Shifter | Angela Knight, Lora Leigh, ...

Shifter | Angela Knight, Lora Leigh, ... | 2 Keeper tales in this satisfying anthology

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Shifter

	Shifter Angela Knight, Lora Leigh, ... Berkley, 2008 - 336 pages average customer review:based on 18 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

WHEN IT COMES TO SHAPESHIFTING PARANORMAL ROMANCE, WHO CAN RESIST... New York Times bestselling author Angela Knight, USA Today bestselling author Lora Leigh, and national bestselling authors Alyssa Day and Virginia Kantra? Whether transforming under a blue moon or prowling the streets, the shifters come alive to fulfill the wildest of fantasies in this seductive anthology by four masters of paranormal romance.

Shifter

"Mad Dog Love" by Angela Knight

Rance Conlan cannot believe he let himself get captured by a slave merchant. Normally, he would be able to shift into his powerful wolf self, but right now all of his control is at the mercy of the merchant and he doesn't have any. Zarifa Lorezo, is looking for a shifter to help her with her self-imposed mission. Zarifa has to be careful, as she is an on-the-run-empress. Once she meets Rance, Zarifa knows that he cannot only help her, but can possibly be trusted with her secrets. Now if she can just pull this off. Rance has reason to disbelieve Zarifa when he finds out who she is, but reality does not seem to match the so-called facts. Both Rance and Zarifa know they have the future of the very empire depending on them reaching their destination and righting thewrongs of the past.

"Mad Dog Love" gives an intergalactic thrust into what can happen when one person decides to fight greed and lies. Zarifa has two lives, her public one that shows a party girl and her private one that now consists of her determination to right a wrong that happened before her birth. Rance was working on helping fight for the empire when he was captured. Rance and Zarifa came together while they had both been working for the same thing without knowing it. I was taken by the immediate flash and passion between them. I never know where Ms. Knight is going to take me when I open one of her books but I'm always willing to go there with her. In this case, I was pleased to find a couple who had no reason to believe each other, battling the odds and not only finding justice but a love that will take them across the galaxy.

"A Jaguar's Kiss" by Lora Leigh

Natalie Ricci, is a school teacher who decided to challenge the extreme odds and send in an application to teach the breed children. She never expected to be picked after so many months had gone by with no word. Saban Broussard, a black jaguar breed with a Cajun voice knows just what he wants to do with Natalie, but his job is to bring her to meet with the Breed Ruling Cabinet and her new teaching job. Natalie believes herself to be a sensible person but Saban is about to drive her crazy. He's always around and the attraction is thicker every day. When the tension comes to a point and they share a kiss, Natalie learns there is more "fact than fiction" to the breeds then she truly believed. Saban knows that now not only does he have to show Natalie what she means to him but also to keep her safe as the council is just waiting for its chance to grab a breed mate.

"A Jaguar's Kiss" brings Saban the mate he has always wanted but doubted he would ever find. Saban is one of the breed enforcers working on security. He leaves for his job of escorting Natalie to the Cabinet only to discover his job is more personal than ever. Natalie has ended a bad marriage and is looking forward to a new life, it's looking up when she learns that she won the breed job. However, Natalie is much more concerned with the sexy breed who won't leave her alone. The differences between Saban and Natalie played off each other perfectly. I could feel the tension between them from the opening of the door the first time and it never left. While Saban and Natalie are hot together, there are times that the subtle eroticism of a touch, look or even a statement can speak volumes. I found that Ms. Leigh has all with "A Jaguar's Kiss".

"Shifter's Lady" by Alyssa Day

Ethan is a panther shifter and the alpha of Big Cypress Pack. In the recent past, he has lost much but rather than living in the past, Ethan is going forward and is helping to lead his pack in helping those from Atlantis. Another thing on his mind is who is coming into his territory and killing panthers. Ethan is there to welcome the Bastien's sister. Marie, First Maiden of the Temple of the Nereids, has never left Atlantis but is anxious to meet the soul mate of her brother's. Marie knows the times are not the best for traveling but she just can't wait to see her brother again and meet Kat. However, right after arriving, it is not her brother or Kat that holds her attention but rather a sexy man who is very arrogant. Neither Ethan nor Marie could have guessed what this first meeting would come to or how her simple visit would quickly be changed with the mixture of danger and a love neither expected.

"Shifter's Lady" brings two alphas together in a soul bound that is not to be denied. Ethan has lost one mate and does not expect to find anyone else to fit that area in his life for a very long time if ever. Marie has spent her entire life using her powers and training as the First Maiden and has never even left her homeland. Both Ethan and Marie are leaders in their own ways and when they meet and a furious attraction is felt, it remains to be seen what will happen. I was very happy that Ethan was made to wait too long for a mate after losing his. I read along watching as they learned to trust each other and the rules of each other's world. While I understand the way it ended, I truly wished there could have been another way. However, I'm going to read on and watch how Marie and Ethan have their happy ending as the series goes on. If you have been following the Atlantis series, then this will be a must read to keep up with the who, what and whens.

"Sea Crossing" by Virginia Kantra

Emma March, is a teacher who has found herself forced to seek new employment, in another country. However, the trip across the sea does not go as expected and her ship has a serious problem. Forced to abandon ship, Emma ends up in the water and awakens in a bed she does not know. Griffith ap Powell ap Morgan ap Dafydd, is a Selkie and a Warden on the estate Emma is brought to. However, Emma is not aware that such thing as Selkies exists and Griffith is not about to tell her now. Emma is convinced to stay and teach the children and is quickly falling for Griffith. Until one day, when one of the children has what appears to be a seizure and Emma learns that there is much more to the world and her place in it then she ever believed. Now Emma will have to decide if she can believe everything that Griffith has told her or if she will demand to leave her new home.

"Sea Crossing" takes a single schoolteacher who took a wrong step and thrusts her into a world that is very different than anything she would have imagined. Emma has burned her bridges when she slept with the wrong man and had to either seek a new life or become his mistress. Griffith was following orders when he rescued Emma, but soon he found his own wants are taking over his actions. I watched as Emma and Griffith worked their way around each other and then settled into a companionship only to have it threatened by fear of the unknown. "Sea Crossing" is a historical look at the paranormal world and I was intrigued as Selkies is not a usual creature picked. While I do not know Ms. Kantra as well as the other authors, I found her story to be a fitting last entry.

Shifter combines three authors I have come to auto buy and one author I have just discovered. To say that I loved and enjoyed the stories within would be an understatement. I was taken out of this world to see love conquer an empire, watched a breed find his mate and a happiness he never expected, cheered when a shifter found a soul bond that would have meaning in two worlds and finally watched as a warrior showed a skittish teacher that all creatures deserve happy ever after. No matter whether you follow only one of the authors in Shifter or all of them, the stories all just flow one after another. I have already put Shifter on my need to re-read shelf and I bet that won't be the last time.

Jo
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

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2 Keeper tales in this satisfying anthology

I read a lot of anthologies and if I find one good story in the book I'm satisfied. Shifter is unusual for me because 2 of it's stories are keepers. The first and last stories are excellent. Angela Knight writes an excellent short story about a runaway empress and the slave werewolf she purchases. It was both dense and satisfying, relying on character and a little bit of world building, and lots of fun.

The last tale about a selkie and a school marm, was both romantic and magical. I had not read any Virginia Kantra before but immediately searched out her next 2 books, Sea Witch and Sea Fever based on her powerful and beautifully told tale here. It's every thing I like in a short story, infusing the tale with a tension and a fairy tale like sense of inevitability. The ending was the tiniest bit rushed, but that's only because I did not want to leave the characters.

So it's well worth getting. The Lora Leigh was standard Breeds - she starts too intense and has nowhere to go from there, so there's no build up, just on going crescendo which can get a bit tiring. And the other Alyssa Day felt confusing to me. But the bookends make it a keeper.

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3.5 stars

Angela Knight's short story gets 2.5 stars for being forgettable and boring.

Lora Leigh's story gets 4 stars for having another hot, hot 'breed', but really nothing new here.

Alyssa Day's story gets 3.5 stars for being good, if not memorable or new.

Virginia Kantra's story gets 5 stars for bringing a fresh new storyline with interesting characters. This was the highlight of the four books and I had never even heard of this author before I bought it!

3.5 stars

Angela Knight's was okay. Lora Leigh's about a school teacher had no plot (I was getting Laurell K. Hamilton flashbacks!). I felt it was the most terrible of the four. Alyssa Day revisited the shifters in her Atlantis series. I liked that one because it was nice reading about the alpha of the panthers that Bastian is now an ambassador of, as well as Bastian's sister get together. My favorite was by a writer I have never read before, Virgina Kantra. Her short story was about selkies. I enjoyed the plot and the characters. I'm happy to have read the book because it introduced me to Kantra. Although, I could have done without the Knight and Leigh story.

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1 out of 4

Being a long time fan of Angela Knight's books, I ordered Shifter. And, as usual, Angela Knight's novella was great reading. She can make her characters come to life and is a clever, talented author. The other three stories, unfortunately, were not even interesting reading and I will not be buying books by any of those authors.

reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4

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