3.5 out of 5 Stars
Books include:
- Camp H.O.W.L. – 3 stars
- Under a Blue Moon – 4 stars
- Hiding in Plain Sight – 4 stars
Likes:
- The whole idea of Camp H.O.W.L.
- The focus on dealing with modern problems facing the supernatural community.
- The different types of mate bonds.
- That mate bonds don’t force the characters to do things. The characters retain their free will and get to choose to accept the bonds or not.
- The characters – some more than others.
- Low angst, easy reads.
Dislikes:
- The conflict in all three books was similar. All internal issues that people needed to get over or deal with and move on.
- The transitory nature of Camp H.O.W.L. and how two out of three of the couples left at the end of their books.
- The lack of world building.
- The lack of solid info on what made these werewolves unique from other author’s werewolves.
- The general lack of sex scenes.
- Stubborn characters who were almost too stubborn.
- Romances that didn’t feel like they’d been paced right.
Hands down, my favorite part of this series was the whole idea of a camp for werewolf teens who were human before the Turn and are experiencing what it’s like to be a werewolf for the first time. It’s not just about the physical changes they’re going through, but how they’re going to have to act once they leave. The issues surrounding social media and keeping the supernatural community a secret were great.
I love how Adrian’s late in life Turn introduced the reader to the camp without having a barely legal love interest. On the other hand, having one of the characters in each book be a counselor/psychologist is just another thing that made the books feel a little too similar.
The plots and main characters were all interesting, but not all were used to the best effect. Book one’s plot sagged and the characters didn’t develop while Nick from book two was overly stubborn. Book three had a good balance and hit all the right notes but would have been better with some angst.
I felt like all of the books could have been tweaked a little to make them better in one way or another. But most importantly, for a series, the books were all very similar in theme. All of the books had:
- One member of the couple who wanted to get together and one who fought it.
- The reason one member fought the bond was because of something internal. Something they had to get over or come to terms with.
- One member of the couple who refused to acknowledge the bond existed at all.
- One member of the couple was a psychologist.
- At least one member of the couple who worked at the camp.
Of course there were other similarities, like most of them being werewolves and having a reason to be at the camp. Those reasons make sense for the series. But the romance aspect of each book felt like different versions of the same theme. There are plenty of reasons two people can’t be together, and not all of them have to do with past trauma, stubbornness, and work.
What I think my biggest complaint about this series is, is that we don’t get to see the pack life. I felt a little bit like I was fumbling to understand some of the issues that showed up because I didn’t have a solid grounding in the world these characters grew up in. Some of it was explained or hinted at, but the story lacked an overall richness that some good, solid world building could have helped.
Love is Love Reviews 