Reviewed by Sadonna
TITLE: The Altered’s Atonement
SERIES: Wolves of Stone Ridge
AUTHOR: Charlie Richards
PUBLISHER: eXtasy
LENGTH: 105 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 27, 2022
BLURB:
Out of the Cage: After a thoughtless outburst reveals his secrets, an altered shifter must finally come to grips with not only his changing reality, but his sexuality, too.
When Corporal Brian Haas took in a fellow marine’s comatose younger brother in an attempt to figure out how to heal him, he never could have imagined the chain of events that it would set off. The testing his patient—Bailey Dyer—had been forcibly subjected to changed his DNA. Bailey had ended up turning into a paranormal creature called a shifter, giving him the ability to turn into a sentient cheetah at will.
Upon learning of shifters’ existence, Brian agrees to relocate to the mountains of Colorado to help his buddy and the shifters looking into those targeting them. He builds a new bunker, preparing for when the thugs of the shadow military branch come calling. Brian knows it’s just a matter of time, and he has every intention of making sure he and his new friends will be ready for them.
Brian spots a cheetah trotting into his yard. Assuming it’s Bailey, he doesn’t think anything about it…until it starts purring and rubbing up against him. This cheetah is not his ex-patient. When the man shifts, Brian finds himself face-to-face with a blond calling himself David Preston, and he seems to be just as confused by his sudden infatuation as Brian…until David calls Brian his mate.
Brian realizes his life is about to be turned upside-down all over again…if the confused altered can come to grips with his own changes.
REVIEW:
Note: While this is number 57 in this series it can be read as a stand alone – although it might be a bit confusing as there is now a story arc that is potentially leading to something big. I would recommend reading book 55 at least before reading this one.
So we have a new twist! This book ends on a bit of a cliff-hanger and I for one am here for it 🙂
We have the usual – shifter finds his mate (although in this case it’s an emotionally and sexually abused “made” shifter rather than a born shifter) and has to figure out how to bond with him despite his misgivings and hang-ups. David has had a bad upbringing with a homophobic father and he’s lashed out before at his bisexual and gay fellow soldiers. He’s been experimented on and is now a cheetah shifter. But he’s still recovering his memories and figuring out his relationship with his cat.
Brian is also former military. He was out after an injury from an IED and he’s been slowly building an off-grid sanctuary for the local shifter pack. His rather ingenious camp is where David finds him after he scents him when out on a run. Brian mistakes him for another shifter at first – but then realizes it’s not Bailey. David is a little freaked out by his mate and he’s still not totally in control of himself and his shifter abilities. But he knows that Brian is his made and he’s got to figure out what that means. He’s a bit nervous and has trouble focusing. But he asks if he and Brian would maybe go on a date 😉
Brian has to sort of reprogram David’s destructive thought patterns that have been ingrained in him by his past abuse by his father. David appreciates Brian giving him a new way to look at things. Their date goes well until he spots someone out of place – another former military guy. This leads the pack to figure out that something’s coming. They’ve been preparing and they are ready. But it still is something that they will all have to deal with. And in the aftermath, David gets a huge surprise.
Ooooooooh this did not go at ALL how I thought it would. The pack has been preparing for some sort of attack after they rescued the “made” shifters that had been part of the secret rogue government experiments. Alpha Declan has his people working diligently to be ready when it happens. Brian is a huge part of this with his off-grid knowledge and preparation. David is going to be a big part of it – based on his former military experience and now with his mate bond with David. It’s clear the war is coming to them and they need to be ready! I can’t wait for the next book to see what happens. Well done Ms. Richards!
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
eXtasy