Reviewed by Kat
TITLE: Moonrise Academy: The Mysterious Boyfriend
SERIES: Academy SHifters (Book 2)
AUTHOR: Wendy Rathbone
IPUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 243 pages
RELEASE DATE: April 21, 2022
BLURB:
A secret life. Hidden abuse. Forbidden love.
Calen meets the alpha of his dreams. But after their first encounter, the alpha ghosts him. Two months later, the alpha wants to meet again. His behavior remains mysterious, but Calen cannot deny their connection is on fire. His wolf insists they’ve met their mate.
Vash has a secret. His family lives by old pack law. To save his family’s honor for a major crime against an enemy pack, he lives indentured to another alpha, serving as a tribute, and his life is completely controlled. He is not allowed to ever take a mate. But when he meets Calen, honoring old pack law comes into question for him and he is compelled to be with Calen above all else.
Will the alpha who controls Vash ever let him go? Can Calen and Vash find a way to ever be together?
Wolf-shifter omegaverse, fated mates, a secret life, hidden abuse, forbidden love, mpreg, HEA.
REVIEW:
I have really been looking forward to this next book in this series.
We met Calen in the first book. He is (and has been since they were boys) Headmaster Julian’s best friend. He is also a literature professor at Moonrise Academy. When the two attend a Christmas open house at one of the opulent estates of one of the board of directors his eyes catch a glimpse of a gorgeous, impeccably dressed younger man. However, when he gets Julian’s attention to point him out and inquire who he is he’s gone. Later, after having had a wee too much to drink, he wanders out to the back patio area to cool off. When footsteps sound he’s ready to tell Julian he’s fine but comes face-to-face with the beautiful alpha he spotted earlier. When a kiss ignites something in both men, things are looking up. That is until Vash suddenly gets summoned away. Vash is stuck in the most horrible circumstances. He is basically an indentured slave to the rich and powerful Corvaiz “The Heir” Arucali. His brother killed Corvaiz’s twin and therefore must fulfill the antiqued laws of the old pack. He is removed from his family and pack at the tender age of 17 to fulfill what his brother, who was sent to prison for murder under law, couldn’t. Eight years later, Vash is barely living a life. Corvaiz controls every moment of his tortured life.
Corvaiz was a sadist in the purest form of the word. He would parade his possession around for all to see how gifted he was but be horribly cruel behind the walls of his estate. When Vash snuck out to go to the party it was his one and only act of disobedience. He went through life a broken man fulfilling his duty to keep honor for their family. I just didn’t get it though. The family’s name was already disgraced by his brother’s actions. I know there is old pack law and that’s how they operated within the old packs. But his enduring the wrath of Corvaiz, who was deeply affected/traumatized by the brutal death/loss of his twin, was reprehensible and barbaric. Old world Archaic laws of a tooth for a tooth mentality have no place in modern society. I could see similarities to what people suffer in the Middle East running through this book.
Calen entering Vash’s life was the spark that he needed to finally stand up. However, since he was so young and honor-bound by his packs ways, the turmoil that he fought within himself was severe. He recognized his true mate and that is a force that he was unprepared for.
Calen is the one that I had questionable feelings about. He is older than Vash (almost 33 to Vash’s 25) yet his judgement was extremely questionable at times. He, at times, sounded more like a schoolboy with his first crush than an esteemed professor at an elite college. I know that the fated/true mate thing might have a skewed his rational judgement but his wants/needs were putting Vash at great risk to fulfill his desires. I did love his lawyer Korman. That’s a man I would want on my side in a legal battle!
I enjoyed the first book more than this one. The psychological torture of Vash was hard to read. I know book three is coming out soon and it’s Corvaiz’s story. It’s going to take a lot to sway me to want him to get his HEA. I get that he is extremely troubled but what he put Vash through really is going to be hard to get over. I will say that I thought that we would have seen more of Julian and Toby. I know this book parallels some of that time period but I wanted to know how life was after their bundle of joy entered the world.
RATING: 
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