Quite a few of Jileen Dolbeare’s inhabit the same universe so I’m not sure yet if this goes for this series. But it’s not necessarily required to be absolutely invested into this character and her journey and growth as a magical bounty hunter.
From starving, homeless thief on to the run , albeit with a magical companion, to a trained respected bounty is a great storyline and character.
Especially her tough beginnings. We really emphasize with her. It’s an emotional, scary start.
At only 126 pages, we have a lot of background that still needs developing and main characters, aside from Astrid, who also require additional history. I feel that’s coming in the first book.
What The Bounty Hunter and the Spirit Wolf successfully does is make the reader want that next book, the next step in Astrid’s journey now!
Unfortunately we’re going to have to wait until next year. But I’ll be sure to keep my eye out for the release.
Until then? Pick up the prequel and get ready for the next urban fantasy series that looks to be a winner.
The Magical Bounty Hunter’s Guild:
The Bounty Hunter and the Spirit Wolf prequel #0.5
The Bounty Hunter and the Assassin # 1 – September 5, 2026
Before she was a bounty hunter, she was the hunted.
It’s been three months since I ended up on the streets of Anchorage with nothing but the clothes on my back and Teekon, my spirit animal, for company. Once upon a time, I had dreams. Now, I’d settle for a hot meal and somewhere warm that doesn’t come with a side of rats.
I steal to survive, but I’m spectacularly bad at it. Hunger makes you reckless. Stupid. Desperate. My stomach was loud, and I ignored my whispering instincts that told me using magic to steal was a bad idea.
Naturally, I got caught.
Now the Magical Enforcement Agency has my scent, and they’ve sent a grizzled bounty hunter to drag my sorry ass in. Because rule one of the magical underground? Don’t flash your power in front of humans. Whoops.
I’ve got two options: trust a stranger with a badge and a scowl, or end up dead, or worse. And life has taught me there is always a worse.
Teekon says this bounty hunter could be our chance at something better. I reckon he’s just another predator in a world full of them.
But when your life’s on the line, you don’t get the luxury of easy choices.
One mistake landed me here. One choice might set me free.
Well written but extremely frustrating, Echoed Defiance brings another facet of Jackie Leon’s former life into focus. In this case, her prior human history.
Banet’s characterizations are so compelling and excellent that the reader is often confused between thinking of them as real people rather than fictional beings. Jackie’s former family, especially her twin, which is a huge surprise, are incredibly irritating, entitled, and often ones we want gone.
Paranormals: 1 Humans: 0
And in a truly remarkable bit of plotting and long term series narrative flow, what we see occur here, the events , context, and conversations have enormous implications for Jackie later in the series.
Yes, I’m at book 11. It just gets better and better.
Each book, the events and minute details, no matter how subtle or seemingly random, are adding up to an overall complex rich and devious plot.
I’m so in love. This is an automatic reread.
If shifters, mythology, science, gods, compelling characters and long term planning with plots are your thing, grab the series up.
Funny, heartbreaking, and just glorious. Also violent and deadly. FYI.
My duty to my family is simple. Help maintain order and uphold the Law for my werecat father, Hasan, a member of the Tribunal.
But I’ve always had a defiant streak.
To do what’s right, I’m willing to throw the Law out the window and turn my back on everything I’ve been told. Everyone around me knows I’m willing to risk everything for what I believe in. All I can hope is that my beliefs and the Law don’t clash again.
Because I have another duty. A duty to blood. A duty to the bond between those who once shared a face and a life.
My name is Jacky Leon and my twin has found her way back into my life. My echo, strangely similar and yet different, Gwen is a piece of me that I tried to leave behind.
Autumn Dawn and her series, The Convergence, starting with Bramble Burn, was a top recommendation on a fantasy list so I picked it up based on similar themes and recommendations.
What I found both delighted and disappointed me in terms of character development and plot design.
Let’s start with the positive aspects of this story. Which are primarily related to the design and detail of Bramble Burn Park itself.
The premise is that at some point in time our world and that of the Fae Underhill world merged, violently. From the geological landscape to actual buildings, there was an explosion of activity as physical changes, actual melding or melting of structures, happened, leaving our world forever changed.
One mage leaves her family and farm to go buy a cheap abandoned city park from the mayor and officials, the Bramble Burn Park. A park so dangerous, so overrun, and inhabited by unknown creatures that evolved from the merge that no one enters in. One she intends to remake and make her own.
That gorgeous, mystical cover is the tree home that tree mage, Juniper, first makes in the forest. And mysterious, eerie, Bramble Burn, with all its distinctive features, wilding areas, and imaginative creatures, is a highlight of the story.
Too bad the author leaves it behind and tosses it away for another storyline altogether. Anyway, the park and Juniper’s resolve to make it her own, is the best part of the story.
This includes her magic and the obstacles that come as she slowly builds up the frame around the park. And her living structures made from trees.
The author really does an excellent job in making this park as intriguing, horrifying, and beautifully alive right from the beginning. And Juniper as well. From her perspective, she’s revealed to be increasingly powerful, someone who chooses to be alone in her woods, territorial and masterful in her pursuit of her goals.
That’s where the author had me. Until she didn’t.
The not so great aspects of the story.
The romantic aspects of the book and the relationships.
Bring on the dragons and werewolves.
Spoilers ahead.
The plot turns from Juniper needing to make Bramble Burn hers within a time frame to dragon father, dragon sister, bratty brother who might be dangerous, and a human, enabling suffocating mother full of flags.
It gets so much worse.
Author Autumn Dawn reveals that Juniper is a “fertile female “ half dragon, therefore she is a catch or highly regarded female for both werewolves and dragons for her abilities to breed.
Her werewolf, blink and he’s in love with her and asserting his mate bond over her, to a newly arrived dragon, both thrilled with Juniper’s fertility.
At this point I’m wondering what happened to the character I was reading at the beginning of the story. That strong woman is reduced to a breeder, complaining about a brother who is attacking her ( mom is excusing him) and complies with accepting the werewolf because he’s nice.
There’s a strange new plot that introduces a bunch of characters that has nothing to do with the original story. Takes them away from the park. The author decides to immediately wrap up what was originally a complex issue, leaving huge threads unexplained or just left out.
Juniper, the powerful tree mage who wanted to just work with her Forrest now ends up mated, marriages, with twins.
What?
So once again, I’m floored that an author went totally south with her character, world and plot development.
It was if she decided halfway to change everything but without any notice, explanation , or foundation.
So I’m not proceeding with either author or the series.
Cool cover though.
COVER DESIGN: Autumn Dawn
The Convergence:
Bramble Burn #1
And a bunch more books each with a different character apparently.
It’s been thirty years since the Convergence, when the dimensions aligned and combined Earth and the world of Gwyllon, known in human mythology as “Underhill”. Elven castles and ancient ruins sprouted on vacant lots and merged with existing buildings, twisting into new structures. Roads and rail systems reformed, and after the rioting, starvation and death, agriculture sorted itself and food began to flow. A new government formed of elves and men arose, a society of human tech and elven magic. Cell phones and frost giants, race cars and elven steeds, dungeons and dragons…
And everywhere, monsters.
Tree mage Juniper was twenty-three, a child of the new generation. When she found a source of magic buried in an abandoned park, she made a deal with the city. If she can stabilize the park’s wild magic, she’ll own it…if she can survive. Now she has to clear out magic spawned monsters, deal with a werewolf suitor and survive her bloodthirsty dragon uncle. She’s going to have to dig deep to subdue Bramble Burn Park.
Hot but sweet romance. Does not contain explicit sex scenes.
[Amazon notes it’s similar to the Kate Daniels series. No. Absolutely not. Amazon needs to stop making comparisons. ]
I’m continuing my journey through Shelly Laurenston’s catalog and started in on the Magnus Pack trilogy as it’s focused on three closely knit girlfriends. Each has her own story, only one of which is a shifter but there are shifters in each connected story.
Things to consider first. These are sexy, sexy tough women and the stories are full of scenes that flow accordingly. If you’re looking for sweet content, you might want to look elsewhere.
Considering my favorite series is Laurenston’s honey badger series I really enjoyed it. IYKYK.
The first character and girlfriend is a heavily scarred, damaged, pain-filled woman, Sara Morrighan. With scars across her face and a limp from a badly damaged leg when she and her dad were attacked by mountain lions and she was left for dead.
Sara, along with her best friends, Miki Kendric and Angelina Santiago, keep an eye out for each other, keeping each other safe and supporting them. Especially Sara, raised by a crazy grandmother and has an employer/surrogate father, Marrec, owner of a local motorcycle shop.
But the small Texas town has secrets. Sara’s life is about to change, she’s getting aggressive and her leg is still full of pain.
Then a group of people on motorcycles rides into town. Zack, one of them, shows an immediate reaction to Sara. One that’s returned.
This is a very good fast paced story about someone who doesn’t know what she is. And is about to find out the hard way. There’s shifter battles, tons of great sex scenes and wonderful chemistry between characters that makes the instant lust realistic.
The three women are hilarious together. The sisterhood is alive and well and relatable here. We absolutely believe these women grew up together and know each other inside and out. The dialogue is amazing.
Some world building feels under explored as does the shifter universe here. But on the individual level, it’s exciting and sexy storytelling.
What’s an Alpha Male to do when he meets the Alpha Female of his dreams? Step one, hide all sharp objects.
All Zach Sheridan ever wanted was to become Alpha Male of his Pack and to be left alone. What he definitely didn’t need in his life was some needy female demanding his attention. What he never saw coming was the vicious, scarred female who not only demanded his attention but knew exactly how to get it.
Sara Morrighan knew this was the best she could expect from her life. Good friends. A nice place to live. And a safe job. But when Zach rode into her small Texas town with his motorcycle club, Sara knew she wanted more. She knew she wanted him. But after one sexy encounter with her dream biker, everything is starting to change. Her body. Her strength. That new thing she’s doing with the snarling. Even her best friends are starting to wonder what’s going on with her.
But this is only the beginning. Sara’s about to find out her life was meant for so much more. And Zach’s about to find true love with the one woman who makes him absolutely insane.
Family and Honor (Jacky Leon, #2) by K. N. Banet is another example of the second book in the series moving forward with character development, overall depth of series foundation and plot structure in such an exciting and fast paced way.
I honestly loved it better than the first for many reasons. Banet brings Jackie back into her territory, her home base where she’s comfortable. So we see a different aspect of the character. Right before the author begins to shake Jackie’s base and hard won stability up again.
An impulsive contract made because, once again the human child Carey is involved, will be the one thing that will pry open the solid isolation from werecat politics that Jackie’s maintained.
And ends up bringing her back into contact with her werecat family.
Banet has written a complicated, high paced, multi layered book. It has murder mysteries to investigate, multiple paranormal species involved, travel outside of Jackie’s territory, and further exploration into her family dynamics and history.
A real exciting, emotional thriller! Another late night finish! Just fantastic! Highly recommended!
I got away with it. Carey and her family are safe and I survived to tell the tale. Now I’m the only werecat in the supernatural community that can say a small family of werewolves lives in my borders. But, in the effort of saving Carey and helping her father, I had to begin shedding the secrets that kept me safe for years.
My identity is out there now. As one of Hasan’s children, more is expected of me and I had no idea what sort of repercussions would come from my decisions. Werecats are reporting problems all over the world and when two go missing, I can’t avoid the feeling of guilt.
My name is Jacky Leon and I am a child of Hasan, ruler of the werecats. I have to learn how to live up to the obligations and expectations of my family before more people die.
I’m reading a lot of strong women main character centric content, mostly urban fantasy and paranormal stories. Luckily there’s so much out there to explore from a multitude of writers as it’s a very popular genre, something I’m very excited about.
Oath Sworn, the beginning of the Jacky Leon series by K. N. Banet, is a strong start into the series, and really great take on this popular trope.
Banet is a new to me writer, and I’m unfamiliar with The Tribunal universe that this series takes place in. However, I don’t think that not having read other books from other series impacts on my experience here. The world building is slowly layered in as the events occur, giving them a solid foundation and putting the political and governmental system in place as needed.
What or should I say who really does it for me here is the main character, Jackie Leon. She’s a werecat. In this story one on a mission to recover a human child stolen out of her care by a werewolf gang. She’s tracked them down and is bent on retrieving the child, which means violating The Tribunal Laws.
It’s a terrific story with lots of storytelling and plot lines to develop and carry through to completion. It introduces Jackie, some of her origin story (part of which is an ongoing mystery). Her troubled dynamic with her werecat father, and current life. Then the father of the human child, Carey Everson , stolen from her. He’s the current Werewolf Alpha, and wolves and the werecats are vicious enemies historically.
There’s so many emotional undercurrents and unresolved conflicts between the species, so tensions are high, constantly threatening the tentatively established peace and process needed to search for Carey amidst rising enemies.
The story is extremely well written. The action is fast paced and often emotionally charged.
Each species is well defined and there no romantic relationship. But a hint of what might be developed in the future.
I liked that Banet wrapped up this story completely so we start fresh in the next book.
I’ve never been the type to find trouble. Owning a bar takes work and that was all I wanted. Serving cold beers and paying my taxes. Those were the responsibilities I wanted for the rest of my life.
I didn’t ask to be a werecat. I didn’t ask for the responsibility to uphold an ancient treaty. I didn’t ask to get pulled into the middle of a werewolf pack’s coup.
But Carey Everson, the very human daughter of a werewolf Alpha, needs me. Her father’s enemies are on her heels and I’m her last defense. And I’ll be that defense until my final breath, even if it means challenging the very Laws that govern the supernatural. I gave her my word.
My name is Jacky Leon and nothing is going to stop me from honoring my word.
The Jacky Leon series is an Urban Fantasy series with a slow-burn romance.
I loved Veiled Justice, the first book in this series but feel that this excellent story far exceeds my expectations for the second novel and character development.
Krieg, King of the Orcs and Detective Stacy and her companion caladrius, Loki are back in action in a fantastic new story. Stacy and Krieg are further along in their new relationship. They are getting to know each other, their history as Krieg continues to make himself a part of Stacy’s life, professional and personal.
This is happening, framed around several brutal murders. Each rawly heartbreaking that’s so realistically relayed by the followed investigative scenes to the next of kin.
Writing that shows it doesn’t have to be current fiction or fantasy for losses and brutality to hit hard.
This type of storytelling continues throughout this book.
As all involved, Stacy and her team, race to uncover the killer before another is kidnapped, the suspense is ratcheted up and the tension is heightened.
Towards the end, we see exactly the toll this case has taken on Casey, and a hidden part of her story is partially revealed.
There is also something going on with Loki that’s subtly disturbing. I don’t believe it was part of this storyline. So now I can’t wait for the next book to come.
Harris has a fantastic series here that’s complicated and getting better with each new story.
This might be my favorite series in a multi-series universe.
Highly recommend this and dive into this universe if you’re not familiar with it already. I’ve listed the reading order below.
Cover design by Christian Bentulan. Published by Hellhound Press Limited.
The Other Realm Universe: Should be read in order to understand the world and characters .Events and relationships build upon each other.
The Other Realm series
⭐️Glimmer of Dragons- Book 0.5 (a prequel story),
Glimmer of The Other- Book 1, Glimmer of Hope- Book 2,
Glimmer of Christmas – Book 2.5 (a Christmas tale),
Glimmer of Death – Book 3,
Glimmer of Deception – Book 4,
*It is recommended that you read The Other Wolf books 1 to 3 before continuing with
Challenge of the Court– Book 5,
Betrayal of the Court– Book 6
Revival of the Court– Book 7.
⭐️The Other Wolf Series
Defender of The Pack– Book 0.5 (a prequel story),
Protection of the Pack– Book 1, Guardians of the Pack– Book 2, Saviour of The Pack– Book 3, Awakening of the Pack – Book 4, Resurgence of the Pack – Book 5; and Ascension of the Pack – Book 6.
⭐️The Other Witch Series
Rune of the Witch – Book 0.5 (a prequel story),
Hex of the Witch– Book 1,
Coven of the Witch;– Book 2,
Familiar of the Witch– Book 3; and Destiny of the Witch – Book 4.
A drowned dryad. Ritual markings. A killer who isn’t finished.
They pulled her from the lake – young, beautiful, and very, very dead. As Chester’s only magical Detective Inspector, I get the cases the Common police can’t handle, and this one has Other Realm written all over it.
When the medical examiner discovers runes carved into the corpse’s bones, I know we’re in for a bumpy ride. Elemental runes. First victim drowned. My gut says there’s more coming, and my gut is rarely wrong.
Then a centaur drops out of the sky, literally, and my theory’s confirmed. The only link between the victims? Botany, a vampire-owned bar that serves the magical and the mundane… and never seems short of trouble.
I’ve got a new unit at my back, Unit 13, and we’re still figuring out how to work together. Add Krieg, the King of Ogres – deadly, smart, and far too good at getting under my skin – and things get complicated fast.
With a killer on the loose and the clock ticking, we’ll have to move quickly… or the next body that drops may well be one of ours.
Immerse yourself in The Other Detective Series – perfect for fans of supernatural crime, complete with a fierce heroine, gritty murder investigations, and a slow-burn romance.
My Kind of Town by Shelly Laurenston is a paranormal shifter romance that was previously written for and published in another anthology. I didn’t read that one. And it was the cover and the author’s fantastic honey badger series that drew me here.
I liked this but found that it’s the promise of its elements for future books the most intriguing. The main couple is engaging if not fully explored.
Thats primarily the issue with this story. Great ideas, an interesting storyline with fascinating magical characters and elements but none of those are really explained or given any meaningful foundation here. A coven with their powerful dark magic and found family ? Absolutely to know more.
A dying coven with different powers and magical abilities? Ok, so what happened to them?
The story offers up more questions than answers about the characters and never answers the original story plot about what brought Emma Luchessi, the Long Island witch down to the southern town of Smithville.
That gets forgotten totally.
So yes, I enjoyed it. Saw so much promise, and hope that the author ventures back to Smithville to finish what this story begins.
Pretty much instant sex, instant lust, well, you get it.
Emma Luchessi may be a witch from Long Island but she is used to her life being quiet. Some may even say boring. She doesn’t mind boring. Boring is safe. Calm. Peaceful. Like beige. One doesn’t get into trouble with beige. But a wrong turn off a southern highway is about to turn Emma’s beige life into everything but boring.
Kyle Treharne’s a good ol’ boy with a sheriff’s badge and a difficult population to manage. He wishes he had to worry about gangs and drugs and car-jackings. Instead, he has to worry about big cats fighting with wolves, bears fighting over honey, and hyenas fighting with everyone. And now, out of nowhere, he’s got a human outsider riling up all the locals by asking too many questions. She’s just so paranoid. And doesn’t trust Kyle a lick. These city gals. They just don’t know how to relax, do they?
Of course, Kyle is a big cat. He knows how to relax and he’d be more than willing to help Emma learn how. He’d be willing to help Emma do all sorts of things if she’d just give him half a chance.
But it turns out Emma coming to Smithville isn’t a simple accident. She’s been brought here and she’s bringing change and danger right along with her. Lucky for Emma, Kyle and the rest of the town like a bit of danger…
This story was previously available in the Sun, Sand and Sex anthology.
Books 4 through 6 (to date) focus in on Max’s childhood friends and basketball teammates. These females are also dangerous honey badgers and have been a part of a tight knit group of friends that have run their own small time operations since their school days. It been Max, Streep, Mads, Nelle, and Tock. Through crime and punishment (often with Charlie as backup and safety for the younger girls).
This is Mads book, and along with the other teammates, get hooked up with the Malone brothers, Keane, Finn, and Shay ,Siberian Tigers, who are searching for the people who killed their father. These Tiger shifters are also related to Max, Stevie and Charlie as Nat, their younger sister turns out to be half honey badger and a half McKilligan. Complicated relationships introduced as well as some awkward dynamics during the last fantastic story .
Laurenston weaves tightly packed, violent action scenes and densely layered storylines into developing new found family bonds and growing group relationships. The “Black Malones” tigers start out emotionally stunted and reactive yet during intense interactions and small one to one conversations, each Malone exhibits surprising emotions and hidden depths.
And while the focus is on Mads, and her interactions with her awful family and the growing one with Finn, the strengths of this series, the MacKilligan sisters (Charlie, Max and Stevie) still have impactful moments and roles to play here.
As do others. So many new and familiar characters here , beautifully detailed and engaging in their own personalities. It just one more reason I can’t get enough of this series.
There’s an overall plot and mystery that seems to be going through the next section of books. It’s a really great one. I can’t wait to see how it’s explained.
Remember these books are gory, violent and murderous. Blood and body parts everywhere. FYI.
Highly recommended.
I really like the covers for the series. Great work. Eye catching and character related.
It’s instinct that drives Finn Malone to rescue a bunch of hard battling honey badgers. The Siberian tiger shifter just can’t bear to see his fellow shifters harmed. But no way can Finn have a houseful of honey badgers when he also has two brothers with no patience. Things just go from bad to worse when the badgers rudely ejected from his home turn out to be the only ones who can help him solve a family tragedy. He’s just not sure he can even get back into the badgers’ good graces. Since badgers lack graces of any kind . . .
Mads knows her teammates aren’t about to forgive the cats that were so rude to them, but moody Finn isn’t so bad. And he’s cute! The badger part of her understands Finn’s burning need to avenge his father’s death—after all, vengeance is her favorite pastime. So Mads sets about helping Finn settle his family’s score, which has its perks, since she gets to avoid her own family drama. Besides, fighting side by side with Finn is her kind of fun—especially when she can get in a hot and heavy snuggle with her very own growling, eye-rolling, and utterly irresistible kitty-cat . . .
“Filled with high-octane action, some serious snark, and a plethora of humor.. the resulting madcap adventures are sure to please series fans.”
Ride Or Die wraps up this fantastic series with mythical battles, high stakes, epic magical revelations, and an absolutely satisfying ending for all the characters.
The Body Shop series has followed Frankie and her adopted siblings, the Mary’s as they call themselves after the official ‘house of horror’ they were forced to live as children, they’ve come through perilous events and horrific experiences that’s seen them come out more powerful individually and as a found family.
From one where Frankie was the one who provided and held everything together to a family that worked together as a unit for a common purpose. The character development and plotting was even, strong and often compelling. And Edwards didn’t leave any character behind in bringing relationships and old friendships forward as things went further into new developments.
Kierce sacrificed himself for Frankie and now she’s going to save him. It’s time for revelations, god comeuppances, and the final showdown. And some real surprises.
Dis Pater is shown to be even worse than thought to be. But the biggest bad is a well crafted evil, multi dimensional villain who’s horrific in his clarity of vision.
It’s reasonable and believable and makes this credible that’s there’s a cost of defeating him. It wouldn’t have made sense otherwise. Or been in keeping with the types of magical powers and abilities that were used by all of the characters here.
In the end, we get a sense of how the characters are in their lives and how they feel going forward. It’s contentment and happiness. And that makes The Body Shop a well written, highly compelling and satisfying series, one I’m happy to recommend.
Kierce sacrificed himself to save Frankie, and now it’s her turn to rescue him. Whether he wants her to or not. That means venturing into Abaddon, the land of the dead, and hoping she can locate him within its shadowed depths before Dis Pater notices his favorite toy is missing. But Dis Pater isn’t the only deity she has to fear.
Frankie’s father has learned of her journey down to his domain, and he won’t take no for an answer when he welcomes her into his home. As if one MIA parent materializing wasn’t bad enough, her mother arrives with her own emotional baggage in hand. Forget the perils of traversing the underworld. Navigating this family reunion just might be what kills her.
