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A review by redhairedashreads
Cretaceous Crushes by Kelex
3.0
3 stars - I liked it
The overall rating is the average of the following ratings.
Jurassic Spark by Pandora Pine
4 stars - It was really good
This was a short but sweet story about a paleontologist who accidentally reveals he is a dinosaur shifter during a one night stand. Gibson and Cooper's story was incredibly sweet and I love how their story played out. Also I was not expecting Cooper's reveal at the end there.
Grow A Spinosaurus by RS McKenzie
3 stars - I liked it
This was a sweet story about a songwriter who is interested in a monster sighting in the ocean but instead falls for the local bartender, who happens to be a Spinosaurus. These two had very cute interactions and I loved how much August blushed.
Fossil Beds Bed & Breakfast by Siobhan Muir
3 stars - I liked it
This was a great story about two dinos shifters who are fighting to prevent their town from being seized by rich land developers and in the process meet. I really liked Maya and Peria’s story. It was very cute and sweet. They had instant chemistry and I liked seeing them scare off the vandals together in dino form. Also Maya’s two kids were great side characters and I was surprised by their reveal at the end.
Jurassic Measures by Davidson King
DNF chapter 4
I don't like Landry at all. He is pushy, doesn't respect Jason when he tells him no he doesn't want to go on a date with him, and really comes across as a stalker. Also not really feeling any chemistry between these two because of this so I am just going to DNF. I did like Jason though.
Toeing the Line by MZ Arthur
2 stars - It was ok
This was an ok story about a paleontologist who is trying to get access to a holiday park where a dinosaur bone was found but is getting refused by the owners. Matt and Rhys were ok but I didn't really love Matt. I feel like he was too used to getting his way and didn't respect Rhys and his family when they told him no the first time. I also didn't like how he tried to get Rhys' father and grandfather drunk to get access that way.
Dino Love and Alpha Knots by Kota Quinn
3 stars - I liked it
This was a sweet story about Special Agent Garrett Seela finally finding his fated mate but they are a human omega. Garrett and Reese were very cute and sweet together. I really enjoyed how Garrett tried to go slow to win over Reece but they both couldn’t really fight their instincts.
Also just as an FYI, there is no MPreg in this story.
The Alberto Effect by Nikki Prince
4 stars - It was really good
This was a wonderful second chance, fated mates story. Alberto had a terrible childhood which caused him to push the one man who was his mate away and now five years later on a blind date Jameson finally finds him again and gets his second chance. Al and Jay’s story was very emotional and shows how trauma can be overcome with the right help and the right partner. I really enjoyed Al and Jay’s relationship and loved that we see Al apologizing in the end and making strides to overcome his trauma.
TW: mentions of rough home life as a child; manipulative mother; father struggled with alcohol before he died;
The Dinostore by Kiernan Kelly
4 stars - It was really good
This was an interesting life mates story because the dinosaur shifters are actually a race of aliens (Saurians) who originally came to Earth and seeded it with dinosaurs, then returned centuries later to find out they went extinct and decided to present humans with micro dinosaurs as pets instead. Vic is a Saurian, a Dryasaurus shifter to be exact, who sells mini dinosaurs at his shop and one day meets Bron a human dino salesman who is trying to sell some more exotic mini dinosaurs. This was a very fast paced and fated mates story but Vic and Bron were very cute together. I also really love the whole idea of alien dino shifters and mini dinosaur pets. It was just a very fun story and I would totally read more in this world.
Mikel’s Mage by Annie Taylor
2 stars - It was ok
TW: mentions of homomisia, child abuse, starvation, conversion therapy, bullying, death of parents and child kidnapping.
This was a different kind of shifter story than all the rest. Mikel is a dinosaur mage and he finds this out when he is locked by the elders in his coven into his T-Rex form to try and prevent him from using magic. His teenage bodyguard/crush Indiana returns and helps him figure out the spell and reveals the truth of his past. Mikel and Indys story was interesting because it was a very unique take on dinosaur shifting but I didn't find some aspects of the story confusing. I am a bit confused about how old Indy is compared to Mikel and why he required a bodyguard to begin with as a teen. Mikel and Indys relationship was a bit abrupt with Mikel being angry at being abandoned by him to instantly forgive him and admitting his feelings. I was expecting a bit more conversation about their relationship and feelings but it got overshadowed by why the elders wanted Mikel.
I also am a bit confused on how the magic system works in this world and how the shifter aspect actually integrated with it. We get a very brief explanation but I still have questions about how this works.
The Saurian’s Bargain by April Andrews
2 stars - It was ok
This story was ok. The setting was unique and the dinosaurs were cool but I wasn't really captivated by Jora’s story. The world was more interesting to me.
A Boy Called Blu by JP Sayle
Weird & Wacky Shifters series
3 stars - I liked it
I wasn't expecting to read a potato shifter book in a dinosaur anthology but here we are. This was a daddy kink/fated mates story with Trike, a deinoychus shifter, and Blu, a potato shifter. I enjoyed this but do feel like a lot of things going on in this world were left unfinished, but that probably will get solved in the potato shifter series.
His Triceratops Omega by Katy Manz
GSC in Love series
3 stars - I liked it
Omega witch Damien attempts a spell to become a wolf shifter like the rest of his family, unfortunately it goes wrong and he finds himself turned into a triceratops. Hudson, a dragon shifter, is sent by the Global Shifter Council to help Damien and his coven try to reverse the spell before humans find out.
This was an interesting fated mates/mpreg story. I liked the idea of witches who could also be shifters and a global shifter council. I still am very new to mreg stories and don't really love pregnancy in romance in general but it wasn't the end so I didn't mind it.
The Dino Whisperer by DK Sutton
2 stars - It was ok
This was an ok story about a dinosaur shifter clothier who finds himself helping a reluctant shifter and dealing with a mob boss at the same time. While I liked aspects of this story, I feel like parts of the story were missing and I was just left with a lot of questions in the end.
Craving the Carnivore by Kelex
3 stars - I liked it
This was a very interesting scifi story with dinosaurs shifters being created by an alien species who are also protecting two alien dinosaurs worlds, one for shifters and one for regular dinosaurs. Avi and Erik’s story was very interesting and sweet. I really liked that they both had been crushing on each other for over a year but it takes Avi’s recent discovery to finally push them together. I would totally read more books set in this world.
A Debt Repaid by Maz Maddox
3 stars - I liked it
This was a very cute story with a human who rescues a weird looking bird from a bundle of wire but quickly finds out it's not a bird, it's a dinosaur shifter. I really enjoyed Zack and Ru’s story. It was short, sweet, and showed that finding the right person can really help you get over an ex-boyfriend. Also, if we get more RELIC shorts in the future, I hope these two pop up.