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Burden: A Bayou Bear Chronicle (Volume 1)
Burden
A Bayou Bear Chronicle
Juvenile Fiction
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
May 1, 2014
Paperback, Kindle Unlimited
296
In the depths of the Louisiana swamps, clans of bear shifters roam freely. Hawke Turnclaw, the Alpha over all of his kind, is drowning in the legacy left to him by the Alpha before him, his own father. When he goes on a rescue mission to save a rogue Black bear from the clutches of a Grizzly clan, he finds more than just a Black bear, he finds his mate. Echo has always been told she's an anomaly, a fluke. She's the only bear of her kind and that makes her a hindrance to her clan. She's tried to run away, but they keep her tethered through guilt and a shock collar around her neck. And then someone shows up claiming he's her mate. Now belonging to a new clan, will she ever be able to understand that she's so much more than just a burden?
Less shifting more surprise…
Burden, book one in the Bayou Bear Chronicles, is Lila Felix’s first paranormal series. There is something about a YA shifter story that draws you in. I mean, who doesn’t like a hunky alpha male finding his one true mate in a strong but good-hearted female? Burden, set in the swamps of Louisiana, tells the story of Hawke, the alpha of all black bears, and all bears for that matter. His parents recently died leaving him to run the clan. It doesn’t take long for him to realize that his father had a selfish agenda when it came to clan business, an agenda that has left Hawke with many problems to deal with. But none of these issues compare to the fact that his life is unsettled and his power incomplete until he finds his one true mate. Echo has always known she was different. The grizzly clan she lives with has told her they found her abandoned in the forest when she was a toddler. The clan looks down on her but won’t let her leave because of her special healing gift. After years of mistreatment she tries to run away, only to be brought back and forced to wear a shock collar. One day her life takes an unexpected turn…
If I had never read a shifter book before, Burden would be a nice introduction into this paranormal genre. 
The problem is I have read few and I’m guessing so has Lila. The action and dialogue is fairly predictable.
But her easy to read writing style, contrasting characters, and few unique plot twists kept me turning the page. I liked her minor characters, Rev and Martha, and the gradual introduction to their building story. By the end of the book I was engaged enough in her world to want to read the next book in the series, Hearten, and find out how the conflict plays out and what happens to Rev and Martha. (Preview to my next review: the series does get better with the next book)
You can find all books in this series on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited. For more information about Lila Felix or her other works, read our author bio or visit her at www.lilafelix.com .
Tanya’s love for books has been a lifelong passion that she likes sharing with others. Reading is also the thing that relaxes her after a day of juggling the many responsibilities that come with being being wife to an amazing man, mother to four great kids spread around the world, business manager, and farm hand on their place in southwest Missouri; home to Akaushi cattle and a menagerie of pygmy goats, horses, chickens, dogs and cats.
