AMG's Reviews > A Shifter's Heart

RH - MMMMM/Supernaturals/Enemies to Lovers

SYNOPSIS (of 5 book Series): This story is set in a world where supernaturals and humans coexist. The FC (Quinn) believes she is part human/part Lycan but is unable to shift. As a result she is treated as a bit of an outsider by her pack. She is fated mates with the Alpha’s younger son and her father is Beta. To earn a place for herself in the pack she has become a top enforcer. Quinn’s mother left when she was 3 and her father has always treated her badly and never supported her. Quinn is rejected by her mate and receives an inheritance of a house in Hawthorne Cove. Hawthorne Cove is a place where all supernaturals and humans can live under their own law, protected by an ancient artefact but it does not allow Lycans admittance. Initially Quinn goes to Hawthorne Cove with her best friend Theo to try and steal the artefact as she thinks this will allow her to return to her pack and have a place their which the Alpha has promised but only if she returns with the artefact. The story covers Quinn meeting her other mates, learning that she is not part human but part something else and learning that the artefact is needed to protect not just Hawthorne Cove but the world from an evil called the Taint which wants to destroy the world. There’s plenty of drama and heat with a final battle and HEA in Book 5.

If I could have given this series a 3.5 overall then I would. The writing and editing were good with not too many errors. On the whole this was a decent series but there were some real frustrations that materially detracted from my enjoyment of the story. The world building and back story were solid enough and provided in bits and pieces as the story progressed.

As mentioned by previous reviewers, the author does not so much build Quinn’s character so you can see she is strong and kick ass but just tells you she is both i.e. by telling you how she dresses - yes, leather and a long coat and plenty of weapons - but without any real description of situations where she has shown her strength. I don’t think I ever got a real description of the FC but just had to cobble one together. I prefer to see evidence of a character’s persona and not just be told. The FC irritated me through most of Book 1. She’s supposed to be strong yet she is willing to steal an ancient artefact and leave a town unprotected just so that she can get a position in a pack that have treated her like dirt and where there is no actual certainty she will get what she’s been promised. It took too long for the FC to come to her senses. It took me a while to get over this level of selfishness and weakness and to buy into the apparent selflessness and niceness of the FC which the author then tried to portray.

The story is not unique - FC finds she is more than human and is, in fact an incredibly powerful hybrid; FC is some incredibly kind, generous and selfless individual who is catnip for all her mates; FC is the only one who can save the world. Having said that it is still an enjoyable romp and the story keeps moving. Heat level is above average but not too OTT or plentiful that it overtakes the story.

Unfortunately, by the end of Book 5 I felt there were a number of frustrating holes and unfinished business. The relationship with Dillon was very underdeveloped and having made the whole “immortal” piece a big issue the author just waived it off at the end with a side reference to it being no problem to achieve. It was also hard to correlate the fact that he was a god with the fact that he seemed to be able to do very little to help the FC in any situation.

There were situations that were raised but not resolved - Henrik, for example. Why was this not revisited and why was he not punished or something done about him and what he was doing? With Willow, the climax of this story line was unsatisfying and you never find out what happened afterwards. The situation with the Mageri and their treatment of the Onyx mages was also unresolved. The carnival piece came a bit out of the blue and seemed more of a plot device than organic to the story - it was suddenly introduced as a big reveal and then over with. Finally, what happened to Quinn’s father? Did her mother and grandmother every regret their behaviour? Why was Ward allowed to get away with everything he did? Did Theo resolve his issues about being part of a harem?

I get the author was trying to portray Quinn as perfect and selfless but honestly, ensuring evil is destroyed is also important. It was beyond annoying to have all these evil, nasty individuals just be allowed to get away with what they had done and not be held to account. The climax itself was a “blink and you miss it” finale. After wading through 5 Books the author could not be bothered to provide a decent climax and ending. I mean, the FC is not even the last person you hear from in the book, it’s Nyx. One of my biggest pet peeves is an author who drags you through a long drawn out story and then tries to wrap everything up in a few pages. That’s what this author did and it is beyond annoying and insulting to me as a reader!

So, in summary, a decent enough series if you can overlook the holes and frustrating ending and don’t think too deeply about anything 😬