Paranormal Romance & Urban Fantasy discussion

I write and read paranormal ... it's pretty much my favorite of all romances. BUT, it seems every book I pick up is something other than shape-shifters.

This is probably a big epic fail on my part -- I'm just picking up the wrong books.

I have a strong bent toward shaper-shifters that are truly shape-shifters ... not that they have a glamour to cover their true look, or that they can go back and forth from human to their actual supernatural form exactly. But that shape-shifting IS their way of life.

You guys seem loaded with suggestions, so I thought I'd ask. :)
Thanks!

My absolutely favorite series is Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark. The series isn't dedicated solely to shape-shifters though. Usually it has a Valkyrie who hooks up with a demon, vampire, or werewolf. I think Cole is up to eleven books in this series, and she's yet to let me down. Each book is well-written with a great storyline. Not ALL 5 star books, but nothing less than 3.5/4.0 in my mind.

Other series I've enjoyed which have started out well, but sort of pooped out with the latter books are:

Sherrilyn Kenyon's Dark Hunter series. Really great run up to Acheron's book, in my mind, and includes a host of shape-shifters of various species.

Nalini Singh's Psy-changling series. The earlier books are great. Usually there's a leopard or wolf shape-shifter who teams up with a Psy (human looking on the outside but not a part of the human species with psychic abilities). The later ones, the stakes are too low to appeal to me, but I'm one of those people who doesn't mind giving up a HEA for the sake of a drama and tortured characters. :)

I can understand that. Often,it seems that the shifters aren't the main character, or there is strong focus on the other paranormals.

Shifters by Rachel Vincent. About werecats. All six books have been released.


Feral Warriors by Pamela Palmer. About warriors who are the last of their species with the ability to shapeshift.


Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs. Mercy is a coyote shifter and her neighbour is a werewolf. There are other paranormals in the series, but they are all secondary characters. There is a spin off series (Alpha & Omega) and graphic novels that also go with this series.


Jane Yellowrock by Faith Hunter. I haven't read this one yet, but have the first books waiting.

Shelly Laurenston has several series with shapeshifters and they are funny. You really can't go wrong with her books.

Also Dana Marie Bell has shifter books, Pumas start out the series, but wolves and eventually a bear shows up.

Shelly Laurenston's Magnus Pack series (three books starting with ) and Pride series (starting with ) are all about shifters from wolves and lions to wild dogs and bears.

As well as Patricia Briggs and Faith Hunter, Carrie Vaughn's Kitty Norville series is about werewolves and Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series, Yasmine Galenorn's Otherworld series, and Christine Warren's The Others series also features shifters.
A really good YA work is Karen Kincy's Other.

Aimee wrote: "I have a strong bent toward shaper-shifters that are truly shape-shifters ...that shape-shifting IS their way of life. "
Some shape-shifters who embrace their supernatural form are the Dragon Kin by G.A. Aiken.

The series, written under a pen name of Shelly Laurenston, author of the Pride and Magnus Pack series, is funny and hot.

I have a shelf called "paranormal shifters" which is any shifter other than werewolves (as I have a separate shelf for them), includes cat shifters, mermaids, selkies, etc. Feel free to browse for ideas.

Thanks everyone! I seem to be missing one very important line in my original post. Ugh! :)

So, I was looking for shape-shifters who don't shift into animals ... where the animal is their 'true form' ... but something else is ... or nothing is and they use shape-shifting for their life/job. :)

Maybe that's too close to fantasy? I dunno! :) Thanks for all the input, though! This is great!

Ok Aimee--with that stipulation, you are pretty much limited to Sherrilyn Kenyon. She has both types of shifters--the human who shifts to an animal--and the animal who shifts to human.

Altho the Kate Daniels series has a few of the "animal as natural form" shifters but they are very secondary characters. (view spoiler)[Kate's best friend is born of one of these animal to human shifters and a human. (hide spoiler)]

That truly surprises me! Wow. But, ok! I'll check her stuff out then! Thanks!

Aimee wrote: "Thanks everyone! I seem to be missing one very important line in my original post. Ugh! :)

So, I was looking for shape-shifters who don't shift into animals ... where the animal is their 'true for..."
I've never read a shifter book where the characters spend as much time in their shifter form as in the Dragon Kin series, though there are humans in the books also. When the Dragon Kin interact with the humans, they usually shift, but not always.

Do you have examples to give us?

Aimee wrote: "I write and read paranormal ... it's pretty much my favorite of all romances. BUT, it seems every book I pick up is something other than shape-shifters.

You could try Devyn Quinn Dark Tide series 2 book so far about mermaids.

Lisa M: Um ... well I'd give you my own novel as one. Her job is to be a shape-shifter. It's what she's made for ... but she doesn't have an animal/supernatural/other 'form'. It's hard to explain without reading the novel itself. ;)

I just haven't been able to find anyone that is doing something similar. I was hoping I was just way out of the loop. :)

In essence, I'm looking for a character who's shape-shifting ability isn't limited to their 'one' true supernatural form necessarily. So, they aren't either "a were" or "a human" but something altogether different.

I'll check out Devyn Quinn, Fiona. Thanks!

I know no idea is unique ... but hey ... maybe it is? Ha!

Don't know if this is quite what your looking for , but Angela Knightwrites the mageverse seriesMaster of the NightMaster of the MoonMaster of WolvesMaster of SwordsMaster of DragonsMaster of FireMaster of SmokeAbout magic user, protectors of man kind, it includes, magnus, vampire shpeshifter who can become wolves, magi, whitches, Direkind, shifters who can become wolves or dogs or direwolfs (a combination of human and wolf 7 ft tall). The latest bok in the series, Master of Smoke, is about a being who is actually three beings combined, and alien, a shifter and a god, who can transform into many different forms

Thanks, Tamara! Everything helps! :)

So you're looking for someone who's like a Mystique from X-Men? Who shape shifts into multiple different people and things?

Another good series is the Crimson Moon series by L.A. Banks.
Several different types of shifters. Werewolves and Shadow Wolves among the best.

Aimee wrote: "Lisa M: Um ... well I'd give you my own novel as one. "

Interesting! I've put Little White Lies on my TBR list!

The description of your book made me think of some of the shifter stories in The Others series by Christine Warren. Not that they're the same, but there is a government agency in some of them. Anyway, the shifter stories include:

Sounds like you might be looking for the shifters more typical in fantasy. They're not very popular in UF/PNR, probably because they're so shifty. ;)

Sondrae: "So you're looking for someone who's like a Mystique from X-Men? Who shape shifts into multiple different people and things?"
You know ... that might be more what I'm thinking. I never thought about them in that regard because I've never made it through the entire movie! ;) Thanks!

Thanks for those links, LisaM!

Maybe I'll give them a comeback in popularity, new_user. ;)

I know these have already been mentioned but...

The Mercy Thompson series (starting with Moon Called) has an interesting take on werewolves... the wolf is seperate to the human, they kind of co-exist. Causes some interesting issues for a secondary character later on in the series where the wolf doesn't agree with what the human wants to do.

GA Aiken's dragon series - from what I remember they are dragons who shift to human instead of the otherway round. I think they end up spending a lot of time in human form because of their mates, but at least in the first book the heroine falls for the dragon before she falls for the man.

The only other one I can think of where they shift TO human is Virginia Kantra's Children of the Sea series - selkies who shift into human form.

I just thought of one more series where there is a "non-confined" type shifter. But its very much a sci-fi series. Lords of the Middle Dark is book 1. There are 4 books in the series. While Vulture (the shifter) isn't a major character, he/she (its unclear exactly WHAT his/her sex is) is very important to the story.

I just started The Shifters of 2040 by Ami Blackwelder. It includes three races, shifters (aliens who can take on the appearance of other live organic beings like bears, humans, etc. My understanding is they're jelly-like creatures who are semi-humanoid in appearance), humans, and hybrids (not sure what they are yet, maybe a cross between humans and shifters). I can't recommend it yet since I'm only a few pages in, but it's an entire series.

I think The Shifters of 2040 is like book 3 maybe. I haven't read the prior books, but the author assured me that this one was a stand alone novel.

Thanks, Tania, Ann and Reena!

Might I suggest the Amoveo Legend Series? Book 1: Unleashed-will be released 10/1/11 from Sourcebooks.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10...

A bit out there but the Georgia Kincaid series by Richelle Mead features a succubus. As such her job is to appear in a form that appeals to her victims. Along the way she reveals her "true self" to her love interest.

HI, yes, The Shifter Evolutions saga is out now! By me, Ami Blackwelder. Rene from above is right. The Shifters of 2040 is the first book to read. The series is written circular and so you begin in the middle and then chose to read the past or future.

The story is a bit of paranormal, a bit of scifi and a bit of romance. Themes include, prejudice, oppression, loyalty, sacrifice, forbidden love and more.

I hope you check them out amiblackwelder.blogspot.com and read reviews here on goodreads.

Reena wrote: "I just started The Shifters of 2040 by Ami Blackwelder. It includes three races, shifters (aliens who can take on the appearance of other live organic beings like bears, humans, etc. My understandi..."

Yes, the aliens are sentient-beings-of-light who upon landing on Earth are able to conform to any animal they touch. They mimic the hawks, bears, panthers, deer, wolves, and eventually humans.

This alien race may only stay "animal" for hours at a time and must return to its alien state. But when the alien race dubbed shifters mixes with humanity, Hybrids are born -half human and half shifter- and they are able to retain animal and human form for unlimited periods of time, allowing them to blend in on Earth.

So, the series has shifters, hybrids, humans, military and lots of romance mixed with action.

amiblackwelder.blogspot.com

This is straight fantasy but Lord of the Changing Winds is about Griffins who take on Human form to speak to humans but are all griffin. I read the first one and a pretty good book there are 2 others in the series.

I am thinking SFR like Runners Moon

Reena wrote: "My absolutely favorite series is Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark. The series isn't dedicated solely to shape-shifters though. Usually it has a Valkyrie who hooks up with a demon, vampire, or we..."

Cole's series is great, but other then the wolfs it doesn't have any shapeshifters (but has plenty of other beings), but the Dark Hunter series has lots of them.

Mercy Thompson by Patricia Briggs, Dark Hunter by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Sookie Stackhouse by Harris,Shadow of the Vampire by Meagan Hatfield (dragons but that's it), Anita Blake by Hamilton (lots of different kinds), Carpathian by Feehan (most change into multiple animals but a few only change into jaguars), Feral Warriors by Pamela Palmer, Brokenheart Oklahoma by Michele bardsley, The Elder Races by Thea Harrison (has a dragon & gryphons),Riley Jenson by Keri Arthur - all of have shapeshifters.