In the Mood Fur Love: 3 book anthology

1) Bearing His Touch by Eve Langlais
This was a fun and interesting story full of Ms. Langlais' signature humour and heat. 5 stars

2) Fake Mated to the Wolf by Milly Taiden
Good story with Ms. Taiden's usual snark and super smexy-times (I did find myself skipping a few of those extremely descriptive scenes just to move the story along.) 3 3/4 stars

3) The Witch, the Wolf, and the Waitress by Kate Baxter
I'm just starting to read books by this author but I'm enjoying her style of writing and her characters. 3 3/4 stars

I really enjoyed each of the books in this anthology and give it 4 stars overall. I hope there will be more anthologies in the future.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. My thoughts and opinions are my own and without bias.

Whenever Ms. Langlais publishes a new story, it is a must read. When it comes to fun and light hearted, Ms. Langlais always delivers. In this anthology, Bearing His Touch once again returns to these growly Greek bears sleuth. This time it features Stavros and his fated mate, Becka. This is a chasing game again with a few misunderstandings concluding into a quick happily ever after. I enjoyed this easy read and the humour is infectious.

Fake Mated to the Wolf by Milly Taiden continues in this world of "Mates Fur Hire". I like the concept and the story is easy to follow. Even though I recognize Ms. Taiden's name in conjunction with Ms. Langais, her stories are a bit forgettable. The characters are fun and the stories are sweet.

The Witch, The Werewolf and The Waitress by Kate Baxter is one that is more memorable for me. This story continues in the world where a pack of werewolves are tired of nasty politics and broken promises. Stuck in the middle of no where, it is difficult for the males to find their mate. Yet slowly, each one of the men find their one. Each of the women are spunky and have some kind of history holding them back. In this one, Ellie Curtis is stuck due to an angry witch. This one disturbed me a bit because as a person who loves to travel, this would have killed me to not be able to move past a border. Ellie survived w/o losing her mind. Resigned to a never ending purgatory, the last think she expects is to meet Colin who is everything she ever wanted and can not have. This story moved along quickly and resolved in a happily ever after. When a wolf wants his mate, nothing stops him.

This anthology can be read as a standalone. It would probably be better to read the earlier anthologies to get a better feel for the world these three authors created. There are some tie ins and back history which would make each of these stories more enjoyable.

<i>*provided by <a href="https://www.netgalley.com">NetGalley</a></i>

None of these stories were particularly bad, but none of them made me die to read more stuff set in their respective universes, either. Average shifter tales.

I enjoyed the first two novellas in this anthology. Eve Langlais and Milly Taiden are two of my favorite shifter authors. This was a great anthology.

In Bearing His Touch by Eve Langlais, Becka meets Stavros who is a bear shifter. There is humor while they are trying to avoid a stalker that has held Becka captive.

Milly Taiden gives the man behind "Mates Fur Hire" his own HEA in Fake Mated to the Wolf. I liked the hero and heroine. Shawna led Hawke on a merry chase to their own HEA.

The Wich, The Werewolf and The Waitress by Kate Baxter was darker and after reading the first two books, I struggled to get into the book

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC provided by NetGalley and the publisher. Thank you!

This book is perfect to get shifters and some great stories. In the book Bearing his touch Becka has escaped her kidnappers but when a huge man with kind eyes offers to help her she is sure if she is going from the frying pan into the fire. Fake mated to the wolf touches on sexual harassment in the workplace but you may just find your mare there. Last but not least The Witch The Werewolf and the Waitress, Ellie has been cursed to stay in this town never to find happiness. When Colin comes into the diner and eats the prized cinnamon roll he can’t believe how mad Ellie just got but the fire in her eyes makes him realize she is his mate, problem is she can’t leave. I love all sorts of Shifter stories and this book gives you a full story times three.

Ugh. When will I learn to stop clicking the read it now button on NetGalley? I received a free eARC of this book from NetGalley and this is my honest review.

A caveat: I struggle with short stories, as a general rule, and I’ve only read two novels featuring shifters that I liked, neither of which were written by the authors included in this collection. If you are someone who loves paranormal /shifter romances and short stories, by all means, give this a shot. It’s not my cup of tea and I only forced my way through it because it was an ARC, I felt obligated, and kept hoping that “the next story” would be better. Spoiler alert: it wasn’t.

I felt the first story was just poorly written. It felt juvenile and clunky. The writing style did not work for me at all. The second story was better written, and I liked it right up until the end. The sex scene at the end was just raunchy, not sexy, and filled with terminology I hate reading in romance novels. The third story was kind of the middle - the writing style wasn’t as bad as the first, but didn’t work for me either. The sex scenes weren’t as bad as the second, but the author also used terms that I don’t appreciate. So, as a whole, this collection just did not work for me and I can’t remember the last time I was this glad to be done with a book and moving onto something, anything else.

When i received this book of anthology i was really excited. It started out great with a steamy fast paced shifter romance hot enough to melt the pages. The second story fell flat from the beginning so i read it quickly hoping the third would redeem this book. The third book was fun but not all that exciting. Overall I enjoyed reading 2 out of the 3 books but I think it would have been better if the second story was left out completely. It brought the whole anthology fiwn to a 2.

Three great reads bundled together. The stories are fast-paced with lots of drama and suspense. The characters are strong and really draw you into the story. The chemistry is steamy and the stories have plenty of emotion. I was hooked from beginning to end. I loved it!

Thank you to net galley and the publisher for providing a copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm honestly not sure where to start with this. I was honestly anticipating hating this book, but I didn't. While I didn't necessarily enjoy all of the stories they got better as the book went on. So the easiest way is to break them down into the stories.

The first story, Bearing His Touch, is honestly where I had the most issues with this book. I understand that this is shifter based romance/erotica, however the unending toxic masculinity in this story was relentless. I can't tell you how often the phrase "Mine" or "she's mine" was uttered because it was so so frequent. Also the main girl runs away from a sadistic, abusive captor and within 5 seconds of meeting the girl our bear-man goes wildly possessive. While I understand that these are short novellas, the speed with which this girl becomes totally ok with this gave me mental whiplash. There was just no development in the relationship. The bear shifting was unique though. I did enjoy the added humor through the bear.

Fake Mated to a Wolf, was slightly better. While still on trend with excessive masculinity, there was more of an actual buildup to the relationship. The whole "mine", "my mate" wasn't as strong in this one, and the premises was slightly intriguing. I mean online dating for shifters, specifically to find your mate, not something I've read before. The girl in this one also didn't just leap into his arms, she put up a fight which I appreciated.

The Witch, the Werewolf, and the Waitress was by far my favorite. I actually really enjoyed this one. The girl is cursed by a witch, why? we don't know! Can she die? Nope. Along comes Mr. Mystery, and the dance ensues. This one was fun for the main reason that our werewolf didn't even really want to acknowledge the mating bond at first. The progression from hesitant, verbally sparring strangers to a mated couple was nice, gradual and kind of fun. The most refreshing aspect was that you, as a reader, know and understand that the wolf is gorgeous, freakishly strong, and very very manly without it being shoved down your throat every other paragraph.

All together this really wasn't horrible. The writing is well done, I just with the uber manliness was toned down a bit, but I also get that that is a big part of this genre. 2.5/5

I am loving these little sets of 3 stories. The combination of authors, story, and smuttiness makes for some wonderfully easy and entertaining reading. While I’ll probably not do justice to each story individually, you can expect to enjoy a nice variety if you pick up this collection.

The Eve Langlais story was adorable with a bit of a noir feel. Becka has been kidnapped and is trying to escape during a “scuffle” when she finds herself face-to-face with an overprotective man. Said man, Stavros, may also happen to shift into a bear and have identified her as his mate upon first touch, but that’s beside the point. These two are caught in an internal tug of war with themselves – Becka wants to run to keep this nice man save and Stavros wants to run because having a mate means commitment and settling down. Through it all, they end up getting caught up in some action, some sexy times, and lots of nosy family scenes. This was probably my favorite of the three.

The Milly Taiden story continues with the “mate for hire” world (if you’ve read the previous ones, which are probably not required). These two poor lovebirds are also in denial. This story was a bit of boss/employee taboo, some shifter fated mate madness, and lots of miscommunication. Oh, and did I forget to mention super naughty sexy business?

The Kate Baxter story also continues in an established world but is definitely not required reading to dive in here. Ellie is a woman who has been cursed by a witch to stay trapped in a town that will never thrive. She’s essentially immortal, which makes her a good fated mate to Colin, who wanders in and shakes up her whole life. With magic and an old-timey feel, this story was a neat departure from the norm.

In The Mood Fur Love

BEARING HIS TOUCH: Eve Langlais
Becka has been held hostage and abused for a month when one day she manages to get away, run for her life and run into Stavros (bear-shifter) who immediately knows she is his mate and is compelled to do all in his power to keep her safe. This is a fun read that includes humans and paranormal creatures and is quirky and funny and definitely left me with a smile on my face. I am still smiling at the variation in fairytales that were-bears tell their children.

FAKE MATED TO THE WOLF: Milly Taiden
Shawna has family, work and money problems so when her inept and nasty boss fires her life becomes even more difficult. She does have good friends who stand beside her and a man who knows she is his fated mate BUT getting her to see it is so takes some doing on his part. Enjoyable read with a HEA for Shawna and Hawke.

THE WITCH, THE WEREWOLF, AND THE WAITRESS: Kate Baxter
This story had the feel of a fairytale with the princess cursed by a wicked witch. Ellie has lived for centuries after Witch Sarah cursed her. Her life has been long and lonely and she has endured but when Colin the werewolf shows up he realizes she is his mate and both their lives soon change bigtime. This story has a quest that if and when completed will impact both Colin and Ellie. Thoroughly enjoyed this story!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4 Stars

So I'm left wondering if I read the same book as all the people who rated it 4 and 5 stars. I usually like Milly Taiden and Eve Langlais but these novellas just weren't great although the Eve Langlais story was my favorite.

All three of these stories feature the whole mating instinct/instalove. There isn't anything unique - it's the alpha shifter who instantly recognizes his mate who is in some type of distress and he must save her.

Bearing His Touch - 3 Stars
The first story by Eve Langlais is my favorite of the bunch. I liked both Stavros and Becka and the secondary characters were interesting as well. The dynamics with Stravos and his family were entertaining. Becka was a good heroine who although she'd been through a lot was very strong. I do wish she didn't jump right into being okay with getting physical with Stravos given that she'd been abused for a month. Still it had humor, action and one well written sex scene.

Fake Mated to the Wolf - 2 Stars
I spent more time rolling my eyes during this story then anything except well maybe disliking the heroine who was just kind of rude and mean. I didn't understand Hawke at all - why not just tell her she is his mate. I liked the idea behind the dating sight but the beginning was a bit confusing for me and I felt like I had missed something since there was a reference to the hero and heroine meeting previously.

The Witch, the Werewolf and the Waitress - 2 Stars
This is another one where I just didn't like the heroine much and didn't feel any connection between the two main characters. This story was just blah for me.

Overall, none of the three stories were all that great although the first one wasn't bad. However at a price of $9.99 for the kindle version I just couldn't recommend it.

A copy of this book was provided to me by Net Galley and the publisher with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book and my comments here are my honest opinion

A sexy shifter instalove anthology, In the Mood Fur Love gives us a winning combo of darkness, sass, humor, heat and plenty of shifter yummies to spare from three wonderful authors. Get ready to get your growl on peeps...grrrrrr

An ARC was generously provided in exchange for an honest review of which this is both honest and completely voluntary.

Hilarious, adorable, intriguing, and exciting boxed set

This boxed set has 3 never-before-published paranormal romance novellas that feature shifters. I am quite pleased by 2 out of the 3 novels, so I think it is an excellent anthology to buy.

1.) “Bearing His Touch” by Eve Langlais: 5 stars. I love this hilarious, adorable book! This is a real gem among shifter romance books. It is so funny and adorable. There are also some thrilling action scenes. The first chapter starts out dark and gritty (because human Becka escapes from being held captive by a psycho), but the atmosphere quickly lightens up after she gets rescued by Stavros. I adore Stavros. He is a bear shifter and a private investigator in a modern world where humans don’t know about shifters. Stavros' heart is like a big marshmallow when he falls for his mate, Becka. He is so careful to make her feel safe and not startle her. Also, his internal monologue and his matchmaking family are hilarious! I also like and admire Becka. The minor characters are pricelessly unique, and I am definitely tracking down any related books concerning Stavros’ family members. Moderately steamy.

2.) “Fake Mated to the Werewolf” by Milly Taiden: 2 stars. I have never read anything by Milly Taiden before, but judging by this story, I hate this Paranormal Dating Agency series. I can’t deal with a hero by the ridiculous name of Hawke Hawke. The hero and heroine were stupid and overly stubborn. The heroine even endangered her mother’s health by refusing to ask her capable, rich friends for help. I couldn’t connect with any character at all.

3.) “The Witch, the Werewolf, and the Waitress” by Kate Baxter: 5 stars. It is longer than the other two novellas, probably novel length. This shifter romance is out of the ordinary and intriguing. The heroine’s magical predicament is quite unusual. The author has a talent for vivid, relatable characters. I also love the descriptions of the rugged landscape of Idaho. I had never read Kate Baxter's work before, but now I definitely plan to do so again.

I received a free advanced reading copy from the publisher via Netgalley, and I voluntarily wrote this honest review.

I knew this would be a great book when I first saw the previews of who each author was. I am so glad I had a chance to read this one. All three stories are fun to read and follow an easy pace to follow. The characters are well matched with each other as well. I highly recommend taking a chance on this book!

I was so glad to see this book coming out. I had read stories by these 3 authors in The Big Alpha in Town and Thanks Fur Last Night so I was so excited to get the chance to read and review this book that I jumped right on it when I received it from Netgalley. I find it hard to review anthologies but here I go.
Book 1 is Bearing His Touch by Eve Langlais. It starts out with Becka being in a very bad situation. She has been kidnapped and her Poppa has been killed. She meets Stavros when she was able to get away from the kidnapper. Stavros is a PI and a bear shifter. This was a fast-paced book with a lot happening. There’s some action of every kind going on from the first page to the last. The chemistry between these two is hot and very sexy but not overboard. I highly recommend this story.
Book 2 is Fake Mated to the Wolf by Milly Taiden. Shawna has just been fired from her job! She was working for mateforhire.com and really enjoyed it. Hawke just happens to own the company that owns mateforhire and he also knows that she’s his mate. So, he decides there’s more than one way to get her to like him. This was such a good book that I couldn’t put it down. There’s a lot of action and
romance in here so you really need to get it.
Book 3 is The Witch, the Werewolf and the Waitress by Kate Baxtor. Ellie is a waitress at the Sourdough restaurant in Lowman. Her family had settled in the area long before the town was there. Ellie wanted to leave town and explore the world, but she was stuck in town for eternity thanks to a jealous witch in her past. Colin comes to town and their first meeting was in an explosive situation over a cinnamon roll. They meet again, and things begin to heat up. This was such a good book. I can’t wait to read more by her.

Eve Langlais- 4 stars!!!
Bearing His Touch
This is Stavros story and I freaking loved it!!!! Hilariously funny and witty and the most important part? He is a BEAR!!!! Love me some bears, Lol. Stavros meets his mate, Becka who has recently escaped her kidnapper and has to learn to be gentle with her, after her captivity. Stavros was awesome and we find out some great secrets about Becka and her family. Awesome read!!!

Milly Taiden- Fake Mated to the Wolf
2 stars
This is Shawna and Hawke's story. This was an okay read for me. Not my favorite, I read it and it was just okay. That's it.

Kate Baxter-The Witch, The Werewolf and The Waitress. 3 stars
In this next read, Owen's brother, Colin finds his mate. Ellie has been cursed by a witch to live forever, stuck to the land. I'm just a bit confused when she starts off about how long she has been stuck there. At first, she says 100 years, then it became 200 years, then at the end 300 years? Huh? So yeah, other than that, it was a good read.

Overall all three stories rate a 3.5 stars.

*****ARC provided by St. Martin's Press thru NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*****

Bearing His Touch.
By Eve Langlais

☆☆☆☆☆



Becka was abducted from her home, and has been kept for a month. That feels like forever because of the abuse she has suffered. When all hell seems to break out she uses it as a chance to escape.

Bear shifter Stavros is drawn to the scent of someone in trouble. He might not be a cop anymore, but he still has an inbred need to protect the frightened woman he finds.

This is an action packed story that looks like part of a series, because of all the secondary characters.

Our poor scared heroine has had her world turned upside down. The sexy Teddy bear is hoping to set everything to rights for her.

Great fun.



*********************************

Fake Mated To the Wolf.
By Milly Taiden.



☆☆☆☆☆



Shawna Goode is struggling to earn the money she needs to save her family. Working for Mate.com would be good if it wasn't for the terrible manager. The stress she is under is overwhelming.

Wolf shifter Hawke Hawke first saw his mate a little while ago, but now can't find her. She is apparently working at his company but is never around when he looks.

Will he be able to fix things before her world is destroyed.?

An exciting and fun story with lovely characters.



*********************************

The Witch, the Werewolf, and the Waitress.
By Kate Baxter.



☆☆☆☆☆



The pack is happy on their new lands. The alpha chose well, but for Colin Courtney it's a little quiet, so he is looking for a job as a sentry. He didn't expect what he found on his way to his interview.

Ellie Curtis is a waitress with a huge secret that she has kept for three hundred years. She is human but immortal, thanks to a witch's curse. The years have been long and lonely.

Can our hero find a way to break the curse so our heroine can be free?

A lovely mystery to solve with great characters. Good magical fun.



*********************************

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R2H0MDZQ1P5D8V?ref=pf_ov_at_pdctrvw_srp......In the Mood Fur Love is three short, but hot and sexy shifter stories that completely tug our hearts... These three great authors come together to draw you into their world of adventure and of course, Love.

These authors are back with more yummy reads.

Bearing His Touch by Eve Langlais
First up we get a story with a woman named Becka who is being severely abused and her rescuer Stavros turns out to be her mate there is only one issue. Becka is human and Stavros not so much. Stavros will have his work cut out for him though trying to find Becka's abusers while trying to stop Becka from running away. This story was all kinds of yummy we get suspense, funny and a lot of hot...

Fake Mate to the Wolf by Milly Taiden
Again another great story here.
Matchmaker strikes again in this one.
Loved it...

The Witch, the Werewolf, and the Waitress by Kate Baxter
I loved this one.
We get a woman who is more and cursed.
We get a male who knows he has found his mate
and now he has to break the curse before he loses her.