This Fascinating series gets Even Better!!

We follow Samantha Becker, trauma surgeon, after she had come to assist her twin sister who had a latent shifter gene activated and became full shifter (and quite a few years younger) with the assistance of her fated mate. Book #1 in the series introduces us to this unique theory of prehistoric shifters. Book #2 expands on this theme, containing lots more action!!

Cougar-shifter Liam Keller is much more than just mayor of Cougarville. His pursuit of Sammie is met with high resistance, though he protects her as he had promised. Ms. Evangeline has us rooting hard for this couple, and doubting that they will ever find their HEA. Escalating danger, building romance, threats to the entire species and high-tech shenanigans create a compelling story. I can’t wait for more in this series!!

*** I am voluntarily leaving my honest review of this book ***

Evangeline Anderson has a new fan!

I stumbled upon this series and when introduced to Liam’s character in book one, felt he was totally unredeemable. With his distasteful persona and open arrogance, the author had her work cut out; I wondered how Liam would stand up in his own story. But Ms Anderson did a fabulous job of showing his intelligence, strong moral compass and genuine protective side.

Ms Anderson’s shifters are very unique, and while the concept may seem a little far-fetched, the stories are entertaining and very, very HOT!

While I really loved the first book in this series, I didn't find this one as enjoyable as that previous story. Don't get me wrong, this was an entertaining and engaging story, but it lacked something when compared to that other story.

This story picks up where the first one leaves off, so you definitely can't read this as a standalone romance. It does have a few triggers for folks, but they weren't handled in a realistic or careful manner. To me, some of the situations Samantha found herself in were too fantastic to be believable!

Another problem I had with the book was with Samantha herself. She would push Liam away at every opportunity, and yet had no problem using him when she needed to. I also didn't like how she simply would not compromise with Liam at all! She came off like a total bitch!

I did like Liam and how he tried to care for Samantha, despite her prickly nature. The high handed nature he had in the previous book was less evident here, but did come out when necessary. He did do a few things that came off as rather stupid to me, but he's male so that comes with the territory sometimes!

The book was a bit action filled and definitely kept my attention. The lead in for the third novel was surprising, and I'm definitely interested in continuing with the series to find out more of what happens in this town!

Samantha is a Trauma Surgeon who is visiting her newlywed sister when she ends up saving the life of Liam, a Cougar Alpha and mayor of Cougarville. When Sam and Liam touch, the sparks are immediate and, almost all consuming! The problem is that Sam has a career that she is sure she will lose if she marries and, she's too old to have children. Liam also has a history of a failed relationship that left him burned and devastated. These two getting together is an uphill battle but, when danger comes to call, they will both fight to the end to save each other!

~ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.~

The 2nd book of Cougarville series.

The story focus on Samantha, Sadie's twin. She is a very renowned surgeon in her field but also, relationship wary. She is paired with Liam Keller. The Mayor of Cougarville, and the very same shifter that almost died during the fight on the last part of book one.

The dynamics of the characters are really interesting from the thoughts of Liam to the reluctance of Samantha having babies. It was what the whole book was about. However, at some point, I felt the pain of Keller. It is not easy to be at the receiving end of a rejection. It made me want to scream at Sammie the way she accused Keller.

Keller on the other hand was something I was not expecting. The way he took care of Sammie even though she rejected him, made me love him. It is not easy to be in his place. And I really adore how Ms. Anderson revealed Liam's true personality. Even I was amazed.

I love this because since the start of the series I have always thought that Liam is one of those Alpha men that is all brawn and guts, but I was proved wrong. I was actually happy when he admitted his feeling towards Sammie to Mathis. I was speechless.

It was a one sided love for a while but up to the end, Sammie finally succumb to her true feeling.

It is not easy being in her shoes. But with the right person to support you nothing is impossible.

I rate this 4.5 for the way the continuation was carried over. Also on how Liam's character was revealed.

I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Cougar Bait by Evangeline Anderson
Cougarville #2

We meet Dr. Samantha Beck in the hospital taking care of her patient Liam Keller. She is a 40 year old surgeon who doesn’t want to marry, have children or do anything to jeopardize her professional life. Liam, quite a bit younger than she is, wants a mate to pass his shifter genes down through. Liam is drawn to Samantha and for most of the book I really don’t see what attracts him to her. She is abrasive, negative, b*tchy and not someone cuddle-up-to-ish at all. For some reason Liam fears for Samantha’s wellbeing and follows her to a conference in Vegas where he saves her the first time. He saves her again at least two more times and in the process he falls hard and she continues to resist having anything to do with him – to the point that I thought they might be better off going their separate ways – and yet – as abrasive as Samantha can be – who else would want her? Perhaps a hyena shifter? Anyway, if you are looking for your typical shifter story this is not going to be that at all. This is one in which older women come into their own, get rejuvenated and find men to mate with that are much younger than they are. NOTE: There is violence, attempted rape and other things happen that could be triggers for some.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press – Swerve for the ARC this is my honest review.

3.5 Stars

Cougar Bait by Evangeline Anderson is a quirky, unique paranormal romance that will have all 40 year old women wishing they had the ability to be a 'Juvie'! This series is different from so many other shifter romances. The shifters themselves are different and unique animals, the way they mate is different, and they way it all happens is strange and wonderful.

Samantha (Best name ever!) is a trauma surgeon whose sister recently went through the rejuvenation and found her mate. While Samantha is thrilled for her sister, Sadie, she is skeptical and frankly, not interested in the whole scene! After saving the life of the cougar who was nearly killed by Sadie's mate, Mathis, Samantha is ready to hop on a plane and be free of the weirdness that is "Cougarville". I loved that Samantha was such an accomplished doctor in her field. She has lived a happy and brilliant life in her 40 years. She isn't really interested in the whole husband/kids thing. So often in romance books you get heroines who are just waiting to find Mr. Perfect and have a few kids. There isn't anything wrong with that, but as a woman who is nearing 40 and doesn't have kids, is so refreshing to read about a character who made the same choices in life I did regarding kids.

Liam Keller, the cougar shifter Samantha saved, senses the shifter gene in Samantha and knows that her trip to Vegas could be dangerous. Liam was a bit of the bad guy in the previous book, so it was great to see him in a different light. I like Liam. He is very alpha and very sexy. Swoon! Once he sets his sights on Sam, GAH. This book brings some serious HEAT (I mean, lots of oral. Like, a LOT). These two kind of broke my heart because they just couldn't communicate well enough to get on the same page! I wanted to knock their heads together!

The 'bad guys' in this book are the hyenas. I couldn't stop picturing the hyenas from The Lion King. Even in my head, I heard them speaking like those hyenas. But, it does sort of open the door for the 'conflict' in future books and its kind of intriguing!

If you like surprising shifter stories with more mature characters, Cougar Bait is a book you need on your TBR right now. You will go through it faster than a tube of wrinkle cream! This series has become one I find myself looking forward to because its so easy to get lost in!

A totally different take on a shifter romance and I enjoyed it a lot!

Evangeline Anderson obviously has a great imagination to come up with this unique take on the whole shifter angle! Loved it!

Although this book clearly is a continuation of the first in the Cougarville series, I didn't really feel like I was missing that much by not having read it first. So I feel that it can be read as a standalone - although I'm sure some things would be explained more by reading it as well.

Good story development, mystery, romance and an interesting overall story that made me want to look out for book 3 to see what happens next!

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book via NetGalley.

3.5 Stars
'Cougar Bait' by Evangeline Anderson is book Two in the "Cougarville" series. This is the story of Samantha Becker and Liam Keller. I have read the previous book and Samantha and Liam do meet first there. Liam was being attacked by Samantha's future brother in law after Liam kidnapped Samantha and her sister. But Samantha is a Doctor who quick went to save him and that opened up a friendly communication between the two. After all Samantha did save his life and now Liam feels protective over her...not to mention that his 'Cougar' feels something more for her. But when Samantha heads of Vegas for a Speaking Convention he knows she will be in serious trouble there. Even though Samantha doesn't believe it she had the special shiftier gene that all shiftiers would love to possess, and to pass on to their children. There is some dangerous shifters in Vegas so Liam follows Samantha there to keep her safe but can he?
"My honest review is for a special copy I voluntarily read."
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Cougar Bait, Evangeline Anderson

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre:  Romance, Sci-fi and Fantasy

I was intrigued by this, hadn't read book one but each seem to be stand alone reads within the same world. I didn't really enjoy it though, found the premise a bit odd, the rejuvenation gene stuff was...strange.
Its not unknown, a kind of variant on how in some readers shifters and vampires etc. when turned revert to their prime age, usually mid twenties/thirties but this was just a female only thing and felt a little weird to me.

I hadn't read the first book but I don't think that mattered. I found it strange that Keller kidnapped Sammie and her sister mainly for her sister, to get her to be his mate, bear his children (book one).
Now in a matter of days ( I think - could be weeks, but I'm going by the battle between him and the deer shifter) he's transferred that feeling to Sammie...nothing like making a lady feel second choice. It wouldn't endear me to him. 
Sammie's having none of it, she's had a world change in her views and accepts that things she thought weren't real are, but Keller. Nope, he's deluded, he's too young, he wanted her sister first and she's not interested. I'd feel like that too.
However he's not deterred especially when she puts herself in the cross-hairs of some evil shifters. 

There's a lot of sex here and I'm always OK with that in a book if it fits the story. For me it doesn't in this one, its just there to spice things up, add some heat and just felt wrong, not integral to the novel but an addition.
I just can't see Sammie doing such an about change in view, and the further into the story I got the more detached I felt.
The events at the end were just the final; straw for me, so unreal, even for the supernatural where usual timelines don't apply. 

It's one I thought would be great for me but which I just couldn't get along with.
It's very similar though to many of the current best sellers in the way the story plays out, so for many readers it will be perfect.
Sadly I don't like most of those and didn't enjoy this one ;-( 
 
Stars: Two, not one for me. 

ARC supplied for review purposes by Netgalley and Publishers

** spoiler alert ** I enjoyed book one in this series, but this second one just wasn't for me. We met Liam and Samantha in book one and this began right where it left off.

There were two reasons this one didn't work for me. One, Samantha was very adamant about not wanting to become a shifter and had no desire for a man in her life, as well as a baby. The whole book Samantha pushed Liam away even after they were basically forced to Mate. I don't mind a little pushing away in books but this was too much for me.

The second reason is, I really didn't like the scene when Samantha was kidnapped. There was no rape but it still didn't sit well with me. I wouldn't consider this a safe read.

The author came up with a unique version of shifters and I did enjoy the first book. It had a lighter tone to it, so I would recommend book one. There will be a third book and I'm hoping it will be more like the first. ARC provided by NetGalley.

Evangeline Anderson's COUGAR BAIT is the second installment of the Cougarville series and features Samantha Becker, the trauma surgeon twin sister of Sadie Becker introduced in BUCK NAKED.

When Samantha visits her sister Sadie in Cougarville, she witnesses a fight between Sadie's boyfriend and the mayor of Cougarville, Liam Keller. Although Sammie despises Keller and what he's tried to do to her sister, her medical training compels her to save the man's life. Sammie believes her work is done in Cougarville and she's on her way to a medical conference in Las Vegas, but Keller has other plans and they definitely feature Sammie.

If you loved BUCK NAKED, fasten your seatbelt and enjoy the thrill ride that is Sammie and Keller!

Very well written and a super fast read. Loved this book i went and bought the first book in this series and cant wait for the third book to come out.

Like the characters that have been created. The story was great. Great twists and turns. Readers will want to add it to their TBR list.

Evangeline Anderson never fails to have an awesome story. Great job. Hot in all the right places with a story.

This was an okay read however I didn't particularly enjoy the story that much. I wasn't too keen on the types of shifters in this book. I have read a lot of shifters books and I know that each author will have their own version, but I have my own preference on how I like my shifters and the ones in this story didn't fit with that.

This was the second book in this series. I didn't read the first book before starting this one. I was able to read this book just fine but it probably would have been better if I had read the first book first.

There was nothing really wrong with this book. My rating of the story was just effected by the fact that the shifters didn't fit with how I like my shifters to be so my enjoyment of the book was lessened.

A return to those Palaeolithic shifters from Cougarville. Most definitely not the usual type of shifters as these are Huge ; definitely with a capital H! Plus their mates are anything but ordinary as they are rare women in the prime of life who because of a specific gene can rejuvenate back to their fertile twenties.
We met Liam in the first book Buck Naked and he's an Alpha cougar who just happens to be the Mayor of Cougarville. I will be honest and say he came across as a total armpit and if the author wanted to redeem him she really had her work cut out and yet somehow she did it! Showing a different side to him completely surprised this reader. Liam is extremely intelligent , runs a very successful company and actually had a strong moral protective side to him . Which is why he ends up flying to Las Vegas to keep an eye on the woman who saved his life.
Samantha is pleased that her sister has found a man to love her but there's no room in Samantha's life for romance and children as she's far too busy doing her job as a trauma surgeon . Invited to a conference Samantha believes Liam is still recuperating in hospital but she hasn't quite got her head around just how powerful an Alpha really is. Liam realises that Hyenas frequent Las Vegas and their reputation as far as latent female shifters go is anything but stellar . So of course he steamrollers his way into Samanthas life but he does it with charm and it's something that Samantha finds hard to resist . Samantha gets to see a completely different side of him, a side that's very interesting indeed.
I didn't expect to like Liam and perhaps should have trusted the author more . I guess none of us are one dimensional and learning just why he acted so arrogant and almost brutish previously made him much more interesting . Samantha though is a completely different kettle of fish! Sensible, intelligent and usually so assured and yet here she blows hot and cold and wasn't as easy to like. In fact at times she seemed downright submissive when faced with Liam's charm offensive but then turns when really in danger into a woman who will do whatever it takes to save herself and I can't complain about that . No easy resolution though as this couple really did need to work on their communication but don't worry there is a happy ending .
This is completely far fetched, totally unbelievable erotic fiction but this author has extremely interesting ideas. Ok yes lots of touching , licking etc but for this reader unfortunately there was an ick factor as there's a side effect of any possible female rejuvenation. Yet the fact that Liam got his redemption does mean I enjoyed it overall I just wanted a hell of a lot less 'nectar'. I'm guessing a foxy guy is up next so look forward to seeing what comes next particularly now that the Hyenas and their mysterious backer have been introduced .
This voluntary review is of a copy I requested and that I've happily read. I believe my comments are honest and a fair expression of my opinion

So, what did I like about it?
Evangeline Anderson is a new to me author and I found her writing style very easy to read; I love the fact that Ms Anderson has created her paranormal world within our own modern one, the pace of this story felt right and I loved the balance of romantic/sex scenes and the tension of the violent/fight scenes.

This book is told from Samantha and Liam’s point of view and I never felt confused as to who’s POV we were experiencing. Both our main characters are strong, independent and very intelligent people which I love but they are both complex and have their own issues to work through which makes the relationship element in this tale feel very real.

There were lots of good sexual scenes in this book that not only satisfied my love of sexual tension and anticipation but my enjoyment of well written explicit scenes too.

I loved how frustrated I got with both Liam and Samantha throughout their romantic journey (as the reader we got to see what was in their hearts and minds, their issues and worries long before they admitted everything to each other) and I enjoyed the emotional scenes that brought a lump to my throat and tears to my eyes.

Although I had worked out who the villain was in this tale pretty early on, it didn’t diminish my enjoyment of the story; I still found myself gripped and engaged in the thriller element.

So, ummm, was there anything I disliked about it?
The only reason that this book didn’t get a five star rating from me was due to the fact that Ms Anderson created a world where the female shifters go through a Rejuvenation process and are consumed by a Breeding Fever, meaning that they desperately need an alpha, any alpha male, to impregnate them – their bodies over-rule their minds! So, basically similar to when my dog, Bess, is on heat. This is a fundamental part of the paranormal world Ms Anderson has created and a big part of this story (and I’m assuming future books too) but it makes me more than uncomfortable, it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I am a modern woman; I am glad that our society has moved on from women just being baby machines – our bodies our choice - and I don’t think that including this sort of uncontrolled behaviour in novels, especially ones that are in the romance genre, are sending the right message by honouring this type of animalistic instinct. Poor Emmeline Pankhurst and her daughters Christabel and Sylvia would turn in their graves!

...So, basically what I’m saying is...
I really did enjoy this book; it was good. It ticked many of my boxes; our heroine was an independent and intelligent woman, our hero was an alpha male with a big heart and the plot itself had a mystery/thriller element, action in the form of great fight scenes, passionate sex scenes and oodles of romance of course.

I'd recommend the book to older readers (if it was a film it would be rated 15 or 18 due to the sex and violence) who are fans of paranormal romances with a bit of darkness and erotica where the romantic couple’s journey to a happy ever after ending is fraught with obstacles, danger and personal growth. It’s sort of similar to Stephanie Rowe’s Order of the Blade series but less is made of our romantic couple having a specific soul-mate that they have an unwavering desire/need to join with.

The first book was great fun. This second book, while still an interesting read, lost the fun edge and turned into a conspiracy story. I think the first book was better, but this was still a good couple of hours of reading enjoyment.

Cougar Bait is the second book in the Cougarville series, this can be read as a standalone with no issues, but you will probably get more out of it from familiarity with the secondary characters by reading Buck Naked first. Though I'd definitely urge you to read Buck Naked as it's definitely worth it!! I'd rate this book at 4.5 stars!
Dr. Samantha Becker/Sammie is a hot shot trauma surgeon who's sister Sadie's mate fought Liam Keller and severely wounded him. When nobody else would go near the badly injured cougar, Sammie has no hesitation in going to him and ultimately saving his life. Liam Keller owes Sammie a life debt since you saved his life. When he finds out she's going to a trauma symposium in Las Vegas he's not too thrilled especially since he's still in the hospital. But when she refuses to listen to him, he will take matters into his own hands.
These books have a different spin to shifters then I've seen before which I've really enjoyed so far. I enjoyed the characters and the fact that the female doesn't just up and fall in love. There are some interesting twists to the story, no cliffhangers and ends in a HEA. I can't wait for the next story in the series, I will definitely be reading it!! One thing I really enjoy is the author doesn't just end the book and leave you feeling like it just stopped and your missing something. Overall fun, sweet, read with a little bit of suspense!! Happy Reading!!