ARC Review: Untouched (Amoveo Legend #2) by Sara Humphreys

by davincikittieMarch 27, 2012

TLDR Recap:

Finding a mate before his 30th birthday is of the utmost importance to an Amoveo warrior; you find your mate and bond with her, or die a painfully slow and agonizing death. Dante, fox shifter and protector for his people, has to not only convince his half-breed mate that shifters do indeed exist, but to join with him and allow him to protect her from Amoveo terrorists who want to abolish all impure blood from the race. Oblivious to Dante’s plight, Kerry, one of the world’s top full-size models, just wants to finish this last job in New Orleans and retire. Can Dante and Kerry’s passion for each other overcome the betrayal, danger, and loss that await them in the bayou? Untouched is a GraveTells Recommended Read!

Title: Untouched
Series: Amoveo Legend #2
Author: Sara Humphreys
Prominent Characters: Dante, Kerry
Recommended Reader Age: 16+
Sexual Content Level: moderate

*** This review is SPOILER-FREE! Read on with confidence! ***

Thoughts:

Untouched starts out just about where Unleashed ended… with a wedding! Seeing Samantha and Malcolm together again was an excellent way to get things started. I really enjoyed being in Kerry’s head for this book. She’s spunky, sarcastic, quick witted, and friendly… my kind of girl! Her speech and personality are also not stiff or awkward feeling, as Sam’s occasionally were in book #1, and Dante was my favorite supporting character from Unleashed, so there was very little adjustment time needed to become fully immersed in this story.

Dante is protective and gentle with Kerry, even when they’re steaming up the pages, and getting to see some girl-time show and tell between Sam and Kerry was a treat. Now that the cat… and fox… is out of the bag, there’s no need for secrecy, and we get a good look into what makes these two strong young women such great friends.

New characters are introduced and the mysteries just keep piling up. Is this person who they claim to be? Is that guy really a friend? What about this kooky lady? Trying to figure out the mysterious bad guy in Untouched is every bit as tough as it was in Unleashed, and just as fun too. Even though the book adds nearly a pack of new characters, each has his or her own unique personality and page presence. Besides Dante, a few old friends (from Unleashed) are fleshed out, and I enjoyed getting to know the elusive William better. There’s also a new human with an easy likeability that I hope we see more of in future books. Who knows, maybe he’ll turn out to be a hybrid too. And poor Steven. Something tells me his story is next, and he’s not going to be a happy coyote when we see him again. *grin*

Untouched nicely paves the way for follow-up novels in the series, featuring more hybrids and their fight against the hidden purist cells. This second story in the Amoveo Legend is even better than the first. I loved Dante in Unleashed and I also really liked Kerry – those two nearly stole the show from Sam and Malcolm in their own novel, and that was before they knew each other!

Memorable Quotes

How do you say no to that?! Yummy Dante, just yummy.

“You’ll dance with me. Maybe not today,” he whispered seductively into her ear. “But eventually… you and I will dance.”

Oh, I believe you… SUCH a TEASE!

Dante lowered his voice so only she would hear him. “Believe me, princess,” he said with a smile. “When I undress you, I’ll do it the old- fashioned way, with my hands.” He winked.

One sexy hero, comin’ right up!

He looked like a cross between The Terminator and a secret service agent— a really hot secret service agent.

Just like a man…

Her robe had fallen away, exposing her bare legs, and she couldn’t help but notice the way he stole a glimpse. “Hey, Tarzan, my face is up here.” She snapped her fingers and immediately drew his unabashed gaze back to hers.

Either way you spin it, foxy is foxy…

“Don’t mind Mr. Coltari here,” she said with a nod toward Dante. “He’s all bark and no bite.” Or is it howl? Her sarcastic jibe shot into Dante’s mind with all the sass she’d surely intended.
He shot her a skeptical look. Wolves howl. I am a fox.
She laughed softly. Yes, you are. Now stop scaring this poor kid.

If you liked Untouched…

If you enjoyed Untouched, and it’s predecessor Unleashed, you might also enjoy Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark-Hunter series, particularly Book #5 Kiss of the Night. Now, obviously, 5 books in means you’d be better starting at the beginning, but this is a LONG series and this particular book doesn’t absolutely need to be read in order. It has dream-walking, destined mates, warriors, and damsels in danger… some of the main elements from Untouched and great vehicles for an engaging paranormal romance adventure.

You might also like Pamela Palmer’s Feral Warriors series, starting with Desire Untamed, and the Lost City Shifters (Mercy is book #1 and Redemption is book #2 – these can be read independently) by Eleri Stone. Both series feature shape-shifters who are warriors in their own right, and spend their lives fighting for their people and what they believe in.

Final Thoughts:

Untouched is as sensitive and instantly likeable as Kerry, and as fierce and intuitive as Dante. It draws the reader in, moving along quickly with some characters you seem to keep wanting more and more of, and others you just can’t quite figure out. The plot is an extension of the Purist-Hybrid conflict of Untouched, but expands on that and lays down a solid foundation for expanding further into the series. Ms. Humphreys also drops new clues and information about the lore and world of the Amoveo, and ties up the ending nicely while also leaving herself plenty of room to play. Untouched is a recommended read!