Review – ‘The Right to Bear Arms’ by Vivienne Savage

Blurb 

After years of abuse, Daniela Reyes escapes her marriage to strike out on her own. With a rented house near the wilderness and a sexy neighbor down the road, life seems typical until she finds a black bear snoozing in her new hammock.

Despite warnings, she feeds her wild friend and watches him return day after day. Her bear is the ideal distraction from the ex who won’tlet her go.

Russell Hawkins has dedicated his entire life to protecting others. When the death of his wife drives him to retire from the Army, he settles in a remote community for the peace, quiet, and privacy to be himself. As a werebear, he roams the woods with his dog, the perfect diversion from his grief -- and the voluptuous divorcee down the lane.

Can a war vet with a secret and a woman with a painful past find their happy future together? 

Review 

Daniela divorced her abusive husband and finally made a new life for herself in rural Texas. Too bad her ex, Mike, won’t stop coming around her new home and threatening her. The one good thing in her life is a black bear that keeps showing up in her backyard. She’s feeding him and starting to think of him as her friend and pet. Once she gets closer to her sexy next door neighbor, Russ, the bear doesn’t come around as often and she’s worried about him.

Russ is a retired Army vet from a secretive special op unit and is soooo swoon-worthy. He’s a bear shifter and, as the bear, he hangs around Daniela’s yard because he feels that she’s his mate. As the man, he teaches her self-defense and gun training so she could protect herself against her ex-husband.

Love blossoms fast but it’s believable. Daniela and Russ are great together. There’s mutual respect and understanding. He helps build up her self-esteem and she helps him move from the passing of his wife two years earlier. They both healed the other. When she learned the truth about his werebear side, she acted appropriately. In some books, the heroine accepts the truth way too easily and it’s laughable. In this book, she was scared, confused and angry. She demanded answers and only accepted what Russ told her after he explained it. I really liked she didn’t just ‘trust’ him without answers. She played it smart and my respect for her doubled.

The best part about this book is that the hero didn’t rescue the heroine at the end. She rescued herself with the training he gave her. Every woman should know a little self-defense, especially domestic abuse survivors, and Daniela really stepped up to the plate.

Well-written in 1^st person, I don’t think I noticed any typos. The pacing could’ve been tighter but this is one of the better shifter books I’ve read in a while. I really enjoyed it and would like to read more from this author.

4 Stars

Disclaimer – I downloaded this book for free on Amazon on a Free Day. I am not compensated in any way, shape or form for this honest review. I will not change or alter this review for any reason unless at my discretion.