Wolf with Benefits (Pride) (Brava Paranormal Romance) by Shelly Laurenston (2013-05-03) Paperback

After reading the Honey Badger books I’d always wondered about the Jean-Louis Parker family. They always fascinated me, but we never got much more than a taste, so this book was a wonderful treat for me. The Jean-Louis Parker family is made up a former child prodigy violinist, her husband and 11 children. The eldest is the only one of the 11 who is NOT a prodigy. The eldest child is Toni and she spends her life running around and mediating for her younger siblings. This is the way of the jackal shifters, the older children help to raise the younger ones. However, these children take a lot more raising than the average child. Toni has basically given up her life to raise her siblings and has never held down a proper job.The summer in which the book is set has the clan arrive in New York and renting a house across the road from the Wild Dog pack. Jackie Jean-Louis Parker wants to mentor Johnny, the adopted son of the wild dog alpha female. Through Jackie’s machinations gain this mentorship Toni keeps bumping into Ricky Lee Reed a wolf shifter from Tennessee, who works as security and protection in the shifter world. Ricky Lee instantly finds Toni and her family fascinating and goes about trying to gain her interest.I love that this book is about Toni finding her way apart from her family and that Ricky Lee does his best to help. However, he does not want to separate her from her family and really does like them and her devotion to them. He just wants her to have her own life too.There is actually quite a lot of plot in this book to keep you interested and as always there is tonnes of banter. I love all the characters in this book, just like I knew from the glimpses I’d seen in the Honey Badger books. I’m glad I got a chance to find out more about them.

It's Shelly Laurenston therefore this is an awesome and funny read. Need I say more? Oh, if you insist.Not counting the trademark humour and snarky dialogue that all of the books in this series contain, the primary reason I most enjoyed this book was because pretty much all of the characters from both the Pride series and the preceding Magnus Pack trilogy are in this book to a greater or lesser degree. Even those that don't get to make an actual appearance are at least mentioned.And it's not done in a forced manner either. Toni ("That's Toni with an 'i' and not a 'y'") Jean Louis Parker is the daughter of Jackie Parker who is best friend of Irene Conridge whose story was told in Miss Congeniality. But we first met Irene way back in Miki's story in Go Fetch! part of the original Magnus Pack trilogy. Not only that, but Toni's parents have rented a house from Jessica Ward who, as fans all know, is mated to Bobby Ray Smith of the Smith clan.Ricky Lee Reed is, well, he's a Reed and we know that family quite well already. It's like playing six degrees of separation spotting all the connections. The other pleasant surprise is that both Toni and Ricky make a fairly sensible couple of main characters with their heads screwed on relatively straight. Given that the previous couples tend to be...er...barking (sometimes literally), it leaves the wackiness to the huge ensemble of wacky side characters.There is a small but very significant side plot about a threat to Toni's siblings from one of their own that is actually quite disturbing. On the other hand, it does make Toni's best friend Olivia 'Liv' quite the intriguing character. And your challenge is to guess what Liv's shifter form is before it's revealed. You'll probably think you know and you may even come very close like I did, but I think you'll be surprised. Honestly, I'd never even heard of the animal before.I guess I did end saying a bit more, didn't I? Needless to say, fans of the Pride series will not be disappointed by Wolf With Benefits.

Wolf With Benefits is Ricky Lee Reed and Antonella 'Toni' Jean-Louis Parker's story. They meet by random chance and once found, Ricky is too intrigued to let Toni out of his sight without some pursuit. Only thing that stands in their way is Toni's hectic schedule trying to keep her crazy but genius family in line.There is a lot more to this story that just boy meets girl, wolf chasing jackal. Many of the fun loving characters that make the Pride series so great are in this book and have their funny quirky moments. There are a couple of stories that are running along side Ricky and Toni's tale as well as the introduction to some new characters, that have become entwined and the ongoing threat to all shifters more intriguing.What I love is that even though this is the eighth book in the Pride series, the stories and world that has been created by Ms. Laurenston is interesting and the fact that there are many laugh out loud moments and favourite characters are still involved in each book, there is a sense of family and it doesn't matter what type of shifter they maybe, they are all fighting to protect their species.So looking forward to the next instalment.

Ricky is so laidback that the book became laidback even with Toni. I just love this book and I love Ricky.Toni's family annoyed me, except Freddie and Dennie and the older two but the rest... oy!Ricky and Toni's romance wasn't forced and flowed well, loved it.I'm glad one of the Reed boys got some loving, although I was hoping Rory would get a book too. (I'm rooting for you!)The plot was well written too and flowed well.If you're new definitely read the other pride series books first as this one is one of the last. Everything will make more sense that way. Also check out the Magnus trilogy which is the trilogy that started this shifter journey.