When the Wild Whales Wail (Deserted Lilies) by Kris Vanc

When the Wild Whales Wail (Deserted Lilies) Reviews

• 
  Kris Vanc

  Don't trust me, I'm rating myself. We can discuss if that's right for an author to do or not, but I'm doing it anyway. After the struggle I had with this book I deserve it. 😜
• 
  Kat

  While I don’t think this is a BAD book, I don’t think it’s for me. I enjoy the primal play aspect, but unfortunately the pacing is just not doing it for me. I love Dom’s trauma story and finding himself, but even then the pacing got to me. I just couldn’t quite get into it.
  
  DNF at 50%
• 
  Ryan

  When the Wild Whales Wail tells the story of Dom, a biker in witness protection and Warren, his handler who also happens to be a Dom.
  
  After turning on his brother and giving testimony that sends him to jail, as well as singlehandedly ending the criminal MC he was born into, Dom is sent to Alaska for a new life.
  
  WtWWW has everything that would make a 5 star book for me: bdsm, soft dom, primal play, found family, Alaska, a husky, forced proximity - I mean cmon. This is my dream book.
  
  It just sorta fell flat for me. There was so much potential and I feel like the bones of this story were good. It just needed refinement more than anything. There were some plot points that were unexpected, such as the main antagonists not being Dom’s former MC but instead - whale poachers. I like unexpected, but in this it just felt slightly lacking? It almost seemed as if the MC was forgotten instead of there being a reasonable explanation that they wouldn’t be main threat to our mc’s. The whale poacher thing totally makes sense with the location the book is set in, but again, it could’ve been more fleshed out.
  
  This was also the most insta-love of insta-love and while I usually hate that, I actually really enjoyed it here. With everything else going on, I liked that there wasn’t a whole ton of angst between the mc’s and even the one issue they have is resolved quickly.
  
  Lastly, I know arc’s aren’t final copies so this is more a heads up for the author - there were a lot of redundancies in the writing. Saying the same thing twice in one sentence or paragraph, just in different ways. This is purely an editing issue and has no bearing on the writers talent or quality of the story.
  
  Thanks to GRR for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
• 
  Saphira Hoevenaars

  This book, this journey of Dom, getting to be who he is meant to be. Beautifull to read her best one yet!
• 
  Coco I

  I really, really, really wanted to love this book. When I read the blurb, it ticked all the boxes for me - bikers (well ex bikers), BDSM, forced proximity, found family, suspense, MM love story. But it just didn't work for me.
  
  The first third of the book set up the main protagonists really well. Dom, the ex biker who turned on his club, ends up is nowhere Alaska in witness protection. Warren, his handler that when not being a Marshall is a dom in the BDSM world.
  
  The author did a great job in painting a very vivid picture of Alaska. Some of it beautiful, with some of it very confronting, filled with contradictions and harsh realities e.g. beautiful landscape and wild life, but high rape figures and the need to hunt for fresh food.
  
  The book sort of lost its way at the point when the MCs first got together.
  
  We were 'told' a lot about the relationship between Dom and Warren, rather than experiencing it. The smexy times became fade to black as the book went on. The whole I'm a dom seemed important but you didn't really get a good understanding of the d/s dynamic between the two MCs.
  
  There were so many threads in the story line that started off really well and then the author seemed to lose focus and start referencing a whole lot of other things e.g. Fifty Shades of Grey. Not sure whether it needed more editing/rewriting as the cadence was off. I kept on thinking, if only the author stayed on point and continued with the original thread the book would be awesome.
  
  The secondary characters were interesting and added plenty to the story but again the author spent too much time running down rabbit holes and I sort of lost interest.
  
  I thought that the suspenseful part would be the biker club coming back for Dom but it focussed on whale poachers and quite frankly that story line was very weird. There was an incident with one of the key secondary characters (Eddie) and their partner that left me thinking WTF!
  
  I understood that Dom's character was part of another story relating to a band. However the band's inclusion towards the end of the book was confusing. I was left wondering how that worked with the whole witness protection program of not contacting anyone from your past.
  
  The epilogue was very short and the situation of the found family for Warren and Dom was hard to believe. That two loving parents of three would give up their fourth child just like that ????
  
  The one thing that really bugged me throughout the book was the fact that one of the MCs was called Dom and the other was a dom in the BDSM world. Very bloody confusing.
  
  The book was just ok.
  
  Thank you to Gay Romance Reviews for a copy of this book. This is my honest review.
• 
  Kate

  When the Wild Whales Wail is a fascinating book about an Motorcycle Club (MC) enforcer who is relocated to Unalaska, Alaska through the Federal Witness Protection Program, after he supplies enough evidence to put his brother and the rest of the MC in prison for a long time. Forced by his father and his brother to accept the role of killer, Dominique arrives in Alaska with a whole lot of feelings about his own culpability and the certainty that Alaska is nothing like Nevada.
  
  I really enjoyed Wild Whales, but it had its flaws. Dominique is guided into Unalaska life by the US Marshal, Warren - who is charged with keeping him safe and making sure he complies with the WITSEC program. He is able to get Dominique an apprenticeship doing ship repair, a position that taps into his mechanical skills. They also become close and Dominique learns that Warren used to be a professional Dom, and would really like to engage with Dominique that way. At this point I'm wondering why the author chose to have Dom/Dom in the story. It was a bit confusing, but not really a big deal.
  
  What was more of a big deal to me is that even though the narrative is split between Dominique and Warren, I didn't feel like we really knew Warren at all. He's sort of like "I am who I am." Even though we meet his family and learn about his ex-partner, there isn't much character exploration, whereas with Dominique we have his past, his present, his reactions to the primal play and other situations Warren puts him in. Dominique is grappling with his second lease on life, and Warren doesn't seem to grappling with much, other than keeping Dominique safe.
  
  A big part of the novel is the threat posed by a group of whale poachers, who are willing to defend their lucrative activity by means of arson, attempted homicide and kidnapping. The small town bands together to protect themselves. It's not exactly clear why law enforcement is not useful in this situation, except at the last moment. I inferred that it was partially a matter of resources, but I think this could have been clearer. The author does such a good job of depicting the realities of living in this remote place, with limited supplies and where people rely on hunting to supplement the grocery shipments. There is a real feel, not just of the cold and the weather, but of day to day life. So it was a little weird that it was so fuzzy on poaching enforcement.
  
  One of my favorite parts of this book were the secondary characters: well developed, interesting people in their own right. Instead of Warren and Dominique's relationship turning into a closed circuit of sex scenes, it's like they have full-blown lives.
• 
  Mery Todde

  When the Wild Whales Wail van Kris Vanc. 🥰
  
  When the Wild Whales Wail van Kris Vanc is een meeslepende roman die de lezer meeneemt op een emotionele en spannende reis van persoonlijke ontdekking en verboden verlangens. Dominic LaRue, gedwongen zijn oude leven achter zich te laten en onder te duiken in het WITSEC-programma, moet zich aanpassen aan het ruige leven in het afgelegen Unalaska, Alaska. Deze nieuwe omgeving is niet alleen een schuilplaats voor zijn verleden, maar ook een plaats van herontdekking en onverwachte ontmoetingen.
  
  Vanc's beschrijvingen van het ijzige vissersdorp zijn zo levendig dat je de kou bijna kunt voelen. Dominic, nu onder een nieuwe identiteit, wordt geconfronteerd met de ruwe natuur en de isolatie die Unalaska met zich meebrengt. Zijn begeleider, Warren Philips, lijkt op het eerste gezicht een man die alles onder controle heeft, maar naarmate Dominic hem beter leert kennen, ontdekt hij een complex persoon met een verleden dat hij probeert te vergeten.
  
  De relatie tussen Dominic en Warren is intens en ingewikkeld. Warren's trouwe husky, Jack, speelt een subtiele maar belangrijke rol in het verbinden van deze twee mannen. Hun interacties zijn geladen met onderhuidse spanning en wederzijdse aantrekkingskracht, wat leidt tot een onvermijdelijke verstrengeling van hun levens. De ontwikkeling van hun relatie, van een professionele samenwerking naar een diepere emotionele en fysieke verbinding, is prachtig en gedetailleerd uitgewerkt door Vanc.
  
  Een van de meest opvallende aspecten van de roman is Dominic's onverwachte kennismaking met een BDSM-dynamiek. Wat begint als een literaire misstap, groeit uit tot een verkenning van zijn eigen verlangens en grenzen. Vanc behandelt dit onderwerp met gevoeligheid en inzicht, waarbij de innerlijke strijd en de uiteindelijke acceptatie van Dominic's nieuwe zelf duidelijk naar voren komen.
  
  When the Wild Whales Wail biedt een fascinerende kijk op de complexiteit van identiteit, verlangen en de menselijke connectie. Vanc slaagt erin om de lezer te boeien met een verhaal dat zowel hartverwarmend als hartverscheurend is. De roman combineert het harde leven in een afgelegen dorp met de delicate nuances van een opbloeiende relatie, waardoor het een onvergetelijke leeservaring wordt.
  
  Deze roman is een absolute aanrader voor lezers die houden van diepgaande karakterstudies, onverwachte liefdesverhalen en een vleugje avontuur. Kris Vanc heeft met When the Wild Whales Wail een meesterwerk afgeleverd dat nog lang in de gedachten van de lezer zal blijven hangen.
• 
  Siobhan

  Where the Wild Whales Wail was a story that instantly grabbed my attention. It was another of those stories that ticked multiple boxes, and I went into the story with high expectations. Unfortunately, as the book progressed, my feelings toward it changed.
  
  At first, the book had me hooked. There were a few questions I had based upon the fact that it links to a series from the author, but I was able to put the pieces together. Plus, details continued to be added that helped clear things up. As a whole, I was hooked and happy to power through the pages. Unfortunately, the relationship between the characters was far too much of an instalove situation for me. I felt like I blinked, and they were suddenly deeply in love – without any of the development I had hoped for. Despite this, the story continued to keep me interested. I was eager to see if things would develop in a way that would hit hard. While there were interesting elements, they did not hold my interest because they were not explored as deeply as I had hoped. Lots of elements were introduced that could have created heavy emotions, yet they were over with far too easily. I wanted much more depth to this story, and I was repeatedly disappointed when the depth did not appear. There were many opportunities for this depth to be explored, and it would have been an amazing read if things had been explored more deeply. Add in some inconsistencies, and my feelings had changed by the time I finished the story. It went from one that had me hooked to one where I had to force myself to finish.
  
  All in all, I can see this story working for many people. Sadly, for me, there was not enough depth to ensure I loved it. Although I struggled to finish toward the end, it did hold my attention at first, which is why I opted to round up to a three-star rating.
• 
  Garrett, Alastair & Grey

  First off I loved the setting. Go Alaska. This is a romance between a WITSEC protectee and his Marshal, set in the dramatic wilderness of nowhere Alaska. I was born in Alaska and love it up there, and I was really happy to see justice done to just how isolated and harsh life is in the smaller parts. The setting was dramatic and lent an entire vibe to the story on its own.
  
  Then we have the characters. Dom's inherent gentleness shows through on occasion and it makes you hurt for him since his life did its best to scrub it all out. But it's clear he's rediscovering it with Warren, which was nice to see. Warren was a little more ambiguous for me. Which is fine, he wasn't lacking as a character, but compared to the huge backstory we get on Dom I feel he was a little less fully formed.
  
  Admittedly, I know next to nothing about the WITSEC program, so I have no idea how accurate this book is in terms of that. The most important part though, the romance, was very good and well done. I thought the relationship was cute and grew as the characters grew. There is some miscommunication, god help me. So be prepared for that. It resolves quickly though and both admit they were being idiots so, progress.
  
  The climax of the drama felt a little odd. I can't quite point out why but I didn't really understand why the events that took place even took place, so maybe it was just a lack of explaining. However this didn't take away from my overall enjoyment of the romance or the book - it was just a little 'huh?' Moment.
  
  Overall I liked this book and the romance quite a lot, especially for the author's first mm book, which I believe it is though not 100% positive.
  
  *I received an ARC of this book from GRR, and this is my honest opinion* ♥️
• 
  Ines

  "When the Wild Whales Wail" is the first MM book by this author, and also the first standalone (at least as far as I'm aware). As a result, this book is both different from her previous work, and in the same time quite similar. With a complete focus on two main characters, the character building delves deep from the start. There's a lot of focus on relationship building, and while I'm used to that from this author, it does touch differently with only two characters falling for each other. And with some lovely side characters, the author managed to give me what I like so much in all of her work: the feeling of a found family, of characters finally feeling like coming home...
  
  While I was looking forward to Dominic's story the moment he popped up in the "Deserted Lilies" trilogy, I couldn't have imagined I would love the man this much. He's a badass biker, used to do the MC's dirty work, but at the same time he's a caring soul with some unexpected characteristics in his personality. Once he meets Warren, sparks start flying, heating up the temperature in very cold Unalaska. It's probably weird to say this, but even though Dominic's a badass biker and Warren has his own dominating character, the two of them are so darn cute together.
  
  This was a lovely contemporary MM standalone, one you can read on its own, but will definitely love if you've already read the Deserted Lilies trilogy. Also, a tiny sidenote: I loved the little author's note at the end, it's absolutely worth it not to skip.
• 
  Marie

  I have a lot of thoughts about this book. I wanted to love it. It had a lot going for it, but I struggled through the second half a lot.
  
  I was pulled in by the premise of WITSEC in Alaska, which I found really cool and wasn't something I'd seen before. The Fish out of Water trope that comes with relocating a gang member from Nevada in a tiny town surrounded by ice and water is likewise very fun and the idea of Dom and Warren entering a BDSM dynamic together was a big draw.
  
  I really liked the cast of characters surrounding them (Eddie <3), and Jack is indeed the best boy to ever dog. I liked the nature elements and Dom adjusting to the cold, and I tore through the first 150/180 pages.
  
  My main issue can be summed up by saying that this book is really too long. With good cuts, it could be great. They would reinforce the focus on the romance and the relationship, recenter the story around this, and develop it more. By the second half, the scenes between Dom and Warren didn't convince me, and I couldn't get into the BDSM aspect which had drawn me in in the first place.
  
  Echoing another reviewer, I also did not fall for Warren the way I wish I had because some occasions to have him grow were missed and forgotten (like building on that time he yelled at Dom for shooting while hunting and it hurt Dom? It could've been great to see how they resolved it in more depth).
  
  So, to conclude, I would love to read a revised version of this if it ever comes to be, but it didn't work for me as is.
  
  *I received an ARC of this novel, and this is my honest opinion.*
• 
  Juniper

  There are a lot of compelling elements here: the framework of a deeply interesting narrative, inhabited by deeply interesting characters, and a connection between a former biker, now in witness protection, and his handler, who’s also a dom (but not the one *named* Dom, which was…more confusing than it maybe needed to be). There’s suspense and emotion and some truly lovely descriptions. Extra points too for the title, as that’s…a lot of alliteration, and I have to respect it. There are also some rough edges: namely a certain redundancy in providing information (readers get told, rather than shown, the same feeling/thought/interaction more than once). It wasn’t enough to derail my enjoyment of the story as a whole, however. Overall, an interesting (in a good way) read. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
  
  *I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
• 
  Suzanne Irving

  Whales aren’t the only thing wailing
  
  This is the first book I’ve read by Kris Vanc and I am definitely going to be looking into her back catalog because this was a great read. I was so taken by the idea of a town called Unalaska that I figured it was a made up place but it’s not! The rest of the story does seem to come from someone with a vivid imagination but who also does their research. Vanc does a great job of combining true things about the town and what living there is like, especially the fishing lifestyle with the characters and situations she has thought up. Poor Dominic who has to go from one extreme of weather to another even if he does have Warren to “handle” him. I was able to enjoy this story as a one off but now I’m intrigued by what happened before. Terrible situation having more good books to read. Ha ha.
• 
  Traci S

  4.5⭐️
  Absolutely loved this! I’m new to this author so I wasn’t familiar with Dominic or his former MC, but that didn’t prevent me from enjoying this book. The couple, Warren and Dom are the stars of this for me, I especially appreciated how much time the author spends developing the attraction between them. The world building is also done really well. The Unalaska setting and the side characters brought so much interest to the story. One of my favorite parts was how they embraced Dom so readily and seeing Dom let them in was almost as good as the lovely relationship he finds with Warren. Great couple, wonderful steam, well executed premise, and a beautiful ending for Dom and Warren.
  
  I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.
  
• 
  Babara-Anne

  AN ENGAGING WELL PACED READ!
  
  The blurb intrigued me by this new to me author so I decided to take a chance on her although I did not read her RH series!
  
  I was pleasantly surprised how engaging this book was with wonderful characters in a WITSEC world as a result of a biker gang which is not my forte!
  
  I loved Dominick’s character as a fierce warrior who could easily submit to Warren in their dynamic…
  
  Warren was a sweet, caring Dom with a sadistic, animalistic streak that enticed and thrilled Dominick especially when they did primal play in the snow…
  
  The storyline was good with suspense and intrigue as well as steamy BDSM scenes!
  
  Well done on your first MM story and I hope to see more!
  
  I voluntarily received an ARC from GRR and this is my honest opinion on the book.
• 
  Anna

  Althou this is my firs MM book i was curious because i've met Dominic in the Desert Lilies series.
  
  So following Dominic to a very cold Alaska. I grabbed my blanky and stoot by him (word for word) on this adventure of starting in a new place without knowing anyone in Unalaska.
  
  From a patch changing tattoo to a lost of a good friend. To building a loving family with 2 daddy's. It's a rollercoaster of emotions but definitly worth it at the end! And thats what i love about this book.
  
  If you're into MM books? This is a absolute great one!
  If you're into BDSM and you don't mind MM action? Then you'll want this one too in your collection.
  If you're not into one of the above?...this isn't reading material for you. Sorry.
• 
  Amanda Gard

  Seriously, I just want to give Dom a hug.
  
  I love this book. It is both exactly the ending Dominic deserves, yet so wonderfully random in ways that kept me guessing. I appreciated that no one in Unalaska was quite as they seemed. There were so many layers it was a joy to discover them all. The storyline was understated, yet not overdone. While Deserted Lilies is one of my favorite series, I did love how this one stood strong on its own, with a little Easter egg here and there to make me smile to myself. I will definitely be reading Kyle and Angel's story, along with anything else Kris wants to write for us.
• 
  Deborah Kelly

  I thoroughly enjoyed the Deserted Lilies Trilogy which I have read even though m/f so was over the moon to see that this as m/m which is my preferred genre to read. I was disappointed that this book was not as good as I felt it needed more depth to the story, However the author makes up for this with the exceptional relatable characters especially Dom and the storyline is emotional and steamy. I loved how descriptive the setting was so we really felt we were in Alaska. Overall definitely worth a read and looking forward to more.
  I received a copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews, and this is my honest review.
• 
  Elektra | My Trending Books

  Stawp it I am not crying you are crying. First of all, I had a different expectation of this book and thought it would be a lot angstier, and grungier and I don't know what else. I would say that I was pleasantly surprised by the turn of this book.
  I would say low to no angst. It was spicish with a sprinkle of kink. Which was, hello hawt. It was an interesting setting in Unalaska. I had never read a book set somewhere there and the life. It was refreshing. It had the flare of dramatics in this book and adventure it had me sucked in and rooting for all the characters. All in all, I thought it was a great start for the author's first mm book. this book won me over.
  
  
  
• 
  Jvles

  I give ten points for location. Nothing beats the amazing wilderness of Alaska. The two MCs were likeable and their relationship was believable but I felt that the pacing was a little off. First it is a very slow-paced romance and later important developments are kind of skimmed over and rushed through. This is very clearly connected to a RH series the author published before. For full enjoyment it might be a good idea to read that beforehand. The suspense part was engaging and the (found) family around these guys was awesome. Definitely an enjoyable read.
• 
  J.L.

  3.5 stars
  
  Vanc does an amazing job bringing these characters to life in a visceral setting that feels as much like a character as the fleshed-out main and secondary characters. The romance aspect felt a bit disjointed at times, and I wish Vanc had tightened up a bit of the plot with genuine research (instead of the "just go with it" note at the beginning of the book). I enjoyed it as a general escapist read, but with a bit more work on that end, and a bit more polish on the writing itself, this book would have been a true gem.
• 
  TAM

  This was Dominic’s spin-off story. We first met him in Changing Chords. He is finding his new beginning.
  
  The book is well written. The characters are easy to like and you really see them grow. Mostly this book is based on a MM relationship and watching it grow. There is a little side plot and excellent supporting characters. There is some BDSM which I’m not a huge fan of but it is kept pretty light. Overall another great story from Kris!
• 
  Trina Jones

  Great book. It was a page turner and mind blowing of suspense. I was on the edge of my seat and I couldn't even imagine put it down. I was hooked. It was so many twists and turns with in this story. It was dark and these characters keep me guessing of what was going to happen next and it with a bit of violence and danger. I highly recommend this book. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review. Trina Jones
• 
  Mark

  Ok, I tried to enjoy this book, especially as I used to work in Unalaska, AK and it was too good of an opportunity to pass up reading about that place again. I don't exactly know how to describe the feeling I was left with, I mean it wasn't bad, just off somehow. I would love to try another book by this author as they have lots of potential. Sorry, I really, really wanted to love this.