HARD MATED (Shifters Unbound 3.5) by Jennifer Ashley

HARD MATED is a short story (August 2012 release) in Jennifer Ashley’s Shifters Unbound series. When the shifters revealed themselves to the human population over 20 years before, fear and anxiety amongst the humans forced the shifters into segregated communities known as Shiftertowns and each shifter was collared to control possible aggression and the urge to kill. But in many of the Shiftertowns, illegal Shifter Fight Clubs were springing up and like any popular enterprises, the darker side of the fight clubs would rear its’ ugly head hoping to initiate a more lethal match to the death. Only this time, former allies, would tangle and it would be more than just the fighter’s lives at stake.

Eron aka Spike Reyes is a bodyguard, tracker and a jaguar shifter. But following his most recent fight, Spike would discover that he was also a father to a 4 year old jaguar shifter cub named Jordan. Along with this information came a young human female claiming that Jordan’s mother was dying and she needed to see Spike right away. Within a matter of hours, Spike had custody of his young son and his Grandmother Ella was the only one who knew how to raise a mischievous cub on her own.

Myka Thompson was a trainer of quarter horses for the rodeo. Finding her best friend’s one night stand in a fight club was a little out of her league, and Myka was worried that Spike’s penchant for fighting was a sign that he was not fit for fatherhood. But a call from Spike asking for help, would place Myka in a position to view Shifter life up close and personal. And the attraction between Myka and Spike is evident from the start. What becomes instantly recognizable are Spike’s predatory and protective nature which go into overdrive when his natural animal instinct demands he safeguard his cub and future mate. He is willing to risk a confrontation with the Shiftertown leaders and refuses to stand down when he knows he has overstepped the line.

Meanwhile, Spike had been approached about possibly branching out with a former Shifter acquaintance who has a great dislike for the treatment of shifters. Someone was offering Spike the ability to use his natural animal instincts in the ring in return for a coveted position in the Shifter hierarchy.  But insurance was needed so that  Spike would obey, and the threat against his family, would push Spike over the edge. And to his surprise, the very shifters he was willing to turn aside were the shifters who risked their own lives to save Spike’s new mate and his son.

HARD MATED is the latest novella in Jennifer Ashley’s Shifters Unbound series focusing on the struggles of a species that has been segregated from human society due to ignorance and the perceived danger of animal violence. Jennifer smoothly blends characters from her previous storylines allowing for a cohesive feeling between each novel and a familiarity throughout the stories. Hard Mated looks at the life of a species trying to live their lives as normal a possible, but the stereotype and discrimination are all to familiar to the real lives of many cultures and races we encounter in our every day lives.

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Reviewed by Sandy