Great read. Fast paced. Well written. Strong characters.

SOMETHING TO HOWL ABOUT is the start of a new series by Christine Warren. I haven’t read her previous books so I was quite excited to see how she would compare to my favorite PNR authors. This is a novella and a really fast read.

The two main characters are shifters, the female a wolf and the male a bear. Annie has been banned from her pack for something she did and wasn’t explained, unfortunately. I think the author left us a little hanging there. Yes, I could read the other books to find out but that’s not the purpose of this introduction. I wanted the facts, quick and dirty. It didn’t bother me too much but it might annoy readers who haven’t read her previous series either.

When Annie comes to Alphaville her purpose is to help Jonas, the alpha of the bear clan, find out why the people he’s responsible for won’t reproduce. Both of them fall in lust instantly and while Annie recognizes him right away as her mate, Jonas is a little slow on the uptake.

***The bear didn’t want to hurt Annie; it wanted to taste her.***


While he acknowledges their attraction he gets a rash even thinking about…mate-dom? Or is it mate-hood? Anyhoo, there is a reason for that but I found that one a little fabricated. Jonas is totally clueless and not very diplomatic about his doubts. He was a bit douche-y but somehow endearing.

“I mean, I’m obviously attracted to you, and judging by that kiss you could say the same right back, but we just met. No one said anything about mates. No need for crazy talk.”


*wince*

Since this is a novella the progression of the relationship is pretty fast, especially since the main characters spend less than 50% of the story in one room. While shifters do things differently and the suspension of disbelief is a prerequisite of PNR stories I found this a little too fast.

I love the author’s snarky writing style. I chuckled quite a bit and it’s what made this story really enjoyable. The fact that the shifters’ animals had their own personality was entertaining, it felt a bit like a symbiotic relationship. Overall, I had fun with this introduction to Christine Warren’s new series!

This novella was a great introduction to a new series by author Christine Warren. Alphaville is a haven for shifters, especially those who have been banished such as Annie. But for Dr. Annie Cryer, it could be a way back to her own pack if she can solve their fertility problem. Within minutes of her arrival in Alphaville, Annie knows that her life will never be the same. Suddenly going back to her old pack is not as important as it used to be now that she has met a certain brown bear. While this novella had a HEA for Annie and Jonas, it was definitely a teaser to what the rest of the series will bring. And I for one can't wait to see what else is in store for the residents of Alphaville.

Oooh . . . I flove a new shifter series! And I couldn’t wait to read Something to Howl About over the holidays! And I was not disappointed!

I was immediately immersed in Annie and Jonas’ romance. Well, the romance that might not have happened if Jonas hadn’t pulled his head out of the sand! LOL

I loved Annie and her strength and her take no shit attitude! It served her well when dealing with Jonas and his typical male stupidity. I loved Annie’s and Jonas’ interactions. Loved how she gave no quarter and really tried to keep their relationship professional since Jonas really was clueless over the whole fated mate thing!

I loved how they came together—loved how their romance set up the whole Alphaville series and I can’t wait for more!

Publisher's Description

WELCOME TO ALPHAVILLE, where the she-wolves and alpha-males play. . .for keeps, in a brand-new paranormal romance series from New York Times bestselling author Christine Warren.

Dr. Annie Cryer has been called many things: Genius. Child prodigy. Scientific wonder.

Wolf Shifter.

Banished from her pack years ago, Annie’s lone wolf wandering has brought her to Alpha, Washington, home to all shifters who don't quite fit in in the "normal" shifter word. Now Annie has the chance to go back home...if only she can make good on a favor her alpha owes the mayor of “Alphaville.” But it's not much of a favor when you're helping the hottest shifter in town...

Grizzly shifter Jonas Browning has a clan in trouble. They haven't had a child born in over a hundred years...and their clan faces going completely extinct. Genetic scientist Anne Cryer has been sent to help save them. But what Jonas doesn't count on is being irresistibly drawn to the small wolf shifter, and his bear isn't about to let her go...

My Thoughts:

This book isn't written in a genre that I favor, but I was invited to read it along with Baby, I'm Howling For You also by Christine Warren.
I haven't read the second title yet, but this one was much more enjoyable than I expected.
This book is a short novella, but is a well written and surprising beginning to the new Alphaville series.

the most recent shifter romances that I have read are Dragon Shifter titles by a favorite author in the Historical Romance Genre, Lauren Smith. They gave me an unexpected step into this decidedly different and somewhat paranormal genre..
Our Hero and Heroine are both Shifters. Annie is a Wolf Shifter and Jonas is a Brown Bear Shifter. Oddly enough these two are drawn to each other.
Annie with her expertise in genetics has been brought to Alphaville in the hopes that she will solve what they believe to be a reproductive problem.
A kidnapping and a rocky road ensue making for an interesting story.
I gave this book a 3.75 of 5.0 star rating for storyline and characterization. The characters are well developed despite the short length of the book.
This is a sensual tale with well written intimacy even though it is a short novella read. The sensuality rating gets 4.0 of 5.0 flames.
I received a complimentary digital ARC of this book by invitation from the publisher via NetGalley to read for review. This in no way affected my opinion of this novella which I read and reviewed voluntarily.

Something to Howl About is book #0.5 in the new Alphaville series by Christine Warren. This is our introduction to the town of Alpha, Washington, otherwise known as Alphaville. It is known as the “home of the freaks, the losers, and the emotionally challenged.”

Dr. Annie Cryer is a genius, a child prodigy, and a wolf shifter. But a dumb mistake got her banished from her pack in New York. Now she just kind of wanders. After several years, she is offered the chance at restitution, to be allowed back home. All she has to do is go to Alphaville and help them with a problem they are having. She doesn’t hesitate, especially after she meets the man whose clan she is supposed to help.

Jonas Browning is a brown bear shifter. His clan hasn’t been reproducing and he’s afraid that his clan will just die out without any new cubs. There is no one more qualified than Dr. Annie Cryer to try to figure out what is going on. But when she walks into the office for the first time, his clan is the last thing on his mind. His inner bear recognizes her as his mate immediately. But Jonas believed that brown bears didn’t mate bond the way other shifters did. He’s ignoring what his bear wants and denies the strong urge he has to throw the sexy doctor over his shoulder and carry her off and claim her as his own.

This was a fun short little read that definitely leaves me wanting more from this brand new series. The characters were fun, interesting and sexy. All Annie wanted was to be allowed to go home. All Jonas wanted to do was to save his clan. Finding their fated mate was definitely not something either of them was expecting. Can a wolf and bear accept a mate bond? I can’t wait to continue this series with book one, Baby I’m Howling for You, where we’ll meet two brand new residents of Alphaville.

“Her mate. Her male. Joined with her, one body and one soul.”

Something to Howl About by Christine Warren is the start of the brand new paranormal romance series Alphaville.

This is a fast and fun shifter novella that hits the ground running. As we’ve come to expect from Ms. Warren, Something to Howl About is fantabulous and filled with humor, great characters with wonderful chemistry and heat all wrapped up in a well-defined world that we’d just love to escape into.

An ARC was generously provided in exchange for an honest review of which this is both honest and completely voluntary.

Great start to what is sure to be an amazing shifter series in Alphaville.

Fun, fast-paced and full of sexual tension from the start! My only complaint, it was novella length and I wanted more.

I received this ARC copy of Something to Howl About from St. Martin's Press. This is my honest and voluntary review. Something to Howl About is set for publication Jan. 2, 2018.

My Rating: 4 Stars
Written by: Christine Warren
Print Length: 86 pages
Publisher: Swerve
Publication Date: January 2, 2018
Sold by: Macmillan
ASIN: B076B9YVMV
Genre: Novella | Paranormal Romance

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Something-Howl...
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/some...
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After meeting Christine Warren's delicious Gargoyles in Hard Breaker I was very excited to be asked to review her new series of Alphaville with yummie alpha-males and tough she-wolves. As a Shapeshifter-fan this is a treat of course.

We start the series with Something To Howl About, where we are introduced into Alphaville, a small town where all kind of misfits (yeah, even as a shapeshifter you can be a misfit, how ironical...) are able to live together as a sort of clan. Bear shifters live alongside with werewolves and so on.

Annie Cryer is also a misfit. Or to be more precise: an outcast. She was banished from her pack years ago and she has been wondering around ever since. But then she receives a call from her old packleader. If she agrees to go to Alphaville and investigate their dropping childbirth rates, she may be invited back into the pack.

Grudgingly she agrees to help mayor Jonas Browning to investigate. But she didn't count on the attraction between her and the sexy bear shifter. As mayor Jonas feels the necessity to pressure Annie into solving the mystery. Or maybe he just likes to be around this gorgeous she-wolf...

A lovely read, which leaves you anticipating more of the inhabitants of Alphaville. Get ready for Baby, I'm Howling for you at the end of January 2018.

Four out of five stars from me. With a special thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing the arc.

Something to Howl About
Alphaville 0.5

This story hit the spot for me today! Why? I have been reading tons of words in many books but wanted something lighthearted and romantic that was a bit different, well written and had the ability to take me away from where and who I am and immerse me somewhere else and that is just what this novella did for me today. At times I kind of wished I were a shapeshifter with a mating instinct and alpha male nearby calling out to my were-side so I could experience that immediate awareness and act upon it. And yet, I suppose I shouldn’t complain as I have 39.5 years of marriage with the same man under my belt at this point in life…guess I am well and truly mated even without that mating bite ;)

Okay…back to the story. This was so much fun! An exiled female werewolf shows up at the request of her alpha to help out a group brown bears living in Alphaville. Her skills are needed to find out what is wrong with the werebear community and their seemingly low fertility rate/production of cubs. SHE knows immediately that one of the men she meets is her mate but her mate quickly draws back and is leery. With a bit of communication by both the hero and heroine with people they trust the two do eventually end up with their mated HEA and that, too, was fun to read! This book made me smile a lot. It made me care about the characters and community and then want to find out what comes next in this new series. I wonder if all the characters in Alphaville are misfits or not and just who lives there and why. This novella is written by an author I have enjoyed reading books by before and this one was just as much fun as others I remember reading by her.

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

5 Stars

Three and a half for this fun short shifter story. Annie has been banished from her Pack and has led a nomadic life for the past three years. She's a genetic scientist with more degrees than you can shake stick at but all she wants to do is go home.
Jonas is a brown bear with a huge problem as none of his generation have been able to have cubs. So Annie sure seems like the answer to all their problems. Trouble is yes she's delectable and yes his inner bear is desperate to hunt her down but the absolutely insane woman keeps saying they are Mates ! Everyone knows that bears are the only species of shifters who dally, have fun but definitely never mate or do they?
I've loved this authors work in the past and heartily advise lovers of paranormal romance to hunt down her Others series. This is slightly different as its set in a town only populated by shifters so it will be interesting to see how the series progresses. If I have a gripe it's that this story felt a little short
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair

Something to Howl About (Alphaville, #0.5) by Christine Warren I enjoyed this book by Christine which is Jonas (brown bear "grizzly" shifter) and Anne (Wolf shifter).... She is a scientist try to solve the problem of infertility with the bear couples. Thank #NetGalley for letting me preview this book. It is a short fun story . I am looking forward to the next book. BABY, I'M HOWLING FOR YOU in February 2018.

A short read that whet my appetite for what is sure to be a phenomenal series! I have never been the biggest fan of novellas, but Christine Warren packed so much energy into a small package that I found myself wanting to read another novella right away. There were several character introductions that gave me a taste of what may be to come in future installments, and I laughed the whole way through. This is definitely a series I will be watching.

Dr. Annie Cryer has been without a home for three years, but she has finally been given the opportunity to earn her way back into the pack. The answer lies in Alpha, Washington, a small mountain town known as Alphaville, has a fertility problem among its brown bear shifter population, and as a doctor specializing in genetics and shifter biology, she is well qualified to assist. That is, if she can get past the fact that the man she has to work with just happens to be her mate. But Jonas Browning is adamant that what they're experiencing is lust. Brown bears don't have mates - do they?

Annie and Jonas butted heads pretty much from the get-go, and Jonas’ stubborn nature seemed sure to derail this relationship before it had started. Thankfully, Jonas’ mother took him by the ear and gave him a talking to, which was perhaps my favorite part of the story. Mothers to the rescue! Annie was giving him a hard time as well, ignoring him as much as possible until he came to her. I loved how she gave it right back to him when he tried to intimidate her, and she didn’t let him off the hook for behaving so poorly. A match like that causes a lot of laughter and sighs!

I’m eager to read the first book in this series! So glad I was able to get a taste of it with this short novella, before the first release at the end of January.

Wolf shifter Dr, Annie Cryer is extremely intelligent and has lots if letters after her name. Unfortunately that put her on the wrong side of the pack alpha, and she was banished. He has given her a way to earn her return to the pack. Just help someone in Alphaville.
Jonas Browning is a grizzly bear shifter. His clan has a problem that needs the expertise of a good scientist. When she arrives to help, his bear has something else on it's mind.
This shifter romance is a lot of fun. Our hero needs the women in his life to smack him upside the head with the truth. Our nervous heroine needs to sometimes let her body rule instead of her powerful brain.
This is the prequel to what I know will be an addictive series. You will be able to read each book on it's own. I look forward to reading them all.

Dr. Annie Cryer had been banished by her pack years ago, but when the opportunity presents itself to do the Alpha of her old pack a favor to get a chance to come back she jumps on it. She never expected to meet her mate or that he would reject her, deciding life has given her enough lemons she tells him to stay away. What happens with Grizzly shifter Jonas Browning decides he wants Annie as his mate and he changed his mind?

Fun read, this was quickly paced and I thought the parts with Jonas were humorous. Great series, each book is unexpected and a delight to read.

Welcome to Alphaville, a town of shifters. Annie is brought in to find out why the reproduction rate of Brown Bear shifters is slow. She never expected to find her mate.

This series is connected to the Others series. Annie was a member of the Grayback Clan and was banished. I haven’t read those books in years so I can’t remember what she was banished for and this book doesn’t go into details about it. It is a quick read that introduces the town of Alphaville.

Something to Howl About is a fun new start to a pnr series about a town of misfit shifters.
Alpha Washington is known to shifters as Alphaville home of the freaks, the losers, and the emotionally challenged. The one place wolf shifter Dr. Annie Cryer has avoided in her travels while banished from her pack and the one place she has to go if she ever wants to return. What she didn’t count on was the way billionaire brown bear shifter Jonas Browning affected her wolf and her heart.
Watching this uber smart woman deal with a hunk in denial was a total hoot and I look forward to meeting other inhabitants of Alphaville.

Something to Howl About by Christine Warren is a novella that introduces her new Alphaville series. Annie Cryer, our heroine, is a wolf shifter, a doctor and a well known scientific genius. Having been banished last three years ago, Annie has been a loner traveling through the country. But Annie receives word from her NY Pack leader that if she goes to Alpha, Washington and helps their pack find a solution to their problem, he will allow her to come back to NY after she is done. Despite not looking forward to going to Alpha, as it is a place where damaged or problem shifters go, she wants to go home to her pack, so she agrees.

Grizzly shifter, Jonas Browning, has a problem with his pack; his clan has not had a child born to them in over a hundred years. The mayor of Alpha convinces Jonas that Dr. Annie Cryer is the one person who can possibly figure out the problem, and come up with a resolution. Though he is not happy, he agrees. When Annie arrives to meet the Mayor, both she and Jonas get off on the wrong foot. She immediately feels the strong attraction and recognizes to her dismay that he is her mate. Make no mistake, Jonas is attractive and hot, but Annie wants to go back to NY and now finding her mate will stop that. Jonas feels his bear being attracted to Annie, but when he hears her mention that they are mates, he will flip out. He doesn’t believe in mates for his grizzly pack; Jonas believes they fall in love and after time move on, if they want; no forever mate. His attitude pushes her away, and though she works on their issue, she avoids Jonas at all costs.

What follows is a light, quick paranormal story that was fun, and very steamy. In a short time, Jonas will learn from his mother that he is wrong about the mating process, and he will try to win back Annie. Their chemistry together was burning the pages, and I enjoyed the banter between them. In Something to Howl About, we were introduced to some excellent characters, which open the door to the start of this series. Christine Warren once again gives us a taste of this new series, and I for one plan to be reading this. If you like Paranormal, and Shifters, then I think you will too.

...So, what did I like about it?
Christine Warren is a new-to-me author; I found this novella very easy to read and enjoyed the simple classic paranormal romance plot. I feel it sits happier in the erotica genre though than the usual paranormal romance shelf, as there was little actual “romance” or relationship building going on but quite a few hot and steamy scenes almost from the start. *be still my rapid pulse*
Something To Howl About is a light, entertaining romp; not a great deal of substance but an enjoyable read and a nice bit of escapism. Although this novella didn’t make me weep, it certainly got my blood pressure rising at the caveman sensibilities of our hero, Jonas, and because the passion between our two protagonists, Annie and Jonas, ignites instantly, my cheeks turned pink a few times too!

...So, ummm, was there anything I disliked about it?
I understand that writing a novella is tricky; a whole story has to be squeezed into minimal pages but I’ve got to be honest, I felt a bit let down with a few aspects of this one.
Firstly, the plot sells us the fact that Annie is a genius geneticist, however, in reality it wasn’t a plot line that I could get my intellectual teeth stuck into and Ms Warren didn’t really go into any great detail.
Secondly, after the initial attraction that our romantic pair experienced and acted on, there was no “blossoming romance”, no tried and failed attempts from Jonas to win Annie over or visa versa, (hey I’m a modern gal) Annie does say she intends to win Jonas over but it never materialises which my ole romantic heart was really looking forward to.
Thirdly, we know that Annie has been banished from her pack and has been moving from place to place for the last three years but we never find out what heinous crime she committed to result in such a dramatic punishment. I hope that Ms Warren answers this question in the next Alphaville instalment.
And finally, the ending felt too abrupt, it felt too much like an easy fix both for Jonas and Annie to get their HEA ending and Annie solving the Brown Bear fertility issues.

...So, basically what I’m saying is...
This is a good, fun romp; an enjoyable quick read.
Due to the sexual content (it’s definitely steamy with a capital S), I’d recommend this book to adults who are fans of paranormal fated mate/insta-love stories with a bit of fire and passion.

Posted on Les Romantiques - Le forum du site
Reviewed by Rinou
Review Copy from the Publisher

Here is a novella of about 80 pages introducing a new series by Christine Warren titled Alphaville, which will be about a town created by shifters and become a haven for those who don’t have anywhere else to go.
Inevitably, those who know me won’t be surprised to know I first read the volume 1, Baby I’m Howling for you, before this novella.
It’s a good thing though because if Something to Howl About reads easily, it’s also a most classical story suffering from the reduced format.

Annie is a renowned geneticist doctor (and other diplomas probably too numerous in relation to her age), that’s why she finds herself in Alphaville to help the local brown bears clan with a fertility problem, with the promise to be allowed back in her clan once finished. Because Annie is above all a female wolf-shifter who was banned from her pack three years before for having put people in danger. How, why, we still don’t know at the end of the novella, which is really frustrating. She’s presented as shy and unassuming at the beginning but she shows a real character in a few pages.

Jonas is a brown bear who called on her services because bear-shifters of his generation can’t have children. He’s the typical alpha male, stubborn, sure of himself and of his seduction, renowned to flirt around and not inclined to settle down. When his inner bear expresses itself loudly in front of Annie, he only thinks to have fun, even rejecting the heroine in a quite non gracious way, and saying that bears don’t mate for life. He’ll need a good slap behind the head from his mother to realize his error.

Just as in the volume 1 following there are unusual but funny comparisons (“nervous as a salmon at a teddy-bear picnic”) or puns about animals and their characters. The story about the fertility problem is quickly explained at the end, and the couple patches things up for steamy (but not crude) love scenes like the author writes so well.

Unfortunately the short format doesn’t allow a real development of the characters. And for once there’s a bear-shifter there’s not a shell of a transformation to be seen.