Susanna Allen

Eh, cute. I do enjoy these stories, they just don't have a lot of heft to them. Some more interesting perspectives - feline culture and how it differs from wolf, and more views on the smaller creatures. A really nasty villain, I hope they don't have to deal with that one again - there's going to be a lot to unravel of previous damage, as is. The romance is perhaps the slightest part of the story; fated mates again with obstacles tumbling aside at a rapid pace. Her special gift was extremely convenient. Several gay characters, none protagonists but relatively major - I don't know how accurate the representation of gay culture (outside the versipelles cultures) is, for that period. And of course it's completely acceptable within versipelles cultures... Most of them, anyway. I find the background and worldbuilding more interesting than the ostensible story. Still willing to read on in the series.… (plus d'informations)

Shapeshifters in Regency times!

This just wasn’t up to the standard of the previous in the series. Yes, I liked it because I’m following the series. However things became quite confusing, and keeping the occupants of Lowell Hall in Sussex, who they were, and how they fitted in, was a struggle.
What we have is a Welsh lion trapped in his lion body for years, never able to change, until a thief prized the gold chain off from his paw. Then, what a surprise! The thief was left a gibbering mess and the lion/human might just as well have been.
The Honorable Miss Tabitha Barrington, a female apothecary, is asked by the Prince of Wales (head of all Shapeshifters—versipelles) to take Alwyn ap Lewin, the Duke of Llewellyn in hand, to restore him if possible. After his years of being trapped as a lion, he’s now wedded to his human body, and yet he finds it hard to operate as a human. The slightest thing like holding a fork adds to his confusion.
Tabitha sees sensible solutions to his problems so that he’s not shamed.
It seems she can also distinguish animals who are shifters and those who are not. Unremarkable to her but a gift to others.
This story is an important step in the ongoing series, but really, I often found myself mired in a complex and confusing text, and just wanted out! I was unsure if I was trapped in some fresh hell with Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle Duck, or something more. Beatrix Potter on steroids!
Of course I wasn’t, but it was hard to get a clear picture.
Oh, there is a wicked witch. Mmm! Really, a wicked versipellis! More to come on this front me thinks.
I did find Allen’s discussion on Apothecaries at the end of the book very interesting, so not all is lost.

A Sourcebooks ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.… (plus d'informations)