What to Read

#TBT Recs: Shifter Style

In the grand fandom debate of vampire vs. shifter, I am a shifter stan 100%. I love a vampire story, but my heart belongs to a shifter. Okay, full disclosure, I wasn’t Team Jacob, but I was Team Some Other Dudes in his Pack because shifters are sexy. Full stop. It’s the pure animal magnetism that pulls me into their orbit so securely. They run a little hotter; they feel a little more passionate, almost out of control, yet they have to have firm control to keep their dual identities in check. I mean, I’m Team Shifter, not Team Bestiality! Gross. I’m also Team Paranormal because you get to completely shrug off the real world and immerse yourself in a new world created by a relatively sane author with good intentions, not a 24-hour news cycle. I love it. I love it when it feels real and possible, and I love, LOVE when it feels bananas!

It’s easy to immediately point out the MACRIEVE clan from Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark. That’s almost too easy because they are rugged, broken perfection. They are my ultimate werewolf catnip. Kerrelyn Sparks, another paranormal fave of mine, has many different types of shifters in her Love at Stake series. I read my first bear shifter, Howard in Wild About You, fell in love with his love of sweets, and I’ve never looked back.

If bear shifters are your jam, and they really should be, you should also check out Kathy Lyons’ Grizzlies Gone Wild series. The mythology behind their existence is well thought out, and the larger story arc of the series is wild, fast-paced roller coaster of awesome. It has good vs. evil, bad guys trying to take over the world, love between rival families, it’s the total package. My favorite part of the series is the genuine reaction the humans have when they discover bear shifters live amongst them. Their reactions are so pure, it makes me laugh every single time the secret is revealed in Grizzlies Gone Wild.

But today’s #TBT focus is on the bananas side of things. You can not be a fan of shifters and not love Celia Kyle’s Grayslake series. When I say something is bananas, I mean absolutely no disrespect. The Grayslake series is tightly written, fleshed out foray into escapism like no other. Look no further than book #4, Love at First Roar. Our heroine is Kira Kolanowski. She is a half-blind weremole. WEREMOLE people, a weremole! I dare you to read that sentence again and not smile! Moles typically live in the dark, burrowing, with not so great eyesight, it’s remarkably not hard to make this leap! It’s a genius idea, really. And who is our hero in this tale? Sexy-smelling Isaac Abrams, a WEREBEAR! Of course, our hero is a werebear, werebears are the best, and they deserve all of the love. Isaac is left scarred after a battle with the hyenas. Do you see the bananas sneaking into this plot? Kira’s eyesight is not good, Isaac’s face is scarred, this mole and bear pairing is an unlikely match made in the stars! I love it so much. Bananas are your friend, embrace them and let them sweep you away!

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Donna Soluri

Donna Soluri started in the book world as Scandalicious; now, this almost empty nester is going her own way. A lover of cupcakes, champagne, old-school rap, and Harry Styles she likes to read books with characters closer to her age still romancing and kissing and causing trouble.