Book 71, 2024

[chez_jae]

How to Run with a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



I finished my "spare" book last night. It was How to Run with a Naked Werewolf by Molly Harper. This is the third book in her "Naked Werewolf" series of paranormal romance. Main characters were Tina (nka Anna) and Caleb.

On the run from an abusive, stalking husband, Anna has moved to Alaska to work as a doctor at a clinic that cares for werewolves. When she is notified that Glenn is closing in on her again, she flees Grundy and ends up at a small hotel far away. There, she witnesses a shooting and sees her car get totaled. Anna grabs the victim and his truck and gets out of Dodge. When her "patient" displays remarkable healing abilities, Anna guesses he's a werewolf. She also learns that Caleb is a bounty hunter who occasionally takes some less savory (ie illegal) cases. Anna isn't sure she can trust him, but right now he's the only option she has until she can get a new identity. Spending time together, however, brings the two of them closer together. That is, until Anna has reason to question whether Caleb is keeping her close for altruistic reasons or because he's been hired to find her.

This was mostly humorous, light-hearted fun, although Anna's stress levels and fear kept it from being too fluffy. I appreciated that Caleb gave her space when she needed it. I also enjoyed it when Anna helped Caleb in her own fashion. The inevitable confrontation with Glenn was distressing to read.

Favorite lines:
♦ "Who are you?" // "Anne McCaffrey," I blurted out, hoping the he didn't spend a lot of time reading carefully crafted science-fiction.
♦ "I think you'll find that you are not, in fact, the boss of me. Now, let go of my arm, or I reintroduce you to Mr Slappy."
♦ Werewolves hit a lot of different points on the spectrum between "awesome guy who is occasionally an apex predator" and "furry Lord Voldemort".
♦ This was the brilliant distraction you came up with? I seethed at my cerebral cortex. How did you get me through medical school?
♦ "What are you running from?" // "Columbia House Music Club," I said, recovering my snarkiness quickly. "Oh, sure, they say they'll sell you six CDs for a penny, but they'll hunt you down like the hounds of hell if you miss the payments." // "Stop kidding around." // "I'm not. A Wilson Phillips CD ruined my life."
♦ "I stopped speaking to a friend for a month when she suggested Love, Actually was a better Christmas movie than Die Hard."
♦ "Quests for evil rings rarely turn out well. Too many potential Gollum issues."
♦ "I don't know a lot of doctors who engage in fistfights at stripper bars."
♦ While female weres could throw down with the best of them, they tended to be a bit more crafty and manipulative. They were more likely to use sex appeal or casseroles to get what they wanted.

"Breath" line:
I was able to release a breath I didn't even know I'd been holding.

Amusing fun for the most part--four stars.