As I'm about to read SERPENTINE - the latest
book in Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake
series -
and dive into a world of vampires, hunters, and wereleopards, it got me
thinking
about my love of romances featuring animal shifters. I enjoy a good vampire
story, but in the age-old debate over blood suckers vs furry warriors – I'm
Team
Werewolf. I love werewolves, werebears, werehoney badgers, and everything in
between. And how amazing are heroes who also happen to turn into dragons?
Recently I've read a bunch of fabulous new releases with shape shifters of
all
sorts as main characters - MIDNIGHT WOLF by
Jennifer
Ashley, HOT AND
BADGERED
by Shelly Laurenston, ALL'S
FAIR IN LOVE AND WOLF by Terry Spear, WICKED AND WILD by
Cynthia
Eden, and the anthology THE
BIG ALPHA IN TOWN with stories by Eve Langais, Millie Taiden, and Kate
Baxter.
Shifters
Unbound
#11
Angus Murray, bouncer for a New Orleans Shifter bar, is sent to round up
an
elusive, Collar-less Shifter woman, Tamsin Calloway, who is causing trouble
for
Shifter Bureau, and possesses information they want. If Angus refuses, he
risks
losing his cub. He finds Tamsin but she's slippery and not about to be
rounded
up quietly.
In fact, quiet is nothing Tamsin will ever be. She leads Angus on a wild
chase, but he's determined to bring her in to save his son.
Can Tamsin convince Angus she's worth helping before she's locked away by
Shifter Bureau, Collared, or perhaps killed?
Romance Suspense
| Romance
Paranormal
[Berkley, On Sale: April 24, 2018, Mass Market
Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9780425281390 / eISBN: 9780698196346]
The
wolf becomes captive to his foxy prey
A
riveting tale of love on the run!
The
last thing he expects to find is a mate.
Jennifer Ashley and Terry Spear write some of my favorite romance novels
about
animal shape shifters. Both authors have explored the many varieties of
shape
shifter – wolves, bears, cougars, jaguars, polar bears, and more. In MIDNIGHT WOLF by
Jennifer
Ashley, Angus Murray is a wolf Shifter and single dad trying to do the right
thing for the safety of his cub by tracking down, and bringing in a fellow
Shifter to face the inquisition of the Shifter Bureau. In ALL'S FAIR IN LOVE AND
WOLF
by Terry Spear, Jenna St. James is a bounty hunter who believes it's her
duty to
bring in Sarandon Silver for his crimes. Both Sarandon and Angus' quarry,
fox
Shifter Tamsin Calloway, have done nothing deserving of being hunted down
like
criminals but they both unexpectedly find love with their pursuer. Jennifer
Ashley's Shifters
Unbound series and Terry Spear's Silver Town Wolf
series have some things in common that makes them thoroughly addictive for
me –
great storytelling, amazing recurring characters, and a focus on family.
Equally
amazing are the key differences between each series. The Shifters in
Jennifer
Ashley would kill to have the freedom that Terry Spear's shifters do. Terry
Spear's animal shape shifters are able to be under the radar and don't have
the
kind of scrutiny, segregation, and bigotry that Shifters in Ashley's Shifters Unbound
series have to deal with. In the Shifters Unbound
books, part of what makes the bond between pack and Shifter Town members so
strong is that it's basically them against the world. In Spear's Silver Town Wolf
series, as well as some of her other books featuring animal shifters, pack
members and new couples get a tight bond from facing outside threats while
also
enjoying together-time. Jennifer Ashley's series has a bit of an X-Men vibe
with
meddling humans and evil fae as the primary baddies. In spite of humans and
the
fae's best efforts to keep Shifters downtrodden, Jennifer Ashley creates
wonderful stories of love, heroism, a sentient New Orleans house that I
desperately wish I could visit, and a little magic and a few laughs. In
Terry
Spear's Silver Town
Wolf books, often it's fellow werewolves who are the villains, with
heroes who are part nice guy-next-door/outdoorsman with a teensy Captain
America
vibe. Heroines in both series are incredibly diverse and strong in different
ways. A Jennifer Ashley or Terry Spear shifter romance will always be a good
time for any paranormal romance fan.
Unlike a lot of romance fans, I have no problem reading a series in the
wrong
order. I rarely start a series with book one, and that's how I started
reading
Shelly Laurenston. I started reading Shelly Laurenston's Pride series after hearing so many readers say what a
hoot
they are. Those readers were right. It is impossible to read a Shelly
Laurenston
book without breaking out into laughter at some point. In Laurenston's
world,
shifter men rarely make the mistake of underestimating a shifter woman
because
it could be a fatal mistake. Shelly Laurenston's heroes and heroines are
delightfully flawed. Whether these women are talking trash, playing hockey,
drag
racing, cracking skulls in roller derby, hunting down bad guys, corralling
their
eccentric friends and family, or singing karaoke, they are a force to be
reckoned with, and a big part of why you should read a Shelly Laurenston
book.
In HOT AND BADGERED,
the
opening is like something out of an anime or a big blockbuster action film.
If
you like a crazy story that will make you laugh, this is the story for you.
Honey badgers don't give a flip, and this half-honey badger/half-wolf
shifter
heroine Charlie Taylor-MacKeigan is stuck playing defense because of the
mess
her loser father creates every minute of every day. This is a story about
three
sisters struggling to live life on their own terms despite their father's
idiocy. Grizzly shifter Berg Dunn is typical of a Laurenston hero – he lets
the
heroine sort out what she needs to and helps when he can and comes off as
adorable and sexy when he does. If you love an entertaining tale that will
having you laughing like an idiot, and you enjoy stories without ever having
to
worry about the heroine being a damsel in distress, this book is for you.
Honey Badgers
Chronicles #1
It's not every day that a beautiful naked woman falls out of the sky and
lands face-first on grizzly shifter Berg Dunn's hotel balcony. Definitely
they
don't usually hop up and demand his best gun. Berg gives the lady a
grizzly-sized t-shirt and his cell phone, too, just on style points. And
then
she's gone, taking his XXXL heart with her. By the time he figures out she's
a
honey badger shifter, it's too late.
Honey badgers are survivors. Brutal, vicious, ill- tempered survivors. Or
maybe Charlie Taylor-MacKilligan is just pissed that her useless father is
trying to get them all killed again, and won't even tell her how. Protecting
her
little sisters has always been her job, and she's not about to let some
pesky
giant grizzly protection specialist with a network of every shifter in
Manhattan
get in her way. Wait. He's trying to help? Why would he want to do that?
He's
cute enough that she just might let him tag along—that is, if he can keep up
. .
.
Romance Erotica
Sensual | Romance
Paranormal [Kensington, On Sale: March 27,
2018, Trade Size / e-Book, ISBN: 9781496714343 / eISBN: 9781496714367]
Hilarious, action-packed, and nothing short of amazing!
Honey badger antics fill the pages with hilarity
I usually run when I think a book is romantic suspense, but Cynthia Eden is
the
exception that proves the rule for me. Yes, Eden writes about serial
killers,
psychotic scientists, and bloodthirsty vampires, but her storytelling is
solid,
and she writes some of the sexiest romances I've ever read. The first
Cynthia
Eden book I read was one with a shapeshifter hero – ETERNAL HUNTER. Whether
supernatural creature or human, Eden's heroes and villains are an eclectic
mix.
Her shifters are fierce and fabulous. My favorite werewolf-centered series
by
Cynthia Eden is her Blood and Moonlight
series featuring New Orleans Detective Jane Hart and the tall, dark, and
sexy
werewolf leader Aidan Locke. I love this series because of the delicious New
Orleans noir feel to the story, the sensuality, and the awesome characters.
Aidan will appeal to fans of Jeanine Frost's Night Huntress
series because he has the same kind of emotional honesty and vulnerability
coupled with a devotion to his woman as Frost's hero Bones. Cynthia Eden
excels
at writing books about transformation, and the hero in WICKED AND WILD can
transform into more than one form, but one of them happens to be a dragon.
WICKED AND WILD is my
favorite book in Eden's Bad Things
series
about good versus evil and everything in between. Griffin Bastien, king of
the
shifters, is a cheeky alpha hero who woos his witch mate with silken phrases
and
by giving her the kind of strength and support she hasn't had from a lover
before. Valerie Storm is constantly misunderstood. This heroine has been bad
for
good reasons and been someone who has helped the helpless because she knows
what
it's like to not have a friend in the world. Betrayal and loyalty are huge
themes in WICKED AND
WILD and can be read as a standalone story.
Bad Things
#7
She was wicked…
Everyone knew that Valerie Storm was the baddest bit—um, witch on the
block.
She might look like Snow White, but she had the heart of the wicked queen.
She
turned her enemies to ash, she danced on their graves, and she had to be
stopped. But who could stand up to someone so wicked?
He was wild.
Griffin Bastien was the most powerful shifter to ever walk the earth. His
claws had sent plenty of his foes to the grave. Bloodlust burned fast and
hard
within him, and when his beast took over, there was no stopping him.
Then Wicked met Wild.
Neither of them believed in love. And neither of them ever expected the
firestorm that ignited when they kissed. But some things—some people—can't
be
controlled. The need that Valerie and Griffin feel for each other, the
white-hot
lust, will change their world.
Even hell doesn't burn this hot.
Too bad that Griffin has been keeping secrets. Too bad that he is the
original assassin sent to destroy Valerie. Because when she finds out the
truth,
there will be no greater fury than a wicked witch betrayed. Even the
biggest,
baddest beast might discover that he's absolutely lost when a witch casts
her
spell, and he will be willing to do anything to reclaim the mate he never
expected.
Buckle up, it's gonna be a wild ride.
Romance Erotica
Sensual | Romance
Paranormal [Self Published, On Sale: April 24,
2018, Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 2940158756252 / eISBN: 9781942840428]
THE BIG ALPHA IN
TOWN is
an anthology by two authors I've never read before and one I have. As a fan
of
Kate Baxter's Last True Vampire
series, I was anxious to discover what types of paranormal creatures she'd
choose to write about in her story No Need Fur Love. Because of some
convoluted reasoning, related to her jerk father, wood nymph Mia Oliver is
on
the prowl looking for a potential baby daddy when she happens upon the
extremely
fine werewolf specimen that is Owen Courtney. True to form, Kate Baxter
tells a
lust-to-love story with some urgency. Owen is an honorable guy who is
protective
of his pack and his newfound mate. Mia is forced to figure out what she
wants to
do with her life, and what drastic steps she's willing to take to accomplish
her
goals without a lot of time to decide. The action and romance are balanced
in
this story and I look forward to Kate Baxter's next book. The issue of
paternity
also plays a major factor in Bearing His Name by Eve Langlais. Having
never read a book by Eve
Langlais before, I wasn't sure what to expect, but much of the story is
an
enjoyable farce. Somebody is sending anonymous letters to Ark Matis and
other
werebears implying that somebody is a father. Ark goes in search of the
letter
writer in hope of finding some answers. What Ark finds is a reluctant mate
in
the prickly Jade Cadeux. There are some silly yet charming gags in
Bearing
His Name and the flirtation and snarky responses that litter Ark's
courtship
of Jade make an entertaining, if unconventional, romance. This story has
made me
curious to try other shifter stories by Eve Langlais. Out of all the stories
in
this anthology, Owned by the Lion by Millie Taiden is the
most
conventional romance. Ally Fossey is a working woman looking for extra cash
for
her sick mom's cancer treatment. Keir is an old family friend of Ally's as
well
as a co-worker. Despite their close connections, Ally and Keir have never
spent
any significant time together. Keir eventually realizes Ally is his mate and
uses a dating agency as an excuse to get closer to her. If I were Ally, I
would
find shifter super hearing and the ability to smell my attraction annoying,
but
Keir never uses that info against her, or acts smug about it. I like the
friendships between the women as well as the ones between the men in this
story.
I look forward to hopefully reading about Hawk Kingston and Shawna in a
future book.
Three hot stories about three sexy shifters from a trio of today's
hottest
paranormal romance authors, headlined by bestselling authors Eve Langlais
and
Milly Taiden!
BEARING HIS LOVE
Meeting his mate should have been cause for celebration. There’s just one
teeny tiny problem. Jade thinks Ark might have impregnated her sister. He
didn’t, but convincing Jade is going to take a bit of honey.
OWNED BY THE LION
Keir’s been told to stop playing the field and settle down—difficult
advice
for a hard and hot man with a lion’s heart to follow. But his sights have
always
been set on Ally. She’s his mate, plain and simple. With her sweet and
delicious
curves, she’s nothing but sugar and trouble all rolled into one. But he’s
known
her and sparred with her for years. She’s his best friend’s little sister,
and
it’s going to take a whole new level of convincing that he’s the mate for
her.
NO NEED FUR LOVE
Moving with his pack to the tiny town of Stanley, Idaho has Owen Courtney
a
little on edge. With literally no women in sight, Owen will be lucky to find
a
date, let alone his true mate. But you know the saying about a werewolf
walking
into a bar…
Gorgeous wood nymph Mia Oliver is on a mission: Find a suitable male to
get
her good ‘n pregnant and provide her with an heir. But when Mia decides to
pick
up a gorgeous and oh-so willing werewolf at the bar, she realizes she might
be
in over her head.
Romance
Paranormal |
Romance
Anthology
[St. Martin's Griffin, On Sale: May 15, 2018,
Paperback / e-Book, ISBN: 9781250180483 / eISBN: 9781250180490]
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