Slow Heat

By: Leta Blake

Narrated by: Michael Ferraiuolo

Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

A lustful young alpha meets his match in an older omega with a past.

Professor Vale Aman has crafted a good life for himself. An unbonded omega in his mid-30s, he's long since given up hope that he'll meet a compatible alpha, let alone his destined mate. He's fulfilled by his career, his poetry, his cat, and his friends.

When Jason Sabel, a much younger alpha, imprints on Vale in a shocking and public way, longings are ignited that can't be ignored. Fighting their strong sexual urges, Jason and Vale must agree to contract with each other before they can consummate their passion.

But for Vale, being with Jason means giving up his independence and placing his future in the hands of an untested alpha - as well as facing the scars of his own tumultuous past. He isn't sure it's worth it. But Jason isn't giving up his destined mate without a fight.

This is a stand-alone gay romance novel, 118,000 words, with a strong HFN ending, as well as a well-crafted, non-shifter omegaverse, with alphas, betas, omegas, male pregnancy, heat, and knotting. Content warning for pregnancy loss and aftermath.

©2017 Leta Blake (P)2018 Leta Blake

Great story and superb narration

Very hot and sweet. Mildly angsty and definitely a slow burn. Great characters and storyline. Narrator was the perfection. Highly recommend!

Loved it

Love the story of Jason & Vale! Love Michael's voices, so glad he did 2!

Phenomenal Writer

Great story to get lost in. Very talented writer who creates stories that are thoughtful, insightful and spicy 🌶

Fabulous story, wonderful narration.

OMG – I love this story and narrator. This is my first Leta Blake book and my first audio book performed by Michael Ferraiuolo. I've found a new-to-me voice actor to follow as well as a new-to-me author.

I never thought I'd like another voice actor as much as Joel Leslie but Michael Ferraiuolo is giving him a run for his money. Once I started listening to Slow Heat I just couldn't stop. The different voices Michael does are fabulous and I devoured this audio as much as I would have if it were a book I was reading. One minor note: I thought his speech was a bit slow so I listened to this at 1.25 speed and liked it better.

This story really has all the feels. It's an Omegaverse story (non-shifter, alphas, betas, omegas, MPreg) featuring a younger alpha, Jason and his older omega, Vale. Slow Heat is one of the best books I've listened to this year and I can't recommend it enough.

While Slow Heat is a standalone story (118,000 words / 14h 7m) I was happy to find out that Jason's friend, Xan has his own book, Alpha Heat, only available in ebook at this point but I do hope that Michael Ferraiuolo will be doing an audio version soon.

A copy of this audiobook was provided to me but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author.

***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions dot com***

Intensely Romantic

Why did I wait so long to listen to such a great book. Fantastic story written by Leta Blake and brought to life marvelously by Michael Ferraiuolo. I really loved how each character including the secondary characters expressed their depth of feeling.

And read by Michael Ferriauolo? Five stars!!!

That's it! That's it! I didn't know I NEEDED that! Leta Blake gives readers a plausible reason why Alpha, Beta, and Omega males exist in her universe! The world as it was experiences something called 'The Big Death' that results in the destruction of many of earth's lifeforms--including human women. But a sequence of wolf genes makes it possible for the world to carry on with Alphas being the strongest males, and Omegas being the weakest males with the ability to bear young. And let's not forget the Betas that are not the strongest nor weakest and are infertile. Just imagine the kind of community that can result from such dynamics? From there, Ms. Blake crafts a series where the society, the events, and the interactions between characters are credible, though at times weirdly fascinating and disturbing. In 'Slow Heat' we find two alphas from wonderful families that are at university. These young men have formed a forbidden kind of relationship with each other that is derailed as one of the young men finds his destined mate--an omega who is a 35-year-old university professor. Oh, the absolute drama of it all! I found myself having a truly visceral reaction to the (audio)book. There was pacing, a bit of yelling, and some pillow-pounding--I sincerely LOVED it. And read by one of the best narrators out there, I'm looking forward to diving into the second book of the truly incredible series.

A complex Mpreg romance with great narration

I received a free copy of this audiobook to listen to and review for Wicked Reads.

I am still an mpreg newbie, but after listening to a really well-done shifter mpreg audiobook this past weekend, the opportunity to review Slow Heat arrived in my inbox and I decided to check it out. As this is an audiobook, the first thing I checked out after reading the blurb was the narrator’s voice on the sample to make sure I could listen to it. Shockingly, this is the first Michael Ferraiuolo narrated audiobook I’ve listened to, and it’s shocking because he’s narrated for several authors whose writing I enjoy so I’m not sure how I’ve missed him before now. Because of this, I cannot compare Ferraiuolo’s performance in Slow Heat to his other narrative performances, but I can say that I will be checking out more of the audiobooks he’s narrated. Ferraiuolo creates such unassuming voices for Jason and Vale, that when they get upset, hurt, or otherwise emotional, their strong emotions are a punch to the gut… or maybe I should say heart, and I think that’s why I spent a good portion of the end of the book choking back tears.

While this might be my first experience with Ferraiuolo, it’s not my first Leta Blake book. As expected, I thoroughly enjoyed the author’s writing. Blake has the ability to combine the scientific aspects of the alpha-omega bond and male pregnancy in the world she’s created with the romantic musings of a young alpha and the jaded experience of his older omega to pen a romance novel that kept me cueing up the audiobook every chance I could because I had to know if Jason was going to be allowed to claim his omega, over the self-punishing protests of Vale and the “an heir is a must” mandate of his father. Not only did Jason and Vale’s story have me hooked, but the secondary storyline regarding Jason’s parents had me fascinated. The dangers that Jason’s pater faced were heartbreaking (yep, more tears), but the parallels between Miner and Vale had me wanting to wring Yule’s neck. There is so much going on in Slow Heat because it’s a multifaceted storyline where the many threads must be woven together, and each is vital to the overall success of the story, even if we don’t recognize it until the end.

I think one of the things that struck me most about Slow Heat is that while its mpreg is complete and total science fiction, the author deals with it in such a way that the issues the characters face feel so real. Jason being rebuffed by his omega for being too young. Yule continuing the “we did it, so you too must suffer” mentality when demanding Vale contract for a live birth – even though Vale’s medical records showed he couldn’t and would likely die trying. The feelings that Jason’s bestie, Xan, developed for him and Xan’s subsequent gender confusion (for my lack of a better term) when it came to his sexual needs. The prejudices the omegas face are horrific, yet mirror how women were treated as chattel just two hundred years ago – and are probably still treated as no more than walking wombs in some underdeveloped nations. And Miner, poor Miner. I know that his experience was pivotal for opening the eyes of so many of the characters involved and they were lessons that none will forget anytime soon, but did the poor, sweet man have to suffer so much? As crushing as Vale’s rejection of Jason was, it was Miner’s ordeals that had me sobbing so bad my dog got on the bed to check on me. I had to keep pausing the book because I couldn’t hear Ferraiuolo’s performance.

I definitely recommend Slow Heat for someone looking to check out mpreg as it’s an emotional romance that will not only have you hoping for the couple’s future, but leave you thinking about the possibilities. But be prepared because Leta Blake is going to rip your heart out and rub her hands in malicious glee while Michael Ferraiuolo tap dances all over it. And never fear, it is a romance after all, so the happy ending the characters deserve is there, Blake and Ferraiuolo just make you earn it with your tears. As for me, I really, really hope that book two, Alpha Heat, is slated to be produced on audio because I need for Xan to find his place in the world and find his own happiness.

Slow Heat: Not a Typical Shifter Story

Letta Blake created and populated her world with genetically manipulated wolves into a wolf-human hybrid to explore a number of present day issues centering on religion attitudes, state power, society, procreation ‘M/M Mpreg genre’, abortion banning, birth control, outcasts ‘If two Alpha’s submit of one another in that way’, love and commitment in the young and mature characters.

What makes this not just a simple shifter tale is there are no actual sifting back and forth between human and wolf forms; there are no fur and fang battles; there are no running through the woods by the light of the full moon; no breaking and reforming bones. What remain are the divisions of Alphas, Batas and Omegas types interacting in romance situations in a future society made up of wolf-human hybrids after the great die off of the progenitor pure human. In this society the ideas of fated mate’s (the book calls it Erosgape two Greek words Eros {sexual love} Agape {spiritual love}) verses a practical contracted mate is exhaustively explored. This wolf society, mirroring our own, allows distance to explore social and romantic and sexual issues. The climax of the novel resolves all the plot and character issues with heart wrenching and warming self-sacrifice of ego for compassion for others. The whole thing is very well done.

The narration was wonderful. Well worth a read and or a listen.

This story captures that just as life and society can be unfair, violent, and heartbreaking that those events do not define who the individual is; that they can ultimately find happiness. Bad things can happen to good people-wolves.

Congratulations to Letta Blake for this bold imaginative and totally satisfying rethinking of the genre.

the most perfect mpreg out there

usually ,I have to admit I'm not a fan of mpreg books.
Because, usually they have a pattern everyone knows ...and the story is sweet and very indulgent and very obvious of course....
but this author!!!! this creator by simple words ... did the unthinkable !!!
oh my God!!! how I love this special and amazing author! Leta is one of the best out there !
I knew that even if I don't like the genre , I would love this book... and I was right!
She created such an enormous world, painful reality without much explanation , or excuses... and she did it so wonderfully!
You felt the pain, the desire ,the uncertainty of each and every character.
I can describe for hours and hours what I found while listening to this amazing and incredible book.
this little sweet adorable Alpha boy...Our baby Alpha 😍😍😍 sweet adorable Jason.. that only wants indulge and satisfy....
holy mother of wolf.... I adored his character so much!!! because Leta did everything to keep his youth... but it didn't play it against him...
I really don't want to make spoilers but our Omega 😍😍😍😍😍 is one of the best and special characters I have known....
and I will not speak about him ; because everything I will say will be a big spoiler... and I don't want to do it... but , and it's a special but.... don't judge this book by it's genre!!!! it's much more!!!
It's this big, enormous even World that this amazing and incredible author created .. like a rare piece of art

Intriguing story, even better narration!

Since discovering mpreg stories, I’ve been intrigued and when I saw that Slow Heat was also a May/December age gap romance, my interest was thoroughly piqued. While at times the book felt a bit long, it was the characters who kept my interest from wandering—and not just Jason and Vale, but the entire cast of characters.

I have to say, given his young age I found Jason to be an incredibly compassionate, intelligent young man. He truly cares for those people who are close to him, and though you might think at his age his brain would be focused on the more physical aspects of finding his destined mate he actually shows greater depth to his character by wishing to delve into Vale’s wants, needs, hopes, and likes so Jason can find out more about the man—not just treat him as someone with whom to mate. Jason shows great maturity, something that can be credited to his parents and their upbringing of him.

Vale, already in his thirties, is thrown for a giant loop when Jason imprints on him. It throws the independent life he’s carved for himself into question, and with his past he doesn’t know how Jason will react…which could turn his happy, comfortable life upside down. Vale does push back, thinking Jason would be better off with a surrogate in Vale’s place, but the pull of their bond steadily grows and that does lead Vale to flip-flop a bit on what he will do.

Their unique situation with the large gap in their ages, along with issues from Vale’s past that could complicate their relationship, and Jason’s father’s insistence on certain parts of the contract between them all contribute to a lot of tension and angst. There’s also plenty of sexual tension to add to it as Jason and Vale’s bond evolves, as it defines the meaning of slow-burn romance. There’s also the matter of Jason’s best friend Xan, as the two of them have an…interesting arrangement…and I wound up feeling so bad for Xan here (I’m SO glad to know he has his own story coming!). Vale also has his close group of friends, and they are a tremendous support to him and have been for a long time.

The world in which the story takes place is a dystopian version of our own, and there are extremely strong parallels drawn between the story’s alphas/omegas and our world’s males/females. To me, the Heat of Love series universe seems to line up to our world as it was in the 1940s or 1950s, with omegas being treated much like women were before the rights movements began, and alpha/alpha relationships like gay relationships here (can you say “blatant homophobia”?). I would like to have gotten a more thorough background of how their world became as it was, since before their “Great Death” there were females in that world.

With no shortage of drama, and with emotions running high for most of the book, Slow Heat was an engaging read and a solid 4-star read for me. Fans of mpreg M/M romance will definitely want to check this one out! This story is meant for readers 18+ for adult language and sexual content.

The narration: Michael Ferraiuolo did a fantastic job narrating this story. With unique voices that easily captured the personalities of the characters combined with intoning just the right emotions to match the story, I found that the audio version didn’t feel as long as the ebook version did—because I was that caught up in the story while listening. I’ve already listened to it twice, and am giving the narration 5 stars!