SophiaH's Reviews > Forbidden Need

This was different. Much darker than the previous books I have read of this author so far.

Rudy was a treasure, so loyal, friendly, happy and sweet but also easy to take advantage of. Samuel was... well he was rough. His personality at the beginning till about the middle of the book was rude, sometimes nasty and dismissive. I agree with Samuel's assumption that Rudy must be telling the truth about them being mates because no one sane would keep on pursuing him being treated that way. The fighting scenes were interesting and the general plot as well. I also noticed that although the big bad vampire was the more experienced fighter Rudy was the one who saved the day on more than one significant occasion. What I credit Samuel highly is his immediate response to someone hurting Rudy. Even though he still was in denial, there was no thought, no hesitation, he wouldn't stand for anyone laying a hand on his mate.

But.

What was with all those flashbacks of times past? I guess the intention was to humanize Samuel on the one hand as most were placed in the first half where Samuel acted like a jerk, so you understood and wouldn't hate him too much. And Rudy to get to know him somehow? I will mark the following thoughts on that subject as spoiler, so here we go ...(view spoiler)[ I really don't know why we were exposed to Samuel's sexual assault in younger years. I would have understood this being told while talking to his mate Rudy, for him to make him understand why he was the way he is or if he might have developed some hang-ups during intercourse, that he maybe would want to top until they built up enough trust, or why he couldn't handle being claimed right away, because of the men who had claimed him to be theirs before. But NO. They were just there. Rudy never gets told. Samuel never confides. And the first two perpetrators were never mentioned again, we don't know what happened to them, if they are still alive, if justice has been served by the council or anything. So why were we told in that much detail and I mean detail. The only one I understood was the last one as it was the one after Samuel now. And Rudy. Why do we get memories of his youth with his sister we never met nor will ever meet as she is dead? There never was a moment where a flashback would come up and Rudy would have to be comforted by Samuel and Rudy would tell of his beautiful sister or some such. We already knew that there was an accident, we knew they were close, we knew from Rudy himself, that he thinks his family blames him in secret. So why the flashbacks to Rudy being 11 years old? (hide spoiler)]

And, so, am I to understand that Samuel and Rudy are the ONLY true mated pair? Nathan and Ben, Sinclair and Mitchel, Sinclairs parents they all just bonded and never thought to find their own true mate? I would think, that I wouldn't be tooooooo hasty being claimed by someone I fell in love with, had a rocky beginning to start with, knowing that, although rare, there might be a fated mate out there for me. I think I would at least wait a year or three...

Just on a side note... As I am a woman I'm asking this of men, just throwing this out there... (view spoiler)[Is there actually such a thing as to prepare oneself wayyy beforehand, not using something to keep oneself open, change form into another creature, turn back and still be prepared? I am a bit skeptical you see. (hide spoiler)]