Review: Bite Me

Bite me
by Shelly Laurenston 


Series: Pride Series #9
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Humor
Source: NetGalley 
Release date:  25 March 2014
Date Read: 12 March 2014

Livy Kowalski has no time for idiots. When you shapeshift into a honey badger, getting through life’s irritants is a finely honed skill. Until she gets stuck housing her nutso cousin and dealing with her dad’s untimely and unexplained demise.

That’s where Vic Barinov comes in—or his house does. Vic can’t step outside without coming back to find Livy devouring his honey stash and getting the TV remote sticky. It gets his animal instincts all riled up. But he’ll have to woo her at high speed: all hell is breaking loose, and Livy is leading the charge…

My thoughts:
I was just ecstatic when I received the eARC of book 9 of the Pride series by Shelly Laurenston.  Her books are my most anticipated book every year.  I just cannot wait for the release dates to come around.  And once again, I was not disappointed.

We met Livy, a honey badger shifter, in the last book, Wolf with Benefits.  What a wonderful surprise she is.  She is the definition of snark in a world full of crazy characters.  Unfortunately her dysfunctional family's reputation means that she is not the most loved in the shifter community.  After all, she comes from a family of thieves  and crooks . . . very successful thieves and crooks. 

Our story starts with Livy at her father's funeral.  It should be a tough time for Livy but her father's death is not the reason for her unhappiness (after all she hated him).  Her distress is all about the way he died.  A way no shifter should have to die.   Pretty soon almost all of the shifter world are involved and it is all about the good guys against the bad (shifter and human).

Off course there is also a lot of romance.  Livy and Vic are made for each other - their personalities are so far apart that it just works.  After all who else would keep their anger in check when their home is constantly raided (okay damaged with badger holes everywhere) and their honey stock erased.  It could only be a soft spoken white tiger/bear hybrid that enjoys finding a little honey badger in his cupboards.

We usually get a sense of who the next book's "happily every after" couple will be, but this time, Shelly has kept it close to her chest.  There are a few possibilities and we have a whole year to digest and debate this. Personally I hope it is one of the beta characters who do not usually have the opportunity to let their personalities shine.  I have a little soft spot for a certain kaolo bear shifter.

This is one of my favorite series and has been from Book 1.  Shelly Laurenston has a gift of making you want to cringe your teeth in some parts and in others, she makes you spit out your drink laughing.  It is just a wonderful combination as you never know what will come next.   The story is always important but it is more about the way it is delivered that makes this a win for me.  I think it is time for a re-read of the series.