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A Promise of Fire
RECOMMENDED: A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet is $1.99! The next two books are also available at a reduced price. I gave the book an A, though there’s a great discussion in the comments if you’re on the fence:
I can say, without a doubt, that A Promise of Fire is going on my keeper shelf. I want more of these characters and I want more of this world. I cannot remember the last time I wanted to both savor and devour a book, and Bouchet’s writing is so engaging and magical that I wish she had some sort of backlist I could dive into for the next few months.
KINGDOMS WILL RISE AND FALL FOR HER…
“Cat” Catalia Fisa lives disguised as a soothsayer in a traveling circus. She is perfectly content avoiding the danger and destiny the Gods—and her homicidal mother—have saddled her with. That is, until Griffin, an ambitious warlord from the magic-deprived south, fixes her with his steely gaze and upsets her illusion of safety forever.
BUT NOT IF SHE CAN HELP IT
Griffin knows Cat is the Kingmaker, the woman who divines the truth through lies. He wants her as a powerful weapon for his newly conquered realm—until he realizes he wants her for much more than her magic. Cat fights him at every turn, but Griffin’s fairness, loyalty, and smoldering advances make him increasingly hard to resist and leave her wondering if life really does have to be short, and lived alone.
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Bite Me
Bite Me by Shelly Laurenston is $1.99! This is part of her Pride series and has a honey badger shifter heroine. Some readers felt this one jumped around to much between points of view. However, others loved seeing the hero and heroine interacting together. Have you read this one?
Livy Kowalski has no time for idiots. When you shapeshift into a honey badger, getting through life’s irritants is a finely honed skill. Until she gets stuck housing her nutso cousin and dealing with her dad’s untimely and unexplained demise.
That’s where Vic Barinov comes in—or his house does. Vic can’t step outside without coming back to find Livy devouring his honey stash and getting the TV remote sticky. It gets his animal instincts all riled up. But he’ll have to woo her at high speed: all hell is breaking loose, and Livy is leading the charge…
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Marked
Marked by Rebecca Zanetti is $1.99! This is a paranormal romance with a friends to lovers and forced proximity element. Some reviews mentioned readers waiting for this couple to get there book. So while I could be read as a standalone, things might pack a better emotional punch if you’re more familiar with the series.
Janie Kayrs has known Zane almost her whole life. He was her friend in the dream world. She trusted him. But that was before he kidnapped her, spiriting her away to an isolated cabin to learn what her dreams never told her. Like how dangerous he looks. How he got on the wrong side of the negotiating table. And how much sexier he is in real life…
Zane is a battle-hardened warrior, used to command and solitude. But Janie has drawn him from the minute they met. His need for her could destroy everything he’s worked for, but the risk is too sweet not to take it. They call her the Chosen One. But when it comes down to the questions of peace or war, life or death, safety or passion, it will be Janie who makes the choice…
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Not Always a Saint
Not Always a Saint by Mary Jo Putney is $1.99! Hopefully, it’ll be price matched elsewhere. This is also the most recent release in the Lost Lords series and was mentioned on a previous podcast. Many readers loved the hero and heroine separately, but found things lacking in their romance.
After the death of his sweetheart when he was at university, Daniel Herbert buried his grief in medical studies and his passion for healing. Viewed as a saint by those who know him, in his own mind, he never quite manages to live up to his own high standards.
Most men would be thrilled to learn they’ve inherited a title and estate from a distant relative, but Daniel is appalled because the burden of wealth will interfere with his medical calling. Warily he accepts that he must enter society and seek a wife—a sensible woman who can oversee his properties, leaving him free to continue his work. He does not expect to become intoxicated by a woman called the Black Widow, who is as mysterious as she is shockingly beautiful…
Jessie Kelham’s looks have always been a curse. Now alone with a young daughter and a perilous secret, she is in need of protection. But dangerously attractive Daniel Herbert is not the kind of husband she has in mind. If he recognizes her, the demons of her past will surely erupt. Yet they cannot keep apart—and soon they are drawn into a union that may bring joy—or shattering danger…
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Bite Me might be my favorite Laurenston, which is saying a lot. As previously stated on this site, you’re either pro-Laurenston or hate her writing with a passion, so I recommend reading the sample. I find her books delightful, as they deal with darker storylines while still having a lot of fun.
Also, For Real by Alexis Hall is $0.99, MM with BDSM and an age difference. Be careful if you think you’ve bought these books before, as they seem to have been given new isbn on amazon. I knew I had read it but Amz doesn’t show me as owning it because of the number change.
A Few Good Fish by Amy Lane (m/m suspense & 3rd in a series) is 99 cents today.
Wait, the dude in Bite Me is a white tiger?? Does that mean he’s a cross-eyed, inbred genetic mess or…magic?? I mean, magic to some extent, obviously. But I feel like a honey badger could do so much better…
The dude in Bite Me is a tiger/bear cross. This was apparently the best the cover art people could come up with. Though Vic’s shifted form is…entertaining. Heh.
@Katie Lynn, Alexis Hall got his rights back from Riptide and republished them, hence the new ISBNs. For Real is one of my all-time faves and the new cover is SO MUCH BETTER than the old one!
@MegS –
This isn’t my genre and I realize that people like what they like… but what the everloving hell is a tiger/bear cross?
My question is similar to MsCellanie’s. Do Laurenston’s characters actually shift into animal form, and — if so — does a tiger/bear hybrid have the ability to shift into either a tiger or a bear or does he shift into a biger/tear?
Or are they simply humanoids with the characteristics of animals but no transformation?
@Deborah From what I can tell, it depends on the character and the species. In the most recent book of hers I read about a bunch of honey badger sisters, that were all mixed breeds with other species. How much they shift depended. So one sister could do fangs and claws, another turned into a horrific honey badger/siberian tiger monster and I don’t remember the others.
Then the regular shifters usually can do full shift to their creature as well as bringing aspects of their creature in for a partial shift with claws and things like that and without shifting, they always have certain abilities like better senses. It works in context and what you can shift into and how much at times seems to be a plot point too. It makes sense in context from the book I read: Badgered, which involved a lot of different species. I want to read more of her books because I enjoyed the shifting world more than her Crows/Viking one, still violent but also lots of families and friendships along with the hot sex and romance.
This is funny. I just downloaded the sample for Bite Me and there’s an author’s note at the beginning. Quoted here:
Dear Reader—
As those of you who have read my books over the years know, I am against bigotry of any kind. Especially bigotry against my friends . . . the hybrid shifters.
I’m the first to say it’s unfair to have prejudice against those with tusk-like fangs or snaggle-claws or excessively long legs combined with tiny paws. It’s just wrong to hate those differently endowed. And, until the end of time, I will stand tall with my mutt . . . er . . . my hybrid soul siblings.
That being said, there’s only so much pressure I can put on a design team. Especially the team that creates all my lovely covers. And with that in mind, I’m sure that all my loyal readers and hybrid friends will forgive the liberties taken with Bite Me.
Now it’s true that our hero, Vic Barinov, is a grizzly-tiger hybrid, but creating a cover that can successfully get that across . . . that’s a bit of a challenge. So one animal was chosen—the sexy tiger. I know some grizzlies will take this as an affront, and I’m the first to say that the Ursidae is just as sexy as the feline. But there’s only so much an artist can do.
So, yes, I’m fully aware the cover has a white tiger on it, and no, it’s not a mistake. It’s simply the limitations of a non-shifter society, unable to conceive of the wonder that is a grizzly-Siberian tiger male with a honey fetish and introvert tendencies.
But, hopefully, in time, when the world comes to truly understand the wonders of the hybrid nation, this situation will be a thing of the past. Until then, let’s all just enjoy the pretty kitty on my cover.
—Shelly Laurenston
Shelly’s shifters shift between human form and animal form in both the Laurenston books as well as those written as G.A. Aiken. Those who are hybrid species shift into a blended form just as a real life hybrid displays characteristics from both parents. In Vic’s case, “big” is an obvious characteristic.
JJB, the white tiger on the cover is artistic license, the bane of many an author. Vic is Siberian Tiger and Kamchatka Grizzly. Maybe a honey badger could do better in your opinion, on the other hand, one could certainly do worse.
I would say that the writers note from Shelly Laurenston that @Mary K posted above is pretty indicative of her world view and writing. (I’m a huge fan of hers ). If you thought that was pretty funny, you should definitely give her a try.
You can’t overthink Laurenston; you just go along for the ride. Sometimes you need some pointless hilarity in your life, and that’s what she delivers. In spades.
I have to say that some of her books work a lot better for me than others, but when one clicks, it’s pure gold.
I really liked Bite Me. It’s one of my favorite Laurenston. As Katie Lynn says if you like the preview that you can download and appreciate her quirky, funny style, you might really appreciate this book. Another of my favorites is Beast Behaving Badly–Bo “The Marauder” Novikov’s obsessive focus on his schedule and the shifter version of hockey and the ditsy wonder that is Blayne make for a fun read.
Thank you Joy! I was thinking that the description of Nite Me sounded a bite familiar. I have read something in that world, Beast Behaving Badly.
“the wonder that is a grizzly-Siberian tiger male with a honey fetish and introvert tendencies.”
Ok, sold!!!
I liked A Promise of Fire but I disliked the sequel – the heroine felt much younger and more immature to me in the second book, and it felt like (very teenage) relationship drama took over the story. I’ve never felt motivated to pick up the third book at a result.
Laurenston/Aiken is definitely an acquired taste, but to those who have done so, she’s fabulous and we read everything she does. Annwyl the Bloody & her future SILs in the Dragon Kin series are absolutely f**king brilliant. Feel the same way about her Pride series. The Crows? Yes, please. One (or technically two?) of only a handful of autobuy authors for me.
TBH, at this point, she’s a major comfort read for me. Get lots of side-eye from my mother for laughing out loud when reading her, especially in doctors offices and hospitals. No regrets. None. Will do again.
In A Badger Way (Shen! Panda shifter!) is scheduled for a late March 2019 release but what about her Crows? Anyone have news on that front?
@kitkat9000: After some hunting around, Laurenston apparently said in a newsletter than she finished her 3-book deal for The Crows, but that she doesn’t feel like she’s done with them as characters yet.
So more may be coming in terms of Laurenston’s brain space, but it doesn’t sound like any deals have been made yet for more.
@cbackson, I had the same reaction and could have written your comment word for word. I would still recommend the first book, especially if it’s on sale.
@cbackson and @susanE, i completely agree with both of your comments, the second book was a real disappointment compared to the first
This post sent me back to re-reading Laurenston’s The Crow series, which I absolutely love. I’ve also read all of her shifter books, but haven’t got to the dragon series. I love her humor and her kick ass women-the books I’ve read of hers, are totally satisfying for me.
I would love to see a movie version of her Crow series, it is so vivid and seems like it would be so adaptable for a movie.