Rating: 4.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | All Romance | Amazon UK
Length: Novel
When the deadline for his eighth Wolf’s Landing novel passes, Hunter Eason finally admits—if only to himself—that eight might not happen. Fan mail, threats, the stress to produce another record breaking novel—it can be too much for one man to handle. He knows that he’s not supposed to read unpublished work or follow fan sites, but he only checks out Fandom Landing—screen name Wolf Hunter—for the art… and for Lone Wolf. He didn’t mean to, but the first time he caught a snippet of Lone Wolf’s writing, Hunter was hooked. Then in the midst of his own bout of writer’s block, Lone Wolf sends him a completed manuscript of The World Tree—a fanfic novel to follow book seven based on Hunter’s world and his characters. And it’s good. Really good. So good Hunter can’t think about continuing his ruse of a book eight. No. He wants The World Tree. First step: introduce Lone Wolf to Wolf Hunter.
Kevin Hussain has gotten to know Wolf Hunter over the past year and values his opinion, especially when it comes to Kevin’s writing. When Wolf Hunter asked to meet over coffee and talk about The World Tree, all Kevin could think about was the many flaws in his manuscript. And then Hunter Eason walks into the coffee shop and Kevin’s world turns upside down. Finding out that his friend Wolf Hunter is actually Hunter Eason is a shock, but when Hunter asks Kevin to publish his book—The Wolf Tree—as book eight in the Wolf’s Landing series, Kevin is stunned beyond belief.
On top of working together, the online friendship between Hunter and Kevin turns into something deeper, more intimate. Except Kevin doesn’t handle change well and Hunter has personal space issues. Their pasts, their presents, and even their future culminates to either bring them close together or to tear their relationship—both personal and professional—apart.
Lone Wolf is part of the Bluewater Bay series. All of the books in the series can be read as standalones.
This is the first of the Bluewater Bay series that I’ve read and I’m so glad it is. As the creator of Wolf’s Landing, Hunter Eason is a big part of this world and, though I’ve not read the other books, I have a feeling he may have popped up once or twice. After all, he’s the reason Bluewater Bay is the fictitious Wolf’s Landing. And seriously, when have I not loved a good May/December romance?
Among the many quirks and habits these guys have, their age difference seems to affect them the least. I mean, yes, they talk about it, even joke about it, but once they give into their desire, they have more important things to worry about. Like overbearing publishers, narcissistic editors, crazy fans, outrageous cons, and the pressure to produce. That’s only the tip of the iceberg. I think their wires get crossed somewhere in the beginning after Hunter boasts about liking his space. Kevin interprets that as Hunter doesn’t want any sort of serious relationship. Hunter interprets Kevin’s discomfort in Hunter’s home as skittishness.
These guys have a ton to work through, and I’ll be honest, I was worried that what I translated as the ease of their friendship flowing into a relationship wouldn’t be enough to sustain a full story and keep my attention. I was wrong. With their many idiosyncrasies and working through them, this story is kept me intrigued from beginning to end. These authors worked a number of tropes—May/December romance, friends to lovers, celebrity/commoner—and still kept the story smooth and pliable.
The one thing that grated my nerves a little was the many references to writing and editing and publishing. I think there’s a fine line to authors writing about authors and their business. The overshare can drag and weigh a story down where it shouldn’t. I don’t mind reading those things. In fact, I find them interesting, but in a romance there’s a balance, and this story slightly tipped that scale in the wrong direction. Only slightly though.
Overall, I enjoyed the heck out of this story. Like I said, there is so much to it, but the authors do a fabulous job of tying it all up in a neat little bow. I definitely recommend Lone Wolf by L.A. Witt and Aleksandr Voinov.
