Twilight Style "Imprinting"

[Zach]

I haven't actually read Breaking Dawn but when I was reading *about* it I came across the whole imprinting issue in which the werewolves will sometimes involuntarily bond in a soul mate type of fashion with very young children.

I feel sure that I have read this somewhere before but I cannot, for the life of me, remember what book it could have been.

One of the characters was named Ivan or Igor or something similarly Russian sounding that starts with an "I". I believe he also had the power to shapeshift into a bear, but that could be me misremembering. Regardless he was something more than just a normal human (hence the imprinting business). I think he spends most of the book as a strong and silent type of side character.

Anyway he ends up "imprinting" on the infant or toddler aged daughter of another character, although I'm sure that's not how they refer to it in the book. It is explained that he would never hurt her or take advantage of their bond, and that he would be whatever she needed him to be at different points in her life.

I know that's not much to go on but I'd really appreciate any help you can provide. I'm not sure when I read it but it can't have been too long ago.
I don't think it was YA or children's fiction because in general the other characters' reactions to the imprinting were pretty unaffected (but that's not a guarantee).

[Ann aka Iftcan]

It sounds like Dark Magic which is one of the Carpathian books by Christine Feehan. In a lot of PNR and PN books the Were's and Vamps imprint on their mates. Except that the male lead is named Gregori (a very Russian name, no?) this really does sound like Dark Magic. He actually stands back and lets her grow up as "normally" as he can, but he visits her as a wolf, I believe, without letting her know that its him.

Also in the Twilight books the last one has Jacob, a Native American version of a were-wolf, imprinting on the daughter of Bella and Edward.

In both of these books the author says pretty much the same as you quote about him not taking advantage etc.

[Zach]

Hi Ann,

Thanks so much for responding. Unfortunately I don't Dark Magic is what I was thinking of. Mainly it's because the character this happened to was a side character, not the protagonist of the novel. Also I don't remember any details of how the relationship played out being mentioned. It was just kind of thrown in there towards the end of the book almost as an aside.

[Ann aka Iftcan]

Try one of the books before Dark Magic--I think that in at least 1 of them, the 2 characters from Dark Magic are mentioned, and in much the manner that you said. Not sure which to steer you to, since its been at least 2 years since I read any of that series. But it is a thought.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Zach, are you still looking for this or did you find it?

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Lobstergirl wrote: "Zach, are you still looking for this or did you find it?"

No response in 2 years. Moving to Abandoned.