Lonely Lioness

Overview: This is a fun, quick, coming of age romance where the love interests actually don’t suck. Ainsley is a lion shifter looking for a chance to find her perfect mate and not be stuck as some guys third wife. The lion shifter society mimics things we commonly know about lions and brings it into some slightly more human terms. If only finding true love was the only problem. Add in some werewolf rivials, stupid jocks, and fierce hunters. This book perfect fun. - Characters: There’s a smaller cast of characters and that works perfectly with this novel. You are able to get to know them quickly and it’s fun to see that outside appearances aren’t exactly right. My only complaint is that Shelia didn’t get to play a larger role. She seemed like a lot of fun, and I hope if the series continues, she’ll come into play. - Setting: Fairly modern day. Ainsley goes to school and places that are common in modern times. It’s easy to be immersed into the novel, the only difference is adding in secret shifter societies. - Style: This book has a strong late young adult/new adult feel. Banks keeps a lot of things simple, but not in a dissatisfying way. The plot has some mild twists and turns, and while I guessed a few things early on, others I didn’t exactly see coming. It does have a slow burn romance feel to it, which worked perfect for the length. - From the title, The Lioness’s Harem Book 1, I’m assuming that implies more, and I’d gladly read another. Sort of Spoiler: it does say harem, and I assume that’ll come later, but there is no actual harem in this book. It’s set the groundwork in a satisfying way, and I hope to see the title live up to the genre in the next book. This is in the book’s description though (on amazon). - The narrator is easy to listen to and does a fair job of trying to voice several characters differently. It sounded like she knew the material well before she recorded it, which makes a huge difference and shows the skill and thought she put into this.