Alpha's Revenge by Renee Rose and Lee Savino is the first book that I've read by either author and I really enjoyed their writing. I have been a fan of supernatural, in particular shifter romances, for probably a decade, and Alpha's Revenge didn't disappoint. It had so many troupes that I enjoy in shifter romances such as fated mates, resisting fate's pull (and it not working), and mistaken fated mate. I thought that Renee and Lee were able to write a seamless book, I wasn't able to tell where one ended and the other began writing. To me there really isn't anything worse than being able to tell where two authors wrote because their styles differ too much.
Pack alpha and special forces team leader, Rafe, has one goal currently, find a way to take down the arms dealer Dieter and stop him from hurting so many people with the weapons he sells. What he wasn't expecting was for his team's carefully laid out plan to actually be a trap. With Dieter on the move and Rafe and the team temporarily grounded Rafe hires Adele as a private chef for him and the guys... Since meeting Adele Rafe has had a hard time controlling himself, but now that they are in close proximity to one another Rafe is starting to realize that she is more than a beautiful woman that he's attracted to, she's actually his mate. But with Dieter out there he can't promise himself that Adele will be able to stay safe from those who want revenge on him...
Chocolatier Adele is in a tough spot, she's just found out that her now deceased business partner not only embezzled money from the business, owed scary people money (that now want her to pay them back) and he wasn't paying the bills at the shop so it's now temporarily closed until she can get 10 grand to pay back rent to the landlord. So when Rafe offers her a job as a chef that will pay off her debts in a month or so she can't help but say yes. While Adele finds Rafe to be attractive they do nothing but argue when they're near one another. But as she works with him she finds them growing closer to one another. But Adele knows that Rafe is hiding something from her, and as much as she wants a future with Rafe Adele knows a future can't be built on secrets and lies and without trust... Will Rafe be able to keep Adele safe and make her see how much he cares for her?

A mix of paranormal and suspense with the push/pull of a man who's found his mate, but lives in the land of denial.

Rafe is not only the Alpha of his pack, but he specifically never planned to find a mate. Logically he should know that he can't stop the fates from that happening, but Rafe isn't exactly logical when it comes to the woman whose scent is driving him crazy and the woman who deep down he knows is his mate, but he refuses to claim; a human named Adele.

Humans are fragile and after Rafe lost his parents at a young age he doesn't want to take the chance to lose anyone ever again, especially a mate. Adele has all the qualities of the perfect mate, except for the very big vulnerability of being with him.

The push and pull of their back and forth might just drive him mad, unless the moon madness does it first.

Also, who or what exactly is Gideon?? The suspenseful story continues in the next book.

Chèr mémère! My own Mémère is spinning in her grave at the thought of Adele making a gumbo that even remotely resembles a red sauce or of her adding sugar to it. Oh, frère! It’s gumbo y’all, not spaghetti. It’s not a sauce either, it’s more of a soup eaten with rice, although we don’t call it soup here. It is obvious that these authors have never had real gumbo. Pauvre bêtes! Yes, gumbo is sacred here and we Cajuns are “funny” about people screwing it up! Lol!

DNF

Loved book 1 & 2. Book 3 fell short. Didn't feel the chemistry between the characters and too much foretelling of book 4 made the next one predictable. DNF.

I liked both Rafe and Adele. I thought they had great chemistry. I feel like a lot of information was missing about them and the subplots. I felt like I was forced to make assumptions.

I think Adele was a women of color (but I am not 100% sure about that), which I thought was interesting. I really would have liked more background info on her. References were made about her grandmother which makes me think she is from Louisiana, but I am not sure about that either.

As far as Rafe goes, the way the book began, I was expecting something different. It was almost like reading 2 books at once that didn't quite mesh. I didn't get that strong in control Alpha vibe off of Rafe. I know he was fighting his feelings for Adele, but something was just not there. Maybe because it seemed like they spent so little time developing a relationship. I don't know.

There was the whole situation with Dieter and the mystery behind his presence. What he knew, what he didn't know, who was he, what did he want, why was Rafe a thorn in his side, were the shifters a threat to him, etc.? Add in his thoughts about Adele, then they changed. Why didn't he want Rafe to pursue his "quest" regarding his parents?

Also, the issue with Adele's shop? I honestly don't know if that added anything to the story. Things were not flowing for me in this book. I felt like I was getting involved in a storyline and then it would shift. So, I would shift gears, and then something else would happen without much context. It was frustrating.

This book can be read as a standalone, but I believe it would be more enjoyable if read in order. I thought the book was ok, but it definitely wasn't one of my favorites. That made me kind of sad because I really liked Rafe and Adele. If the other subplot wasn't going to be more developed, then more time could have been spent on Rafe and Adele developing a relationship. I think I would have enjoyed the book more.

I voluntarily read and reviewed the Advanced Reader Copy of this book. I would recommend you read the book and judge for yourself.