Wolf's Golden Mate

Shifter Nation: Destined over Forty

By: Meg Ripley

Narrated by: D.C. Cole

Living on a beach teeming with shifters wasn’t how I pictured retirement.

Neither was becoming one’s mate.

My daughter bought a beach house on Cape Cod,
And when she asked me to move in with her,
I never expected her to fall for the bear shifter next door.
Now that I’ve got the cottage all to myself,
My daughter thinks it’s time to play matchmaker,
Practically shoving me at the other single senior nearby.
Rick may be a 70-year-old wolf shifter,
But this hunky firefighter ignites a spark I haven’t felt in decades.
That’s not the only fire on this beach, though.
One night, I spot a young woman surrounded by flames,
Right on the shore behind my new dog bakery.
Rick and his team rush to the rescue,
But everything goes sideways once Lorelei shows up.
Rick will do whatever it takes to keep me safe,
But even he couldn’t be prepared for this.
At 66, I thought all of life’s adventures were behind me.
Turns out my golden years are just warming up.

Steamy shifter love scene and a HEA inside! No cheating or cliffhanger in this standalone romance. Listeners 18+.

©2024 Meg Ripley (P)2024 Meg Ripley

Wolf's Golden Mate

Wolf's Golden Mate is book 2 in the Destined Over Forty series by Meg Ripley. I really enjoy Meg Ripley's writing especially the series with older characters it brings a new aspect to the paranormal romance genre and now is starting to gear it towards us older readers. It's a heartwarming story and so satisfying to read something more for me. I highly recommend Meg Ripley and ALL her stories, definitely pick this one up!! D.C. Cole does an excellent job in bringing these characters to life, I really enjoy listening to his voice.

Much Later-in-Life Romance

I've listened to many books by this talented author of paranormal romance featuring older couples. I have a soft spot for books featuring later-in-life romance because I believe far too many books focus on romance for the young. Romance can happen at any age! In this book, the hero and heroine are even older than normal for this author's series. I absolutely adored their interaction at the beginning of the story. They had an almost instant, yet genuine, chemistry that just warmed my heart. The heroine, I believe, is in her 60s, and the hero is in his 70s! Unfortunately, then the author kept them apart or at somewhat silly odds for too long. For me, the most satisfying romances show continuous interaction between the featured couple, even if they struggle. Interestingly, and I don't know if this was an unintentional bias by the author, but she had them sharing intimacy much later in the book—in fact, nearly at the end—than she typically has in her stories. (In fact, in most of her books, I think she has the characters get intimate too quickly. She went to the other extreme in this book!). For a book that started so well, it ultimately felt disappointing, especially as it is from an author I know can write amazing love stories.

Post-Retirement Love

I like all of Meg Ridley’s Over Forty series books including this one. What I liked about Wolf’s Golden Mate is that both main characters are WELL over 40, and they have a past that includes past loves. Rick had a fated mate once who was a perfect match for him, but he lost her. This is acknowledged in the book. In this universe, it’s also possible to find another mate that’s perfect for him, and that’s what happened when he met Carol. They are vibrant people with active interests that didn’t stop when they reached retirement age. Neither did the zexytime! I don’t often come across romances about post-retirement heroes and heroines, and this one was well done.
Here’s the breakdown.
Cat’s Stats
MMC/FMC- Rick and Carol
Genre- Paranormal Romance (Shifters, wolf)
Length- about 170 pages, including previews
Heat- 🌋🌋🌋
Series? Y. There were previous books about their adult children.
Safety? Y
Triggers- explicit erotic content, violence (including on-page beheading)
Tropes- Love After Loss, Midlife Love, Grandpa’s Still Got It, Fated Mates.
Narration Review- I think this narrator is very good. The voices were performed well and the narrator was clear and easy to understand.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Very Enjoyable Listen

This audiobook by Meg Ripley was great! D. C. Cole does an awesome job with his vocal chararacterizations and reading of this shifter story. He is a very talented voice actor. Ms. Ripley, as usual, has done a wonderful job with her storyline and development of Rick and Carol's romantic journey later in life. Listening to this audiobook made for a very enjoyable Sunday afternoon and evening.

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Arc review

I received a free copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving a review. When carol moved with her family she never thought she find a new lease on her life at her age . this was a very cute story. I loved the characters and also a looking into their lives ,relationship and their community.