When I asked my newsletter subscribers about “out of the ordinary” shifters, they came through for me! Click on the title and author to go to the Goodreads page for that book, or one of the books in the series.
DISCLAIMER: I have not read all–or even most–of these books. This info came from reader volunteers who are generous with their time and experience. I tried to double-check shifter characters when they were listed in the book descriptions, but the details aren’t always available. If you find a mistake, please let me know and I’ll fix it in the post! 🙂
Birds
HAWK: King of Prey by Mandy Roth.
VULTURE: Trials of a Werevulture, by Emily Martha Sorensen.
RAVEN. Revenge, by Keira Blackwood.
Mammals (that can be found in nature)
HEDGEHOGS: Hedging His Bets, by Celia Kyle and Mina Carter.
Hedging Her Bets, by Erzabet Bishop.
Prickly Business, by Piper Vaughn and Kenzie Cade.
PORCUPINE: Grizzly Attraction by Hattie Hunt.
DEER: Frost Brothers’ Brides series, Anya Nowlan. A reader also told me she has a gorilla shifter, but I couldn’t track that one down.
BUNNY: His Bunny Kicks Sass, by Dawn Sullivan. Bunny in book 1, fox in Book 2.
KOALA: The Luck of the Shifters, by Bianca D’Arc.
SHEEP: Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, by Lauren Esker. (The sheep shifter is paired with a wolf!) There are reportedly other exciting shifters in her Shifter Agents series.
STALLION: Blackwood Stallions series, by Rachel Real.
MOLE: Love at first Roar, by Celia Kyle.
SQUIRREL: Squirrel Bait, by Chip Davis. (Note: this doesn’t look like a PNR book, but it does look interesting!)
FOX: For Fox Sake by Emma Dean.
CHINCHILLA: Gumption & Gumshoes, by Alex Kidwell.
Reptiles
SNAKE: Viper Game, by Christine Feehan. This is part of a series with genetically modified people who turn into shifters.
CROCODILE: Shifters of Soho series, by J.S. Striker. The crocodile shifter is in Book 3.
Fish
SHARKS: The Master Shark’s Mate, by Zoe Chant. Shark and coyote. Chant’s Fire and Rescue series also includes a Pegasus, a griffin, a unicorn, and a phoenix.
Touching Paradise (Shark Shifter series), by Cleo Peitsche.
OTHER FISH AND MARINE ANIMALS: Lords of the Abyss series, by Michelle M. Pillow. A reader also said she has great stories about falcons and birds of prey, but I haven’t yet had time to hunt them down (Goodreads is showing over 150 books for this author!).
Other (extinct or imaginary animals, insects, plants, and babies)
SELKIE: The Bear’s Matchmaker, by Emilia Hartley.
SABERTOOTHS: Bearpaw Ridge Firefighters series, by Ophelia Sexton. Books 3 and 4 contain Sabertooth Tigers.
BUTTERFLY: Hounded, by Tasha Black. The butterfly is paired with a dog.
IVY (YES, A PLANT!) SHIFTER: Unbound, by Elle Thorne.
GARGOYLE: Stone Heart, by Ariel Marie. In addition to gargoyles in this series, there is an Elven princess.
KRAKEN: Treasure of the Abyss by Tiffany Roberts.
BABY ANIMALS: Alpha Unit One, New York, by Chris T. Kat.–according to the reader who shared this one with me, the characters are adult humans, but when they shift, they become baby animals.
Collections of different shapeshifters
Poisoned Pen, by Zenina Masters. Snake and swan. (She has a unicorn, beavers and others in the Shifting Crossroads series.)
Hotel Safari series, by Tori Knightwood. Giraffe in Book 3, elephant in Book 5.
Furry United Coalition series, by Eve Langlais. This is a series with several different shifters–rabbit, fox, swan, crocodile, doe, falcon, ostrich, kangaroo.
Kodiac Point series, by Eve Langlais. Fox and a moose, among more ‘normal’ shifters.
Bitten Point series, by Eve Langlais. Crocodile, python, among others.
Anita Black, Vampire Hunter series, by Laurell K Hamilton. According to one reader, “she has had snakes, dolphins along with the normal ones of wolves, panthers, lions, foxes.”
Big Bad Bunnies series, by Golden Angel. Bunny, squirrel, turtle hybrids, and others.
Safari Shifters series, by Lola Kidd. Rhinoceros, crocodiles, gazelle, elephants.
Were Zoo series, by RE Butler. Includes gorillas, elephants, and more.
My mind is blown.
I had no idea there was such a wealth of shifters out there–this is an incredible list. If you think of more to add, feel free to drop them in the comments! One thing that creating this post has taught me is that the only limit to creating shapeshifting characters is our imagination, and our imaginations are, apparently, limitless.
Thank you!
Shout-outs and thank-yous to the readers who helped me track down these unconventional shifters! Sue, Leanne, Ruth, Kim, Christal, Amanda, Carletta, Donna, Rebecca, Ching, Sue, Joanne, Jody, Shirl, Melissa, Lauren at Romance Novel Giveaways, Amy, Lynn, Ruth, Leslie, Rachal, and Lisa!
