Fangs and Catnip by Julia Talbot Audiobook Review

A romance worth fighting for—tooth and claw.

Solitary vampire Fallon Underwood gets all the social interaction he needs being the silent partner at the Dead and Breakfast B and B high in the Colorado mountains. Change is hard for Fallon, so when his business partner, Tanner, suggests hiring a new manager for the inn, he’s adamant that they don’t need help, especially not in the form of bouncy werecat Carter Hughes.

Carter is a happy-go-lucky kitty, and he loves the hospitality industry, so the D and B ought to be a great place for him. He falls for Fallon as soon as he picks up one of Fallon’s novels and begins to woo the vamp with gifts. When Fallon finally succumbs to Carter’s feline charms, the results are unexpected, to say the least. Their mating will have irreversible consequences—for their bodies and their hearts.

Audiobook Details
Length: 6 hrs, 41 mins
Narrator: Dorian Bane

Book 1
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Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
Having enjoyed Julia Talbot’s Nose to Tail, Inc. series, I was excited for the opportunity to listen to Fangs and Catnip to find out how she’d help a grumpy vampire find happiness with a cat shifter. I’ll admit that when I first started listening, I got a tad confused as to who the players were and had to restart the book because I wasn’t sure where Tanner fit once I realized he wasn’t the love interest. That’s on me because I rarely re-read a book’s blurb right before I start it as I enjoy going in blind, with few expectations beyond those I have for authors whose writing I’m familiar with. After that little hiccup, I was good to go and quickly found myself immersed in life at the Dead and Breakfast Inn.

In addition to the actual romance and mating between Fallon and Carter, there are several things I enjoyed about Fangs and Catnip. The first being the sense of family that Tanner works to instill among his staff and for his guests. Tanner not only wants the guests to enjoy themselves, but he wants them to feel at home while staying at the D&B – going so far as to ask guests about not just their needs, but also their food and beverage preferences and stocking them before the guests arrive. He also goes above and beyond for at least one of his guests when he arranges for a doctor who specializes in supernatural creatures to consult with Tom, a bitten werewolf who was turned late in life. It’s Tanner’s need to help other supernaturals that makes it easy to understand why Fallon calls him friend and serves as a semi-silent partner in the D&B. Additionally, I loved the two different courtships that play out in the novel. Not only was it cute to watch Fallon fight against succumbing to Carter’s thoughtful gifts, the second courtship (I won’t say who was wooing who) was both delightful and heart bruising. Finally, I really, really liked that while there was a bit of possessiveness between Carter and Fallon due to their mating bond, it wasn’t so strong that either man felt the need for violence when another male was near their mate. That allowed Carter and Tom’s friendship to form and strengthen to the point that Tom played a pivotal role later in the book. It also meant there was no negative impact on the friendship and brotherly bond between Fallon and Tanner. In fact, Fallon’s yearning for bear cuddles with Tanner and having Carter join the pile was an “Awwww” and grin inducing moment.

As for the narration, I was a tad hesitant at first at the idea of Dorian Bane as a bouncy, cat shifter. This is because I’ve only had the opportunity to listen to Bane perform rough and tumble cowboys, which he does exceedingly well. As I’d listened to the audio sample, I knew at the very least, I would enjoy him as Fallon and Tanner. I shouldn’t have worried because Bane not only created a believable voice for the werekitty, but he also created enjoyable and entertaining voices for the rest of the cast – I particularly enjoyed the gravelly tone he gave the gargoyle shifter’s voice. I really loved how Bane made subtle changes in Fallon’s voice over the course of the story to show how our grumpy vamp found happiness, even if he had to take a detour down Heartbreak Lane first. I absolutely loved Talbot’s story and Bane’s narrative performance, and I'm looking forward to finding out who’ll be the next to find love at the Dead and Breakfast Inn.

Stories that leave a mark.

Julia Talbot loves romance across all the genders and genres, and loves to write about people working to see past the skin they're in to love what lies beneath. Julia Talbot lives in the great mountain and high desert Southwest, where there is hot and cold running rodeo, cowboys, and everything from meat and potatoes to the best Tex-Mex. A full time author, Julia has been published by Dreamspinner Press, Changeling Press, and others. She believes that everyone deserves a happy ending, so she writes about love without limits, where boys love boys, girls love girls, and boys and girls get together to get wild, especially when her crazy paranormal characters are involved.

She also writes BDSM and erotic romance as Minerva Howe.

Connect with Julia

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Dorian is a voice actor and audiobook narrator specializing in character voices.

Connect with Dorian

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free audiobook copy of Fangs and Catnip (Dead and Breakfast #1) by Julia Talbot, narrated by Dorian Bane to read or listen to and review.

The Wolf's Man Friday by Julia Talbot

The last thing Sebastian Zeller wants is to be pack Alpha. But when the pack leader, his uncle Ron, is attacked, he has no choice but to leave his beloved Colorado mountains and fulfill his duty as Ron’s heir—at least until his uncle recovers. In the meantime, he intends to lure the attacker out… and make them pay.

When Ron gets wind of Sebastian’s plan to catch the attacker, he doesn’t like the idea of risking his heir. That’s where Jaxon Reedis comes in—he’ll balance protecting the dark and sexy werewolf with pretending to be his personal assistant. He’s walking a fine line that requires all his foxy wit and craftiness… and that’s on top of the inescapable feeling that he and Sebastian are meant for each other. When the attacker returns, will they be able to maintain their deepening bond when danger threatens to tear down everything they’re building?

Book 2
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
Having loved Wolfmanny, I didn’t hesitate when the opportunity came up to review The Wolf’s Man Friday. As much as I loved the Marcon household and would have loved to have seen more of their lives, the second book in the series focuses on a new Nose to Tail Inc. employee and his assignment – to guard the alpha’s nephew, without his full knowledge, and keep him from putting himself in danger while the alpha recovers from a near-fatal attack. So the man in charge, Richard, sends in a fox shifter, Jaxon, to serve as Sebastian’s personal assistant… who just so happens to carry a gun. And much like readers saw in book one, the sparks certainly fly as the wolf and the fox discover there’s more to each other than meets the eye.

At first glance, The Wolf’s Man Friday looks like it might be a mystery as Jaxon is brought in to protect Sebastian from being attacked by an unknown party, but the farther into the book I read, the more I realized that the reader isn’t expected to suss out whodunit. Sebastian, Jaxon, and the reader are all kept in the dark as to who might be responsible and why because Sebastian’s uncle and alpha, Ron, refuses to admit to remembering the details of his attack. Now I don’t actively try to figure out who the bad guy is in books very often, but by the time I felt that enough clues and information had been presented, Sebastian and Jaxon were on the same page as I was – this doesn’t mean other readers won’t figure it out sooner or have strong suspicions about it, but rather that there wasn’t an obvious culprit from the beginning. For me, this actually ramped up the action and danger of the story, albeit somewhat unnecessarily at times when Sebastian let his guard down at inopportune moments. Seriously, you’ve been attacked multiple times already and you’re going on your merry way as if you haven’t a care in the world? Yet such is the foolish mindset of someone who feels safe on their home turf. Fortunately for Sebastian, Jaxon was on the job – both as bodyguard and mate. Ah, yes, the men found an unexpected treasure in one another, their mate.

While it seemed as though much of the focus of the book was on the threat to Sebastian and the subsequent action, Talbot again does a nice job of weaving the romance between the men into the story, striking a nice balance between the two. What appears to begin as simple lust quickly becomes more as Sebastian and Jaxon come to realize and acknowledge that there’s more to the spark between them than just sexual attraction. And that spark is HAWT! There’s a sensuality to the lithe fox that ramps his wolf up and it makes for some very steamy encounters. For me, that makes Jaxon’s ‘nesting’ in Sebastian’s home even more endearing, and Sebastian’s eager acceptance of it left me grinning. As with book one, The Wolf’s Man Friday has a wonderful cast of side characters who add to the richness of the story – even the characters you wanted to throttle for their hardheadedness. I can only hope that we may eventually catch glimpses of them in a future installment in the series. Oh, and in case you’re wondering, you can read The Wolf’s Man Friday as a standalone if you skipped Wolfmanny because kids aren’t your thing – but I will say that you’re doing yourself a disservice because it was an excellent read as well.

Also Available in the Nose to Tail Inc. Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

For reviews & more info, check out our Wolfmanny post.

Stories that leave a mark. Julia Talbot loves romance across all the genders and genres, and loves to write about people working to see past the skin they're in to love what lies beneath. Julia Talbot lives in the great mountain and high desert Southwest, where there is hot and cold running rodeo, cowboys, and everything from meat and potatoes to the best Tex-Mex. A full time author, Julia has been published by Dreamspinner Press, Changeling Press, and others. She believes that everyone deserves a happy ending, so she writes about love without limits, where boys love boys, girls love girls, and boys and girls get together to get wild, especially when her crazy paranormal characters are involved.

She also writes BDSM and erotic romance as Minerva Howe.

Connect with Julia

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Google+  ~  Instagram

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of The Wolf's Man Friday (Nose to Tail Inc. #2) by Julia Talbot to read and review.

Wolfmanny by Julia Talbot

Three hot werewolves, sexual tension thick enough to cut with a knife, an impending Colorado winter, and a rambunctious pack of werewolf pups. Stand back and watch the fur fly.

When Kenneth Marcon loses his nanny to a bite from one of his inherited kids, he knows he needs someone strong to contain five werewolf children. What he finds isn’t a stalwart nanny, but a werewolf manny named Jack. Kenneth and his assistant, Miles, aren’t sure if Jack is what they need, but he’s what they have to work with.

Jack’s got what it takes to keep the kids busy—and attract both Miles’s and Kenneth’s attention. The two old friends have been circling each other for years, but with Jack as the final piece to the puzzle, it’s time to finally act on those urges. When Kenneth is forced to travel instead of solidifying the bond with his new mates, Jack and Miles take desperate measures to get him back, even as they save the kids from one disaster after another. Amidst the chaos, they have to learn how to become not just a pack, but a family.

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo
Dreamspinner Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
I absolutely loved Wolfmanny. I’ve seen many a reader state that they won’t read romances that include children as main characters, thankfully I am not among that group because the kids in this book had significant roles that contributed to the storyline without taking it over. Talbot did an excellent job of striking the balance between family time with the kids and sexy fun times between the three wolf shifters. Boy, did she ever!

When Jack accepts an assignment to serve as the manny for five kids, with the oldest being a teenager who is beginning to shift, he has no idea that he’s about to have all his dreams come true, even the ones he never risked imagining. While Kenneth has the utmost respect for his old friend Richard, the owner of Nose to Tail, Inc., he’s not feeling reassured when he discovers the kids’ new nanny is actually a manny. But before Kenneth can send the manny packing, Jack proves exactly why Richard sent him by getting to work straightaway, starting with wrangling the three-year-old twins. As Jack settles into his new job, he finds himself falling in love with the children and enjoying the sense of home that Kenneth and his nieces and nephews offer. Actually, all of Kenneth’s people add to that feeling of home, especially Miles, Kenneth’s beta and best friend. Miles finds himself in a tricky position because despite his decades’ long unrequited love for Kenneth, he feels a pull of attraction to Jack that he cannot resist. When Jack and Miles finally succumb to the pull between them, they are interrupted by Kenneth, who promptly lays claim to both men, making it clearer than ever who the alpha is. But Kenneth isn’t just the alpha, he also owns and operates a multi-billion dollar company that keeps him busy and traveling, much to the disappointment of his charges and Miles. When a major deal threatens their fledgling relationship and Kenneth’s health, Jack does what he must to insure that his new family is safe, happy, and together – even if it puts his position within the pack, the family, and their threesome at risk.

I really can’t express how much I enjoyed Wolfmanny. I really hope that the powers that be turn it into an audiobook because this is one I can see queuing up for a listen again and again. Talbot does a great job in not only creating a convincing ménage relationship between Jack, Kenneth, and Miles, but also creating a believable family environment for them and the children, as well as the few strays they “adopt” along the way. I also loved how realistic the children were, both in their interactions with one another and their interactions with the adults. Despite the significant age differences and that there were FIVE of them, the kids came across as individuals, each with their own personality quirks and loveable traits. I enjoyed how they were woven into the storyline, making them key characters who took center stage only when it was appropriate to the scene. In my opinion, Talbot did a wonderful job in striking the balance between kid-centered scenes and adult-only scenes. Although there is no indication on the publisher’s website that this is the first in a series, I do hope that Talbot is inspired enough to bring us more tales from either the Marcon household or Nose to Tail, Inc. as there are plenty of other characters whose stories are ripe for the telling. Wolfmanny was an extremely enjoyable read for me and I look forward to rereading it soon… or listening to it on audiobook (hint, hint).

Stories that leave a mark. Julia Talbot loves romance across all the genders and genres, and loves to write about people working to see past the skin they're in to love what lies beneath. Julia Talbot lives in the great mountain and high desert Southwest, where there is hot and cold running rodeo, cowboys, and everything from meat and potatoes to the best Tex-Mex. A full time author, Julia has been published by Dreamspinner Press, Changeling Press, and others. She believes that everyone deserves a happy ending, so she writes about love without limits, where boys love boys, girls love girls, and boys and girls get together to get wild, especially when her crazy paranormal characters are involved.

She also writes BDSM and erotic romance as Minerva Howe.

Connect with Julia

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Google+  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Wolfmanny (Nose to Tail Inc. #1) by Julia Talbot to read and review.