R. A. Kaitland

With as many shifter stories as I have read, it is very rare that I encounter something new and different either about a plot, the characters and their motivations, or the way the paranormal world they inhabit works. Luckily, it still happens from time to time, and ‘King of Me’, I am happy to report, is one of those times. The world the author has created has some different rules and structures, there are abilities I have not seen used in this way, and the twists and turns as the story develops held my interest and attention the entire time. And this is only a short story!

Anton is a shifter, though it isn’t revealed which kind until later in the story, and you’ll only see it if you look for it carefully. And from what I gather, the type of shifter seems less important than which sign of the Zodiac they are allied with. The amount of political maneuvering visible in this story certainly puts any pack politics to shame! But Anton has been kicked out of his clan, and now they are out to kill him. At least that is what it looks like… All Anton wants is to be accepted by his partner Sean’s family, but they are a strange group, not weres, yet powerful for reasons Anton doesn’t understand.

Sean loves Anton to distraction, and is mad at his father for not accepting him. The Christmas dinner they suffer through as an “introduction” was delightfully tense and everything a hostile family dinner would feel like. Sean never wavers in his support of Anton, and hates that his father will not budge from his position of almost hostile “let’s wait and see”. Sean intends to change that, and when things begin to get out of hand, he gets his wish, but in a way he never expected or could have wanted for.

If you like different types of shifter mythology, if two men having to fight for their love to be accepted—and not because they are gay—sounds interesting, and if you’re looking for a story that contains mystery, suspense, family drama, and true love, then you will probably enjoy this short story. It may be set around Christmas time, but it’s definitely about more than the festive season.


NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
… (meer)