ARC Review: Healer's Need by Rhenna Morgan

Series:	Ancient Ink #2
Pub. Date:	Oct 22, 2018
Publisher:	Carina Press
Length:	400 pgs
Source:	NetGalley

Healer's Need is the second installment of Rhenna Morgan's dynamic new paranormal series, Ancient Ink. I have been totally into this series since picking up Guardian's Bond. I really like the unique aspect of the tattoos, almost with a Celtic flair, when combined with the magic and shapeshifting of our characters.

Our heroine in this installment is the shy and insecure Elise Ralston, whom everyone expects to be the next prima healer of the clan. But Elise has some things to overcome, and her hangups over her appearance and the attention is has garnered in the past. I'm not usually one for an insecure heroine, but I really liked Elise. I could identify with some of the issues she faced, and we all have similar insecurities about different aspects of our bodies. I enjoyed watching her come to the realization that she shouldn't own the issues, as they all belonged to other people.

Our hero is Tate Allen (great name), tattooist and partner to Priest (from Guardian's Bond). Tate is a mountain coyote shifter, who battles his instincts to hunt down, ravage and protect his mate. I have to say that Tate did a great job of keeping things in check and not scaring Elise out of her brain when it came to the mating issue. I loved his patience and protective instinct, he was just an all-around great alpha male. 

As this is a fated mates trope, you can expect that things are going to move at a fast clip. While this relationship didn't feel like instalove, there was definitely an instant bond and chemistry that was off the freaking charts. Rhenna does a great job with imagery and painting a picture of the sparks between these too, I'm fairly sure that my kindle may have been smoking. But more than the sexytimes, I loved the dynamic between Tate and Elise. He was so supportive of her and helped her realize her potential, and Elise really came into her own as the story progressed.

Priest and Kateri played an active role in this story, as our characters are still battling an old foe that we met in the first installment. While Priest's brother didn't appear in this story quite as much as the first, his evil deeds were there in the background while the clan searched for missing members and planned to confront him. So I liked the action when we got to it, but I also liked the suspense aspect as well.

I have an inkling that the story we get next is going to be our prima seer and prima warrior... and I am super stoked about that. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from the publisher, Carina Press.

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