shifter

Bite Me by PJ Schnyder

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Bite Me (London Undead, #1)

Grade: B+
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Paranormal (shifter, zombie), Novella
Series: London Undead #1
Reviewed by Anne
90 pages
Zombies have invaded the world, but seem especially drawn to London.  Werewolves have always existed in secret, and they are immune to the zombie virus.  The zombie outbreak presented them with an opportunity to come out to the world.  Seth is Alpha of a werewolf pack in London.  He and his pack are working to protect the humans, even though many humans are still pretty scared of werewolves.  Maisie is a young woman who was orphaned and maimed in a zombie attack.  She’s on her own now, and despite needing crutches to walk for any distance, she is a fierce hunter and defender of those she cares about.  One night she comes across some tourists under zombie attack.  Yes, in this London there are still tourists.  Now they come to see or hunt the zombies!  Just as Maisie’s assistance is looking to be not quite enough, Seth comes to their aid.  He’s fascinated by this small but feisty human.  She admires his strength and skill and remarkably isn’t afraid of his bad werewolf self.  
 
I really liked this story! The author accomplished a lot in a novella format, leaving me with both a satisfying story and some unanswered questions about the world she built. Maisie and Seth were fun characters, though a little simple, probably due to the novella format. The post-zombie attack London – complete with the Zombie Hunter tourist crowd was well done! There were interesting questions about the zombies. What had started them? What might stop them? Why were they so drawn to London?  There’s plenty to work with in future installments.

I loved that Maisie is really tough, even though she’s a human. Seth, as alpha of his pack was a pretty stereotypical alpha with the heart of gold. I’m pretty fond of that stereotype, though, so it wasn’t a problem for me.

I did have one issue with the story, though. I thought the ending was too much, too abrupt, and too soon.  It was both that I wanted more time with Seth and Maisie and that the final sex scene seemed poorly timed. Maybe a few days later would have been more believable.

It says a lot of good about the book that my complaint has to do with the sex in it. Generally I complain because a book has too little sex. In this case I was so engrossed in the story, the sex pulled me out (ha!) of it. So it’s a good thing.

I recommend this book for readers who enjoy a good shifter story and those who enjoy a strong female lead. I really enjoyed it and will be looking for the next one!

I will say I’m not a huge fan of the cover.  I’m fine with a romance that has zombies in it. Not so much zombies on the cover. Or maybe that’s supposed to be Maisie?  It’s definitely not my favorite cover.  What do you think?

Dark Wolf by Kate Douglas

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Dark Wolf (Spirit Wild, #1)

Grade: B+
Hotness Level: Inferno
Kink Level: Low Kink
Genre: Shifter, menage
Series: Spirit Wild #1
Reviewed by Anne
 
Lily is a successful leader in her community of Chanku (shifters).  They are known in the human world and she’s sort of an unofficial princess and official representative of her people.  Sebastian is the son of the Chanku’s most outspoken opponent.  Lily’s Chanku heritage allows her to shift into a wolf, and she has magic as well.  Sebastian uses magic alone to shift into wolf form. Sebastian grew up separated from his father, only discovering his existence when his mother was dying.  Despite her objections, Sebastian sought out his father and is now regretting his actions. 
Recently a serial rapist and killer has been attacking human women.  The women are raped and then savaged by wolves, which points to a Chanku killer.  However, Sebastian also has weird things going on in his life that make him wonder if he or his father are somehow involved.
 
This book really worked for me!  Though it’s listed as first in a series on Goodreads, I could tell as I read that there had been books before it.  A little research shows that this Spirit Wild series is a spin off or next generation series from the Wolf Tales (and other books) the author has written.  Still, I read Dark Wolf with no problems keeping up with the many characters.  I also thought the world building was done well.  It came in little pieces as I read, and again, I had no problems keeping up. 

The book reminded me of Lora Leigh’s Breeds series and Kit Rocha’s O’Kane books.  Lora Leigh because of the animalistic, even in human form, characters as well as their highly sexual nature.  The Kit Rocha comparison comes because of the multi partner accepting and sexually open society the Chanku have.  Initially that caught me off guard, but I liked the community the author created.  I was a bit surprised at how accepting Sebastian was of this when he learned of it.  That was a bit unrealistic for me.  I did like their society/pack and enjoyed reading about it.
 
Another small weakness to me was in the secondary storyline between Annie and Alex.  Annie pops on the scene with no mention her beforehand around page 100.  She’s been out of the country and mostly out of touch for years, but suddenly she and Lily are best friends.  I also thought the Annie and Alex story arc felt a bit rushed, but that was just a minor quibble for me.

The sex scenes were very well done and hot.  I enjoyed them!  Lily and Sebastian were great characters and I could really understand where they were coming from.  I liked the world the book took place in a lot.  I’ve already mentioned the sexually accepting society, but I also liked the pack and mate telepathy as well as the mate bonding.  The women were strong and essential parts of their pack, which I appreciated. Lily even came across as stronger and more sure of herself than Sebastian, and it’s rare to see something like that in a romance, and especially to have it work so well!  

Sometimes the things going on seemed a little over the top, but I liked it overall enough to set aside those moments.  I’m putting this book on my Best of 2013 list and I really look forward to reading another book in this series!

Inferno by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Inferno (Chronicles of Nick, #4)
Grade-A
Hotness Level-None
Kink Level-None
Series-Chronicles of Nick #4
Reviewed by Kay

Nick Gautier is continuing to realize just exactly how hard life can be for a teenager. His girlfriend needs to kill him, his dad wants to kill him, so does his protector, he’s still ostracized at school and his mom is still as strict as ever. On the plus side, his mom loves him, he has good friends he can trust, which include Ash and Kyrian, the most popular girl in school wants to date him and he gets his driver’s license.

Anybody who has ever read Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series should read this one too. It’s the story of Nick’s teenage life as it melds with the future. Nick is to become the ultimate evil as an adult. It’s kind of like prophecy. As the reader, we get glimpses of the future with a evil Nick and they are horrific at best. This series is the constant battle he has to be good and not turn evil. There’s even a little bit of romance thrown in. I love this series and this book was no exception. The relationship between Nick and his mother is just so sweet. I loved this book and wish I didn’t have wait a year for the next one!