Sunday, February 16, 2020

ARC Review: The Bear's Forever Mate (Borealis Bears #3)

The Bear's Forever Mate (Borealis Bears #3)

by Vivian Arend

Blurb:
He’s got the perfect mate in mind, for five years from now…
The final title in a light-hearted shifter trilogy by New York Times bestselling author Vivian Arend.

Cooper Borealis is fully onboard with the concept of fated mates. Except mating the woman he wants—his tempting, complicated, human secretary—is not an option. Or not yet anyway. Still, he’ll keep the vow he made to his brothers, with a few loophole caveats, mating fever be damned. He’ll be with Amber Myawayan at the place and time of his choosing.

Amber has spent the past two years in the north looking for her missing brother—and falling in love with the big, growly polar bear at the helm of Borealis Gems. More than once, she’s caught him looking at her with hungry shifter eyes. But getting him to admit it? Ha! Luckily, mating fever is a thing, and she’s happy to cooperate as nature forces the issue to the forefront.

But when their mating bond is unexpectedly blocked, Amber and Cooper find themselves in a race against time. She needs to track down her brother while somehow proving she’s tough enough to be with her favourite bear. Cooper plans to protect her at all costs, even if it means secretly stifling his stubborn shifter side.

Somewhere in the wilderness they’ll find the answer…or lose their chance at forever.

Themes:  Paranormal, Shifters
Rating: 4.5 stars
Heat Rating: 
Review:
The trilogy comes to an interesting and amazing ending as Cooper finds himself captured by the woman that has been teasing his senses and stealing his heart for the last two years. I love pretty much anything that Vivian Arend writes, but my heart was first stolen by her shifters many years ago when I stumbled across them by accident one day.  Each time one of them finds their mate and begins getting into mischief, I fall more and more in love with her skill and imagination as a writer, but this trilogy was beyond fun and sexy and I cannot wait for whatever she dreams up next. The premise of the trilogy is that the family patriarch has decided it is time for his grandsons to settle down and find their happiness with their mates—and he puts a deadline with some serious consequences on his ultimatum.  The two younger brothers have both found their mates, though in unlikely places,  and Cooper knows the woman he wants for his mate as well, but the problem is he knows the time isn’t right to claim her yet. Amber is a human that has come north into the wilds of Canada seeking the truth of the disappearance of her foster parents and brother, and she has found her place with the Borealis family and their friends, but she is no closer to the truth she sought than when she arrived.  Amber is in serious lust with Cooper and knows it can grow into something much more if the stubborn polar-bear-shifter would just drop his protective guard long enough to give them a chance, and when she sees her opening she is not willing to let anything stop her. Cooper tries to keep himself from Amber when the mating fever strikes, but she’s having none of that bullshit and soon they are tearing up the little cabin he ran to.  But the mating bond can’t click into place until all three parts of their future are aligned—Amber, Cooper and the stubborn bear spirit that shares his soul.  Now they have to find a way to solve all their problems and track down her brother while proving to his bear that Amber really is the only one strong enough to be their mate. 
This was one twisty and fascinating story, with so much going on in such a short time that one might fear there wasn’t enough filler to build the relationship for Amber and Cooper, but Arend’s skill once again proves she is a mistress of romance for a good reason.  Fact is that no one else could have truly done this story the justice it deserved.  Amber was the kind of strong and determined woman, with the backbone of steel, heart of gold, and patience of Job that I wish I could be.  She is the match that Cooper needs to keep him in line, laughing at the ridiculousness that life can sometimes be, and just mischievous enough to keep their future mated life from being boring. Cooper is one of those people like me with a list for everything in life, one that doesn’t adapt well to change, and that has to think through everything little piece of a decision before he can commit, which is ironic considering he shares his spirit with a wild polar bear.  That dichotomy leads to some hilarious internal dialogue between the two and of course some decisions that require Amber to work all the harder to overcome his obstinacy.  I loved seeing these two balance one another and find a way to make their lives perfect just by being what the other needed at the most important moments.  The heat between them was of course off the charts leading to passionate moments that even melted the snow protecting them at one moment (nope, not a metaphor).  I also loved seeing the family togetherness and the ways that Arend shows how two cultures and families can come together to make a whole that is so much greater than the parts combined, reminding me a little bit of her contemporary series that are so family focused.  I loved this story for each and every second, and while I, of course, wish it had been longer just to prolong the enjoyment, there wasn’t a single thing lacking from the plot or the romance and I cannot wait to spread the word about this series and this trilogy specifically, not to mention now I can binge reread all three. Another masterpiece Vivian!
*eARC provided by author for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.

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