Wild Thing by Lena Austin

TITLE: Wild Thing
AUTHOR: Lena Austin
PUBLISHER: Changeling Press
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 17k)
GENRE: Gay paranormal erotic romance
COST: $3.99

Lee Porter is retreating to the house in Yellowstone he inherited from his grandmother in hopes of recovering from the sleep disorder that has completely disrupted his life when he discovers an injured feral man in his barn. He tends to Will’s hurt leg without realizing Will is actually a coyote shifter, but the attraction between them is definitely worth acting upon…

Humor is such a tenuous thing, especially in the written word. I don’t take risks with humor very often, not unless an author has proven him/herself to me, because it often falls so completely flat. I only wish there were more warnings on blurbs and books when it’s not immediately obvious.

In this story, Lee arrives at his house in Yellowstone, wondering if he’s going crazy. He’s been experiencing blackouts, losing time and ending up in weird places. It’s cost him his job, as well as his boyfriend, and he’s at his wit’s end. He finds an injured, naked man in his barn, one the reader already knows is a coyote shifter who has crawled away from his pack to die. He treats Will, classifying him as one of the feral people who are known to populate the area, without knowing about the shifter side. Will’s command of English is weak, but there’s a certain charm to his naivete that actually worked for me. Lee’s predicament is easy to figure out in the grand scheme of things, but the two men have chemistry, and I was excited to get into their relationship.

Then, they had sex. And I got yanked out of it. It wasn’t because of the characters, but rather, the author’s choice of terminology. Sphincter will never be sexy. Honestly. Especially twice in so many paragraphs. But the sentence, They were both riding the joy wagon to glory with every stroke up and down., made it worse. The problem is, it was very likely meant to be tongue in cheek. Because from that point forward, the whole tongue in cheek tone of the story began snowballing, from the prose to the twists in the plot. The reveal of what was going on with Lee was both predictable and corny, though I fully expect some people would consider it clever or funny. For me, however, I was so busy rolling my eyes and getting yanked out of the sensuality, it never worked, and ultimately spoiled the sweet charm of the set-up.

The book is actually the second in a series, and while the characters stand on their own, as well as the well-developed setting, the paranormal aspects aren’t quite as well explained. Readers of the series will probably enjoy it, though, as would readers who enjoy this author’s humor or writing style.

Readability	6/10 – While there’s a certain charm, most of the tongue-in-cheek tone didn’t work for me, while some of the terminology really turned me off
Hero #1	6/10 – Never fully fleshed, though definitely a nice guy
Hero #2	7/10 – Sweet in an otherworldly kind of way
Entertainment value	5/10 – Enjoyed first half much more than the second, as soon as more of the humor and sex scenes started, I lost interest
World building	7/10 – The physical space is well realized, but the paranormal aspects tend to rely upon the first story
TOTAL:	31/50

Selkie Island by Jorrie Spencer

TITLE: Selkie Island
AUTHOR: Jorrie Spencer
PUBLISHER: Samhain
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 22k)
GENRE: Paranormal romance
COST: $3.50

For too many years, Morag has lived the life of a selkie, but as time passes, she spends less and less time as human. A boat approaching her island encourages her to take human shape and investigate, but when she discovers the injured man it carries is the only man she’s ever loved, she does everything she can to nurse him back to health. Clay has escaped to Selkie Island to hide, because it’s a place he holds dear to his heart, the place he had his first love affair. He doesn’t expect to find Morag again on it, though, and he certainly doesn’t expect her to look the same as she did when he’s nine years older…

NOTE: This is a review originally written for Uniquely Pleasurable.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a fan of water-based shapeshifting stories. Nine times out of ten, I’ll see something aquatic in the blurb and completely pass it on by. But I stopped on this one for two reasons. One, I like this author. I’ve read a number of her stories, both het and gay, and while I might not have loved everything I read, I’ve certainly learned that this is an author that deserves my closer attention. Second, I love this cover. Love it. So, so, so much. I don’t buy books for the cover art – I spend far too much money on books as it is to add those kind of impulse buys to the cart – but good art will make me look twice, even if it’s a subject matter I might not necessarily want to read.

In this case, I’m oh so glad I took the time.

I think this could very well be my favorite work by this author. It is gentle, tender, and evocative, without treading in maudlin territory or destroying character credibility. Morag has spent years in this sort of half-life and though it saved her initially, over time, it has slowly destroyed her in other ways. She’s desperately lonely, something she notices more and more whenever she takes human form. It doesn’t get in the way of her being productive or throwing all her energy into being with Clay when he arrives, though, which is a tribute to her strength of character and the depth of her feelings for the man. Her innocence with the world, since she doesn’t leave the island, is a fascinating juxtaposition to her weariness of it.

Clay has the same effect on me. He’s been shot and is on the run from his boss, so he’s far more worldly than Morag, and yet, when these two are together, he regains an innocence he’s long since lost. His reactions when he starts questioning how it’s possible for Morag to still look the same are grounded in reality as well, without ever sliding into an extreme that would turn the story into melodrama. His feelings for her, and his need for sanctuary, temper what might otherwise be an instinct to run, creating an atmosphere of trust that coaxes the reader to believe as well.

There is some great atmosphere surrounding the island and its isolation, perhaps less so of Clay’s world. The focus on Selkie Island encourages the sense of fantasy prevalent in Morag and Clay’s relationship, giving them a haven to rediscover each other while never truly forgetting the other world that lies beyond. It makes it impossible not to be emotionally invested when the climax comes, and inevitable that this will rate as one of my favorite love stories for a very long time.

Readability	9/10 – Gentle and evocative
Hero	9/10 – Understandably reticent, but true to the core
Heroine	9/10 – Her melancholy and loneliness are tangible
Entertainment value	9/10 – Tugs so hard at heart strings that I still get choked up on re-reads
World building	8/10 – Great atmosphere and some lovely history of the island, but Clay’s background is understandably not as detailed
TOTAL:	44/50

Feral by Joely Skye

TITLE: Feral
AUTHOR: Joely Skye
PUBLISHER: Samhain Publishing
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 64k)
GENRE: Gay shapeshifter erotic romance
COST: $5.50

When cougar Ethan gets captured by a werewolf pack, he expects the same thing to happen that happened eight years earlier – that he’ll be contained and tortured, brought to the brink of death over and over again. He is forced to shift to his human self after eight years as a cat, but the torment he expects never comes. Instead, the young wolf Bram provides comfort, even if he helps to keep Ethan contained. But when Bram learns that his pack leader plans on giving Ethan over to others to study, he knows he can’t just sit idly by. It goes against his standing as the pack omega, but he still knows right from wrong. And he’ll do what he can to help the cougar who needs him…

NOTE: This is a review originally written for Uniquely Pleasurable.

Feral is the latest story from author Joely Skye, set in her unique world of shifters, and while select characters from the previous books make an appearance, reading those isn’t necessary to follow along in this new novel. It stands alone on its own merit, more cohesive and enjoyable than the last book, though it doesn’t quite reach the standards established by the first two (both het romances written under the author’s other pseudonym, Jorrie Spencer).

The story starts with a heart-pounding bang, as the wolves chase Ethan through snow and over mountains. The action is tight, the tension palpable, and by the time Ethan is caught, I was as anxious as he was about the upcoming consequences. It was a fascinating set-up and sucked me in, especially with the introduction of Bram, a werewolf omega. This is a damaged young man, eager to please, desperate for acceptance, hungry for the scraps he gets. At the same time, he harbors a rapidly growing anger at his situation, and especially at the pack leader who treats him so abysmally. It’s my fascination with him that propels me through the story, because even though he borders on being a little too angsty for me, I really wanted to see where he ended up going, how he might grow throughout the course of the action.

Ethan isn’t quite as interesting as Bram, though his predicament and the shades of depths he displays – even as manipulative as they might be, a necessary thing in his attempt to escape – kept me involved throughout the first half, and even into the second half of the story. Once he’s attained some measure of independence, however, I found I wasn’t as intrigued anymore. At that point, the tables are turned, and it’s Bram’s turn to be gentled, so to speak. The feral of the title applies equally to both leads, depending on the place in the story. But it also means that the emotions run a tad high at the most wrought parts, bordering on just too much.

The best part of any of these books has always been the author’s carefully constructed, fascinating world. Her shapeshifters are complex creatures, with rich histories and motivations, and it’s easy to become immersed in the alternate reality she presents. Their sensuality mirrors the growth of their relationships, and those evocative sections help to smooth over some of the otherwise jumpy mood transitions that mar what is still an entertaining read.

As an introduction into the world the author has created, this one is a superior choice to its predecessor, with a fantastic opening and characters with interesting flaws. There is much to enjoy here, as is usually the case with this particular author, and I’m looking forward to seeing where she goes next.

Readability	8/10 – There are sections that are borderline headhopping, which jarred me, and some of the mood jumps make it a little jerky, but otherwise a solid read
Hero #1	7/10 – Shades of depths get sacrificed when his vulnerable position is reversed
Hero #2	7/10 – There always felt like there was more potential to his omega position than was fully realized
Entertainment value	7/10 – Better than the book previous, but not as strong as the first two
World building	8/10 – The fascinating world the author creates is always her biggest strength
TOTAL:	37/50

Name of a Wolf by Jez Morrow

TITLE: Name of a Wolf
AUTHOR: Jez Morrow
PUBLISHER: Ellora’s Cave
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 30k)
GENRE: Gay historical shapeshifter erotic romance
COST: $5.20

Young aristocrat David Blackleigh falls in with a group of outlaws when his attempt to kill the man who stole his home from him fails. The commanding Connor is the most beautiful thing David has ever seen before, but in spite of his acceptance into the group, Connor seems determined to avoid David. The man harbors secrets, more than David expects, but love and desire have a way of making even the truth come out…

Sometimes, stories bite off more than they can chew, which ends up being the problem with this one. There is a lot crammed into this 30k novella, and the only way it’s able to get it all out there is to be very skimpy on the prose and details. A lot of stuff is simply glossed over, with very simple, direct sentences, and with the exception of the sharp first chapter, the entire thing reads like an outline for a book, rather than the book itself. It lacks any real depth to either the characters or their situations, and without those deeper forays, I can't really connect with what's going on except in the most superficial of ways.

The primary POV in this is David’s, though that line gets blurred more than once. It doesn’t really headhop, but there are definite sentences that slide out of David’s and into someone else’s, though only in the most superficial manner. It’s indicative of the rather loose effect the entire story has, like the lack of sharp focus on much of the detail. We get to see from the start just what David sees in Connor – there is never any angsting in this over his homosexuality at all – but Connor’s motivations suffer. Eventually, we learn more of his backstory, but the reasons why he ends up choosing David are murky at best. The most we really get is David’s the most beautiful man Connor’s ever seen. In addition to this, I end up feeling like Connor is much of an enigma because of the lack of insight into his personality. Except for the fact that he’s very nearly perfect, of course.

Is the prose bad? For the most part, no, though this exchange certainly doesn’t help matters:

Then Davy’s felt the heat of liquid fire release inside him, felt the magnificent animal shudder against him.

Don’t come.

Hell!

It was all Davy could do to contain his ardor.

Connor’s weight lifted from him. The air felt cool on Davy’s damp back. He was panting hard through clenched teeth, frustrated and longing, still holding back.

Connor turned him over. The light shimmered through Davy’s wet eyelashes. Connor smoothed tears from his face with his thumbs. “You’re crying?”

“No,” Davy bleated. “I think I came through my eyes. Connor, I’m so hot I could die.”

It's probably meant to be amusing, but I laughed at the sheer ridiculousness and inappropriate imagery it evoked, rather than what I think is the real intent of the line. It completely threw me from the rest of the scene, and in fact, from much of the rest of the story.

That’s not to say the story was bad. It wasn’t. I zipped through reading it, but when I was done, I was left feeling incredibly unfulfilled. It’s like eating cotton candy. It’s pretty and looks good, but the second it hits your tongue, it dissolves into nothing, and in the end, you’re left wondering why you even bothered.

Readability	6/10 – Overly simplistic, like the outline of a book rather than the whole story
Hero #1	6/10 – A tad too fervent for my tastes
Romance	4/10 – Know what I know about him? He’s…good looking.
Entertainment value	5/10 – Bland and ultimately unfulfilling
World building	6/10 – Once the strong beginning was past, details felt sketchy
TOTAL:	27/50

Heart of the Bear by Cindy Spencer Pape

TITLE: Heart of the Bear
AUTHOR: Cindy Spencer Pape
PUBLISHER: Total-e-bound
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 18k)
GENRE: Shapeshifter erotic romance
COST: ₤2.49

Psychic Hannah Lightfoot only has a couple days left to decide whether or not she wants to return to her job with the San Diego Police Department. A traumatic event three months earlier has had her questioning her purpose, but when she still can’t reach a decision at home, she retreats to her grandfather’s cabin in hopes a different setting will make the choice clear. Everything conspires against her as her car goes off the road, a storm drenches her, and then a strange naked man surprises her at the cabin. But that’s just the start of what turns out to be the weekend that will change her entire life…

Novellas that try to set up paranormal series have a lot of work to do. The more complicated the world, the harder the job. The gorgeous cover on this particular story drew me in – April Martinez should be proud of another beautiful one – but ultimately, it failed to engage me into trying any more of this new series.

The world the author is setting up is a complex one. Hannah’s brother Will is part of a 5-man organization called Guardian; the hero in this story, Evan, is a member of it. It’s clear this is going to be at least a 5-book series, one for each of the men in the unit. Evan’s family are all shifters, and Will is a precog. There are hints throughout the book that the paranormal world is quite extensive, that Hannah's psychic ability isn't really that unusual, but very little of the world-building happens organically. Evan spends a lot of the time explaining things to Hannah, or we learn of it in exposition after the fact. We get most of Hannah’s backstory as statement after the fact, too, but it’s all indicative of a tell not show style that prevails throughout the story. This style of storytelling very rarely works for me. It drags down any chance this novella has to engage me.

Any other chance is taken away by both the hero and heroine’s swift “romance,” and Evan’s unrealistic dialogue. Evan and Hannah have sex almost immediately after he saves her from a bear attack in the woods – within minutes of seeing other for the first time. She barely knows his name and they’re doing it on the floor. And then in the shower. Within 12 hours, she’s melting just from the look in his eye, and all I can think, “Oh, brother.” By Evan's own admission, it's a mate recognition thing - Another thing you need to know about my family—we mate for life. When one of us finds the other half of our soul, it isn’t a long, drawn-out process. It’s almost always a case of love at first sight. - and I can't help but see that as shorthand for let's get to the sex and not worry about real relationship development. Toss in the fact that Evan says things like, Your hair is incredible and your eyes are like green velvet. You have the most luscious ass I’ve ever seen, and these incredibly feminine hips make me crazy, and You fit me like a glove, and I’m out of it. People don’t talk like that. Incredibly feminine hips? What exactly is that even supposed to mean?

The story does better when it slips into an unexpected kidnapping case for the couple, but while I don’t have to put up with unbelievable dialogue there, I do get subjected to more of the telling not showing. In the end, it’s just not going to work for me. I have another of this author’s stories in my TBR pile, and I’ve seriously wondered if I should bother reading it. I decided I still will. It’s novel-length, so hopefully it won’t fall into the same pitfalls as this novella, and it’s also not a paranormal. I’m keeping my fingers crossed.

Readability	6/10 – Minor editing issues, unrealistic dialogue, and telling not showing hinder what could be pretty smooth prose.
Hero	4/10 – Flat and not very interesting, especially with his unrealistic declarations
Heroine	5/10 – Only milder better than the hero, but at least she’s smart in a fight
Entertainment value	3/10 – Between information dumps to set up the series and a rush on the relationship, I’m almost surprised I finished it.
World building	5/10 – There is far too much telling in order to set up the series, and it makes for very boring reading.
TOTAL:	23/50

Spiritual Noelle by Jet Mykles

TITLE: Spiritual Noelle
AUTHOR: Jet Mykles
PUBLISHER: Loose Id
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 34k)
GENRE: Paranormal ménage erotic romance
COST: $4.99

Witch Noelle has made a decision. She wants to be in a relationship with Daniel, the witch she’s been helping teach how to control his powers, and his leashed shapeshifter Jake. Abandoning her family’s holiday plans, she returns to their reclusive home to put her plan into motion, helped by a storm that traps them in the cabin for days on end. The only problem is, Daniel keeps insisting he’s not gay, but Noelle suspects his feelings for his best friend run far deeper than he’ll admit…

Coming into an established series in the middle is always a dangerous practice. If too much backstory is left out, a reader is left wondering what’s going on. If too much is put in, it often gets dry and dull while the reader waits for the story to pick up. I knew I was taking a risk by finally getting around to reading this story.

As far as I can tell (and I could be wrong because I haven’t read anything else in this series), this is Noelle’s first story. She might have been introduced in an earlier book, along with her conflict regarding Daniel and Jake. I don’t know. I do know that it feels very much like walking into the middle of the movie. The author attempts to fill in the details of the extensive paranormal world she’s created somewhat early in the story, and for the most part, I think she succeeds. But where it’s less successful is providing necessary background to the main characters themselves, specifically Daniel and Jake. It would have been easier to accept the holes I had regarding their motivations and the like if I was more invested in them – and Noelle – as characters. But unfortunately, that’s not what happened.

It started with my distrust and dislike for Noelle. The story is told in 1^st person from her POV. On the very first page, there’s this:

I was intrigued by her sex life. My little sister had leashed two shapeshifters, a rare feat in and of itself. But even more amazing was that, by all accounts, these men were not only gorgeous, but they had been lovers before she leashed them. I’d spoken to Meg myself on the phone on Thanksgiving before the family sat down to dinner. Although my sister was notoriously close-mouthed about her personal life -- when she had one -- I’d gotten enough to know that yes, the men were not only involved but that now all three of them were in a sexual relationship. Two men. My little sister had two men.

If she could, could I?

This is pretty much the introduction to Noelle. There’s no mention of the men, or her feelings, until after this. In fact, the paragraph prior to this is all about Noelle and her family as well. This makes the entire scene that follows, where she calls the men, drops in uninvited, and gets herself stuck with them, feel very calculated and manipulative. Without knowing anything else about Noelle, I get a sense that this is all about one-upmanship for her. That, in and of itself, isn’t a bad thing. There’s certainly enough romances out there that start out in that vein, only to grow into something more. But it didn’t work here for me, mostly because I don't think that was the intent. I disconnected emotionally from Noelle, especially since it just seemed that all she really liked about Daniel was that he was the most gorgeous man she’d ever seen.

Daniel also presents a problem. From the beginning, he is sullen and resentful. I can’t for the life of me figure out what there is to like about him. He clearly doesn’t want Noelle around when she arrives, and the sense that she’s intruding on the two men’s lives together – they live together as platonic best friends – hangs heavily through all their early scenes. Even when Noelle starts to put her plan into motion and seduces Daniel, he takes forever to rise above his bad temperament to reach a place where I could even start to like him. It’s not that I think Daniel was ever a bad guy or anything, but his feelings for Jake are clear from the get-go, and Noelle always feels like a third wheel, even after everything has supposedly been sorted out between them.

The story’s strengths never seem to overcome my inability to engage with two of the three main characters. Though there are some minor editing issues with missing words and the author has a propensity for exclamation points that annoys me, the prose is relatively smooth and easy to read. The sex scenes are reasonably hot, as well. It’s just never quite enough to compensate for how manipulated Noelle made me feel.

Readability	8/10 – Minor editing issues and an overuse of exclamation points pull me out of what could have been very smooth prose
Menage	3/10 – The sex is hot, but I didn’t believe the romance or invest in the trio in the slightest
Characterization	7/10 – Developed all right for the length of the story, but two of the three are incredibly unlikable for more than half the story
Entertainment value	4/10 – I spent most of the story disliking two of the three characters and feeling incredibly manipulated.
World building	7/10 – The author does what she can to explain the heavyduty paranormal aspects of her world, but for new readers to the series, it’s clunky and leaves a lot of questions unanswered
TOTAL:	29/50

Golden Eyes by Maya Banks

TITLE: Golden Eyes
AUTHOR: Maya Banks
PUBLISHER: Loose Id
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 38k)
GENRE: Shapeshifter erotic romance
COST: $5.99

Sheriff Duncan Kennedy is investigating claims of a lion in his Colorado mountains, when he encounters poachers tracking an injured cheetah. When she gives every sign that she’s not going to hurt him, he decides to take her back to town to keep her safe. Without someplace to keep her, he locks her in the mudroom of his house, only to come back later to discover an injured naked woman in the cheetah’s place. Aliyah Carver is a shapeshifter who was captured on a run in Africa, then transported to the US. Her captors bring the wild to hunters willing to pay the price, but they’re still alive, and probably looking for her, when she accepts Duncan’s hospitality. The two connect as she heals up, but Duncan is determined to catch the poachers in his mountains. Before they find Aliyah and finish the job…

Maya Banks is one of those authors I keep thinking I want to love, but I have yet to find a story that engages me with the passion other readers seem to have for her work. Sometimes, I wonder if it’s because my expectations are too high. Kind of like when people go on and on about a movie they absolutely love, and you walk in, watch it, then walk back out thinking, “Eh, I suppose it was all right.” I don’t know. But for whatever reason, I’m still waiting for this author to click for me.

There was a definite moment when I thought this might be that story. The opening is tight, visual, and emotionally appealing, as Aliyah flees the poachers, gets hurt, and then gets discovered by Duncan. By the end of the second chapter, I was racing along, eager to devour the rest of the book. Chapter Three was more of the same, because now there was Duncan’s discovery. He was such a sympathetic, engaging character from the start that I completely believed his shock and awe. Where the story started falling apart for me was at the end of chapter four. From there on, everything I’d loved about the beginning dissolved away.

In spite of accelerated healing, Aliyah is seriously hurt. She took an arrow – a nasty one – deep into her thigh. Duncan has to rip it out of her body. It does just as much damage coming out as it did going in. Yet, chapter five has the sex starting, the very same night he brings her home. Oh, sure, Duncan’s careful about her injury. He has her get on his hands and knees so that she doesn’t have to spread her legs too wide and potentially aggravate her injury. I might not have minded so much that this just seemed hugely illogical to happen so early if it didn’t get followed by more of the same. A lot more of the same. There’s brief scenes where Duncan goes off in search of the poachers and Aliyah thinks about home, but those mostly just pass the time until they can get together and have sex again. It got old very, very fast.

It might have been more tolerable if Aliyah actually had some sort of personality in this. Duncan is the one who gets all the characterization, though that gets stunted once the two start having sex. Aliyah is boring to the nth degree, an object of his fascination more than anything else. Perhaps because she’s likes sex, likes adventure, that’s supposed to make her edgy and raw. Except when she’s not having sex, she’s all weepy about missing her family, the poaching, etc. There’s little to balance between the two. Because of my inability to connect with her, I disengaged from most of the sex after the first scene. Since that comprised most of the actual story, I didn’t have much to hold me in then.

The beginning proves to me I could really like this author. Now, if I could just find the story that carried that tight, evocative writing all the way through, I’d be a very happy reader.

Readability	8/10 – Smooth prose can’t save repetitive scenes
Hero	7/10 – There are the starts of a real humdinger of a sympathetic alpha hero, but then he gets lost in all the sex.
Heroine	4/10 – If there was a personality there, I never found it.
Entertainment value	5/10 – A truly fantastic beginning degenerates into a string of sex scenes that do nothing to engage me with the characters.
World building	7/10 – The world of Colorado was built much more gracefully than the shifter lore, which came out in inelegant information dumps that disrupted the flow of the story.
TOTAL:	31/50