My favorite shifters.
Shifters are almost as varied as life on Earth. From bears and wolves, via panthers and leopards, to horses, cows and even salamanders! We all have our favorites. Bears are big news right now, but the ever popular wolf still thrills readers, along with dragons, big cats, and a host of other shape shifting creatures.
My own top five goes like this:
Wolves. I love wolf shifters. The way wolves live, as a pack means there are fascinating dynamics to explore. Different authors imagine this society in very different ways. Some packs are very strictly hierarchical, others are depicted as crazy, and lawless. Some are dark and scary places to live, others are cute and happy packs full of love. I enjoy all the different ways that wolf packs are imagined by the authors who write them, and love finding new depictions of wolf shifter society.
Dragons. Because…dragons!!! Dragon shifters are awesome. Often they come with other powers and are magical beings. Many dragon shifters are an incredible age, and have lived through major events in human history. There’s something wonderful about the raw power of the dragon shifter, and the fact that they are mythical beasts works so well within shifter lore.
Bears. Bear shifters are awesome! Firstly, in their human form they tend to be just my type of guy. Big. Brawny. Furry. They are also loyal, loving, protective. They tend to be loners more often than wolf shifters, or to live in small clans and family groups. Often bear society is male dominated and conservative. The heroines of these stories have to be strong characters to take on a bear mate. But it is always worth it :) I always think of bear shifters looking like this guy!
Big cat shifters. There are a variety of big cat shifters out there. Lions, tigers, and of course panthers. I particularly love panther and leopard shifters. An early shifter read of mine was the Leopard Series, by Christine Feehan.
Bird shifters. There aren’t a whole host of bird shifter books out there, but one of my fave shifter books features bird shifters. Duck, by Kim Dare is a brilliant, BDSM shifter version of the tale of the ugly duckling. It’s at times dark, beautiful, uplifting and moving. And she’s made me a fan of bird shifters for life.
So what kind of shifters do you like? Are big old bears your thing, or do you prefer a fiery dragon?
What’s the most unusual shifter you’ve read about? Mine was a salamander shifter.
I heard that there is even a spider shifter story out there, but spiders terrify me, so that’s one shifter I definitely won’t be reading!
Sky Jones