With so much focus on the underwater characters, it’s disappointing that THE TEXAS SHIFTER’S MATE didn’t try to capitalize on the originality of its premise. This book should have had the word mermaid in the title. Zach and Shayla are torn between land and sea for most of the book, which makes their HEA that much more satisfying.

The mystery of Zach’s missing sister was interesting and the reveal of the big bad genuinely surprised me, which is hard to do in a genre so filled with tropes. I also loved the distinctions between the different supernatural creatures.

I really enjoyed exploring both Galveston, and the nearby underwater city of Coral, and discovering the fledgling Shadow Agency, the detective agency that Shayla and her friends start. This book was obviously written as the first in a series, with the tropes of having multiple single girls and a much larger world peeking around the edges. Unfortunately, it seems like that the proposed series never happened and parts of the story seem rushed because of that.

Although most of the sex was hot, there was one scene in particular that irked me. Shayla had been accidentally drugged, which makes her sexually aggressive and she pounces on Zach. Although they were both consenting, she didn’t tell him why she was acting so aggressive and that omission felt off in a book about kidnapping young girls for unknown purposes.

This isn’t a perfect book, but the mystery and the emotionality of the characters were fun enough to make me forget any awkward bits while I was reading. If you want original mythology and heroes and a mystery that is way bigger than it appears, THE TEXAS SHIFTER’S MATE is just the fluff you need.

Review live on the blog and will show up on Goodreads sometime later.

In a Flutter: Lovely diverse world!
Fluttering Thoughts:
Worldbuilding: Galveston, Texas setting. I loved the Broken Chains. The world has rich paranormal elements: shifters, mermaids, vampires, magic. The Shadow Agency concept was also cool. Coral was interesting to explore, through it was a secondary setting at best. I hope there are more stories set in this world, because it was yummy.
Characters: Shayla seems like a smart and enterprising young woman, using her unique set of skills to make it on land, which I really liked.
Zach also seems interesting, but he came across as somehow too invested in his step-sister’s disappearance while the father was kind of absent, tbh. If this hadn’t been a PNR with a pretty clearly-set pair, I would have suspected him of some nefarious intentions/reasons.
Ion was just plain weird.
I didn’t feel the chemistry between Shayla and Zach and as a result their interactions didn’t really get me that excited.
Plot: The mystery of Nantha’s disappearance seemed promising and layered, but then from somewhere around the middle point of the story it fizzled out for me. The romance was pretty slow burn, which is a good thing by and large, but since I wasn’t too invested in this couple it didn’t shine that much for me.
Writing: Third person, past tense narrative, his/her POV. The style came across as too narrative for me.
Curb Appeal: Really cool cover and hooking blurb – impulsive buy material for my more diverse PNR cravings.

There wasn’t much chemistry between me and this read, but I did appreciate quite a few elements about it. Maybe it just wasn’t a good fit, but there is promise. I’m thinking if you’re into the narrative style and like diverse paranormal elements, you’ll have more fun with it than I did.
I recommend The Texas Shifter’s Mate to fans of more diverse paranormal elements in their PNR and slow burn stand-alone romances that also include a touch of mystery.

2.5-2.75 Stars
A contemporary supernatural romance that is for the NA crowd. The plot has lots of potential, but the delivery was just a little off. Some of the characters need a little more development. I like the various species incorporated into the story arc (mermaids, werewolves, and vampires among others) and I think the PI company for supernatural beings introduced in this novel is a great idea. I gave this book a partial star bump up just for that.

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