Lesbian Fantasy Book Review of ‘Endangered’ by Michelle Larkin
Aspen Wolfe is a Boston cop with a tragic past until adopted as a teenager. She meets Dr. Tora Madigan when taking a teen to the ER after a shift. Aloof and always serious, Tora and Aspen bump heads as the President of the United States declares war on the Shrouds (shapeshifters) living amongst humans. Suddenly, Aspen is thrown into uncertainty as she discovers she is not a human but a Shroud. Tora realizes Aspen is the most important Shroud in existence and the only one capable of saving them all. The two Shrouds must find a way to escape and make it to the sanctuary before they are hunted by the government. There, a new alliance is formed to fight back against the unjust war.
I’ve become a Larkin fan, even with her very short career. I was looking forward to this book since I enjoyed the previous two. They were action thrillers with some paranormal/fantasy in them. This one is definitely more on the fantasy realm. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy it as much as her other two. This one deserves two ratings in my opinion: the first two-thirds were a 5 star for me while the last part of the book limped along to a 3-star review. I believe the problem was rushing through some parts. This is clearly the first book in a series as the story has only partial closure. Ms. Larkin has left the main conflict out there to develop and I must say, she put herself in a difficult spot to achieve it. I will read the next book to find out.
I very much enjoyed the majority of the story. When the first shapeshifting happened, it created this anticipation of who would be a Shroud and which animal they would turn into (every Shroud has an animal identity). The conflict between humans and Shrouds was heartbreaking and powerful. I will not go into politics, but I’ll say, some history themes tend to repeat themselves. The initial banter between Tora and Aspen was great. Loved the sarcasm the author injected in all the character interactions.
On the other hand, some parts were rushed. The romance was great with the give and take of the mains, only to rush into something that was just unsatisfying. I honestly would have preferred that nothing happened until the next book. The newly formed alliances were also easily achieved all things considered. It just seems for all the groundwork laid on the first part of the story, the last part unraveled quickly and left me uninspired.
Overall an interesting story with potential for sequels. 3.75 stars
ARC generously provided to me by BSB via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
