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Willing Prey
by Allie OleanderSeries: Feral Love Book 1
Published by Berkley on October 7, 2025
SubGenres: Dark Romance, Erotic Romance
Format: AudioBook
Pages: 329
Narrator: Aaron Shedlock, Amy Hall
Length: 9 Hours And 6 Minutes
Source: Library - Libby
Audience: 18+/Adult
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An exhilarating, primal summer fling in the woods leads to an intensely sexy, edgy romance, where anything goes—just remember your safe word.
Divorced and buried in student loan debt, Claire Collins eagerly enters a spicy business agreement with an acquaintance who wants to explore his primal desires. The deal is simple: thirty days as his sexual prey, $30,000 in her bank account. All she has to do is give Shane Underwood the hunt of his life.
Claire’s a physical education teacher and perfectly happy to spend her summer having wild, kinky sex instead of working her usual serving job. But once they cross the tree line, she realizes how little she knows about the corporate lawyer paying her to be his prey.
Shane is different in the woods. Brutal. Devastating. Feral.
That’s okay with Claire—she is, too. And she’s sinking her teeth a little deeper into Shane’s heart every time he catches her.
Willing Prey is the first book in Allie Oleander’s Feral Love series. I found it through the publisher’s newsletters and social media, read the synopsis, and immediately wanted to check it out. It’s not like most of the Dark Romance books I usually read, so I was curious. Did it make me question my morals when I finished? Absolutely. One thing’s for sure: I will never be into Primal Play in real life.
Before I go on, a quick note to my oldest daughter who follows me on Goodreads: please skip my review of Willing Prey. I don’t want you to see your mom any differently. Read anyone else’s review, just not mine. You’ve been warned.
This romance book was different from what I usually pick up, but the cover and synopsis caught my attention. The story follows Claire, who signs a contract with Shane for 30 days of primal play. Shane lets her know when he wants to play and gives her a head start. If he catches her, she’s his. Claire knows he’s done this with others before, so she’s determined to keep things interesting. If she makes it through the 30 days, she’ll get money to help pay off the student loans her ex-husband left her. I liked that the book is told from both Claire and Shane’s POVs. When I learned Shane’s real reason for setting this up, I liked him even more.
What I really appreciated about this book was how realistic the chase scenes in the woods felt. The author didn’t make it all magical or perfect because bad things actually happen out in the wilderness. For example, Claire gets a tick, ends up with sand and dirt in uncomfortable places, and gets scratched by branches and trees. The scariest part is when Claire and Shane end up with a bear near them, and while Shane handles it, I don’t think I would have handled it the same way. All of this made me realize I’ll never be into primal play myself, but I’m happy to read about it in fiction.
The only problem I had with the book was some miscommunication between Claire and Shane at the end of their arrangement, but I understood why it happened. Shane isn’t great at communicating since he’s never been in a relationship, and it takes his brother and someone else to help him work through it.
Overall, this book was spicy and fun, and I’m giving it four stars. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the series, which happens to be about Shane’s brother, who was interesting to learn about in this book.
Would I recommend this book? Yes. If you like spicy stories with Primal Play, then add Willing Prey by Allie Oleander to your TBR now.
What to Expect:
✔️Primal Play Romance
✔️Business Arrangement – Contract
✔️MMC Falls First
✔️Divorced Heroine
✔️Spicy AF 🔥
About Allie Oleander
Allie writes romance with kink exploration and characters ages thirty-five and up. When she's not writing, she's in the woods, trying to arrange a meet-cute with Bigfoot.
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