Best Work and Most Popular Work in the iParchment writing rally 2014. A supernatural race, older than both vampire and wolf, have foreseen a future of peace and prosperity. The few work together for the benefit of all, to bring about this peace. Meanwhile, enemies within the wolf nation are working to upset the balance of power. For centuries there has been hatred, bloodshed and killing between the vampire and wolf nations. A supernatural race, older than both vampire and wolf, have foreseen a future of peace and prosperity. The few work together for the benefit of all, to bring about this peace. Meanwhile, enemies within the wolf nation are working to upset the balance of power. Will the unexpected bonding between wolf and vampire be enough to overcome the centuries of hatred and bring peace and unity to all? Will the wolf and the vampire overcome their own heartaches to accept their bonding and let romance evolve? At the death of her mother, Livvie was now the only wolf-less member of the Romulus pack, and found it almost impossible to live with them. With the Alpha's permission she left to travel the country. When she fell in love, she found her place in the world and settled with the man of her dreams on his cattle ranch in Texas. But after nearly a decade away from the pack, Livvie's life is about to change. Darius, an ancient vampire, son of the Egyptian Sun God Ra, is wandering. His heart is aching, and his soul is restless. Eventually he finds himself in Texas, working for a beautiful woman with a magnetic pull he does not understand. It's only when she is taken from him, that he recognises a bond that is stronger than all others. The truth of that bond will shake him to his core. Isia is Darius' twin sister. She has also found herself in a life threatening situation, unable to free herself and praying for death to claim her. Until she is found and rescued from an unlikely source, and her life takes an unexpected change of immense proportions. As Beta of the Romulus pack, Cato has worked tirelessly at his Alpha's side. After decades of searching and never finding his soul-mate, he had given up on his search, and resigned himself that maybe the Fates were not to be so kind to him. But on a rescue mission for a lost pack member, Cato finds out that Fate had plans for him all along.
Industry Reviews
"The main audience for this piece is going to be those that are already fans about this type of story, but it might also be able to pull in those that maybe didn't care for Twilight, but haven't written the genre off as whole just yet (I tend to fall within this camp). While I had a lot of problems with the more technical aspects of the piece, I found myself pleased with the direction that the author pushes this genre in. The added layers of complexity not only put forth that extra something for people already on board with this type of novel, but also challenge the very notion of what goes into the Paranormal Romance formula. There is a concerted effort to break from genre convention without alienating current fans and I think An Unexpected Bonding successfully manages to do just that. If you're looking for the next big thing in Paranormal Romance or you feel the genre is a little stale and are waiting for something that will shake it up, then I highly recommend that you give this one a look." - Derek Bailey, author Digitarium
"Normally I avoid romance novels of any kind. That type of writing is just not my cup of tea. But this, whew! The romance in this novel is both steamy and down-to-earth. Every romantic moment between Livvie and her love interests felt authentic and personal. They say you should write about what you know. Well, in this reviewers opinion, Lilly Rayman knows about love. I would read her romance novels any day!" - Raelieighreads
"When I first started reading An Unexpected Bonding by Lilly Rayman, I was expecting one-dimensional, sappy characters in a cliched paranormal romance story line; I soon discovered how wrong I was. Not only did Rayman create realistic and down-to-earth "main" protagonists, she also did a really excellent job of giving the "supporting" protagonists their own unique personalities and backgrounds. While fleshing out the characters resulted in a break from the story's action sequences, these flashbacks and asides were relevant to what was happening in the story and did not break the plot's continuity.
For adults that enjoyed the Twilight series, but felt that it needed to be more edgy and less sappy; this book is for you! The romances in the story reflected the supernatural races' views of marriage in a realistic manner. Marriage is merely a civil union; the bond between two supernatural beings in the story is for life, and the bond is "formalized" between the two parties in private. There isn't any dramatic swooning, hand-wringing, or second guessing; bonding is related to readers as a natural part of life, and the bonds are accepted by the parties' peers.
I really enjoyed An Unexpected Bonding by Lilly Rayman because it has characters that I can relate to, interesting character histories, and realistic romances." - Charity Rowell, On My Kindle Blog
"This is a good read. I recommend it to those who like a well-altered universe and some steamy romance. Also, I recommend it to those who always prefer the book over the movie so they can delve deeper into the characters' background, motivation and emotions. You will not be disappointed." - The Kindle Book Review
