Moonlight by Rachel Hawthorne

I see him and know what this turmoil inside of me means: He's the one. My forever.

Kayla is the nature lover, the all-American beauty who can't understand why she's so drawn to distant, brooding Lucas. Adopted as a young child, she has no way of knowing that she's inherited a terrifying—and thrilling—gene that will change her life forever.

Lucas is dangerous, gorgeous . . . and a werewolf. As leader of the Dark Guardians, shape-shifters who gather deep within the state park, he has sworn to protect his pack. But when Lucas finds his true soul mate, his love could put them all in harm's way.

As Lucas and Kayla struggle with their feelings for each other, a greater danger lurks: Humans have discovered the Dark Guardians and are planning their destruction. Kayla must choose between the life she knows and the love she feels certain is her destiny.

Like many others in my collection, I picked this book up because of its pretty cover. When I saw it was about werewolves, I purchased it immediately. I haven't read much from the werewolf genre and was excited to add to my growing collection.

This is the first novel I have read by Hawthorne, and I really enjoyed it. It was a quick, fun read and I really enjoyed her take on the werewolf universe. I really liked the idea of involving sherpas, and the connection with the werewolves and nature right from the beginning of the story. Even before Kayla discovers who she is she has the strong feeling that she "belongs" in the forest. I also really enjoyed the tattoo angle. I only wish that these things had been expanded upon a little more.

Moonlight is the first of three novels currently planned in The Dark Guardian series and I'll definitely be picking up Full Moon and Dark of the Moon when they are released. From the hints of future plot lines given to us in the first installment, the next two stories should be good as well :o)