Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: His Gentle Omega

SERIES: Sweet Alps Mates (Book 7)

AUTHOR: Raiven Matthews

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 448 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 23, 2024

BLURB:

Shay Pierce

How could I love my fated mate when I couldn’t love myself?

Escaping with my young son from an abusive relationship, I had one plan to keep my son and I safe. Getting to the safety of my estranged brother and mending our rift. I never imagined I would find my fated mate at the worst possible time in my life. My priorities had to be rebuilding my life, breaking the mate bond that had been an epic mistake, keeping my son safe, and putting all my broken pieces back together. Easier said than done. My life was a train wreck and dragging Bennett into my mess wasn’t fair to either of us. I was barely hanging on, and I knew I couldn’t be the Alpha he deserved. So, I had to let him go.

Bennett Maxwell

They say you find love in the most unexpected places.

Finding my fated mate in the bruised and battered Alpha lying in the Emergency Room wasn’t the stuff my dreams were made of. But one look into Shay’s haunted eyes and I knew he and his adorable son were my future. Giving him the space he asked for was the hardest thing I had ever done, especially with him being my new next-door neighbor. I promised to give him the time he needed to heal, even if it meant keeping my pregnancy from him. But when his ex finds him, I’ll fight for what is mine.

His Gentle Omega is book 7 of the Sweet Alps Mates series. It can be read as a standalone, but previous characters do pop in to say hello. It features rejected fated mates, Mpreg, an alpha trying to get his life back, a sweet omega willing to wait for him, an adorable six-year-old, a ton of hurt/comfort, and a guaranteed HEA. Please take a look at the TW & CW’s before proceeding. This book deals with sensitive topics that might be hard for some readers. 

TW/CW’s: This book contains domestic violence (some on page briefly) and the aftereffects of surviving DV, emotional abuse, alcohol abuse (secondary character – briefly on page), drunk driving (secondary character-off page), brief mention of loss of pregnancy and termination of pregnancy (secondary character), estrangement from family members, therapy sessions, PTSD, anxiety, gaslighting, and on-page panic attacks.

REVIEW:

I didn’t know if I was ready for this one because I know it closes out a series that is dear to me but Raiven Matthews knock it out of the ball park with this finale!

Shay Pierce has to get his six year old so away now! His omega mate is violent and out of control. And now he hurt their son before almost killing Shay. With the help of a couple of close employees they made their escape but how long can he keep going and will his estranged brother Asher take them in? When he collapses at the hospital Asher is a doctor at the ER team know several things. He is badly hurt, is very sick and he and his son have been abused by their Omega mate when his last words are that he claimed “Alpha Law”! When Bennett is called back in to the hospital before he can even start his first day of mandatory paid leave he knows it’s important and that, the moment he touched the battered Alpha that he has found his fated mate. But Shay, and his sweet son Lucas, need help right now and that’s just going to have to wait. But can Shay and Bennett resist Fate and just be friends until Shay gets his life put together?

This one packs a punch to the gut for sure. Shay and Bennett are going to take you through the wringer with this one. Both are honorable men and deserve to have the life together that fate chose. But there are some hard things to be done before Shay could ever consider a relationship with Bennett. Shay needs to recover not only physically but mentally as well. And that mentally one is hard. Physical scars heal and fade but metal ones are deep and difficult to heal. Victims of domestic abuse, whether physical or mental, have a hard road to recovery. Therapy is the best first line. Therapists are trained to help them work through all the trauma that has happened and the shame and guilt that remains after that first step getting out. Add in that Shay has Lucas and has to do everything to keep his abusive ex away from his beautiful boy. But the bottom line is that Shay may never fully recover from all that Edward did to him. Some things run so deep they can never heal.

This was a hard one to read for many reasons I’ve listed. Obviously the first and foremost reason is the violence that happened to Shay and Lucas at the hands of someone that was supposed to love and protect their mate and child. Edward was the nastiest and most spoiled and narcissistic omega I have ever read. He was violent and abusive. He was a deceitful liar. He was manipulative and vicious. But Shay had been mesmerized by him and fell hard for him. And Shay was an honorable Alpha and father. He never raised a hand to his abusive omega that did unspeakable things to him. Edward was a bully and was never sorry for the violence he inflicted.

The other reason this was hard was it is the conclusion of an era. Yes, we have some wonderful novellas coming and the all-new Sweet Alps Legacy series starting up  next year. That is promised to be the next generation of Sweet Alps Alphas and Omegas that we have watched be born and will be all grown up and ready for their mates. And we will surely see their parents during this. However, I still remember taking a chance on this brand new author  and reading her first wonderful book in this series. I remember thinking I want to know all of the Sinclair quads stories. And I really needed Lachlan’s assistant Wade’s story. He promised to be a stand out and boy-oh-boy was he ever. I don’t even know if Raiven realized what a powerhouse was coming! Lol 🤣 So yes, this is a tad bit bittersweet in that this series is coming to an end for me. These wonderful characters have become real. They have both strong blood families and a wonder found family that cares and protects those they have allowed in to their inner circle. It’s going to be sad to not look forward to the next mating and hearing the zany stories of what our Bratty Omega Leader Wade has got his musketeers into. But, as is with all good things, things come to an end. I’m just thankful I hopped onto this remarkable journey right at the beginning and took a chance. Because it was a very good decision!

I hope that you have enjoyed this ride as much as I have. And if you haven’t yet… what a treat you have ahead of you. But hold on to your heart because The Sweet Alps Alphas and their amazing Omega Mates are sure to steal yours just like they did mine and I wouldn’t change it for anything! Great end to a fantastic series! 💕

RATING:

BUY LINKS:

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