4 out of 5 stars
Kindle Edition. Published March 23rd 2019 by JMS Books LLC
Blurb:
Running into a winged lion shifter was never in Mitch’s plans. But Bluebird Valley Preserve has more surprises in store, including wildlife and shifters, most of whom Mitch never knew existed. As a caracal shifter, Mitch is used to oddities. The chaos, he can handle. Calix, the saber-toothed cat, is what knocks him off balance.
Calix is a vet and a physician. Great in theory … except he can only diagnose, not heal. Still grieving, he vows to protect his heart from another crushing blow. Then, he saves a caracal shifter from the flood waters. When he sees Mitch, he struggles with leaving the past behind and making a future for himself which includes Mitch.
Raging waters and mudslides threaten, leaving the whole preserve at risk. Mitch puts his life on the line to rescue Calix. But, it’s Calix’s heart Mitch finds the most challenging and worthwhile to win.
Likes:
- So many types of shifters.
- Mitch.
- The plot.
- That everyone at Bluebird Valley Preserve is a little weird.
- Great side characters.
Dislikes:
- No idea how long the book is. No indication on Goodreads or Amazon.
- The slow burn felt very slow.
- The momentum died off near the end.
- Lots of things left shrouded in mystery or glossed over.
I’ve read shifter stories by Cheyenne Meadows before, specifically her Shifter Hardball series. They had their problems, but I didn’t hesitate to pick this book up, and I’m glad I did. Despite the slow start, loss of momentum, and smut crammed in at the end, it was a good read.
Mitch has never been to the Bluebird Valley Preserve before, and the reader gets to explore it as Mitch does. I loved the variety of shifter species, from squirrel and chipmunk to elephant and moose. There were even a unicorn and a centaur, two creatures that I’ve never seen in relation to shifter books before.
And with the variety of shifters came some great side characters. Especially Cain and Kitt. Best of all for a series, there’s plenty of characters who seem to be perfectly set up to have stories of their own. Looking at you, Nate.
I really liked Mitch. He was relatable – just a guy looking for a place where he could be himself without everyone worrying that he would blow something up. I wish there had been more description of what his caracal form looked like because I wasn’t familiar with those. As for Calix, I liked him fine. He didn’t really leave much of an impression, other than as a man choosing to be alone because of past emotional trauma.
My lack of opinion of Calix was not helped by the fact that he didn’t show up until chapter 7, 27% into the book. Even then, Calix and Mitch didn’t start to develop real, non-lust based feelings for each other, let alone act on them, until chapter 16, 68% into the book. Then there are reasons why they can’t be physical, which quickly became annoying.
Things really slowed down for the last eight chapters because Mitch gets injured and is forced to be idle. It allowed the romance to bloom, but it wasn’t the most interesting part of the book.
I wish more info on the preserve and shifters in general had been provided. I’m hoping more will be in future books, but I’m a nerd for world building. Mitch’s unusual abilities are glossed over, as is who funds the camp and a lot of things about the camp. It’s not too noticeable when reading, but looking back, I have a lot of questions.
My biggest question is how long the book is. There’s no page count on Amazon or Goodreads. It felt like a full length book, but maybe that’s because the ending got slow.
I’ll definitely pick up the other books in the series. So far, I like this book better than the Shifter Hardball series. It seems as though Meadow’s style is getting better, which is nice.
Be sure to check out Thor, the second book in the series.
Love is Love Reviews 