Audiobook Review – How to Flirt with a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper (4.5/5 stars)
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Humor
Size: 384 pages
Publisher: Pocket Books
Release Date: February 22, 2011
ISBN: 978-1439195864
Stand Alone or Series: 1st in a series
Source: Audiobook through Audible.com
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
I really enjoyed Molly Harper’s first Jane Jameson series, so I was excited to see that she had a new series out. Like the previous series this book was hilarious. The lead character is super snarky, but has a lot of heart. The romance is sweet and sizzling, and the setting is perfect for a winter read. I listened to this book on audio and it was incredibly well done.
Mo has just moved to Alaska in an effort to escape her hippie parents, get over a relationship that totally fizzled, and just in general start over. Grundy, Alaska initially appears to be an isolated but charming town. That is until things start going strange. One of Mo’s neighbor’s Cooper Graham is scornful of her ability to survive the Grundy winter but when he shows up injured (in wolf form) on her porch things get a bit crazy. Then there is this giant wolf that has been killing people. Mo is beginning to wonder if everything is tied together.
My first thought when Mo started dealing with her overbearing mother is that Harper must have some mommy issues; because all of her female leads have a horrible time with their mothers. Aside from that I really enjoyed Mo; she is a down to earth, hilarious person, who is sweet and helpful to those around her but has a core of steel and toughness when she has to. Cooper is beyond drool-worthy; he is sexy, wounded, and has that whole dark brooding thing going on. He also has a wicked sense of humor, is intensely loyal, and incredibly intense in his love for Mo. He is pretty much one of the better male leads I have read about this year.
The chemistry Cooper and Mo have is amazing; I was sucked into their relationship and really rooting for things to work out between them.
I loved the small town of Grundy; Harper describes the benefits and drawbacks to living in a small town perfectly. This was an excellent winter read because most of the story takes place in the winter and over Christmas. Watching Mo adjust to extremely cold weather was hilarious, since she is from the deep south. As a Minnesotan I could relate to some of her cold weather problems and got a good chuckle out of it.
I did find Mo’s quick acceptance of Cooper’s werewolfiness to be a bit strange. Mo attributes it to her open-minded hippie flower child upbringing. To be fair she does question her easy acceptance a number of times, but initially she is just like “huh, so you’re a werewolf, okay”.
The town of Grundy is full of a number of quirky and wonderful secondary characters. All of them were well-done, very real, and fun to read about. The mystery of the mysterious deaths was also well done and I loved the way everything was wrapped up.
I will also say that as much as I enjoy Harper’s books they are the type of book I can only take in small quantities. For example reading this one book was a lot of fun, but I wouldn’t want to read three books in a row like this. They are a bit too fluffy and chick-lit for that. Still the book was hilarious, incredibly well done, and a fun light diversion.
Overall I really enjoyed this book a lot. It was a fun and hilarious romp. Mo is a perfect character; she is snarky, witty, yet still caring and a bit tough. Cooper was a wonderful male lead he has a dark sense of humor, is sexy as hell, and intense in his love for Mo. The chemistry between the two was sweet and a joy to read about. I loved the town of Grundy, Alaska and because of the wintry setting this book made an especially wonderful winter read. I am excited to read the next book in Harper’s Naked Werewolf series called, The Art of Seducing a Naked Werewolf
