Five Weeks (Seven, #3; Mageriverse #9) in Audiobook Junkies

Mar 09, 2015 Bj rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audible-tantor-downpour-library, 2015, audiobooks, box-set, 4-and-a-half-stars, paranormal-uf-dystopian, 2022

4.5 "Second Chance Friends to Lovers" Stars for the story and 5 "Rock Star Performer" Stars for the narration!

I just can't seem to get enough of the Dannika Dark's and Nicole Poole's fabulous author/narrator team! Having now listened to the first 3 titles, over just a few short weeks, I am officially hooked on the Seven Series!

Five Weeks is a second chance romance between best friends turned lovers with the added twist that it involves two wolf shifters. Those of you who have read the first t 4.5 "Second Chance Friends to Lovers" Stars for the story and 5 "Rock Star Performer" Stars for the narration!

I just can't seem to get enough of the Dannika Dark's and Nicole Poole's fabulous author/narrator team! Having now listened to the first 3 titles, over just a few short weeks, I am officially hooked on the Seven Series!

Five Weeks is a second chance romance between best friends turned lovers with the added twist that it involves two wolf shifters. Those of you who have read the first two books of the Seven Series have already been introduced to the hero, Jericho. If you haven't yet read Seven Years or Six Months, however, don't fret, as the guts of this story, both the romance and the immediate danger that drives the action and suspense, is fully contained within this book.

Jericho, one of the Cole brothers in the Weston Pack, is a somewhat rebellious, former famous rock star, now more of a local musician. This change in status is not necessarily something he wanted, but something he was required to implement in order to potentially deflect any suspicion arising from his slower aging due to his shifter genetics. This along with certain other factors of his past, which are explored in Five Weeks, have led to his addiction issues with drugs and sex. Of all the Cole brothers in the Weston Pack, given this history, it will not be much of a surprise, that Jericho is the one that is the most estranged from his family, preferring to keep himself, his music and the flock of groupies that are constantly seeking his attention. Then the reentry into his life of the one woman that he believed he would never see again, forces Jericho to reevaluate everything he thought he knew from the past and wanted from his future.

Isabelle "Izzy" Monroe has always been an independent woman. Having never belonged to a pack, preferring to enjoy life as a "rogue" wolf, she has always found a way to care for herself and get by. At one time, she had achieved that with the help of her best friend, Jericho, but one night of passion and betrayal changed everything. Today, she has a new boyfriend. One who though she could never feel the same for, claims he wants to provide for her, but has secrets of his own. It's been decades, and she has decided she has to try to give settling down a shot. So imagine her surprise, when shortly after moving into her new life, she finds out that none other than Jericho, and his band "Izzy Monroe", are the main act that play at the bar that she has just gotten her new job at.

Slowly, little by little, revelations from the past start coming to light causing Jericho and Izzy to question just what happened so long ago. Meanwhile, concurrently, factors appear to arise putting in question just where her future is headed. The one thing that is clear, however, is that the passion that consumed Jericho and Izzy once, is still ever present. However, when Izzy finds herself in the cross-hairs of a dangerous situation, will they even get the shot to explore what they thought had died so long ago?

Nicole Poole renders another thoroughly enjoyable performance in Five Weeks. An essential hallmark of a great series is continuity of characters. Not only their personalities in the written form, but also their voices when it comes to an audiobook. Sometimes even the smallest roles in prior books can become the central players in later ones. Ms. Poole's ability to maintain consistent voices for this large cast really made me feel like I was settling back into listening to a favorite long-running TV series or the like; allowing me to completely enjoy the story.

Ms. Dark's ability to render different, character appropriate voices for each member of this plentiful cast is magnificent. Not only do the male characters sound genuinely like men, a factor which is not always achieved by female narrators, but each one also has its own unique intonation allowing for easy differentiation.

Jericho, for example, easily passes as the rock star he is supposed to be. His rebellious nature and nonchalance, key characteristics of his persona early in the story and in the prior books, are also evident from just Ms. Poole's characterization. When the time calls for it, however, Ms. Poole is also able to imbue Jericho's character with a distinct tenderness and somewhat vulnerability as it relates to his special relationship with Izzy, while at the same time bringing out a noticeable fierceness when it's time for his protective alpha wolf to make an appearance.

Izzy, in turn, can be easily distinguished from the prior heroines, and sounds like the free-spirit, independent woman she is supposed to be. I love how, Ms. Poole even varies Izzy's voice to sound more purposefully sexy when she is waitressing, convincingly portraying the sex appeal card that Dannika Dark writes into Izzy's role as being an essential characteristic towards generating higher tips. This huskier sounding Izzy also comes in handy in later scenes when Izzy and Jericho are rediscovering their chemistry.

From the youngest character, Maize, the child sister of Lexi (the Book 1 heroine), to the more mature ones, like Lexi's mother, Ms. Poole knows just how to bring to life the characters that Dannika Dark has created in this vastly creative and diverse world!

All in all, I really enjoyed both the storyline and the narration in Five Weeks. I have to admit that Jericho was not my favorite character going in, but as I am determined to read this entire series--and with Lorenzo's story coming up next (an ultra sexy rival pack leader who we first meet in Seven Years and whose story I have been salivating for since reading Seven)--I decided to listen to Five Weeks with an open mind. Well I have to say that, Dannika Dark once again has impressed me with her great writing skills as she was able to craft so much more depth to Jericho's story than what I was expecting. He is by no means, just your stereotypical rock star, and I loved his protective instincts when it came to Izzy. Izzy likewise was a very interesting, and different type of character, from the prior heroines, proving that Ms. Dark has a limitless supply of creative wit! I can't wait to hear what adventure Ms. Dark takes us on next in Four Days, book 4 of the Seven Series!

Source: Review copy provided in exchange for an honest review. ...more

20 likes · Like · see review

Jan 03, 2017 ☕️Kimberly (Caffeinated Reviewer) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This is a paranormal romance series with shifters. I say this because even when I won these, I seriously thought they were contemporary romances. *facepalm* I was delighted to discover otherwise. FIVE WEEKS delivers, a friend to lovers romance. Izzy is a shifter, who grew up in a mixed wolf and cat family. She was the lone wolf cub. As a result, she hit the road at a young age and befriended Jericho, a wolf, and rocker with a serious heroin addiction. While the two were friends, they never acted This is a paranormal romance series with shifters. I say this because even when I won these, I seriously thought they were contemporary romances. *facepalm* I was delighted to discover otherwise. FIVE WEEKS delivers, a friend to lovers romance. Izzy is a shifter, who grew up in a mixed wolf and cat family. She was the lone wolf cub. As a result, she hit the road at a young age and befriended Jericho, a wolf, and rocker with a serious heroin addiction. While the two were friends, they never acted on the chemistry between them. An incident tore them apart and they haven't spoken since.

Fast forward years later and Izzy ends up in the same town as Jericho. She is working as a waitress in a shifter bar and living with a shifter. I loved Izzy. She is colorful, confident and clever. She has to be as an unmated wolf living on her own. While her current Bo isn't her dream guy, he keeps her safe. I was completely prepared not to like Jericho, but as Dark unpeeled his layers, we find a tender soul underneath his rocker exterior. He's come a long way from his days with the band and is back with his pack.

Ixxy finds herself in a heap of trouble thanks to her current boyfriend, and things get even crazier when tonight's band at the bar turns out to be Jericho. The tale that unfolds had humor, tender moments and a suspenseful thread that took on darker tones.

The initial tension and misunderstanding between them led to humor, healing, and heat. It was fun seeing Jericho and Izzy reconnect. It wasn't easy between danger, trust, and pack acceptance.

Dark exposed some of the uglier sides of the shifter world, and it kept me listening. The suspense angle was dark and placed not only Izzy and Jericho in danger but caused problems for the pack. At this point in the story, I could not stop listening. Dark managed to keep me guessing while keeping the tale believable. It also allowed us to see the depth of feelings each had for the other and helped them connect.

Nicole Poole continues to narrate this series. I loved her voices for Izzy and Jericho. She captured them from tone to mannerisms adding another layer of enjoyment to this well-done tale. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Oct 13, 2013 Viviana Izzo rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

To say that I was patiently awaiting the next installment of the Seven Series after finishing SIX MONTH is an understatement! I was squealing like fangirl when I found out that the hero in FIVE WEEKS would be Jericho! And then I saw the cover! That baby was my screen saver on my phone (still is)! YUMMY! Don't you agree? Then I received the ARC for FIVE WEEKS! I couldn't put it down!! The pace was perfect! The hero was not only delicious, but has several layers to him and you will fall, hard for ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Oct 07, 2014 Linda (un)Conventional Bookworms rated it it was amazing

Shelves: i-own, kindle

Bad-ass shifters - and an amazing female MC made Five Weeks an amazing read!

This and all my other reviews are originally posted on my blog (un)Conventional Bookviews ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

May 12, 2016 Mya rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, contemporary, paranormal

Five Weeks by Dannika Dark (Audio Edition)
Narrated by Nicole Poole
Seven Series #3

3 stars

Right off the start from hearing it was Jericho’s book, I was not sure I was going to enjoy it. Jericho wasn't one of my favourite characters from the previous books. He is a man who lives the “Rock’n’Roll” lifestyle, drugs, women etc. In the last book he let someone eat a cupcake laced with drugs without telling them. I am not partial to this kind of behaviour… which in turn made it hard for me to relate Five Weeks by Dannika Dark (Audio Edition)
Narrated by Nicole Poole
Seven Series #3

3 stars

Right off the start from hearing it was Jericho’s book, I was not sure I was going to enjoy it. Jericho wasn't one of my favourite characters from the previous books. He is a man who lives the “Rock’n’Roll” lifestyle, drugs, women etc. In the last book he let someone eat a cupcake laced with drugs without telling them. I am not partial to this kind of behaviour… which in turn made it hard for me to relate to or even like him. That said there were moments where he shines and I can see his love for Izzy, which redeems him some.

Izzy also wasn’t an awesome character for me. Yes she was spunky and feisty.. But then wouldn’t stand up for herself against Hawk and kept going back to an abusive relationship. Even once she’s acknowledged that this is the case.

At chapter 15 I thought the story was about to end and I would have been happy with that. Not because I wanted it to end… more because, I felt the characters had overcome a few obstacles and I thought they were about to find their Happy Ever After. This was not the case. I was only halfway!!! There was a lot of scenes with drunk/stoned people - yes the location of majority of this book takes place in a bar - but I got the feeling these were set ups to use some cheesy lines. There was some repetitive information - that if you had read the previous books you really don’t need to keep hearing.. But I guess if you read this as a stand alone maybe might be needed. Also, there was a lot of Jericho calling Izzy “Baby” UGH!! I hate that.. Baby, come here. It’s ok Baby, I’m sorry Baby.. bleh!

The characters work through some big abusive issues, drugs and physical. There was a chunk of the story where they are constantly reassuring each other about how they are strong and doing well, etc. I got pulled back into the story when it starts to pick up again with some action and then there was a steamy scene that was done really well. This was not my favourite of the series, and honestly if these two characters had just had a short novella I would have probably rated it higher.

I am moving on to book 4. I enjoy Ivy’s character and while Lorenzo is a bit of a Egomaniac.. I think she can put him in his place - so to speak. I am looking forward to their story as well as the others from this series.

Original Review Posted at: http://paragraphsandpetticoats.blogsp...
...more

Like · see review

Aug 17, 2014 Nadene (Totally Addicted to Reading) rated it really liked it

Shelves: werewolf, shapeshifters, paranormal-romance

When I chose to read and review this title my choice was not based on my knowledge of the author's work as I had no prior information in regards to her. My choice was based on the blurb and my love of paranormal romance. Based on the information contained in the blurb I figured that Five Weeks would be an interesting read. Well boy was I wrong, it was more than interesting. Five Weeks is one scintillating read.

Five Weeks is the third book in the Seven series, however it can be read as a stand-al When I chose to read and review this title my choice was not based on my knowledge of the author's work as I had no prior information in regards to her. My choice was based on the blurb and my love of paranormal romance. Based on the information contained in the blurb I figured that Five Weeks would be an interesting read. Well boy was I wrong, it was more than interesting. Five Weeks is one scintillating read.

Five Weeks is the third book in the Seven series, however it can be read as a stand-alone. It's a story of love, betrayal, acceptance and re-discovery of self.

The main characters were easy to relate to. The way in which they were portrayed made it easy for me to connect with them. Isabelle (Izzy) and Jericho are great together. They have been friends for a very long time. They both cared about each other but they were both afraid to cross the lines of friendship. Izzy a wolf shifter feared rejection as she was rejected by her own family for being different. She is a loner and never saw herself as part of a pack. As such she is always on the move, however that would change when she started working in a shifter bar and her past in he form of Jericho caught up with her.

Jericho a rock star and a wolf shifter on the other hand had a fear of commitment. He had spent the past decade of his life regretting his loss of Izzy. The loss was to his rock-star lifestyle which ultimately proved to be destructive. Jericho is very protective of Izzy and would willingly give his his life to save her.

The story addressed real life issues such as drug addiction and drug and human trafficking which helped to make the story realistic. It flowed and the pace was fine, however there were parts when it moved a bit slow for my liking. The story was good enough to hold my attention to the very end.

If love paranormal romance and like reading about hot shifters then you need to get a copy of Five Weeks and if you are new to the series like myself then it would not hurt to get the prior books in the series.

NB I received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review ...more

Like · see review