Rating: 3.75 stars
Buy Links: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novel
Silas is the alpha of the Trillium Creek pack. As an alpha, he should have a fated mate, but Silas has almost given up on finding him. That is until he encounters a young police officer on his land, looking for a lost omega shifter. Right away, Silas feels drawn to Cory, who seems human, but Silas thinks might be more.
Cory grew up with a close-minded family who hates wolves and has always tried to control him. They taught him he should hate and fear shifters and when Cory first meets Silas, the handsome older alpha scares him. But he finds Silas incredibly attractive as well, and he is drawn to the man despite himself. When they work together to help track the missing omega, Cory realizes how desperately he wants Silas. The men also realize that Cory is more than human, and is actually a human/wolf hybrid.
It soon becomes clear to Silas that Cory is his fated mate, but he isn’t sure how to share the news with a man who up until now had no idea he was even part wolf. Cory is also struggling as his family is furious he is interacting with the wolves, and his boss/uncle is making life at work difficult for him. On top of that, an unexpected pregnancy means the men have to face their future together faster than they had planned. Silas is ready to be with Cory, but he worries the other man isn’t quite ready for his new role as an alpha mate. Now Cory and Silas have to deal with Cory’s troublesome family while figuring out the future of their relationship.
Love at Long Last kicks off Silvia Violet’s new Trillium Creek series. One of the things I really look for in a paranormal series is good world building and I think Violet has done a nice job of that here. She finds a good balance between keeping to the general omegaverse themes, while at the same time adding some creative elements that add a bit of a twist. Things are nicely laid out in this story, giving us a chance to meet the pack and learn more about the shifter world and the omegaverse. So I felt like the set up was good here, both for this book and the series.
This story is the first official book in the series, but Violet does have a short prequel, Love at Lupine Bakery, that features Finn and Levi, and introduces Silas, the pack, and the basics of the world. You could start here without reading that one, though Finn does play a big role as a side character here. What struck me though is that the story set up felt very similar for both books. In both cases we have a wolf who finds a human/shifter fated mate, and the mate bond then kick starts the hybrid’s previously hidden wolf side. I actually think the first short deals with this issue a little more clearly, but either way, it seemed a little bit repetitive to have the same issue come up with both MCs two stories in a row. It also made me wonder at Silas’ lack of concern about pregnancy, given the virtually same scenario happens to Finn in the first book.
From a relationship end, things are super fast here. The guys are in lust from the moment they see one another and within the first day, things are already pretty serious. Falling fast and hard is a common hallmark of omegaverse stories, so that in and of itself wasn’t a problem. But in this case, I wondered about how Cory moves from terrified of wolves and growing up taught to hate them, to all in to a relationship with a wolf so incredibly quickly and I wish this had been addressed more specifically. I did like the way Violet takes care to show Silas is very cautious with Cory, wanting to make sure he is always comfortable and fully consenting to their rapidly developing partnership. The story also makes clear that while they may be fated mates, they are connecting because they are perfect for one another, not just due to some whim of fate. That said, I wish we saw on page more of why these guys worked together, rather than just being told they were a good fit. The men are clearly compatible sexually (there is a nod to some very mild daddy kink here), but I don’t feel like we see enough to know how they fit together personality wise. So I think more development of these characters, as well as how they fit as a pair, would have been helpful.
There are several conflicts set up in this story. Interpersonally, the guys must work through the fact that Cory is new to this world and has uncertainties about his place in the pack and in Silas’ life. There is also the larger conflict over the missing omega, and we learn that Trillium Creek is a very progressive pack, while others are much more conservative. Wolves are fleeing another local pack and the alpha there is mad at Silas because he thinks Trillium Creek is aiding these wolves. This part of the storyline doesn’t resolve here, though I assume that will be a thread throughout the series (and we get some hints here how that might play out in future books). So I think that works fine for this initial story and sets things up well moving forward. The last conflict is Cory’s problem with his family, and this didn’t feel as fully resolved. There is a point where things come to a head, but it is over so quickly and we never get any follow up as to the fallout. So this last issue felt a little too unresolved for me and I would have liked more closure on the issues with Cory’s family, job, etc.
Overall, i found this a nice start to this new series. Violet creates fun and sexy stories, and this is no exception. Cory and Silas are just overall great guys and if you like you dashing romance heroes who fall fast and hard, I think this story will work well for you, particularly if you are an omegaverse fan. I am definitely looking forward to seeing where things go from here as the series develops.
P.S. Can we talk about this cover? I totally love it and it is a perfect Cory!
