is telling Charlie that when it happens, to close her eyes, it will hurt a bit, and not to open her eyes (expecting she will see horrific scenes), and then to telepathically call out to him, so he can locate her… and as he feels the pull starting, he wraps his arms around her, and is teleported with her (surprise)… to the scene before the murder has occurred… they face Fallon’s men – Malcolm gravely wounded… council shows up, Dannai heals Malcolm and Charlie… Alexander faces off with Fallon… almost has him dead, but Alexander finds a weakness – sharing telepathic images of Charlie’s torture… and shifts to eagle, and flies away.

Ends with Alexander and Lily sharing that Charlie’s gift allows her to go to scenes before death, and to take someone with her (Malcolm and Jessie the likely candidates)… and then Alexander telling Charlie and Malcolm that Dannai, Lily and Charlie form a female task group that are reforming the face of were life. hmmmm

Memorable scenes:



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What is the perspective of the narration? 3rd person ("he was born into nobility...")


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This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Denise.
3,717 reviews
April 5, 2020
Claire has always had to fight to keep herself safe. She lost her parents when she was young, but they had told her that she was special and she had to keep herself safe. She found that she seemed to attract would-be rapists and so she began taking self defense courses. Her current instructor was good, but he seemed to like getting the best of her and hurting her in the process. She put up with it because she knew she needed to learn from the best. Charlie, as her friends called her due to her habit of apologizing for everything, had discovered that she was a natural at playing the drums so she had her own band. When they are offered a chances to play exclusively at a big hotel in Vegas they can't turn the contract down. Even their practice space is awesome.

Malcolm Cole has been cursed with popping into crime scenes that involve someone innocent being brutally murdered. Usually the murders involve women or children. Malcolm does his best to track down the killers and take care of them. This night he "pops" into Las Vegas and while he is there catchs a whiff of something he never thought he would again - a dormant. Not only that, but a natural born female wolf. He knows he has to get back to the city and find the woman before another alpha smells her. Little does he know it is too late to stop that from happening. Gabriel Phelan not only knows what Charlie is; he has big plans for her.

I read this book as part of a box set.
Profile Image for Apurva C.
168 reviews
February 17, 2022
I have already addressed a lot of my issues with the author's books in my review for the first book in the series.

So, I'll get to the good part of this book. I enjoyed the relationship between and Claire. I couldn't help but root for them, knowing that they wouldn't end up together. But I don't mind who ended up with. I'm not sure that it is a long term thing.

Okay, let's talk about Malcolm Cole, such an improvement from the last book. I wasn't sure the author could do something to redeem him and some of his actions remain inexcusable. How could anyone look up to someone who has done this to a woman out of his own free will? So, although Malcolm is a expertly written character, his morals remain shady at best.

Following the reccuring theme of the series, once the danger has passed, he is good to Charlie.

Once Malcolm actually behaved like the good guy he was supposed to be he wasn't all that bad. And what happened to Uriel? He just disappeared, mentioned only once by Kavanaugh to warn Charlie off.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Adriana.
1,564 reviews9 followers
April 1, 2020
In the second book of the Big Bad Wolf series, a very powerful but cursed werewolf will fight and kill to claim and protect his mate. Once considered a killer among his kind, Malcolm Cole’s name has been cleared by the very woman he tried to claim two years before. But then he sees Claire St. James and knows that he has truly found his mate. That’s the good news. The bad news is that there is another alpha, a really bad wolf, who has seen her too. Determined to claim Charlie as his, Malcolm will stop at nothing to find his HEA. Charlie doesn’t understand what is happening to her. She’s been having dreams about two men. One has the most gorgeous green eyes she has ever seen. The other has cold blue eyes that scare her to death. When she meets Malcolm she realizes that he is her good guy, but as the clues to the scary man that haunts her dreams are revealed, Charlie will learn a lot more about herself then she has ever imagined possible. Magic is ever present in this series. There are werewolves, witches, warlocks, vampires and more. The characters are intense and well crafted. There is lots of action, sexy alphas and danger every where. Need I say more?
Profile Image for Heather.
2,762 reviews19 followers
March 24, 2025
Green-eyed Malcolm Cole is a cursed werewolf, an alpha in the most powerful sense who has given up hope for any kind of happiness or peace in his life.
Until he catches wind of Claire.
Claire St. James, Charlie among friends, is an amazing young woman with an incredibly special gift. Cole recognizes this at once and swears on the spot to claim Charlie as his mate.
Of course, he isn't the only one with such plans. Charlie is too precious to let go without a fight, and one of the most powerful alphas in the world has already staked a claim, whether Charlie-or Cole-like it or not.

Heather's Notes
This book was ok. It was very spicy, but also had a lot of violence. Phalen's character became a little unrealistic and some of the events didn't really work IMO, but overall I enjoyed the story. That said I dislike love triangles, especially when the bad guy one of the "love interest". I will probably continue to read, more because there is a spinoff I want to start than any real desire to see what happens next.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
27 reviews
December 31, 2018
I was hoping this story would improve from the first book. Yes and no.
I really liked Malcolm Cole, his character was redeemed in this book. I even liked the heroine. The bad guy was exactly that and more. So, happy enough with character building and everyone in their nice neat little boxes. Even the main plot moved along nicely.
So why did I rate it 2 stars? There's the alpha mark that hurts the female while the werewolves are drugging the dormant with lustful thoughts. Come on really? All that fingering, choking and oh she just came again.
There was also the additional baddies too didn't really make sense either. The sentinel what was it he did, abuse his power over Charlie. I could go on but I won't it could've been a pretty good story telling but not this time. I can't bring myself to read the remaining 2 books.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Theresa.
4,112 reviews15 followers
October 16, 2017
Warning: This has very graphic multiple Dominant punishment, torture scenes without the submissive’s permission.

These stories always seem to start out with a very steamy sex scene then morph into a regular werewolf story. But his one continues with barely a pause.

It takes place mostly in Las Vegas with two werewolf clans battling out over a rare born female werewolf dormant. The battle turns into a 3-way and the whole town almost comes tumbling down.

I feel both sorry and proud of Charlie. What with all she’s put through, she has a lot of courage and inner strength. Malcolm better be worthy of her.

Fave scenes: the train bridge, the tattoo parlor, Claire’s mom dream and the fountains.
Profile Image for Reya Reychelle.
1,163 reviews9 followers
August 3, 2019
I REALLY Liked this book! It was so much better than the first one! I mean I was on Cole’s side for the first book anyway. There is just something about a bad guy with a hidden good side that really does it for me!
I also super loved Jesse’s character!! I hope he gets a book too.
The characters just had more depth than in the first book, and I felt like the character interactions were meaningful.
I super loved the the idea of the women werewolf Charlie’s Angels shtick happening.
Profile Image for Misty.
689 reviews4 followers
April 14, 2021
Ok, I think this author has a thing for strangling. Or maybe she decided her werewolves do. Apparently all her heroes like to cut off their heroines breath and I mean, the good heroes and the bad ones.
I loved Lily whenever she appeared, but especially at the end? The husband decides to hide her phone so she doesn't get involved with what he deems are none of their business? No problem. She'll just take her car and go wherever she wants!
Profile Image for Questian.
573 reviews
November 13, 2017
Second book, and its okay. Must admit that the way the characters are intertwined its pretty good.

off to read book three.
Profile Image for Delphine.
316 reviews
December 3, 2018
good story. This would have been 3.5 but there were too many typos so I've had to mark it down.
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