Title:  Bear Valley Valentine
Series:  Bear Valley Shifters #6
Author:  T. S. Joyce
Published:  January 26, 2015
My Rating:  4.5 stars
Source:  Borrowed with Kindle Unlimited
Cover Description:

Colin Cross is a lone bear shifter living on the outskirts of Bear Valley. He likes his reclusive lifestyle, but when he musters the nerve to talk to the woman he has feelings for, being alone just doesn’t seem like enough anymore. When he finds Hadley on an online dating site, it’s the perfect way to build a relationship with her without dragging her into his dark past. Hadley is human, and humans don’t belong in his world, but a little online flirting never hurt anyone.

Hadley Bennett has had it with dating local townies. Determined to cast her net a little wider, she enters the chaotic world of online dating. When she finally secures a face-to-face date with the elusive Bearman28, it’ll be a Valentine’s Day to remember.

And if Hadley can handle his real identity, they just might find what they’ve both been searching for.

Watch out – sexy shifters ahead which means this is an 18+ reader story.

Read on for my thoughts on Bear Valley Valentine.

I had read Bear Valley Valentine back in February and decided to hold off on this review until I had a chance to read the Bear Valley Shifters series.  And I’m glad that I did it this way.  While Colin and Hadley’s story takes place some time after the events of the original series, it really helped me understand Colin a bit more after reading what had happened in the past.

Colin lives a solitary life, creating his beautiful hand made knives and avoiding most people and shifters.  Even though his home is on the edge of Bear Valley territory he has chosen to not be deeply involved with the clan.  He truly is a bear best left alone, but even a visit from Riker, the Bear Valley Alpha and his mate, Hannah can begin to stir a bit of loneliness for what this couple has together.  Yet Colin is resigned to his fate.  Maybe he might have taken a chance on a lovely human who he watches from afar… but, she deserved better than him.  Until fate stepped in and changed everything.

A shifter’s hearing is one of his best defenses and maybe his downfall as well.  At a table for one, eating a solitary meal, Colin overheard (from almost across the room) Hadley’s friend tell her about the online dating service she’d set up a profile for Hadley on… now at first Hadley wasn’t too thrilled, but hey she hadn’t met any other decent guys recently so why not?  This gives Colin a plan, he could contact her online – she wouldn’t have to see him and maybe they could at least be friends online.  He never expected more than that and maybe it was a crazy idea, but he knew she was the one for him and if his fear kept him from trying to gain her affection maybe this would be enough to satisfy him and his bear.

Hmm … what is that saying about best laid plans?  When Hadley does learn his identity wonderful things begin to happen for them both.  Now all Colin has to do is be brave enough to tell her about his bear and hope that she won’t run from him.

I really enjoyed Bear Valley Valentine.  It’s short, sexy and sweet.  Colin had been through hell and Hadley was the one bright spot in his life, if only she could handle all of him.  The romance was fun to watch unfold as Colin does everything in his power to make life easier for Hadley in non-conventional ways.  And it was fun to get a glimpse of Riker and Hannah again.

If you love Shifter Romance then you may want to check out this short but intense story.  And it doesn’t have to be Valentine’s Day to enjoy this one.  🙂

Available for the Kindle