Book Review: Echo Falls by Jaime McDougall

This story grabs you from the first sentence and keeps up a nice fast pace - good entertainment..

Echo Falls

by Jaime McDougall

• File Size: 285 KB
• Print Length: 240 pages
• Publisher: CreateSpace (July 15, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B005FQN2A4

Genre: Paranormal Romance

My Rating: 4.25 of 5.0

Product Description
Running from a nightmare stalking her every move, Phoebe Martin arrives in Echo Falls hoping she has finally found a safe place to stop. But trouble has a way of catching up and soon the signs are there.

After a vicious attack in an alley, policeman Aidan O'Bryan is left with Phoebe as his only path to understanding why the Echo Falls werewolf pack - his pack - is being attacked. When another pack member is killed, Phoebe is forced to confront her past before she loses Aidan and everything she has come to love.

Love and duty become one as Aidan strives to prevent Phoebe from becoming the next victim. But with Phoebe just as determined to protect Aidan and her new home, secrets from her past threaten to tear them apart.

Will love give Phoebe the strength to trust Aidan and face her fears, or will her past destroy her future?

Review:  This is a fast paced read with warm characters.
Phoebe has recently moved to Echo Falls and is hoping to stay and set up a photography business. She thinks she has finally out run the trouble that has chased her. Unfortunately she is attacked and soon learns that there is a murderer in town. Although not certain at first she does suspect that the killer, hunter, has followed her. But Phoebe is alone and has never had the responsibilities or protection of a pack.

Aidan is the local werewolf pack leader and a police officer. He rescues Phoebe from a fierce attack then tries to question her to see if she remembers and is alarmed by the ‘non human’ combatants.  It is quite clear that Phoebe doesn’t want to be questioned, doesn’t want help and is hiding secrets.  Though Phoebe may not be part of his pack, Aidan has determined that he wants to protect her.

As more lone weres are killed it appears that the killer has a partner within the pack.  When one of Aidan’s own pack friends dies the betrayal becomes even more painful.

I really liked Phoebe’s strength and determination. Unfortunately her decision not to reveal facts hinders the investigation and her insistence on not seeking help only puts herself and others at risk. 

Aidan is just what you’d look for in an alpha male: strong, dedicated and protective. He is a warm character with friends who support him even when times are troubled. Phoebe may have to find out if he will forgive her for her secrets and the danger that has followed her to his community.

The ‘hunter’ is a nasty piece of work and is portrayed well.  He has some oily charm but underneath is a shallow brute.  It is fairly easy to guess which member of the pack is helping him. Even though the mystery is revealed pretty quickly, the danger of the situation kept my attention hoping that Phoebe really could find a way to defeat the killer. Not likely, but I give her points for deciding to stop running and stand her ground. 

The writing flowed well with good action and interesting and warm characters. The romance is sensual and tasteful. I enjoyed this quick read and would like more stories by Ms. McDougall. I recommend this to those who enjoy warm werewolf stories with a little mystery and lots of danger.

The Hook:
Keep running, keep running, keep running. Location 21.

Smooth ease in the writing:
She silently told it [her growling stomach] to be quiet, wanting the easy drift of sleep for just a while longer. Location 54-55

Thank you to the author for providing the ebook to read and review.

I'm not positive but I believe the location is in Washington for my Where are you Reading Challenge. I will include this in my ARC challenge.