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Alpha Wolf #1
Demon's Prize
For months, socially withdrawn Dr. Brent Carson has been reading about women being abducted throughout the city, the most recent article revealing how all of them may have been practitioners of witchcraft. Out of curiosity, Brent decides to personally investigate what is going on, but is distracted when four friends move to the city, all of whom he knows to be werewolves – except for Angela Dane, who is only half.
Angela is an energetic, talented and very spirited girl. She is extremely close and loyal to her friends, but the first moment Brent sees Angela, there is something about her he finds disturbing. He cannot understand why, but his first reaction towards her is one of hatred, inexplicably feeling as if she shouldn’t even be alive. That night, Angela is attacked by a psychotic demon, one who has been stealing paranormal beings for centuries and taking them to hell for his personal version of trafficking. The demon almost claims her as his newest prize, only to have his interests quickly switch to Brent the moment he learns of his true identity.
Angela is an energetic, talented and very spirited girl. She is extremely close and loyal to her friends, but the first moment Brent sees Angela, there is something about her he finds disturbing. He cannot understand why, but his first reaction towards her is one of hatred, inexplicably feeling as if she shouldn’t even be alive. That night, Angela is attacked by a psychotic demon, one who has been stealing paranormal beings for centuries and taking them to hell for his personal version of trafficking. The demon almost claims her as his newest prize, only to have his interests quickly switch to Brent the moment he learns of his true identity.
- GenresUrban Fantasy
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
About the author
Jennifer Maimone
2 books10 followersJennifer Maimone (last name pronounced my-moe-knee) was born in Southern California and grew up as the youngest, and only daughter, of three kids.Growing up, Jennifer always had an affinity for the dark and supernatural. Her favorite TV shows and movies to watch were Gargoyles, The Crow, The Labyrinth and Predator. She also was (and still is) a great fan of The Phantom of the Opera.
Jennifer started to get into the paranormal in the 6th grade when a friend showed her a book about unsolved mysteries and the supernatural. At that point, Jennifer never thought such things could actually exist. She was hooked on learning whatever she could about the supernatural from that moment on. She was so enthralled by it that in high school, the girls (she went to an all-girls school) would avoid her during Halloween-time because they thought she was able to do ‘witchy’ things. Jennifer admits she found it very amusing they thought that, but she always made sure to reassure to the fact she never practiced the occult — only researched.
Jennifer graduated from college in 2009, and later that year became a special effects makeup artist for independent films. She started my own freelancing business as UnmaskedFX, and has been approached a few times by the FaceOff TV program to be part of their show.
Jennifer started writing Alpha Wolf Series: Demon’s Prize in 2012. It isn’t the first thing she has ever written, but it is the first one she ever published. She opened her own small publishing business called Light and Dark Imagination, and published her book through it.
Jennifer started to get into the paranormal in the 6th grade when a friend showed her a book about unsolved mysteries and the supernatural. At that point, Jennifer never thought such things could actually exist. She was hooked on learning whatever she could about the supernatural from that moment on. She was so enthralled by it that in high school, the girls (she went to an all-girls school) would avoid her during Halloween-time because they thought she was able to do ‘witchy’ things. Jennifer admits she found it very amusing they thought that, but she always made sure to reassure to the fact she never practiced the occult — only researched.
Jennifer graduated from college in 2009, and later that year became a special effects makeup artist for independent films. She started my own freelancing business as UnmaskedFX, and has been approached a few times by the FaceOff TV program to be part of their show.
Jennifer started writing Alpha Wolf Series: Demon’s Prize in 2012. It isn’t the first thing she has ever written, but it is the first one she ever published. She opened her own small publishing business called Light and Dark Imagination, and published her book through it.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 6, 2014
I personally love this book, mainly because I wrote it. Yes, i know, shamless plug. But that doesn't mean it isn't a great book. Even my people I know who had read it said it was hard to put down, and was something they thought was fresh and a unique take on the werewolf genre.
If you want to check it out for yourself, you can get a glimpse of it at WWW.ALPHAWOLFSERIES.COM
Again, please excuse the shameless review, but I didn't think I would have to add a review in order to add my book to the Goodreads. :-x
If you want to check it out for yourself, you can get a glimpse of it at WWW.ALPHAWOLFSERIES.COM
Again, please excuse the shameless review, but I didn't think I would have to add a review in order to add my book to the Goodreads. :-x
April 3, 2019
I don’t typically read horror novels. Not because I scare easily, the opposite actually. I never get as creeped out reading as I would watching something, so I’m probably the worst person to judge if a book is actually scary. “Demon’s Prize” is meant to be scary at times, and there definitely is some creepy imagery, but since I’m not sure what most people find terrifying when I have a hard time defining that for myself, I’m not going to spend much time talking about the scare factor. Needless to say, The Alpha Wolf series is a paranormal, urban fantasy that fits nicely for New Adult readers. The book follows four friends—who are werewolves—as they embark on trying to make their dreams come true with their band. Along the way, they meet Brent, an alpha werewolf with secrets of his own that the young pack desperately tries to unravel no matter how much Brent pushes them away. The story follows the four werewolves and Angela—a werewolf hybrid—as Brent intervenes when Angela is nearly taken by a demon. Following that incident, the young werewolves are determined to save Brent at all costs, even though one of their pack really doesn’t want to. So, yeah, you can see exactly why some people may find this creepy or scary, so consider yourself warned.
I thoroughly enjoyed the main antagonist in this book, to be honest. I don’t know if that’s weird or not, but his creepy playfulness, the absurdly large smile… all of that sent delightful shivers down my spine. I wish there were even more encounters with him throughout the book, but given where this book ends (it’s on a cliffhanger) I know the next book in the series will see more of the demon and the realm he came from. The book focuses mostly on Brent and Angela—Angela as she grows into her power and Brent as he relearns what it means to be part of a pack. It’s a sweet relationship, one that was fun to watch grow and evolve from the enemies they were when they first met. Maimone also does a fabulous job with presenting the lore in this book, it feels like a truer representation of magick then what I’ve read in a long time, but despite this book being about werewolves you don’t see a ton of wolfy action. So if you want something more in the shifter realm, this may not be for you. Also, Maimone doesn’t pull back when it comes to the creepy gory scenes, which is why I recommend it for New Adult and not below. The book isn’t dripping with blood and guts, but the few instances where it’s present are pretty graphic.
The one thing that kind of held me back about this book and really getting into the wide cast of characters though, was the narrative style. It’s a bit of an omniscient close 3rd, which I personally have a hard time getting into. The jumps between character to character became a bit jarring for me, and made it hard for me to keep characters like Tony and Nathan apart, even though Tony is supposed to be more the leader of their little group. With how many characters are in the novel, a different kind of narrative point of view may have helped that for me in terms of getting to know the characters—especially the secondary cast. Plus, I’m not a huge fan of a cliffhanger ending, especially one where you already know what needs to happen in the story and are waiting for that moment to arrive. For that to happen in the last chapters and then for the book to end? It can be a bit frustrating especially since you already know so much intense stuff is about to go down in the sequel.
Also, disclaimer time: I personally know the author. We went to high school together. But she didn’t ask me to review her book. In fact, I asked HER if I could! But I will say that Maimone’s book is one whose subject matter and tone fit perfectly with many of the books by my publisher, so this is a story I have recommended as one my publisher may want to add to their wheelhouse, so take that for what it’s worth. Anyway, sorry this review is a bit vague, but there is a reason for that: 1. I’m not sure how to write this without spoilers, as any little thing I say may reveal too much of the secrets that slowly get teased out over the course of story and 2. I’m pretty confident Maimone’s book will get republished in the near future and I don’t know what changes may come from that, if any. But, as it stands, since I personally had a difficult time with the narration style and was a tad frustrated with where and how this first book in the series ended, I’m giving it 4 stars, but I can’t wait to see what happens to Brent and Angela come the next book! I have a feeling it’s going to be 100x more intense than the first one!
I thoroughly enjoyed the main antagonist in this book, to be honest. I don’t know if that’s weird or not, but his creepy playfulness, the absurdly large smile… all of that sent delightful shivers down my spine. I wish there were even more encounters with him throughout the book, but given where this book ends (it’s on a cliffhanger) I know the next book in the series will see more of the demon and the realm he came from. The book focuses mostly on Brent and Angela—Angela as she grows into her power and Brent as he relearns what it means to be part of a pack. It’s a sweet relationship, one that was fun to watch grow and evolve from the enemies they were when they first met. Maimone also does a fabulous job with presenting the lore in this book, it feels like a truer representation of magick then what I’ve read in a long time, but despite this book being about werewolves you don’t see a ton of wolfy action. So if you want something more in the shifter realm, this may not be for you. Also, Maimone doesn’t pull back when it comes to the creepy gory scenes, which is why I recommend it for New Adult and not below. The book isn’t dripping with blood and guts, but the few instances where it’s present are pretty graphic.
The one thing that kind of held me back about this book and really getting into the wide cast of characters though, was the narrative style. It’s a bit of an omniscient close 3rd, which I personally have a hard time getting into. The jumps between character to character became a bit jarring for me, and made it hard for me to keep characters like Tony and Nathan apart, even though Tony is supposed to be more the leader of their little group. With how many characters are in the novel, a different kind of narrative point of view may have helped that for me in terms of getting to know the characters—especially the secondary cast. Plus, I’m not a huge fan of a cliffhanger ending, especially one where you already know what needs to happen in the story and are waiting for that moment to arrive. For that to happen in the last chapters and then for the book to end? It can be a bit frustrating especially since you already know so much intense stuff is about to go down in the sequel.
Also, disclaimer time: I personally know the author. We went to high school together. But she didn’t ask me to review her book. In fact, I asked HER if I could! But I will say that Maimone’s book is one whose subject matter and tone fit perfectly with many of the books by my publisher, so this is a story I have recommended as one my publisher may want to add to their wheelhouse, so take that for what it’s worth. Anyway, sorry this review is a bit vague, but there is a reason for that: 1. I’m not sure how to write this without spoilers, as any little thing I say may reveal too much of the secrets that slowly get teased out over the course of story and 2. I’m pretty confident Maimone’s book will get republished in the near future and I don’t know what changes may come from that, if any. But, as it stands, since I personally had a difficult time with the narration style and was a tad frustrated with where and how this first book in the series ended, I’m giving it 4 stars, but I can’t wait to see what happens to Brent and Angela come the next book! I have a feeling it’s going to be 100x more intense than the first one!
May 8, 2015
I just finished reading Demon’s Prize by Jennifer Maimone and I have to say, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I can’t dive too deep into the storyline without giving much away but it is about vampires and werewolves and before you say, “Oh another vampire book”, let me say this one is really cool. Angela is a wolf/vampire hybrid and her friends are werewolves. They seem to be just a normal group of people who move to the city for a new start (and they are in a band… which I wish there was more of in the book). They quickly meet Brent who is a “pure” werewolf. (Kinda like the Originals) and they eventually join forces to battle an evil demon who wants to steal their souls and make them his slaves in Hell. I must say I developed a slight crush for Brent. He’s rugged and fierce and mysterious. Angela and Brent start out hating each other but end up developing feelings for each other which I found to be a little cliché but Jennifer did a really good job at not letting it consume the entire storyline. The demon who is after Brent is evil and nasty… and flat out gave me the creeps! I just wanted him to die!!!!! One minor thing that I didn’t really like was how a lot of the dialogue was dragged out. Some parts I just found myself wanting the conversation to hurry up and end so I could find out what was going to happen, but that’s just my personal preference. Jennifer displays true writing talent. For me, it is rather difficult to find a book that keeps my interest until the end and Demon’s Prize did just that. She also did a great job with the ending because it left a cliffhanger so the reader is going to want to immediately buy the next book. I know I can’t wait to read the next book
If you like supernatural suspense books, you will enjoy this book. It has sweet moments, scary moments and even made me laugh a few times. If you want to check out this book, please visit Jennifer’s site. www.alphawolfseries.com
This is my first of several book reviews I plan on doing so keep checking back for more. Also, feel free to join our group https://www.facebook.com/groups/Promo... where you can find a lot of great indie writers’ works.
If you like supernatural suspense books, you will enjoy this book. It has sweet moments, scary moments and even made me laugh a few times. If you want to check out this book, please visit Jennifer’s site. www.alphawolfseries.com
This is my first of several book reviews I plan on doing so keep checking back for more. Also, feel free to join our group https://www.facebook.com/groups/Promo... where you can find a lot of great indie writers’ works.
November 23, 2014
This book is great! Focusing on Dr. Brent Carson, who has taken it upon himself to personally investigate the abduction of women throughout the city, the story winds through a mystery that you won’t soon forget. The supernatural element is introduced into the story when Brent realizes all of the missing women are witches. After that, hold on tight.
A real page turner, Demon’s Prize was a surprising read for me. I didn’t know I was such a little chicken! After my first night reading, I realized my reading would have to be during the day. Very creepy, but so much fun! Demonic type stuff usually freaks me out, but this book has an interesting array of supernatural concoctions that keep you glued to each page... including werewolves! My favorite!
The author is extremely creative and has a real command of language. The characters are well constructed and very likeable. Brent was absolutely fantastic, a wonderfully written character. The story flows well and the twists will keep you wanting more. This new author is definitely one to watch. I’m looking forward to her future works!
A real page turner, Demon’s Prize was a surprising read for me. I didn’t know I was such a little chicken! After my first night reading, I realized my reading would have to be during the day. Very creepy, but so much fun! Demonic type stuff usually freaks me out, but this book has an interesting array of supernatural concoctions that keep you glued to each page... including werewolves! My favorite!
The author is extremely creative and has a real command of language. The characters are well constructed and very likeable. Brent was absolutely fantastic, a wonderfully written character. The story flows well and the twists will keep you wanting more. This new author is definitely one to watch. I’m looking forward to her future works!
December 11, 2015
Through classic young adult writing conventions, Maimone crafts a story involving supernatural beings that is not only—at the core—a great werewolf tale, but a story that balances out elements of horror, thriller, and young adult drama to absolutely beat the pants off of any sparkling vampire story out there.
With only a small handful of characters, the story follows a small pack of young werewolves who suddenly find themselves involved in a battle with a very tough and brutal demon who has his eyes set on collecting unique supernatural beings to barter on the black market of the underworld. At the center of this tale is Dr. Brent Carson, who could be in some crossover universe, Bigby Wolf’s—from Bill Willingham’s Fables comic series—long lost brother. A loner werewolf with some serious power along with young Angela Dane who is what some may call, a hybrid.
Although I don’t want to spoil it, we learn early on that Angela is somewhat of an oddball in the pack of werewolves she belongs to, and that becomes one of the centers of conflict throughout the story. For readers who enjoy the classic tropes of young adult novels, Demon’s Prize is dripping with them. Angela is relatable as a young woman who feels somewhat alone, and frustrated with trying to do the right thing for someone who is an insufferable introvert. Yet, the convention of repetitive actions, phrases, and emotions she feels over and over begins to get tiresome. In young adult fiction, it is commonplace to repeat character actions so that young readers can continue to stay with the story and aides in training reading comprehension. I felt that at some points, this was done almost too often and sometimes slowed me down as a reader.
Brent’s character, the grizzled and experienced werewolf who becomes entangled in the lives of what he calls, “young pups” can be, at times, incredibly infuriating. This, however, feels intentional. It is clear that Maimone was developing characters you could simultaneously be cheering for, and just a few pages later, throwing your hands in the air, yelling, “Why did you do that? Haven’t you learned?!” Creating an emotional bond between the reader and the characters is something Maimone does very well. She has not only created a company of individuals who have depth and relatable complexities, but individuals who are important components to the development and motion of the story rather than empty mouths for the sake of content. Each character has a history, and although we may not yet have all their stories, they each have their own inner and outer conflicts that are becoming well-crafted character arcs without overcomplicating the main story.
However, one of the short comings I feel that is more the fault of the mainstream genre than of the writer, is the rapid shifts in focalization. What I mean by this is that in one minute, we’re dealing with Angela’s inner thoughts and seeing the novel’s world through her perspective, and then a few sentences later, we’re in Brent’s head, or Tony’s head, or any of the other characters without much break. Typically, young adult fiction takes on an omniscient sort of narrating voice, but I think jumping from one character to the next without much issue creates a little bit of confusion and at times, was problematic for the flow of each sentence. More than once I felt myself losing my place and having to read sentences and paragraphs over again because I forgot whose head I was supposed to be in.
Another one of the elements that I felt belabored the text was the back and forth internal dialogue some of the werewolves had between one another. While Maimone tries to make it clear through formatting and repetitive word and phrase use, the combination with the rapid shift focalization made things pretty confusing at times. Yet, with time and patience as I moved through the text, it wasn’t something that ruined the overall story or made the novel unreadable.
Maimone’s talent and dedication to her work is made clear in what I thought was the two strongest elements in this novel. First, from the outside (the metaphorical outside meaning the overall concept of the story), the book seems like just another supernatural young adult thriller when it is actually chocked full of the elements of horror. Although we’re not talking the sustained creepy narrative near the likes of King, there are many moments where the novel becomes an anxiety driven, grisly, and downright brutal to the point where you might find yourself putting the book down just for a breather. This is done in a way that could also convert the supernatural only fans into the world of the horror genre.
The second component is Maimone’s knowledge of the supernatural and her relation of that knowledge to the reader. While at times, it sometimes becomes too much information at once, and slows down the pacing of the narrative to a crawl, it is clear that she wants to set herself aside from large supernatural generalizations and provide readers with more than just a few dabblings in the lore. I deeply appreciated the information even when it felt like it was slowing the story down, although I think some of this information could be incorporated a little more seamless in the future, I never found myself asking, “Yeah, but why?” Maimone’s voice is very strong in that respect, and I think makes for a story that can go more places and have readers less confused as to why things are happening.
To sum up, this first installation into Jennifer Maimone’s new series is a fun and rich read, full of things that supernatural young adult fans will really enjoy. Although it’s clear that the target audience is for those who might relate to young introverts, if you’re familiar with the young adult writing conventions, don’t mind a bit of youth-like drama, and are into the supernatural and horror, Demon’s Prize might just be the next book you can sink your teeth into.
Original review link: http://socalhorror.com/reviews/books-...
With only a small handful of characters, the story follows a small pack of young werewolves who suddenly find themselves involved in a battle with a very tough and brutal demon who has his eyes set on collecting unique supernatural beings to barter on the black market of the underworld. At the center of this tale is Dr. Brent Carson, who could be in some crossover universe, Bigby Wolf’s—from Bill Willingham’s Fables comic series—long lost brother. A loner werewolf with some serious power along with young Angela Dane who is what some may call, a hybrid.
Although I don’t want to spoil it, we learn early on that Angela is somewhat of an oddball in the pack of werewolves she belongs to, and that becomes one of the centers of conflict throughout the story. For readers who enjoy the classic tropes of young adult novels, Demon’s Prize is dripping with them. Angela is relatable as a young woman who feels somewhat alone, and frustrated with trying to do the right thing for someone who is an insufferable introvert. Yet, the convention of repetitive actions, phrases, and emotions she feels over and over begins to get tiresome. In young adult fiction, it is commonplace to repeat character actions so that young readers can continue to stay with the story and aides in training reading comprehension. I felt that at some points, this was done almost too often and sometimes slowed me down as a reader.
Brent’s character, the grizzled and experienced werewolf who becomes entangled in the lives of what he calls, “young pups” can be, at times, incredibly infuriating. This, however, feels intentional. It is clear that Maimone was developing characters you could simultaneously be cheering for, and just a few pages later, throwing your hands in the air, yelling, “Why did you do that? Haven’t you learned?!” Creating an emotional bond between the reader and the characters is something Maimone does very well. She has not only created a company of individuals who have depth and relatable complexities, but individuals who are important components to the development and motion of the story rather than empty mouths for the sake of content. Each character has a history, and although we may not yet have all their stories, they each have their own inner and outer conflicts that are becoming well-crafted character arcs without overcomplicating the main story.
However, one of the short comings I feel that is more the fault of the mainstream genre than of the writer, is the rapid shifts in focalization. What I mean by this is that in one minute, we’re dealing with Angela’s inner thoughts and seeing the novel’s world through her perspective, and then a few sentences later, we’re in Brent’s head, or Tony’s head, or any of the other characters without much break. Typically, young adult fiction takes on an omniscient sort of narrating voice, but I think jumping from one character to the next without much issue creates a little bit of confusion and at times, was problematic for the flow of each sentence. More than once I felt myself losing my place and having to read sentences and paragraphs over again because I forgot whose head I was supposed to be in.
Another one of the elements that I felt belabored the text was the back and forth internal dialogue some of the werewolves had between one another. While Maimone tries to make it clear through formatting and repetitive word and phrase use, the combination with the rapid shift focalization made things pretty confusing at times. Yet, with time and patience as I moved through the text, it wasn’t something that ruined the overall story or made the novel unreadable.
Maimone’s talent and dedication to her work is made clear in what I thought was the two strongest elements in this novel. First, from the outside (the metaphorical outside meaning the overall concept of the story), the book seems like just another supernatural young adult thriller when it is actually chocked full of the elements of horror. Although we’re not talking the sustained creepy narrative near the likes of King, there are many moments where the novel becomes an anxiety driven, grisly, and downright brutal to the point where you might find yourself putting the book down just for a breather. This is done in a way that could also convert the supernatural only fans into the world of the horror genre.
The second component is Maimone’s knowledge of the supernatural and her relation of that knowledge to the reader. While at times, it sometimes becomes too much information at once, and slows down the pacing of the narrative to a crawl, it is clear that she wants to set herself aside from large supernatural generalizations and provide readers with more than just a few dabblings in the lore. I deeply appreciated the information even when it felt like it was slowing the story down, although I think some of this information could be incorporated a little more seamless in the future, I never found myself asking, “Yeah, but why?” Maimone’s voice is very strong in that respect, and I think makes for a story that can go more places and have readers less confused as to why things are happening.
To sum up, this first installation into Jennifer Maimone’s new series is a fun and rich read, full of things that supernatural young adult fans will really enjoy. Although it’s clear that the target audience is for those who might relate to young introverts, if you’re familiar with the young adult writing conventions, don’t mind a bit of youth-like drama, and are into the supernatural and horror, Demon’s Prize might just be the next book you can sink your teeth into.
Original review link: http://socalhorror.com/reviews/books-...
October 30, 2018
I have been reading paranormal books for as long as I can remember. This book grabbed me from the beginning with intriguing lore and adventure.
November 23, 2014
This book is great! Focusing on Dr. Brent Carson, who has taken it upon himself to personally investigate the abduction of women throughout the city, the story winds through a mystery that you won’t soon forget. The supernatural element is introduced into the story when Brent realizes all of the missing women are witches. After that, hold on tight.
A real page turner, Demon’s Prize was a surprising read for me. I didn’t know I was such a little chicken! After my first night reading, I realized my reading would have to be during the day. Very creepy, but so much fun! Demonic type stuff usually freaks me out, but this book has an interesting array of supernatural concoctions that keep you glued to each page... including werewolves! My favorite!
The author is extremely creative and has a real command of language. The characters are well constructed and very likeable. Brent was absolutely fantastic, a wonderfully written character. The story flows well and the twists will keep you wanting more. This new author is definitely one to watch. I’m looking forward to her future works!
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
A real page turner, Demon’s Prize was a surprising read for me. I didn’t know I was such a little chicken! After my first night reading, I realized my reading would have to be during the day. Very creepy, but so much fun! Demonic type stuff usually freaks me out, but this book has an interesting array of supernatural concoctions that keep you glued to each page... including werewolves! My favorite!
The author is extremely creative and has a real command of language. The characters are well constructed and very likeable. Brent was absolutely fantastic, a wonderfully written character. The story flows well and the twists will keep you wanting more. This new author is definitely one to watch. I’m looking forward to her future works!
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews