Heart of the Pack

Alice Worth #8

by Lisa Edmonds

Survive the Holidays with Alice, Private Investigator of the Supernatural.
The pack’s greatest strength is its heart.

Mage private investigator Alice Worth has plenty to celebrate this holiday season. She and alpha werewolf Sean Maclin have settled into their new home just in time for their first Christmas. Her relationship with her father Daniel has improved and she’s welcomed a new business partner. When she’s not busy helping Sean keep their pack in line, she’s even playing matchmaker. Sometimes Alice’s head spins just thinking about how much her life has changed.

Unfortunately, she also has plenty of reasons to worry. Sean’s security company faces an uncertain future, rival packs are determined to destroy their newfound happiness, and a mysterious enemy hired a PI to dig up secrets from Alice’s troubled past.

Before Alice and Sean can meet up under the mistletoe, they must defeat these enemies. But even darker threats lurk in the shadows, ready to strike without warning…

Genres: Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Vampires, Magic, Shapeshifters

281 pages, Unknown Binding

First published December 7, 2021

About the author

Lisa Edmonds was born and raised in Kansas. She studied English and forensic criminology at Wichita State University. After acquiring her Bachelor’s degree, she considered a career in law enforcement as a behavioral analyst before earning a Master's from Wichita State and then a Ph.D. in English from Texas A&M University.

For ten years, she was an associate professor of English at a college in Texas, where she taught a variety of writing and literature courses.

Now a full-time author, she shares a cute little Victorian-style home called the Storybook House with her husband and their cats. She enjoys writing, reading, traveling, spoiling her niece and nephew, and singing karaoke.

Reviews

[Lucie V. · Rating 3 out of 5]

✅ Pace
✅ Action
✅ Characters
✅ Heartwarming moments
✅🆗 Plot
🆗 Still no progress with Moses
🆗 Alice is still getting even more powerful
❗️❗️Trigger warning: some gore and torture (off-page), deaths, the usual with Alice...

2.5 stars

I thought this was the last book?! Obviously, there will be another one, because things with Moses are still not resolved, and I am tired of it. Also, this book was released in 2021 and there is still no sign of a 9th book coming out, so is the series over? Did the author give up or did she decide to end Alice’s series with this very underwhelming ending? We still have no conclusion regarding Moses, and I’ve been waiting for a big confrontation since the very first book. I feel robbed of the ending I was expecting and hoping for.

This book was very short compared to the previous ones, with only 230 pages, and yet, half of those pages are spent explaining how Alice is having fun and living a great life with her new pack. It left very little room to resolve everything that was still unresolved: Moses, the Council, the mysterious absence of the vampires…

It really felt like the author just had her checklist of subplots to wrap up, and she wrapped them up nicely one after the other, but the book was too short for everything that still needed to be done. By the time the Council subplot was resolved, we were already halfway through the book. Then, of course, a new issue with the vampires arose (as if we needed any more issues to deal with in such a short final book), and Moses was absent from this book.

I complained in my review of the previous book that the vampires were pretty much absent from the plot at that point, well, the author decided to bring them back for a few short chapters, but it was not necessary. Alice’s dealings with Valas and the court were supposed to be over, so it would have been okay for her not to see them again, even if I found it sad that they were not part of the series anymore. Still, there was no need to create yet another problem involving Valas and Alice, only for it to be resolved a handful of pages later.

I like that the author took the time to show us how Alice found a family with the pack, how Karen had her babies, or how Alice used Theol’s gift to shift, but it would have been nice then to have a few extra chapters to detail the more important things even more.


1. Heart of Malice ⭐⭐⭐
1.5 Just for one Night ⭐⭐.5
1.75 Blood Money ⭐⭐⭐
1.8 Ghosting 101 ⭐⭐
2. Heart of Fire ⭐⭐⭐.5
3. Heart of Ice ⭐⭐⭐⭐
4. Heart of Stone ⭐⭐⭐⭐
5. Heart of Shadows ⭐⭐⭐⭐
6. Heart of Vengeance ⭐⭐⭐.5
7. Heart of Lies ⭐⭐⭐.5
7.5 Perfectly Magical ⭐⭐.5



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[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

I still like this series, but this one was kind of boring for me. This was very pack-centric, which was a nice change but at the same time I still don't understand why Alice is so set against being turned while at the same time being such a supposedly integral part of the pack. Having pack bonds and alpha powers while not actually being werewolf is a bit over the top considering all her other super powers. And again her grandfather who was the big bad of this series is suddenly a footnote.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am so disappointed.

After spending the last week working my way through this extremely solid series, I made it to this book - which is the eighth and may or may not be the last in the series? - and it is, well, not up to the same standards as the rest of the series.

Besides my primary complaints with the series as a whole (the timeline is pretty unbelievable; the author allows the main plot line to fall to the wayside at various points), I do have a few complaints regarding this book in particular. First, it's fairly disjointed, reading at times more like a sequence of short stories than a novel. Second, we reach the conclusion of a number of plot points and what could be a great end to the series, yet there remain a number of plot points that are not concluded... which leaves me confused about the future of the book. And finally, my biggest complaint - power creep. Basically, Alice keeps getting more and more powerful. It's getting to be reminiscent of the Kate Daniels books by Ilona Andrews: how can we believe that someone so powerful is ever at risk of losing? It takes away from the tension needed for the book to be a success.

I dunno. I read that this book started as a novella and the author expanded on it, but I really think it needed to be retooled, or just left as a novella. I will definitely read more books by Lisa Edmonds (whenever they come out...), but I think I may skip rereading this specific book in the future.

[Bookgyrl]

DNF 60%.. after endless skimming. What happened?! I loved the Alice Worth books and they kept getting better and better. But the last one (even though I rated 5 stars because even now it is still better than most of the PNR out there) was difficult for me to get through.

In the first books Alice was a loner, a woman with a very traumatic past and on the run from her grandfather. In the last books the circle around Alice has grown and I like that. But I also noticed I started to care less as there were too many characters around. I have to keep up with all the names and everyone seems to love Alice...

I enjoy the romance between Alice and Sean, but I don't like werewolf stories actually. This book was again heavily focused on the Were counsel, issues the other packs have with Alice as consort of Sean etc. And everything is about 'pack'.
The whole Moses thing is going on and on also. I just don't know, the story as a whole has become too complicated for me with too many storylines in itself. Alice had a wolf inside (Daisy) but now she is a pup and is treated as some sort of child. I am happy Alice finally has realized her enormous savior complex but it did not stop her from making a stupid deal in the last book.

I think I will just let the series go for a while, see if I want to pick it up sometime in the future.

[TJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series has hit its peak! This installment embodied everything a reader has been loving throughout the previous books, plus a little extra umph to make it exciting and unforgettable! Oh, I hope this author continues the series, though, and doesn’t leave it at this. There is still SO much to be mined out of these characters. Plus, Grandpa Murphy is still at large….

[Ewa (Fedra) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,5

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series has fallen flat the last few books. This book got barely any action and far too many 'I love you's'. I'm simply sick of how wonderful Sean is now and how he understands every feeling/thought Alice has better than she does. It's about time she killed off grandad and then lives happily and smotheringly ever after.

[Lorena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free ARC of this book from the author in return for an honest review.

These are auto-buy books for me. The fact that we got two released within a week? Plus a short story? Heaven. After the (exceedingly recent) events of Heart of Lies, Alice is finally facing the ways her trauma has impacted the people (and other assorted supernatural beings) around her. She's moving forward with making Arkady an official partner in her investigative business, with her relationship with her biological father, and with her place in the pack. Spoiler rules prevent me from saying much more, but suffice to say that if you thought a lot happened in the last book, hang tight, because that was just the warmup for all that happens here!

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buddy read with Fran 💜

[Shannon | invokedreverie ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Eva Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had the privilege of being an ARC reader for this latest adventure. It was a fun, engaging ride from start to finish. I came across the Alice Worth series in early 2020 and was immediately hooked. The biggest draw for me has been the development and consistency around a healthy, boundary-respecting relationship between Sean and Alice. No narcissist, mean and aggressive love bombing here!

Alice is a bad ass female and actually well written, smart, and capable of personal growth/maturity that doesn’t depend on hormones/poor plot lines to keep her interesting. Combine that with a strong, steadfast mate, and fantastic side characters, and you’re in for a great ride. I look forward to what comes next from Ms. Edmonds.

[Francesca ❆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed how much this book focused on family, the one you create for yourself, and pack; Alice has gone through such a arduous and rocky emotional growth journey and I feel like this book is the first where we fully see the results of that journey.
I really enjoyed the pacing of this story: despite the book being not super long, it packed quite a nice punch plot wise and the last third of it especially had me on the edge of my seat with anxiety….I must say: fuck Valas, fuck her to hell and back: she’s such a fucking horrible creature. Malcom was such a badass in this book, his magical display had my jaw hit the floor for a solid minute.
I’m wondering something about how this series will progress: it seems like Edmonds wants to at least start the spin off series with Trent as MC, so I guess the Broken World spin off is tabled for now…and I’m wondering if this choice is due to the fact that both Trent and his love interest will be vital for Alice’s own future story so they need so background work done first.
The little snippet was quite interesting so I’ll be sure to check it out when it comes out.

Thank you for being an awesome BR buddy, Jess, and sorry for once again racing ahead. 😆 😅

[Alexandra G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

I didn't expect this book to be released so fast after the last one.
For some reason I thought this was a novella.
So imagine my excitement when I saw it was actually book 8.

And it was good.
Alice and Sean are actually moving forward with their realtionship, I'm still confused a bit about what role baby Daisy will have but she's adorable so it's fine.
Some problems get solved for good in this book and there are new develompents.

I'm actually happy about Matthias. But I hope the author won't turn that into a love triangle with him, Arkady and Ronan. There's no hint of it and I hope it remains that way.

I don't know how many books there'll be in the series, but so far I really like them so I hope the answer is many.

8/10 would recommend

[Tatiana · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was not the book for me. 50% of it was unrelenting Christmas joys, lots of focus on alcohol, the glory of babies and parents, and Alice’s issues due to a lifetime of trauma being completely resolved in 9 months. The whole wolf-brain section made me cringe. There was a good finale at least.

[Aurialis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note - I received an ARC from publisher in exchange of an honest review.

Honestly, I liked this installment much better than the previous one, despite it being shorter. I enjoyed reading about pack, about Alice and Sean and the action that is always abundant. While this is a short novella, I would definitely recommend not skipping it in the series. Without any spoiler, all I can say is that this book plays an integral role in the series.

I am not only eagerly waiting for the next book in the series, but also the spin-offs.

[WonderWomanNZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a long series, but not the longest I have listened too. Firstly let me say I totally loved the narrator, Felicity Munroe. The last book in this series was good, but I have to say the earlier ones in this series were better. Towards the end I found the storyline’s lacked a little something, like I wasn’t hooked liked the first few books. However I have now found another author that I have bookmarked as a must read. Thank you Lisa.

[Erin *Proud Book Hoarder* · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

One of the better in the series recently- great book and I'm curious on the new member at the end with that twist. Finally we get a resolution with some of the big baddies of the series, although this book is a shifter focused all the way - we don't get interaction with any of the vamps other than the ending, and none with mages other than speaking names.

[Susan1566 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shows Alice’s growth within the pack and as a person. Some very different things are happening. Bit I do have a complaint - there are no more books at this time. I hope more are coming, there is so much more that needs to happen. Still worth reading and enjoying

[Anna (Bobs Her Hair) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Kt Hay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it!
Just completed the ARC I was lucky to be sent, and it was fab. Lots of new developments ( that flow very naturally, the kind you’re like “how did I not see that coming?!”)
The usual excellent pacing from Lisa Edmonds that means it’s a massively enjoyable read without lots of boring intervals or lots of action crammed in to a short section.
Lovely to see our protagonist continuing their personal development and the progression of their growing self awareness.
I do have a couple of questions about one scene in the back of a pick up…the writing was suggestive enough I def have a good impression of what went on, but because it wasn’t stated explicitly it left just enough to my imagination 🙈

[Shelby · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.7

This book had more of a feeling of being a novella. Technically it was a full-length work, but the vibe was more relaxed and more of a closer look at Alice and her relationships with people in happier times. The conflict took a while to emerge, then the focus shifted completely to bliss to trouble. There weren't the full developments one typically sees with a full-length work. Ironically, I thought this book could be the end of the series, so I was getting excited for the series climax, but then I read this it was anything but. Now I have a few reservations that this is going to be one of those series that get extended with each book indefinitely.

This book did introduce a new spin-off featuring Agent Lake. It looks like it could be promising.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was both slow and action packed at the same time

This book was a change of pace to the Alice worth series, but it was still good.

We have new pack mates, new relationships, new abilities, old foes show their faces again, and vampires die.

Honestly, it wasn't as action packed as I've come to expect an Alice Worth book to be, but it did tie up some loose ends, while also creating more possibilities for future shenanigans.

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had so many info dumps I found myself struggling not to skim. It felt like too much history was trying to be explained for an installment so far into the series. I am interested to see how their newest packmate works out.

Side note: I'm looking forward to Trent's spin-off River of Souls (Cold Souls series) coming next year.

[Stephaniec · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to give this a higher rating but...it felt a bit all over the place. Nothing really happened on the grandfather front which was disappointing. AGAIN with the vampires, I'm curious as to what this means for Alice and the pack. I also like Alice's growth - from loner to someone who has friends, family and a new partner.

[rogue · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

Eh what a let down. The main plot with Moses is still not concluded. It was a big part of the previous book. I don't know why the author didn't continue it. This book was a filler tbh. Idk when the next installment will be out, I might not continue with this one.

[Dusty · Rating 5 out of 5]

RATING: 5 STARS

Lisa Edmonds spoiled her readers by releasing two installments to the Alice Worth series within a week of each other. After reading both (and giving each a 5-star rating), the wait for the next book (and the upcoming Trent Lake spin-off series) is going to be agonizing.

The pacing of the book was, as always, amazing. There was never a dull moment or a time where too much was being crammed into a small section. Another highlight of the Alice Worth series for me has always been the characters, and the author did not disappoint in that regard. I loved how Alice’s place in the pack and at Sean’s side was really explored in this book. Alice also develops her relationship with her long-lost father Daniel, which was long overdue in my opinion and so sweet to see. They both have unresolved trauma from the past that they were able to work through together. Ms. Edmonds has done a great job connecting readers to her characters and getting them invested. At this point, I’m committed to seeing the series through to the end no matter what. All my fingers and toes are crossed in the hopes that Alice will finally get the happily ever after ending she so deserves. No spoilers, but things seem to be moving in the right direction to make a happily ever after ending a not so impossible option for Alice and Sean in the future.

A lot happened in Heart of Lies, but even more happens in Heart of the Pack. The two books seemed to compliment each other, as Heart of Lies felt darker where Heart of the Pack was more humorous and light-hearted. Despite this being a shorter book (281 pages versus Heart of Lies’ 618), I would not recommend skipping it. The events of this book seem like they will play a pivotal role in the ones to follow.

Overall, I highly recommend this book (and series) to anyone who loves urban fantasy and paranormal romance. You won’t be disappointed! Heart of the Pack was my favorite book in the series so far. I’m eagerly awaiting news of when Alice Book 9 and the Trent Lake spin-off will be released.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main takeaway is that very little important happened in this book.

A lot of this boiled down to a lack of what I'd call real conflict. Instead of actual conflict, this book contained fights and minor skirmishes, which it's hard to believe at this point that Alice won't win. Another reviewer mentioned power-creep, and I think it's very fair to say that's a big contributor to why the fights aren't particularly engaging anymore. Alice has gotten so powerful these past few books, in her powers and her allies, that we don't see her as capable of losing. This goes for her relationships as well. These books have a strong romantic component, and while Alice and Sean's relationship still flourishes, it doesn't grow anymore because there's nothing to challenge it. Relationship conflicts would add weight to the narrative that makes their romance satisfying to read, but there are none, so the book feels mushy instead.

We're reminded multiple times throughout this book that there is a main series conflict (its name rhymes with Schmoses Schmurphy), but it's frequently brushed off by the characters as a "later" problem, which really slows the book down. There was a fun development at the end where Valas and Vlad are no longer in the picture, which was done up okay, mostly because they were becoming stale, as far as characters go. To be frank, though, they should've been gotten rid of earlier in the series.

Anyway, this missed some major marks, particularly in regards to what makes the other Alice books great, namely high stakes tension from multiple angles that dramatically clash over the course of an investigation, leading us to wonder if Alice and Sean will come out on top and what sacrifices they'll have to make to end up there. None of that was in Heart of the Pack.

[Nightwitch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alice’s grandfather has been set up as such a horrific person and adversary that the choice to just kind of sideline him for the entire first half of the book while nothing else time-sensitive is happening really doesn’t work. This is a man who tortures children and murdered his own daughter; he has numerous people working for him against their will, again probably including children, who are tortured to keep them in compliance, and Alice is just casually ignoring him (and making deals with him!) to keep the rest of the plot moving along. Given that the entire point of the last book was that Alice has a martyr complex and can’t keep from trying to rescue other people even when it’s not possible or safe, this is… incongruent, to say the least.

There’s vampire drama, Evil Granddad lurking in the background, and we’re spending an entire chapter cooing over J. Random Werewolf’s cute newborn babies and Alice’s feelings about her biological father kissing someone? This belongs in an epilogue, not a book. Later Alice decides to use a magic amulet to transform into a wolf for a week and romp around with her boyfriend, again despite all the chaos in the world outside.

Basically, the series continues to be fun and readable but Edmonds doesn't really commit to the overarching plot - the mystery of the week has a tendency to take over each novel, along with more comforting moments between Alice and her friends and family - and there's no real sense that the overarching plot is happening in the background. It's just discarded until the writer has time to pick it up again, and that makes it feel, well, fictional, if that makes any sense.

[Elaina Wells · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought Heart of the Pack was a very cute read!! This novella focuses mainly on Alice's role in her and Sean's pack and how she fits in the pack dynamics. At this point, all of the pack members accept her as Sean's consort and they are gearing up to have a great Christmas holiday.

While most novellas, to me at least, feel like filler books before the next full-length book is released, I didn't feel that way with Heart of the Pack. This is just as much about Alice's character development as the previous book, Heart of Lies. It was important for her to understand that even though she is just a human, she has every right to be a part of the Tomb Mountain pack as well as Sean's consort/potential mate.

Something else I loved about the book was the fact that Alice and Daniel's relationship develops even further, and you can finally see her understand that he is not trying to replace her father, but instead fill an entirely new role in her life instead. Readers even see her leaning on him a bit more and becoming more open about her thoughts and feelings! Way to go, Alice!

I think everyone who has loved the Alice Worth series so far is going to devour Heart of the Pack just like I did! Five stars!!

[Diana Pineda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time I read an Alice Worth book I repeat to myself: "expect the unexpected." I honestly thought that this book, being shorter than usual and so close to the release of Heart of Lies, was just going to be a filler book. I was expecting a short retail of the events following Heart of Lies. However, many things happen. There is so much happening and it was happening fast. For sure it was not a filler book. I was not over processing things when something new came along. Since the beginning of the series, I was excited to see how Alice made a family of her own and her own growth and in this book we get to see more of that, specially how she strengthens her relationship with other characters. If I could change anything from the book, it would probably be making it a little bit longer to see more of this relationships grow in detail and maybe a little bit slower. Even though I was excited for the events taking place, I would have like to read more about them. I feel like some of them happen abruptly. It was good but I just wish we had witnessed a little more. That being said, I have conflicted feelings about reading the book. On one hand I LOVED it. It was amazing and great things happen. On the other hand, now my heart just desires more and it cannot wait for more!