Rating: 4.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | All Romance | Amazon UK
Length: Novel

Oliver Worth is a detective with the Nimueh’s Court police department. He’s called to a murder that is right up his alley. The body has been ravaged and left on the court’s steps. It’s clear that the murderer is some kind of animal, and everyone, including Oliver, thinks Werewolf. The victim’s hatred of anyone Non-Human is well known. But if a Werewolf attacked and killed the woman, then it’s in direct breach of the treaty between the courts and will start a war. Oliver has to tread carefully, but when all leads point to a particular Werewolf, he has no choice but to head into Logan’s Court territory and question the man.

Connor Pierce is gorgeous and intimidating, and Oliver finds himself inexplicably drawn to the man. As soon as he meets with Connor, he starts to think that he has the wrong man. But he’s a focused detective, and he has to be thorough. Connor informs Oliver that the deceased was spending time with another wolf, though he doesn’t know who, but he can take Oliver to one who can. Acting as Connor’s consort gets him past suspicion, and though smelling of and acting like he belong to Connor messes with him, it gets Oliver the information he needs.

Oliver’s attraction to Connor is so strong, he has trouble not acting on it. And when Connor lets it out that Oliver is his fated mate, Oliver has a hard time believing it. But there’s no denying their chemistry, and while they wait for further information, they act on the attraction and spend a steamy night together. Waking the next morning has Oliver rethinking his actions, but when he knows who committed the murder, he’s after the suspect. And Connor comes along, so he can use his sense of smell to assist. But things go wrong, and though the culprit is dealt with, Oliver might lose Connor before they even get going.

Magic. Shifters. Good writing and solid world building. These are the elements that make up Worth a Shot and made for a really good read. From the beginning, I was engaged in the tale. Told from Oliver’s third person POV, I found myself absorbed in his journey. There isn’t anything particularly deep or angsty here, and there were a few moments where I wanted some additional information. But I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

Oliver is a great character right from the beginning. It’s clear he’s searching for something, though he doesn’t know exactly what. He’s good at his job, he’s content in his life. When he’s called to a murder scene, we immediately get the sense that he takes things seriously and will stop at nothing to find out the truth. What I really enjoyed about him was that he felt real and believable. Oliver is a solidly written character that was easy to relate to. He was the perfect narrator. I liked his determination, and he had a real sense of fairness. He wasn’t going to dismiss anything because of his personal feelings, but neither was he going to accept things without facts to back it up. He was really well balanced as a character, and it showed through in all his aspect. It made a nice juxtaposition to the pull he felt to Connor.

From the moment Connor stepped onto the page, the tension in the book ramped up a notch. Connor is a real alpha type, embodying the trait perfectly. We don’t get to know him quite as well as Oliver, but weirdly, I didn’t find it lacking. I was caught up in his persona and his pull, just as much as Oliver was. This worked really well, and pushed the story along. As the intensity of the mystery was ramping up, so was the tension between Connor and Oliver. Oliver was trying to be professional, and he has a bit of baggage too, but there was no denying the pull. Often when there is fated mates in a story, you kind of just have to jump onto the story line and accept it. Evans does a really good job with making the reader feel their connection. Their chemistry just sparks, and it totally worked.

A quick mention of the world building here, and what I particularly liked about it. The author dumps you into the world, and lets you see how the world works without info dump or long winded explanation. This worked exceedingly well. Yes, there were a few questions I had, and where I wished for a better explanation. But the world is well crafted overall, and the magical aspects and “otherness” of it comes out clear. This a magical world that is peopled with paranormal creatures and humans alike. But it’s rooted in contemporary aspects that make it immediately recognizable. There’s a perfect balance here that make it accessible and almost believable.

Really, this was just a really nicely done book. For those of you looking for a paranormal tale that is not too heavy on the angst, high on MC chemistry and likable characters, and just solidly written all around, then this is the book for you. Not to mention it’s the first of a series. And I’ll definitely be checking out the next book.