This is an amazing read! I have a new author on my "must read" list. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Riley is cunning, gifted, strong and wounded. Letting people close is something she doesn't do. Until Conall and the missing children. She's attacked repeatedly and holds her own each time but not without injury. I read this book in one sitting as I couldn't put it down. Highly recommend.

What drew me in to read Black Moon Rising: An Urban Fantasy Shifter Romance was the plot. I love a good crime solving, werewolf theme with some romance. The ending is definitely something I didn't see coming, and I can not wait to read the next book. If you are a fan of Patricia Briggs you will love this book.

3.5 ⭐️ 🌑✨ Started off as a five-star read… landed at a 3.5 for vibes alone.

Let me start by saying I thoroughly enjoyed this book. There wasn’t a single character I didn’t like. Our MMC was a bit of an asshole — and I see absolutely zero flaws with that. Our FMC was a badass who stood her ground in her opinions, even if she was a little flighty in her actions at times… but honestly, I completely understood why.

In addition to our main characters, the family/found family really made this book. I found myself laughing out loud (talk about awkward) more times than not!

The drop in rating comes from a writing standpoint, not the story itself. It wasn’t bad — there were just a few things I couldn’t get past.
1. The time jumps.
They felt unintentional. One second characters were mid-conversation and the next, a week had passed. Or they’d pull off the road and suddenly be at a gate in the next sentence. No paragraph break, no chapter change. I found myself rereading sections to make sure I hadn’t missed something, which kept pulling me out of the story. Some formatting changes would really elevate the reading experience.
2. The ending.
It was… an ending. I won’t spoil anything, and I want to be clear — the plot itself was GLORIOUS. It just ended oddly? Like there should have been more. Almost as if a chapter was missing in printing, not that the author didn’t write it.

That said, I finished this book at 10pm and stayed up until 1am just thinking about it — which tells me everything I need to know. It was clearly good 😂 I’m really hoping the next few months fly by because I will absolutely be reading book two.

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Thank you to NetGalley and J.L. Brannick for providing the ARC! 🖤

This book is gonna consume my every waking thought until I get the sequel.

I feel privileged to have been granted access to read it but I’m also currently cursing the author for leaving it on the cliffhanger even though I knew it was coming.

I was intrigued by the blurb, maybe not so much the cover, but I had to give it a try since it seemed to fall into what I wanted to read. At first, I was very happy that I started it. I was engaged immediately, liked all the characters, and was interested in the story. However, after a little while, I was so captivated, I didn’t want to put it down! Conall and Riley are such a great couple who are going to have to overcome many obstacles to stay together, and Conall already has stepped into it by the end. I can’t say much about the end, but I can say that I loved the suspense, the romance, and the high stakes action that is in the book, and I am so very eager to read more. Highly recommend. I was provided a complimentary copy which I voluntarily reviewed.

A huge thank you to BookSirens, NetGalley, and J.L. Brannick for the ARC of this first book in a captivating urban fantasy series.

I could hardly put this book down. Taking place primarily in Colorado, a place near and dear to my heart, and having the MMC be a horse guy (lifelong horse girlie here)? This book was already off to a great start for me. Add in shifters, a unique magic system, and clever plotting? I was captivated.

Things I really enjoyed about this book:
- The somewhat familiar settings. It was so cool to be imagining shifters and cogs in places that I have been before.
- The relevance of the biases against cogs and how it compares to those that we see in every day life against marginalized communities.
- Conall is a horse guy! Who is sweet with his horses and takes Riley on rides! We need more of these.
- The suspenseful edge brought about by the case that is trying to be solved throughout the book and all of the twists that it takes.

Things that could have been better for me:
- I enjoyed the alternating POV, but it was a bit odd that it shifted between first person for Riley’s chapters and third person for Conall’s chapters.
- The ending (epilogue, mainly) seemed quite out of nowhere. Without giving away too much, it definitely left me on edge to read the next book but I would have appreciated something from Conall’s POV to give some insight into how things changed so drastically.

Overall this is a fantastic urban fantasy shifter romance filled with adventure, magic, and beautiful scenery!

watdafawkkkkkkkkk omgggg I don’t even know how to feel rn this was amazing. I didn’t realize I was craving urban fantasy until I started reading and suddenly hours has passed. I was engrossed with the story from start to finish, and if it wasn’t for having to work, I would have read it all in one sitting. The plot was engaging, the stakes were high, the conflict was nerve wrecking, and the romance was steamy.

I was actually so invested in these two I don’t now how to describe it. I adore Riley, I loved how complex she was and how she slowly opened up to Conall, even if it was kicking and screaming. When I tell you the gut punch I got in the last sentence of the final chapter and the epilogue, I cannot wait for April now. Whatdafawkkkk there is a lot of splaining to do.

Overall an amazing read and such a blast of a time. I cannot recommend this enough! Still reeling from everything, but this was a 5 star read for me.

If you like Romantasy & books about shifters, alphas & wolf packs... you will enjoy this book!! I never knew until recently how much I enjoy these types of books & this one didn't disappoint!!

The characters are so well written & wonderful - Conall is immediately taken with Riley & knows he wants her to be his mate... Riley is not a shifter & it takes her a bit longer to get on board with it, but finally falls for him.... the only thing I was disappointed with is that we have to wait until Book 2 comes out to read more!!!! Not left on a terrible cliffhanger... but still.... (also, I will say...the description said there were spicy scenes & I found the spice to be very mild...just my 2 cents)

Thanks to the author (J. L. Brannick), publisher (Smart Mouth Publishing LLC) & Netgalley for the ARC read. All opinions are my own.

The book is scheduled to be published February 12th, so mark your calendars! You won't want to miss this book!

This was an engaging urban fantasy with a great blend of mystery, crime-solving, and werewolf alpha romance. The FMC is strong, smart and compelling. The story has funny moments that made it even more enjoyable. The emotional tension kept me hooked throughout. The cliff hanger ending made me excited to see where the story goes. I have a new author on my radar!

This book was action packed and I enjoyed the variation in the storyline from other shifter books that I have read . The problem was solved and they accomplish what they set out to do but it feels that there are more secrets to uncover and the ending feels unresolved . Can’t wait to read book 2 .

This has to be one of my favorite reads of the year so far. It had me hooked from the very first page. If you like shifters/pack/ anything paranormal, you need to pick this one up immediately. I won't go to much into details, but just wow! Such great writing, great storytelling, and captivating characters right from the start. Absolutely going to be following this series as it continues.

Black Moon Rising absolutely wrecked me in the best way. I closed the book sometime around 7am after staying up all night, staring at the ceiling and replaying that ending in my head. That cliffhanger was cruel. Wicked. Perfect. I am not okay, and I love that for me.
Riley Blackthorne is easily one of my favorite FMCs in a long time. She is blunt, practical, and refreshingly non whiny. You can feel the influence of being raised by her Marine uncle in the way she handles herself. She is tough, capable, and more than willing to stand her ground, yet underneath all of that grit is someone deeply soft and fiercely protective. When federal agents show up outside her ecology classroom and make it clear they are there for her, she does not crumble. Even when one of them is an enraged Alpha wolf shifter radiating impatience and suspicion, she holds her own.
Conall Segerson is driven by desperation. His Pack’s children are disappearing and he is running out of time, leads, and patience. He is willing to expose Riley as an unregistered Cognizant if it means finding his missing cubs. That moral tension adds such a sharp edge to their dynamic. Riley becomes essential to the investigation, not just a bystander but a crucial piece in unraveling what is happening. And in the process, she becomes more than an asset to Conall. She becomes his wolf’s obsession and a target for enemies closing in from all sides.
I like Conall. I really do. But he drops the ball with Riley more than once. She slips past him, outmaneuvers him, and lands herself in danger while he is busy trying to control everything. His guilt is going to eat him alive. You can already see it building. The power imbalance between them is clear, yet Riley never feels weak. If anything, she constantly proves she can match him in her own way.
The investigation itself is dark and heavy. The story deals with child death in conversation, not in graphic detail, but it is there and it adds weight to every decision Conall makes. The urgency is real. The stakes are not abstract. Every scene feels charged because the missing children are never far from anyone’s mind.
The slow burn romance works beautifully against the backdrop of violence, betrayal, and shifting loyalties. As Riley and Conall race to recover the children, secrets pile up and enemies tighten their circle. The betrayals, especially the ones that blindside you, hit hard. By the time the final pages roll in, the ground has shifted completely.
Now I am sitting here with theories and no confirmation, desperate to start book two because I need to know if I am even close to guessing what is coming next. This was one way to end a first book. Brutal. Addictive. Completely worth the sleepless night.

Quick Summary: An ish, bomb diggity, sci-fi/paranormal romance

My Review: Black Moon Rising: An Urban Fantasy Shifter Romance by J.L. Brannick is book #1 in the Riley Blackthorne Series. It is scheduled for release on 2/12/26.

About the Book: "...federal agents...an enraged Alpha... Pack children are disappearing...

[A] wolf shifter [and] an unregistered, no-name Cognizant...

The first book in the thriller urban fantasy romance series where a deadly investigation leads to seduction and betrayal."

In My Own Words: Gifted children with special abilities are being kidnapped off pack lands. When an Alpha and his team decide to enlist the help of a young woman with a number of abilities herself, they get more than they bargained for.

About the World Building: I loved the contemporary settings that this story featured. I loved that it went from the college setting to the national forests to the metro. I loved that it presented the beauty and diverse habitats of Colorado, Utah & Nevada. I loved that it introduced pack territories and dynamics.

About the Characters: Where do I begin?!? There were a number of characters in book #1. J.L. had a lock on the protagonists and the antagonists. They were all intriguing. They were layered in such a way that I wanted to learn more about each one. It just kept going, and I ate it up. In fact, there were some twists that I did not see coming. I was shook.

Supporting characters of interest: Parker, Madison, Sawyer, Ash, and Anna (I can fill in the blanks for some, but I know their stories will be goooooodddd!!! Bring it on.)

I would also like to mention that the group of kids with their special abilities captured my attention in a big way. I loved how they connected with Riley, in particular. However, there was one boy who had an interesting dynamic with Conall, and there was a little girl who greatly bonded with Riley. I am interested in seeing how their stories play out.

About the Main Characters:

Riley Blackthorne - > Strong willed, driven, able to defend self, resilient, has a heart for children, loves deeply, guarded, doesn't trust easily; she is a warrior in all the ways that count

Conall Segerson - > Alpha, military history, wealthy, focused on mission, can be vague which contributes to conflict, holds on to family/legacy, determined to get the girl, hidden depths

About the Couple: Riley and Conall had some major tension and some major heat in this installment. Initially, they could be seen as having an angsty enemies vibe, but that soon changed due to the nature of the case they were working on together. They became partners who worked closely together. Eventually, the inevitable slow burn gave way to a medium burn exchange, with a hint of more to come.

About the Conflict/Action/Suspense: Oh my gosh, the conflict arc was insane. While the primary investigation was being conducted, the struggle was real between the leads. External pressures and unseen dark forces were like shadows over everything and everyone. The action, the levels of conspiracy, the tug of war between the packs, the triangle that was and wasn't - it all came together in an explosive way. That cliffhanger did me in, though. April cannot get here fast enough.

My Final Say: This is a hit. It was brilliantly written. It had grit and texture. The characters were captivating. The setup for more was done superbly. I am a fan, and I will be following this series until the very end.

This novel has earned a diamond in the rough rating.

Other: Readers who enjoy stories with shifters, supernatural powers, Alpha energy, grumpy golden hearts, secret hierarchies, and conspiracies in plain sight will definitely like this book.

Potential readers should read any and all content warnings associated with this novel. It does contain some triggering content.

Special Note: This will be amazing as an audiobook listening experience. I cannot wait to get my hands on it.

Rating: 5/5
Recommend: Yes
Audience: A
Re-read: Yes
Keeper: Yes
Favorites Shelf: Yes
Status: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Level: 💎
Heat Factor: 🌶️
Character Chemistry: 💖
Cliffhanger: +
Pacing: M
Format: 📱
Series: Yes
Cover: +

Sincere appreciation is extended to the author, to the publisher (Smart Mouth Publishing LLC), and to NetGalley. Thank you so very much for granting access to a digital ARC of this title in exchange for an honest critique. It was an absolute pleasure to review. I am excited about reading more books in this series. I am also looking forward to becoming better acquainted with this writer's work.