Review: Full Moon Rising (Riley Jensen, Guardian, Bk 1) by Keri Arthur

It seems that people either really like this series or really don't. After reading the first book, I guess I'm not surprised. As it turns out, I liked it. But I can see that a lot of people might not understand the whole sex thing that is a big part of the world building here. Werewolves don't see sex as humans do, so you can't judge their actions based on the human viewpoint.

Normally I don't like books set in the future, as this one seems to be. I like the idea that these beings are here, right now, and we don't see them. That's the urban fantasy thing, right? These books appear to be set in our future though, so the same thing kind of applies, since these beings existed during our time as well, it's just that in the book's now, in our future, that they've come out and governments have written rules to try to make everyone get along.

As for the sex thing, werewolves basically need a whole lot of sex in the week leading up to the full moon, with it getting stronger and stronger as they get closer to the moon. The two days and nights before the full moon they are hit with a "moon fever" and they either have to have sex for most of the time the moon is in the sky or they go into bloodlust. Bloodlust as in, kill lots of humans. So, they have sex. In human form. Lots of wild, abandoned, sex. And, while werewolves are capable of intimate sex with someone they care about, they are also capable of casual sex without thinking anything at all about it.

But, even though this book takes place in the week before the full moon, and even though we get a very good idea of exactly how it feels for a werewolf to go through that time, the book is not "mostly sex". It's mostly plot and character development and world building and fighting, with enough sex thrown in for us to understand how the main character feels at this time. That being said, the descriptions of how the moon effects the libido, how it feels when the moon rises, it's very well done. Just as Kelley Armstrong does a good job describing how a half demon feels, and as Laurel K. Hamilton does a good job of explaining the vampire's bloodlust, Keri Arthur does a good job of explaning how moon fever feels to a werewolf in this world.

Our main character's name is Riley Jenson, of course. Her twin brother goes missing and she has to start looking for him on her own. He's a guardian, the guardians are kind of a special forces elite group of non-human law enforcers. They are part of a government branch called The Directorate of Other Races, and no one really knows exactly how much power they have, but let's just say it's a lot. Riley is a liaison there, and her brother is a guardian. But the head of the guardians wants Riley to be a guardian, too. She's refused so far, because she doesn't want to kill. And he is using this situation to try to bring her over, make her a guardian. She ends up doing guardian things, but tells him she doesn't want to be a guardian.

She meets a vampire who says he can't remember anything, except he just survived an attempt on his life and he can't go to anyone except her brother. She doesn't invite him in, so he stays in the hallway of her apartment for a few days. And, as she starts looking for her brother, the vampire helps.

The book has lots of violence, lots of danger, lots of plot twists. It also has good friends, and a twin pair who deeply love each other and who have a great relationship. But, there is also backstabbing and reasons to not trust, as well as reasons to trust.

It was a good book and an enjoyable read and I can't wait to get my hands on the second book.

Book Rating: 8 of 10







1. Full Moon Rising (2006)
2. Kissing Sin (2007)
3. Tempting Evil (2007)
4. Dangerous Games (2007)
5. Embraced by Darkness (2007)
6. The Darkest Kiss (2008)
7. Deadly Desire (March 2009)