Title: Shiftless in Sheboygan (Shapesisters Book One)
Author: Zanna Archer
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Book Blurb:
Unlike other shape-shifters, Steffi Abruzzen can take any biological shape. When she loses this ability, the Organization to Assist, Support, and Inform Shape-shifters (OASIS) seizes the opportunity to eliminate her fearsome power by appointing a sexy French Canadian werewolf ostensibly to help her, but really to distract her until her window for recovery closes.
The more Sawyer Montaigne comes to know Steffi, the more the more he desires her and wants to support her. A reformed playboy, he must mate with a female werewolf or be ostracized by the Montaigne pack.
Having already lost her ability to shift, will Steffi now lose her heart to someone who has sworn to betray her, or will Sawyer’s attraction to Steffi extinguish his loyalty to OASIS and his pack
Excerpt:
When Stefanie Anbruzzen entered the hotel lobby, the loup-garou within him stirred, and Sawyer left his stool at the hotel bar. The photos in her file didn’t do her justice. Beneath the sconces, mahogany highlights shone in her hair. She had wide-set eyes, high cheekbones, a stubborn chin, and a mouth that would have been made for kissing if it ever relaxed. A bluish-green dress skimmed her torso and stopped above her knees. Shapely calves and ankles. When he’d made the appointment with her on the phone, her voice had been as warm as melted honey. As sticky, too, if a man wasn’t careful.
At the entrance to the restaurant, she checked her watch. Then she scanned the lobby. When her gaze skimmed past, he cleared his throat with the rumble of a low growl. Most women would have paused long enough for him to reel them in with a smile.
Another glance at her watch. She tapped her toe and spoke with the maître d’ before following him inside.
Sawyer left his drink, drew a deep breath, and approached the restaurant. She’d chosen a table in the far corner. Like most Shifters, she wanted to be inconspicuous. As if someone who looked like Stefanie Anbruzzen could ever fade into the background.
The sommelier presented the Châteauneuf-du-Pape Sawyer had ordered in advance. She accepted the choice and brought the glass to her lips, but set it down without tasting it. Too preoccupied? Too irritated? She checked her watch again, surveyed the restaurant, and shifted position as if preparing to leave.
He mentally rehearsed his opening remarks. He often began by emphasizing patience, but Uncle Mel’s instructions nagged him. Keep her occupied. Charm. Distract. One fewer Anomaly.
Lyrics from an old Seventies song popped into Steffi’s head when Sawyer Montaigne entered the restaurant. Tall, dark, and indecently handsome, he looked like he owned the whole damned hotel, restaurant included. He bestowed smiles on every female he encountered. From grandma to teenager, server to customer, they appeared ready to fall into those long arms swathed in the charcoal gray sleeves of a well-tailored suit. Despite the smile, he moved like a predator. Even from a distance, Steffi’s skin prickled beneath his power.
In a few long strides, he stood at her table. “Miss Anbruzzen?”
The flutters in her belly flipped like Olympic gymnasts. Close up, the man looked even better than he had at the bar. A wing of black hair swept over a broad forehead. His nose had taken a few punches, and thick werewolf brows brought out deep-set gray eyes. A generous mouth and a jaw like granite suggested an intriguing blend of soft and hard.
“Mister Montaigne? Or do you prefer Monsieur Montaigne?” According to Ellyn’s message, he was French Canadian.
His eyes opened wider. She’d caught him off-guard. Good.
“I prefer Sawyer.”
So he leaped to a first-name basis. Like a Mentor. At least he had better credentials. “Steffi.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Steffi.”
Huge hand but a comfortable grip. “You could have fooled me.” Withdrawing her hand, she indicated not the seat he stood by, but the one on the opposite side of the small table.
Without breaking eye contact, he slipped into the chair he’d chosen. “What makes you say that?”
“You were standing at the bar when I arrived but made no effort to join me. In addition, your late arrival suggests a lack of enthusiasm for this job.”
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
What makes your featured book a must-read?
The story has engaged even readers who don’t usually read romance. It moves at an easy pace for a summer read, and the characters earn their happily ever after.
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card:
Open Internationally.
Runs July 17 – July 25, 2023.
Winner will be drawn on July 26, 2023.
Author Biography:
Biography People like to quote F. Scott Fitzgerald on there being no second acts in American lives. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1944, I am entering my fifth act. I began to write at age twelve when I received a portable Smith-Corona typewriter for Christmas. (My mother thought I'd make a good secretary. Little did she know!) I was a staff writer with Maryland Public Broadcasting in its infancy (1969-1972) but left to go "back to the land" (my hippie days), where I freelanced and did contractual work with MPB to keep us financially afloat. I started writing romances in the late 1980s but put them aside to earn a PhD in English and pursue an academic teaching career (academic writing, not as much fun). Upon retiring in 2014, I returned to romance with a renewed sense of purpose and a stronger awareness of the craft. I'm also a sucker for happy endings.
Social Media Links: