Mine To Claim by A.C. Arthur

 Shadow Shifters: Damaged Hearts—a deeply emotional, unforgettable New Adult paranormal romance series by A.C. Arthur about the men who are sworn to protect the females—human or otherwise—from the savage fury of his own nature… 

In　Mine to Claim　by A.C. Arthur, Grace Kincaid has been trapped her whole life. Controlled in every way by her domineering parents, she has never had any moment of excitement or passion in all her eighteen years. When a rare night out with a friend ends in violence, Grace believes that perhaps her parents are right to keep her under lock and key. There’s just one problem—she can’t get the irresistibly sexy, mysterious man who saved her from danger out of her head. She knows she should go back to her safe world, but her newfound passion for life—and for her enigmatic protector—are making that impossible…Despite his strength and power, Aidan Sanchez cannot escape. Bound by his Shifter bloodline, he is repulsed by the very attributes his family wishes him to embrace. His main goal is to keep his more dangerous…hungers… under wraps. But when a fight at a club forces Aidan to protect the most alluring woman he’s ever seen, there’s no turning back. He knows he shouldn’t drag her into his world, but she’s awakened a fire within him, and for once, he’s willing to lose control if it means having Grace…  

Don't miss Part of Me coming in May 13, 2014 and Hunger for You coming June 10, 2014.

Noooooooooo!!!!! It can’t be the end of the book already. I got sucked into Grace and Aidan’s story so fully that the end snuck right up on me and I was NOT ready for it to be over. Mine to Claim is the first novella in the new Damaged Hearts series and it was awesome. 

We quickly learn that both Grace and Aidan come from world’s in which their future has been determined by those around them (Grace) or by fate (Aidan). Although they don’t immediately reveal all the details of what they each are dealing with (neither to one another or the reader), it is apparent (to all) that they are in similar situations and can empathize with one another, which just seems to increase the intensity of their bond. Although Aiden tries to fight the pull and attempts to convince himself that he should leave Grace alone because he has no future to offer her, his beast (no spoiler on the type of shifter he is) refuses to heed him and continues to drive him toward Grace – which is fortunate for her as she keeps finding herself in bad situations that Aidan has to rescue her from. Despite the intensity of their reactions toward one another and the obvious chemistry, the author only gives us a couple of heavy make-out scenes. There is more of an emphasis on the emotional aspects of their developing relationship than the physical aspects and Ms. Arthur weaves her tale in such a way that you don’t feel short-changed.

Mine to Claim might be just a novella, but it is one that is action-packed and it kept me engaged from beginning to end. When I checked to see if the sequel was out yet I was excited to learn that it is, but then disappointed to learn that it’s about Aidan’s brother as I wanted more of Aidan and Grace’s story. I can only hope that we get an update on them in the next book or perhaps in a fourth book as I would assume that book three will be about the third brother. Either way, I am looking forward to Ms. Arthur’s next book in the Damaged Hearts series and hope to check out her Shadow Shifters series as I would love to see what she does with a full-length novel.