Reviewed by Annika
TITLE: How to Save a Life
SERIES: Howl at the Moon #4
AUTHOR: Eli Easton
NARRATOR: Matthew Shaw
PUBLISHER: Pinkerton Road
RELEASE DATE: January 17, 2018
LENGTH: 8 hours, 46 minutes
BLURB:
Rav Miller looked into the terrified, intelligent eyes of the chocolate Labrador on death row, and knew he’d do anything to save him. When the dog, Sammy, escapes and heads to Mad Creek, Rav follows. Mad Creek. The town had become legendary in Rav’s mind after he’d met that bizarre group last year. Rav dismissed his crazy suspicions back then, but when he arrives in Mad Creek, he knows it’s true. Dog shifters exist, and apparently they all live in the California mountains. It’s enough to blow a bad boy’s mind.
Sammy has something in common with Rav – neither one of them trusts people. After Sammy’s abuse as a dog, he particularly dislikes tough-looking men like Rav. But when Sammy gets a chance to work with rescued dogs at the new Mad Creek shelter, his deep compulsion to help others overcomes his fear. Rav and Sammy bond over saving strays. If they can each find the courage to let someone else in, they might find their way to love.
Sheriff Lance Beaufort doesn’t like humans moving into Mad Creek, especially not the tattooed and defiant Rav. When Rav starts a rescue shelter, the town thinks he’s wonderful! But Lance isn’t fooled. He doesn’t buy Rav’s innocent act for one second. How much does Rav know about the quickened? What is his game? And why did he have to show up now, when Lance and the other town leaders are overwhelmed by all the new quickened pouring in?
Rav knows how to save a life. But can he save an entire town? Can he rescue Mad Creek?
REVIEW:
I love this series so much! How to Save a Life was another great addition to the Howl at the Moon series. It had everything we’ve come to expect from the series, the sweetness, quirkiness, humour and a great amount of love in all shapes and forms.
Once again my heart breaks for the newly quickened that we meet. Sammy loved and was loved in return the first years of his life. But then an accident took that love away and replaced it with a nightmare that never seemed to end – that is until he ended up at a (kill) dog shelter and his time was almost up…
Remember Rav from the previous book – the man who owned the dog shelter where Milo and Jason went to, to get the cure for the virus? Well he is back and he’s never been able to forget the meeting with the, to say the least, odd people from Mad Creek, and the eerily intelligent dogs. So when he comes across Sammy at a kill shelter he recognises that intelligent look and decides to bring him back with him to Hold My Paw. When Sammy ends up breaking out of the shelter and runs away – heading for Mad Creek, Rav decides to follow and just maybe once and for all get some answers. And just maybe he’ll find a place to call home while he’s at it.
The romance between Sammy and Rav is another slow-burn. I loved to see how Sammy slowly started to trust again, learning how to be human. And I absolutely loved his truly bad sense of humour. He captured my heart the first time we met him and never let go. As with the other quickened we’ve gotten to know he was this generous soul capable of such great love that you couldn’t help but fall for him. Rav never stood a chance either, and I had a great time reading about him muddling through Mad Creek and its inhabitants. Teaching Sammy everything about being human and what it meant to be in love with another man.
Matthew Shaw performed this book to perfection. He truly is the perfect choice for this series. He nails the voices, the feelings, atmosphere and everything that is this series. He brings you to Mad Creek and he brings it all to life and it is a pure joy listening to these books.
I sincerely hope we haven’t seen the last of Mad Creek because I’m not ready to say goodbye to this wonderful town or the people living there, because it truly is a wonderful place to spend your time.
RATING: 
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