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Questions and input on shapeshifter books
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Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series has lots of different shifters including rats and birds. Worlds full of shifters are interesting and I like seeing how things work.
I like long works but not so much that it runs on. But, then again some series are good short. It depends what the series needs and how it plays out.
Shelly Laurenston's Pride series has a wide variety of shifters.
features a honey badger heroine. That one is my favorite of the series, but I thoroughly enjoyed the whole series.
is another one of the series that has unusual shifters. She deals with cross-breed shifters differently than most and I do like how she uses that to humorous effect.
Robin wrote: "Shelly Laurenston's Pride series has a wide variety of shifters. features a honey badger heroine. That one is my favorite of the series, but I thoroughly enjoyed the wh..."Yep, what she said.
I have different 'magical' beings in my paranormal romance series. Starts with werewolves and I include cougars, Fae warriors, wizards and witches. I loved Christine Warren's "Others" series. And Shelly Laurenston rocks!
I like a full world where there are other beings/creatures. They don't have to be seen all the time, but add to a healthier world building if needed in the story.
I like different animal shifters: panthers, cougars, gorillas, etc. But I also like other magical creatures included in the story to round out the idea of a different culture/realm. These can include fairies, witches, vampires. I am loving Mason Sabre's The Society Series, which includes two main groups of characters: The Humans and The Others.
Jo wrote: "I have different 'magical' beings in my paranormal romance series. Starts with werewolves and I include cougars, Fae warriors, wizards and witches. I loved Christine Warren's "Others" series. And ..."
Ooh, I completely forgot about Christine Warren, I totally love her books too! Laurenston's series edges Warren's "Others" out for tops on my favorites list mostly because of three words: Shifter roller derby. EA Price also has series with a wide variety of shifters both the Supernatural Enforcement Agency and Supernatural Bounty Hunters series include multiple types of shifters. Eve Langlais as well does multiple types of shifters and good humor.
Also, I guess I never answered the OP's questions.
1. In terms of length--for me, if it's a new author I like shorter novella length stories. They're cheaper--in fact that's how I discovered EA Price and Eve Langlais--most of Price's books are one dollar for the ebook so it was easier to take a chance on an unknown author for a dollar as opposed to five dollars or more. Of course free is good too, if I recall there was a special 'free for a limited time' type deal on one of Langlais books which got me hooked and I've purchase many of her books since then.
2. Shifter only versus Multi: I think it depends on how the author handles it. It's really the characters and the world that the author creates and whether or not I feel pulled in to their lives (and want to visit that world again). Christine Warren does a good job showing the politics and challenges of multiple types of beings co-existing. That was one aspect of her Others series that excelled for me. Lauren Dane also had a series of sci-fi/fantasy books with shifters and witches that showed some of the issues of co-existing. Eileen Wilks also has a great series--it's called The World of the Lupi, but there are dragons, witches, fae, etc. Laurenston's Pride series is shifter-only as I recall, but the characters were enjoyable, the books were fun and it didn't feel like her world needed other magical beings--the shifters were simply humans with a little extra in the way of genetics, magic wasn't part of her explanation for the shifting--that would probably be key for me. If the author explains the shifting using magic, then other magical beings would only make sense. If it's a virus or genetic condition, then magic doesn't need to be a part of that universe.
Okay, that's probably more than my allotted two cents worth of opinion but take it for what it's worth to you.
Robin
Hi! So firstly I completely agree with my fellow goodreaders that Shelly Laurenston's books have a wider variety of shifters and they are expertly written (in my opinion.)
Whilst I don't mind books that contain only shifters I tend to find them as short stand alones rather than a full length 250+ page book. Sometimes I feel that this doesn't allow me, as a reader, to connect with the characters. Moreover, more often than not in Shifter books human females tend to see no issue with a domineering male telling them that they are their "chosen" "mate" "only one" etc. They accept this despite only having known about shapeshifters for less than 10 minutes or the equivalent 25 pages. It has been my experience that in shorter books where this is the case I have tended not to buy a sequel as I feel no attachment to the character nor any of the other characters that the second book could be about.
Having said that I have read series before which I have subsequently become bored with when they follow only one character/couple and have 6+ books to a series.
Therefore, I prefer either longer individual books with each having an individual couple/ character but in a series where there is an overarching theme. Or I like series where there is one main protagonist throughout the series but that is no longer than 5 books.
When I come across first time writers I find that having your number 1 in a series as a longer book 250+ pages at full price is good and having a prequel novella that is shorter and discounted entices me to read a new series. The short novella can be completely unrelated to the characters in the rest of the series but may be set in the same location as the series. However, I find that if the taster is discounted, shorter and obviously well written then I am more likely to go on and buy a longer book.
As a note- everything above is my personal opinion based on nothing other than extensive reading on books containing shape shifters.
Lucy
I love shapeshifters of all species. But I think people want a male shapeshifter to be a "sexy" animal. Would you really want your big, strong shapeshifter to turn into a rabbit? Just wouldn't fit the image.
Karen wrote: "I love shapeshifters of all species. But I think people want a male shapeshifter to be a "sexy" animal. Would you really want your big, strong shapeshifter to turn into a rabbit? Just wouldn't fit ..."What about werehedgehog?
Sorry, that comment about a rabbit made me think of this and, if I recall correctly there is a warren of wererabbits as secondary characters in another of celia kyle's books--in the Ridgeville series I think.
Robin wrote: What about a werehedgehog?"Oh my goodness I'm going to have to read that!! A werehedgehog... I wonder how the author came up with that.
It really opens the door to a lot more. And they wouldn't always have to worry about their clothes getting ripped up, because they would become smaller.
So, I'll throw in my two cents...even though it's probably long since over. :)I will read almost anything that has a shifter in it. Wolf, dragon, rabbit, hedgehog. Haha! I just like the mythology behind someone having two warring sides within them. I connect to that for some reason and I know I'm not the only one.
So, with that in mind, I'll read a short story featuring new characters, but I'm far more likely to pick up a novel and at that point, I'm far more likely to pick up a novel that already has a sequel. Not everyone binge-reads, but I like to immerse myself in the world if I can.
Bumping this thread!I recently realized that my love of vampires is superceeded by shifters. Feline shifters, in particular, have a special place in my heart.
T. S. Joyce has written a number of interconnected series that include many different shifter species. The main one is the bear shifter but also included are gorillas, two or three different types of bird, boars, tigers, panthers, lions, a couple of wolves, and also dragons. There is also a couple of vampires and witches that pop up briefly in a couple of books.
I love shifters and I love all types of paranormal creatures, so it goes without saying for me that I like all series whether they are single or multi creature based. I don't mind pure shifter series, but I suppose that I find the idea slightly more interesting if there are multi-species shifters, but like all books, some are done well and some are not.
As for length, I can't abide all the books that are released in serial installments. New author or not I want to read the whole book, not just the first 10% or whatever amount of it, so that's the only option for me. Especially when most of these books are no more than 200ish pages. And as most new authors are priced low anyway, especially in these female-driven genres, price isn't really a problem.
Herekittykitty wrote: "Bumping this thread!I recently realized that my love of vampires is superceeded by shifters. Feline shifters, in particular, have a special place in my heart.
T. S. Joyce has w..."
I've read all of Joyce's wolf shifter books and really enjoyed them - but (and I realize this makes no sense) I can't seem to get comfortable with the idea of bear/panther/gorilla/dragon shifters... and I have no idea why. Did I mention I write about mermaids? So I'm pretty much a big fat hippocrite on this front...
As for the serialization bit, I completely understand why authors do it - you can get close to a reasonable financial return for your books if you parse them out in installments like that, and there are certain publishers who specialize in just this effort. But I truly, from the depths of my soul, hate it. Hate! It makes me feel like I'm being encouraged to use drugs and the writer is my drug dealer. What I want is a straight-up story without the transactional/psychological manipulations to get me to pay more. Sigh. This is why I reread rather than risk falling in love with something new!
I love unusual shifters, or at least shifters with a different mythology behind them. I like to get that backstory, but that might just be me. :) I love knowing that they've come from Norse mythology, or they're South American magic, or whatever. I've found that I'm not super partial to birds, but I'll read pretty much everything else. Weirdest shifters I've found? Naomi Lucas Her Cyborg Shifter series starting with Wild Blood is... different, to say the least, but it's also incredibly appealing because it's so unusual.
Sela wrote: "I love unusual shifters, or at least shifters with a different mythology behind them. I like to get that backstory, but that might just be me. :) I love knowing that they've come from Norse mytholo..."Sela - Did you love Wild Blood or only sorta like it? It looks interesting... but I've been disappointed before. :-/
Errin wrote: "Sela wrote: "I love unusual shifters, or at least shifters with a different mythology behind them. I like to get that backstory, but that might just be me. :) I love knowing that they've come from ..."I liked it enough to read the rest of the series, but I'm telling you, it's a strange one. The hero is human, but also cyborg, but also this... very atypical shifter. I don't want to spoil it. It's well-written and his shifter side is a large part of the conflict, both internal and external.
It was definitely worth reading, and I've gone on to read more of her work.
Sela wrote: "Errin wrote: "Sela wrote: "I love unusual shifters, or at least shifters with a different mythology behind them. I like to get that backstory, but that might just be me. :) I love knowing that they..."Thanks for your response!
Errin, we all have different tastes I suppose! Some of the different species seems a bit odd to me too, like Bears, Gorillas and Boars, and the smaller ones like Rabbits and Hedgehogs as like Karen said in message 10 back in 2016, they just aren't sexy! And sex appeal is a huge part of the attraction of shifters. If you have enjoyed TS Joyce's work before, I would encourage you to at least try her Damons Mountains books. Despite the fact that the vast majority of them are Bears, and her writing is very formulaic, her characters are just so entertaining, and some of them are freaking hilarious like Willa the worm lady! And what I especially liked is that from the first series (Saw/Fire Bears) through to the last one (Sons of Beasts) there is an overarching plot that moves along over the course of a number of years.
Sela, that series sounds... different. I've looked through a few reviews of the first book and it has piqued my interest enough to add it to my TBR list even though I'm a bit wary of the shifter species!
I think you're right Herekittykitty - my definition of 'sexy' might be too narrow. :-) A cyborg sounds like it might work, though? Shall check it out!
Errin wrote: " It makes me feel like I'm being encouraged to use drugs and the writer is my drug dealer. What I want is a straight-up story without the transactional/psychological manipulations to get me to pay more. Sigh. This is why I reread rather than risk falling in love with something new!."I totally agree with this. I'll read a plot, think it sounds awesome, look at the pagecount and if it's less than a whole book worth (280-300+), it goes on my Amazon wishlist never to be seen again...
Wow...cyborg space shifters....just when I think I've heard of everything...I really enjoy the types of shifter books that include lots of different shifter packs.
My obvious favorites so far:
I like books that only feature only one type of shifter, too, though and I don't have any kind of problem with gorillas (which I've never read about-cool!), dragons or any odd shifters, although I'm not sure I'd ever see them as "sexy" either...In the second Prophecy book (The Rainmaker), there's a snake shifter and that's rather interesting.
I sent out a request to find bat (not vampires), lizard or octopus shifters because I was curious to see if there were any, and I was recommended these:
Robin wrote: "Shelly Laurenston's Pride series has a wide variety of shifters. features a honey badger heroine. That one is my favorite of the series, but I thoroughly enjoyed the wh..."I love Shelley laurenston's Pride series, I also love her dragon series she writes under her other author name.
I love shifters full stop, although, I'd rather it was a predator. My own shifter serial has a wide variety, including Black Jaguars, Lions, White Tigers, Leopards, Wolves, Dragon, Phoenix, Gargoyle, Angel, Demons, Witches, Nymphs, Trolls, Grizzlies, Brown Bears and a vampire... I'm adding more to it all the time. I've also brought in another realm to add in more mystical ones. I wrote my series based on the Big Black Cat sightings around the UK, then used the Crop circle as an immortal calling card.
JF, I'm sold on all the felines in your books!
JF could you give me a few names of your books?
Holly wrote: I totally agree with this. I'll read a plot, think it sounds awesome, look at the pagecount and if it's less than a whole book worth (280-300+), it goes on my Amazon wishlist never to be seen again... Sela looks at all the novellas she's written, none of them serials... Well, shoot. ;) jk
I do love writing shifters - alien Viking werewolves, Southern wolf shifters, Greek horses, cursed Irish seals, Norse bear princes (trolls were involved), and a Russian rusalka (not a mermaid) - and it's fun to mix up how they've come to be.
I'm really looking forward to starting my next series with a Russian influence. The research has been tremendous fun!
Viking wolf shifters?!?? Sign me up! Just downloaded A Wolf to Watch Over Me. :-)
Errin wrote: "Viking wolf shifters?!?? Sign me up! Just downloaded A Wolf to Watch Over Me. :-)":D Thank you!
Kristal wrote: "JF could you give me a few names of your books?"Hi Kristal, my shifter books are a serial, not sure how some miss that as I put it above the blurb, story and characters continue throughout. They need to be read in order, but it's called The Bound Series, Moon Sworn, Book 1, Bound by The Moon, Book 2, Fire in The Moon, Book 3, Light up The Moon, Book 4, Magic in the Moon, Book 5 and I've got New Moon, Book 6 on pre order at present. They are adult reads, which means, there's a story there but these are animalistic people searching for, and fighting for the safety of their community and mates. There is sex and fighting and profanity.
Herekittykitty wrote: "JF, I'm sold on all the felines in your books!"Thank you, I love the research side, learning the differences between them, their behaviours, how the move etc., I learn something new with each one :)
Thanks JF they sound absolutely incredible. I can’t wait to read. Your awesome
Thank you, Kristal, I've had people upset as not everything was in book 1, but I do state, serial, I've never advertised them as standalone. If anything, I go out of my way to tell people they are not standalone. When I first had the idea, I was planning on standalones, but as I began writing, it became more and more obvious to me that it wouldn't be possible, so I went with it.
Personally I like to read stories that have shifters as the main "concept" behind the book, but where it isn't the main focus of the entire series. For example, Sky Winters and Juniper Hart's stories always grip me because there's usually a different trope involved in the story (a shifter nanny service for example). When I write, personally, I like to mix it up. I like to bring in new ways shifters and humans can interact with each other. For example, in one story I wrote about a woman with a terminal illness that gets saved by consuming her lover's blood (a dragon shifter). Kinda close to vampire territory though right? Hahahah
Anastasia wrote: "Personally I like to read stories that have shifters as the main "concept" behind the book, but where it isn't the main focus of the entire series. For example, Sky Winters and Juniper Hart's stori..."I agree with you on this. It's why I prefer to read paranormal rather than true fantasy.
Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy Addicts
Books mentioned in this topic
Bite Me (other topics)The Prophecy (other topics)
Written in Red (other topics)
The Rainmaker (other topics)
Thinning the Herd (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
Naomi Lucas (other topics)T.S. Joyce (other topics)
T.S. Joyce (other topics)
From what I have seen, most books that are about or even vaguely consisting of shapeshifters seem like there is only one or two types at a time. On top of that, they seem to typically consist of wolves, bears, lions, dragons, maybe the occasional tiger... Are there any books with all types of animal shifters or do they mainly focus on one type?
Is there any interest in an actual world of animal shapeshifters? Or do readers want more magical beings as well such as vampires, witches, and other mythical type beings and beasts?
Do readers tend to prefer a longer book or a series of shorter installments? I suppose the better question to ask would be Do readers feel more comfortable purchasing a book from a first time author if it is offered in shorter installments (therefore giving a cheaper price to "try" them out)? Or do readers prefer to just buy one larger book?
Thank you for your time and input. Any opinions you share are most appreciated!