Alpha at Home

Brothers of the Heart, Book 1

By: DJ Bryce

Narrated by: Shawna Crawley

Length: 2 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

Maximus has always known two things: He was destined to be the bravo of his pack, and he's in love with Gillian Matthews. The problem is, Gillian was raised knowing she was destined to be mated to the alpha, who is Maximus' best friend.

Although they've kept each other at arms length, you can't escape fate. When it becomes clear that Gilly is Max's mate and not Mateo's, they will all have to come to terms with the way this will impact not just their lives, but the pack's future.

Alpha at Home is the first in an all-new series about men who may not be brothers by blood, but are brothers of the heart. And the realization that, regardless of how the Matthews siblings have been raised, sometimes you have to follow your heart, even if it's leading you down the hardest path.

©2017 DJ Bryce (P)2018 Bethany Lopez

Alpha at Home

A quick read with several twists and turns, it is a good start to the Brothers of the Heart series

Sweet and a bit angsty story about true love

I had the opportunity to listen to Alpha at Home by D.J. Bryce, also known as one of my favorite authors, Bethany Lopez, was a nice surprise. In this paranormal romance, we meet the Matthews siblings. They were raised with the belief they were born to be mated with Alphas, or so they thought.

Gilliam has always known she was to mate with the Alpha of her pack, Mateo. She has known this her entire life and has accepted it. But every time she sees Maximus, Mateo’s other best friend and his Bravo, she feels things she should not. Maximums has always know he wants Gillian, but she belongs to another, or so he thought. One look, one touch and everything changes, but how will affect the pack?

Alpha at Home by D.J. Bryce (Bethany Lopez) was a bit angsty, had a little suspense and a whole lot of steaminess. The story was narrated by Shawna Crawley and she did an amazing job bringing it to life.

Happy listening!

Great Read

Alpha at Home (Brothers of the Heart #1) was a great read by D.J. Bryce. Maximus always knew he was destined to be the Bravo of his pack and that he's in love with Gillian Matthews. Unfortunately Gillian was raised knowing that she was destined to mate with an Alpha, who happened to be his best friend. Even though they tried to stay away, they can't change their fate. I really enjoyed reading Maximus and Gillian's story and can't wait to read more by the author.

Good chemistry... but a bit stiff.

Most of my issue is with the narration... it's a little stilted and stiff. Also some weird background noises occasionally during the audio which was distracting.

I do like the chemistry between Max and Gillian. And I'm excited for the rest of this series!

Gillie and Max

I usually like shifter stories, mainly because of the total escapism involved in them and as this plotline appealed to me I asked for a copy of this book from Audiobook Boom. There was no obligation to write a review - my review is written voluntarily

The story is quick, only a couple of hours long so an easy listen. You are introduced to the main characters as well as pack members and a bear shifter. Which sets us up for the rest of the series.

It's fast-paced action both in and out of the bedroom. Max is the Brava for his pack, second in command to his best friend the Alpha Mateo. Gillie has been brought up believing that she is destined to marry an Alpha if it's not Mateo then her parents will send her away to mate with another Alpha. For this reason, she and Mateo have allowed the pack to believe that they will one day be mated. I admit I did find this confusing because her mother was not married to an Alpha - but that is by the by.

Max and Gilly have always felt drawn to each other but have avoided each other as much as possible, Max because he believes that Gillie is Mateo's mate and Gillie because she has to marry an Alpha. But once they touch, even an innocent touch on the arm, things move fast even for a fated mates story. They go from a touch to a passionate kiss, to sealing the deal and Max giving Gillie the mating bite in a few short sentences.

The mating happened very quickly leaving the rest of the book to be about pack business and not their love story. Granted, some of that business included telling the pack about Mateo and Gillies's lie so Max and Gilly can announce that they're mates and have a ceremony.

There are interesting hints for future couples to come in this series, as well as a surprising development with another pack. So, while we do get a conclusion for Max and Gillie, the other parts of the story remain unresolved.

I look forward to listening to the next book in this series.

I hate when a narrator runs a 1/2 way decent book.

This could have been read sooo much better. The book is eh, so not a terrible loss.

Alpha at Home

What do you do when your mate is promised to someone else? Make your mate see what is right there in front of you of course! Great story and perfect start to the series.

🐺

Bravo of the pack Maximus is in love with the alpha’s intended mate Gillian. Max resigned himself to watching the woman he loves love another man his alpha and his best friend Mateo. Gillian and Mateo knew they weren’t meant to be and when he found out that she was his best friend’s mate he was happy for them. It was a cute story. I thought Max and Gillian were so adorable. The audio sounded a little weird but the story was still good and I enjoyed listening!

PNR

Enjoyable shifter romance. Some action. Steamy sex scene. Good introduction to the players the next few books feature. The audio was a little tinny sounding on my iPad not sure if recording or just my download.

Needs a better narrator

Alpha at Home is a good story. The overall experience was lessened by poor narration. Shawna Crowley seemed to have a great deal of difficulty with words like facade. It seems to me she would have looked those up prior to recording. Additionally, her presentation was monotone and boring. Pretty much ruined the experience.