| Title | : | Chosen (River Den Omegas, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 197 |
| Publication | : | First published November 30, 2017 |
But Hunter can’t take on the problems of his world, not when his own troubles are much closer to home. When his uncle demands he choose a mate or be kicked out of the pack, Hunter knows there must be some way around it. He’s too young to settle down, especially not with someone he barely knows. And then he catches sight of an omega in a cage and comes up with a plan to help them both.
Cade just wants to go home. He hadn’t planned on being abducted by wolves, locked in a cage, and forced into a mating. So much for shifter hospitality. When he catches the attention of Zane, a dangerous, unstable alpha, he knows he needs a champion. Enter Hunter, a dormant alpha shifter with a temper, who wants Cade for reasons the omega doesn’t understand.
Cade is determined to make a break for it and escape to the safety of his den. But when Hunter risks everything for him, even his life, Cade can’t just turn his back on him. Not with his growing feelings for the alpha. Saving Hunter turns both their lives upside down, revealing a secret Cade has done his best to keep hidden; within the dens, the shifter world is very much alive.
Chosen is a novel-length read. Beware angst, happy endings, mpreg, littermates, bear puns, and scenes not suitable for readers under the age of eighteen.
Chosen (River Den Omegas, #1) Reviews
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Re-read July 2020
Really nice mpreg shifter series.
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3.5 stars
I really liked this. A bit different from the usual shifter books, with shifters who can’t actually shift and then some who can (but into different forms).
Hunter is a 19 year old shifter who lives in a pack of dormant shifters. He has always felt these sudden bursts of anger and his pack is worried about him. His alpha thinks it is a good idea for him to get a mate. And that’s how Hunter finds himself at The Gathering, a place where alphas can find their mates.
When he sees an omega in a cage, Hunter figures the guy wants a mate just as much as he does. And that’s how Hunter decides to take the male omega as his mate, in the hope the guy will make a run for it after a few weeks.
All Cade wants is to go home. He was taken by a pack of dormant shifter wolves and sold at The Gathering. But when Cade spends more time with Hunter it is clear Hunter needs him and not just as a fake mate.
When a rival pack attacks, Hunter and Cade run away to Cade’s pack, in the hope they can heal Hunter when he is shot with poison…
I really liked the whole dormant shifter thing in this. And I loved how Cade was able to shift in several forms and the people in his pack too. Most books have a wolf pack, but this pack had all kinds of animals.
And even though Hunter and Cade started out as unwilling mates, I liked that they were pretty friendly towards each other from the start. There was some animosity at first, but both knew the other one didn’t choose to be there, so they made the best out of it.
What did bother me that sometimes it felt things were skipped. Like the development of the romantic part of the relationship. They went from ‘enemies’, to friends, to mates, and then all of a sudden it is mentioned casually that they love each other. The same with the pregnancy. It is suddenly mentioned Cade is showing. And while I was still figuring out what in fact he was showing, he is almost giving birth. It would have been nice to have been informed he was actually pregnant.
Still, this was a very entertaining shifter mpreg story, and I’ll definitely read the rest of the books in the series. -
I really enjoyed this one. It has mpreg so if that ain't your cup of tea, you might want to skip this one, hell this whole series.
But if you do enjoy mpreg, this is the best m/m romance mpreg book I've read so far. Yeah, the whole.... But I still enjoy it, and just imagining their little babies shifting into little tiger cubs and bear cubs! So cute!
Anyway, for the most part I really enjoyed this because Cade and Hunter had chemistry, the story was interesting and engaging, and the world was set up nicely.
My only problem with the book is how it kind of took a 180 turn from these two slowly falling in love to...well, BAM now they were in for life, because they
And it all would have been fine with me if it hadn't happened so quickly after it had been happening at a fairly even pace beforehand. Don't get me wrong, I loved when these two were in the stages of getting to know each other and falling in love, and when they became in love and parents and everything, but the transition, I thought, just wasn't handled that well. It was a tad jarring.
Also, this wasn't well edited. I mean it wasn't so horrible that it got to the point that it was unreadable or anything, but there were quite a few typos here and there throughout. Could be a product of self-publishing, but I think typos could easily be fixed if a story was properly looked over several times.
But hell yeah this was fun and a page turner. The sex could have been much steamier in my opinion, but it was still fun to read as well ;)
Now on to Seth's story, who I really liked in this - so I'm excited to see how that goes. -
OOOOOH! What a fantastic start to what I can tell is going to be an amazing series! I just loved the world building in this, I loved the characters, and I cannot wait for MORE!
I loved that this was a bit different than most shifter stories - in this, most of the packs and shifters have actually lost the ability to shift - it's something that is told about as if it was a myth or fable, along with the idea of fated mates and abilities being like legend instead of actuality. Entire generations are losing what they once were, and I find that a fascinating idea.
Hunter picks Cade when he is forced to find a mate or be exiled from his pack, but what he doesn't know is that Cade is an omega shifter who can actually still shift! OK, I loved these two together - they had that snark, that UST, and chemistry right from the start. I loved that they were both so adamant about NOT being each other's mate at first, until they both start to warm up to the other.
Can't wait for the next story in this series! I don't want to give too much away, but I'll just say that I really, really enjoyed it and I recommend it!
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. -
Love 💜
***4.25 stars***
I cannot express how much I enjoyed this story. I have been searching for a while for a PNR book that not only had MPreg but an actually story to it that could stand on its own. Because IMO, even though there is a lot out there there are only only a few that really are done really well.
I loved the storyline. The whole losing the ability to shift is an interesting concept and I cannot wait to read more about it as I go through the other books in the series. To see where the author takes this not only in regards to each character’s path, but as the shifter community as a whole.
In the end, Cade and Hunter get their HEA, which I believe is wonderfully done. I really did enjoy the amount of character development and world building that went into this. Though it would be nice to know, unless I missed it somewhere, if the human population has knowledge of the many different shifters. -
3.25 Stars
Not my favorite Claire Cullen book. I liked the premise, with the loss of shifting being the result of clans isolating themselves over time and forgetting the "old ways," but I didn't feel the connection between the MCs. Like their reason for mating, it felt forced. And there wasn't the writing "magic" that I'm used to with some of her other series. I just read 2 of the Omega's Luck series books and loved those (which is why, when this was on a list for a BINGO category, I chose it), but they are recent releases - and I know I really liked a few of the books released in 2019 - so maybe this early title shows how much she's grown as a writer? -
Uh. Yeah.
I kind of really liked it. I dunno. It hooked me.
Okay, there are some... grammatical errors, some typos, and I wasn't ever really sure what the characters looked like... but I think the plot is just good. I was simply hooked. I liked it. I liked Hunter a lot. I thought it was a unique twist on shifter books (not that I read a ton of them).
I just thoroughly enjoyed it.
Now, I'm not an MPREG fan. But it's not a deal breaker, it's just one of those things that isn't my cuppa, which isn't the book's fault. So pregnancy parts were skipped a bit... but I stayed up very, very (too) late reading this.
Would I rec? Yep. It's really good. -
Something different in the world of male shapeshifter mpreg world for once! I think this book was amazing, from Hunter's character and development to Cade's character. Cade is an omega, omegas as the book initially start are rare and for Cade, the shapeshifters are dying out and becoming humans. Hunter is part of a clan that saw him grow up as a child abandoned by his mother. He's full of anger and doesn't know how to handle it so in, comes his uncle, mate or exile.
Cade has been abducted and forced to mate with a man twice his age but he doesn't give in and so he's sold. When Cade and Hunter meet you don't see the lust, or love at first sight. They only see a partner on the other one without commitment. It turns out lovely, Hunter not being a wolf and the omegas being something like a matchmaker. The descriptions are simple but the River Den is magical, all the shapes an Omega can take. The world building while simple and to the point its lovely and all the character in River Den - plus Axel, Joe, and Seth - are amazing. I'm looking forward to Joe and Axel, maybe they will throw Ollie as a second mate or maybe Ollie is destinated for Jensen or Seth, who knows but I'm sure looking forward to the following book. -
3.5 stars
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DNFd at 34%. This is not a bad shifter story, for the premises are fresh and potentially interesting, but the formatting of the epub leaves a lot to be desired, making the reading a far more cumbersome and irritating venture than it had any right to be. The parts narrated by Hunter and Cate are never drawn apart by either a blank space or a line, so that each chapter runs as an uninterrupted block of text; worse, the whole of chapter six is virtually unreadable since all the quotation marks in the dialogues have been corrupted and appear as " & quot; ". The book also exhibits ominous marks of immature writing: the exposition is too rushed, resulting in a botched presentation of both Hunter, the supposedly all-powerful Alpha, and Cold, the rare omega with not-so-dormant wolf abilities; less world building in the parts I read would mean nothing, for Mrs Cullen decided to abstain from giving any explanation or gloss about her shifter universe, apart from the (entirely needless, since it is easily guessed from the context) precision that the paranormals are divided into rival packs of which the Red Fangs are by far the most powerful and aggressive; and the prose could well have done with rather more fluidity and stylistic diversity, for as it stands it is times and again painful to follow (let an example suffice : "Zane lashed out first, the blow easily dodged by the other. Angry, he threw another punch, but it was Hunter who struck the first blow, catching Zane across the face. Zane retaliated, with a blow to the stomach and one to the face that drew the first blood. There was a sudden shift in the air at that, a tension, but Cade's attention wasn't on the crowd, it was on Hunter’s face. Blood was smeared across his chin, but it was his eyes that had Cade mesmerized. It was a look he'd never seen before, anger, fury in its purest form. Zane actually took a step back when he saw it."). Since it is a longish book and, one-third into the story, the plot had not yet turned gripping nor the action picked up, while I still remained as indifferent about Cade, Hunter, their pack and the shifter society as I was in the beginning, I saw little point to persevere any further.
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I'm a sucker for shifter books, or paranormal books in general. I blame Harry Potter for the inclination to fantasy stuff. 🙈���
This one intrigued me because it had a different take on the subject. Was it perfect? Nop, but there were really interesting and unique moments/concepts.
The interesting plot evolved around the idea that shifters can't shift, their world is dying because of it, but there is a secret place were that is not the truth, and that is were Cade takes Hunter to save him. Also interesting is that there are all types of shifters in this place: birds, gorilas, bears, tigers, etc. And Omegas have a lot of other responsibilities or powers that i haven't seen in other books, but they are not well liked in the shifter community, hence the dying part.
The imperfect bit for me was the romance, I didn't believe in the love the two main guys had, it was sudden, i know that once they mate their whole world revolves around the other person but i would have liked more of that atracttion before it happened. I know I'm just describing a lot of shifter books, but this one could have done it because the mating happens almost at the 60% mark, and it would have been awesome.
At the end I did enjoyed the story, it has a charm to it, there are parts really well done, and there are things left unfinished, of course this is a series so maybe the other books have answers. I'll hope for the best. ❤ -
It was such a messy plot
So much drama unnecessary one
I feel like the mcs changed personality at like 85% of the book not character development but personality switch there's no build up to their romance just happen so suddenly they didn't even have sex until 90% of the book.
One thing I do appreciate the birthing scene it was so heartfelt in a way and also realistic and beautiful -
Chosen
By Claire Cullen
This story had a bit of a unique storyline. With shifters losing the ability to shift more and more shifters are leaving their packs behind and moving out into the human world. There are clues about that part of the storyline here and there so you have to keep your eye out for them. Kind of like 'Easter eggs' in a video game. I also found it fascinating that if a pack alpha can no longer shift it's rare any of their pack members are able to too, but there are certain places left in the world where pack alpha's and their pack members still shift normally. I'm really excited to read the rest of the series because I want to find out what's behind the changes and causing so many to no longer be able to shift.
I loved both MC's, Hunter and Cade. Loved their personalities, their relationship once it was established, etc etc. The book is in both of their POV. The angst level is medium. -
3.5 Stars
One of the better omegaverse books I’ve read these days. Which is surprising because I thought the 2 newer books I read from this author were very flat. Anywho, I’ve kinda been in a funk these days and only in the mood for light reads. This fits perfect if that’s what your looking for -
Cullen has become a comfort author for me. This was a good one, but the complete lack of angst/drama, made it a bit boring. I liked the MCs though.
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**grm** (some little spoiler at the end)
{"What about after?" Cade asked as they caught their breath. "After? What do you mean?"
"I mean us, and the den, and your pack. And the pup or pups."
Hunter slid a hand across Cade's stomach. "Do you think there'll be pups?"
They were a natural consequence of mating, of course. But it was so hard to think of those things when all your body wanted to do was meld itself to your mate and never let go.
"I think we're past the point where we could have safely avoided them."
"Oh, and what point was that?"
"The day you gave me yout jacket."}
I just loved this scene, bcs they may have been young, they were 19 years old, but they really loved each other and they were way more mature than most of the teenagers that age we see these days. The scene about the jacket happened the same day they met for the first time, and probably they were there without their consent, Hunter bcs his uncle wanted to mate him and fix his anger issues, and Cade bcs he had refused another Alpha who now wanted to sell him, so it took them more time to understand they were what the legends said, Fated Mates. Destined to be together, and sure sometime they bickered and made me smile, but I believed in them as a couple.
Cade was one of the strongest Omegas I've ever seen and he deserved my respect, while Hunter was the perfect Alpha, sure he was still young and needed to learn many things, but he was brave, strong and most important, he did what his Omega wanted and never barked orders. For the first time, here, we saw an Omega that wasn't just a chick with a dick, but a man that could give birth to kids, and that is something different and a thing that I really wish we could see in more shifters books, where other Omegas are only useless crying babies, who need to be saved and can't do any savings.
The 5 cute babies at the end were a sweet bonus!!! Good luck in having another night of sleep, though.
Ps= From the first few words I knew that I'd like this book, and it was almost a 5 stars. For the 2nd one, though, I have some doubts. -
nice shifter story, with mpreg. the setting is original, a bit different from the usual shifter stories. but there are too much elements that needed an explanation or just a little clarification.
I didn't really get involved with the characters drama or personalities, and the book, even if nice, it felt flat for me. I don't think I'll read the all series. -
mhm i'm gonna leave this at 3.5. bc this was truly enjoyable.
i love how fiercely loyal Hunter was. i didn't expect such reaction from his pack, i thought they were nice. which was sad, bc all of a sudden more negative things were revealed. when it came to that harsh treatment, Hunter was so accepting of it, when at the start, he was willing to do anythinnnnng to avoid that decision. (I'm like huhhhhhhhh????)
and Cade, he was adorable and trying to matchmake others.
their chemistry was great. them accommodating to each other's comfort. but unfortunately, i do NOT feel the romance between them. it felt like Hunter was doing it bc, he was loyal. and Cade was doing it bc, Hunter risked his life for him. so just a payback? and both of them was so against having a mate, and then bamwam, they are so accepting and in it for life?? it's like an instant change.
there were lots of things i was confused about. like how does their heat work? Eamon was a gorilla(?) and the dad was a swan(?) and how did Cade end up as a tiger?? or a wolf?? (i think this concept was cool, but i think sticking to one animal is better and less confusing)
ps lets not forget how Dayvn was hostile towards Hunter, and we didn't see a make up there. -
Great book.
Although the male pregnancy thing is kinda weird, it's was still a pretty good book. Suspect a part 2 in the works. -
4.5 stars!
Firstly, I have to say that I absolutely love that cover... It's fricking Hot.
Now, about the actual book...
This was a somewhat original shifter story.
I really enjoyed this. The surprises here were so entertaining to read!
Cade, the Omega, was brave, strong-willed and powerful.
Hunter, the Alpha, was a bit unstable; but so very strong, just and loving. I loved that he truly wanted to help Cade.
I also liked that the shifter history and context were present and explained in the book.
I liked getting to find things out with our MCs.
And I adored the little pups and how fricking cute and different they are.
I definitely want more! So, I'm so glad that this is a Series.
I'm off to reading the next book -
Stolen - which is Seth's story. -
An omega with a lot of secrets, an alpha with a lot of anger and determination, a fascinating worldbuild, and a new-to-me author had me quickly turning pages in this fascinating story. In this world shifters have lost the ability to shift and they’re more like humans than the animals they possess. Packs still exist but so many rules have been implemented for such a long time – no mating outside their species, no mating with humans, limited to no contact outside their packs, etc. – that the animals inside are stifled within. The shifters are very close to becoming myth and legend, and they’re dying out. Until Cade shows Hunter what it means to be a shifter.
Please find my full review at
Rainbow Book Reviews -
Well what a shock.
I was expecting a quick easy read like most of the Mpreg omega stories i have read so far, but this was anything but that. This story had an intriguing plot that I found fascinating. The shifter world that this author built is new and interesting.
I loved Cade, and watching Hunter turn into the Alpha that he needed to be for Cade was adorable and a little heart pounding.
I highly recommend this series to all Mpreg omega fans. -
Great start
This is a great start to a series by Claire Cullen. I've read them all a couple of times, which is how much I like these boojs. -
Preface TL;DR for those who don't care to read my (way) too long potentially spoiler-y review: I liked it but I won't be rushing to read the next one.
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Hunter was raised in an insular community of wolf shifters...a society that has forgotten its roots and become stagnant. They’ve lost the ability to shift, their senses have dulled and most have become nearly human. Hunter’s rages set him apart from the community and his father delivers an ultimatum—pick a mate who can balance him or leave the pack.
Hunter reluctantly attends the “gathering”, an opportunity for shifters to mingle and find a life partner. He immediately sets his sights on a male omega who clearly doesn’t want to be there and who doesn’t want a mate. Win, win.
Cade’s brothers left River Den to find a new den for their expanding pack and never returned. Cade chased after them only to fall into the hands of a crazy alpha who offers him up for marriage at the wolf version of speed dating. Cade plans to run at the first opportunity.
Neither can predict that their chance meeting will ultimately change shifter society, unearth lost truths and restore balance to a species teetering on extinction.
I really enjoyed this story. It’s not without its flaws (where do their clothes go when they shift? why does this society even have genders? what are the magical mechanics of omega shifter procreation? why does EVERY story need to end in childbirth?)...but the character development helped me to suspend disbelief. -
**********Contains Spoilers**********
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. What a great start to a new series. I loved the concept that most of the pack shifters are losing the ability to shift into their animal. I loved Hunter and Cade and I’m glad that it took them awhile to work out that they were actually perfect for each other. Even though Omegas are great match makers they’re notoriously bad about finding love for themselves or those close to them, in a way it doesn’t really seem fair that they find love for others but struggle for themselves. The den seems like such a magical place a sanctuary for any shifter animal alike. Most of the book was very exciting waiting to see what happens but the last part of the book seemed a bit rushed but I’m guessing the following books will have more conflict since two of Cade’s brothers are missing so they must be able to get them back from the Red Fangs. I loved how Seth as a character and it was great that he still saw Hunter as his brother even though he’d been exiled from their pack when he shifted into a bear and bear’s and wolves are enemies that just goes to show how awesome he is and doesn’t take his dad’s sh*t. I’m looking forward to his book and he’s got a wicked sense of humour. I’m also hoping Joe gets his happily ever after everything Joe’s alpha took away from him. I’d recommend this book, series and author to everyone. -
This was a fun and entertaining read, mostly light and sweet. I would have liked it to be more angsty, especially in the beginning - if using dark topics, please make them as dark as they need to be to be plausible! But overall I enjoyed the more fluffy parts of the story, most of all the dynamics at the River Den in the second part.
My absolute favorite: a gorilla shifter! Please please please let me have a story with an ape or monkey shifter as a MC - I've never read one and I would love to!
Also I'm hoping for more backstory on the whole shifter communtiy as the series progresses. This part was most magical and there wasn't enough room to fully unfold that potential. I would have prefered the book to be longer in general, there were a lot of questions left open and a slower development of the relationship would have been more believable. As it was, it didn't feel much like a love story, more like a team effort at a better life prospect for everyone.
I'll definitely be reading more of this series though. -
Rating: 4.5 stars
I loved this book. I loved both Hunter and Cade as the MCs. Sometimes when two shifters don’t mate right away the back and forth can get tedious. Not so here. I thought the whole mating aspect was handled wonderfully. I thought Hunter and Cade has great chemistry and really liked all their interactions. Many of the secondary characters were great also. I liked Joe, Seth and Ollie especially.
I thought the author created a very unique take on the shifter genre. I liked the aspect that the wolves, lions and bears are all losing the ability to shift and basically becoming human who shifted in the past. I really hope the author continues this series and delves more into why this happened and what can be done to correct it. I also really would like to see some of the other characters get their HEA. Joe especially.
If you are a fan is shifter stories and don’t mind a bit of m-preg than I highly recommend this story. -
This started out really good. I was so interested. I loved how it had the added aspect of the shifters losing their way and ruining what made them shifters so actual turning into animals was dying out. It added a level of complexity other stories like this just do not have. And the lovers, they fight against their connection. they do not just jump into bed because the other is sexy, or the mating pull, nope they get to know one another. and fall in love. you cannot imagine how happy that made me. 3/4ths of the book awesome....then that last bit. it was rushed, it was settled all nice and neat in a bow when it seemed like a new conflict was arising. I mean it was all detailed and then settled for a tidy rushed ending. its like 2 different people were writing this! I am not sure how to process the push potential conflict aside and rush ending. Considering the rest of the book I expected something...well more I guess.
