Review ~ Werewolves of Chicago: Howard: The Underdog ~ Faleena Hopkins

Werewolves of Chicago: Howard by Faleena Hopkins
Werewolves of Chicago #2
Release Date: March 27, 2016
Genre: Adult, Paranormal Romantic Suspense
Source: I received a complimentary copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.
Rating: 4.5 Bookworms
Challenges: #2016NewRelease, #COYER
Goodreads

Synopsis
Curragh, Xavier and Draik made me prove myself. And I changed into something extraordinary.

The strength and speed.
The night vision.
Hearing through walls and even into heartbeats.

All this is new. Strange. FANTASTIC.

Because I'm about to meet HER. The blue-haired girl. Around her, I act totally out of character. I would never hurt her, but HE might. Not every wolf gets a cool name. Not until they've earned it.

A werewolf who's scrawny? Small in stature and has no supernatural abilities to speak of? A coroner? And named Howard?!? An underdog indeed but I find I tend to root for underdogs. ;)

Howard was exciting, funny, and suspenseful. The premise grabbed me and Howard, his pack mates, and Alisa drew me in. Hopkins' writing is inherently readable and the story was well constructed and nicely paced.

I loved Howard! He's such a gentle and sweet guy. He's recently undergone a dramatic physical change but it didn't change him. Alisa is quirky and fun. You gotta admire a girl with blue hair. She is definitely courageous and although she put up all kinds of emotional barriers, she melted for Howard. Both Howard and Alisa have similar upbringing which left them with emotional scars. I liked that there was something about them both that pulled at the other. They complemented each other well.

The secondary cast is fantastic. I read this out of order, which I hate doing, but although I would have felt I knew them all better, I didn't feel it took away from the story. I will, of course, be reading Curragh ASAP. And then Xavier. And Hopkins' other werewolf series as well. And probably her other works too because I have a feeling she's going on my favorite authors list. I'll keep y'all posted. ;)