NO IFS, ANDS, OR BEARS ABOUT IT is Book 1 in Celia Kyle's Grayslake series. This book is about a town of werebears. Bear shapeshifters are rapidly becoming one of my favorite kinds of shifters. Who wouldn't love a big, cuddly teddy bear? Sheriff Ty Abrams, the hero, is the Itan (leader) of the local werebear community. Mia Baker, the heroine, is part werebear and is thrown into Ty's orbit when a shifter cub lands on her doorstep.
I like that once Ty realizes how dangerous it would be to give young Parker to his uncle, Ty doesn't make a strong effort to separate Mia from Parker. Parker and his precarious situation becomes something to bind Ty and Mia together rather than divide them. I think Celia Kyle does a great job of balancing the light, fun moments, the gritty action sequences, and the sexy, erotic moments. Ty and Mia are both very strong personalities, but I never really felt like Ty tried to steamroll Mia. Even though I don't think she always saw it that way, I think Ty is protective without being a controlling jerk. I like that he felt the connection between them early on and acted accordingly. I think Ty comes across as sweet and possessive rather than possessive and acting out in negative ways.
Ty's leadership is contrasted nicely with the leadership of the Cutler Itan. It becomes obvious that Ty is a more fair and caring Itan to his people. Mia's family dynamics and history makes for an interesting subplot and gives her character more depth. I like the supportive relationship between Mia and her father. The violence described in the fight scenes is not for the squeamish. There are some real villains in NO IFS, ANDS, OR BEARS ABOUT IT, and the shifters respond with bestial savagery.
NO IFS, ANDS, OR BEARS ABOUT IT by Celia Kyle is a very sexy, fun shifter romance full of intense action scenes, erotic moments, and great characters. A lot of the supporting characters interest me, and I look forward to reading about them in the future -- especially Ty's brother Isaac, wolf pack Alpha Reid Bennett, and Southeast Itan Terrence Jensen. I anxiously await the next installment in this exciting paranormal series!
The first day of Mia's new life in Grayslake, Georgia is not
going as planned. The house her grandfather left her looks
ready to crumble, boxes cover every inch of the floor and-
oh-there's a bear cub in her pantry. It gets worse when the
cub's uncle comes by and busts out his fur and claws while
on her front porch. Then it gets loads better because
suddenly there's a hot hunk of badge-wearing werebear on her
lawn ready to rescue her. Yum. Of course, he has to ruin
things by trying to take the cub out of her hands. Ha! The
cub is hers... No ifs, ands, or bears about it.
Werebear Ty can't seem to get the curvaceous, delectable Mia
to understand that, even if she is one-quarter werebear, she
isn't keeping the cub. Ty is the Grayslake Itan, the clan's
leader, and the little werebear is going home with him...
Unless it isn't. It's her smile. If she'd stop smiling and
being gorgeous, his inner-bear would support him and Ty
would get his way. But the beast wants to make their woman
happy, so it's perfectly content to let her do as she
pleases. Then things change. Threats arise, danger comes
close, and Ty demands she return to his den. No ifs, ands,
or mates about that.
EXCERPT
A bear cub sat in her pantry.
Mia squinted and peered into the dim interior. Yup, a bear
cub. The small ball of fur shifted, reflective black eyes
settling on her with interest.
Heck no, she was not being mauled by a bear.
She slammed the door shut and counted to five, sure itโd
been a figment of her imagination. Her mind had been playing
tricks on her ever since sheโd walked through the door of
her deceased grandfatherโs home. Part of her wondered if
heโd decided to haunt her as heโd always threatened.
A familiar pang of grief speared her heart. That fleeting
thought brought back the memory of standing at the old manโs
graveside less than a week ago, clutching her dadโs hand as
her grandfather was lowered into the ground.
Her eyes stung, tears forming and clouding her vision, and
she wiped away the moisture as it trailed down her cheeks.
He was gone. She needed to push past the grief and live her
life. Heโd whoop her from one end of the house to the other
if he caught her crying over him. The man had lived to a
hundred, and heโd been ready for a break already.
A low, barking whine came from the pantry, the solid wood
muffling the sound but that didnโt negate the sourceโs
existence.
She had a bear cub. In her pantry.
Gripping the knob, she eased the door open and peeked
inside. Yup, still there. Huddled in a tiny ball, little
eyes trained on her. Every inch of his fur stood on end.
โHey, little guy.โ Mia kept her voice low, hopefully
soothing to the cub. She was either dealing with a wild
young one or a baby werebear. She was in Grayslake, Georgia.
All werebears, all the time. She glanced at the cub. Mia
voted for werebear. Like, really, really voted for werebear.
She hadnโt inherited the ability to shift but her dad easily
transformed from man to bear and back. So, sheโd grown up
knowing about shifters. And heโd told her, and proved to
her, over and over again that weres in their animal form
still held onto their human thoughts.
She extended a hand toward the cub and kept her voice
pitched low. โHey, sweetheart. Did you get stuck in here?
You ready to come out?โ
The little cub shook its head and scrambled deeper into the
corner.
Crap. Well, crap on one hand and woo-hoo on the other. She
was fairly sure she was dealing with a were, but he remained
in her pantry.
โOkay,โ she sighed. โThe thing about it is, you probably
belong to someone who is a heck of a lot bigger than you and
me put together. Your momma is going to be angry her cub is
missing, and I donโt wanna get between you and her.โ
Like, really, really didnโt want to get between a cub and
its mother. While a werebear had human love in its heart,
there was also the bearโs possessiveness and insane drive to
kill anything, or anyone, who came between it and its young.
The cub shook its head, and its eyes glistened, shining with
moisture that hadnโt been there before. This had to happen
on her first day in Grayslake.
โOkay, well, Iโm gonna leave the door open. So, when youโre
ready to come outโโ More trembling and an actual tear
escaped the cubโs eye.
Darn it.
โListen, little guy, or girl, Iโm sure you belong to someone
and theyโre going to be so worried.โ
She took a chance, and sought to confirm her beliefs. โWhy
donโt you shift for me and tell me where you live? Iโll take
you homeโโ
The cub whined and clawed the ground, nails digging furrows
into the hundred year old wood floors.
โHey,โ she snapped. Cub or not, common courtesy spanned
species barriers. โNo scratching the floors.โ The little
bear immediately stopped. โThank you. Nowโโ
A harsh, heavy pounding on her front door yanked her
attention from the cub. The wood rattled in its frame,
reminding her she needed to hunt up a repairman to replace
it. The door was original to the house, and she hated to
swap it out with something modern, but in a town filled with
bearsโฆ Sheโd rather have an extra layer of protection in
case one of the residents turned cranky at having a
mostly-human in their midst.
The hammering came again, followed by a rough yell, and she
sighed. Was everyone in Grayslake intent on disrupting Miaโs
move? First the cub and now this guy. Sheโd only been in
town a freakinโ day.
โAnswer.โ Thud. โThis.โ Pound. โDoor.โ Crack.
Aw, the crack did it. Sheโd buried her grandfather less than
a week ago and was moving into his home at his bequest. Now
some stranger decided to damage a piece of her memories. She
didnโt think so.
Mia looked to the cub once again. โIโll be right back,
little one. Let meโฆโ Her words trailed off as the pungent
scent of urine hit her, and a widening puddle emerged from
beneath the cub. She didnโt need her fatherโs shifter
senses. The small bearโs stark fear was unmistakable. There
was a reason the cub was hiding, cowering, in her pantry,
and she guessed it had everything to do with the man darn
near breaking down her door.
She held a hand out, palm facing the small one. โStay.โ
The only response she received was a tiny shudder.
More pounding from the front of the house echoed down the
hallway, the manโs increasing growls easily reaching her
through the old walls. If this guy had anything to do with
the cub, like she suspected, then sheโd be facing a werebear
pretty darned soon.
Which really sucked.
© 2003-2026