Bears Behaving Badly

Characters banter a mile a minute in the excellent, screwball paranormal rom-com that kicks off Davidson’s Bewere My Heart series (after Deja New). Bear-shifters Annette Garsea, an indomitable interspecies foster system caseworker, and David Auberon, a stalwart private investigator, team up to stop a criminal who is targeting juvenile shifters. Though Annette believes she’s too busy for love and the charmingly bashful David thinks he has no chance with her, the romantic tension only grows as they work together, soon giving way to sexy make-out sessions. Annette’s intense protective instinct toward her young charges is backed up by smarts and shifter strength, making her an admirable heroine. David is her match in intelligence and muscle, but it is his blundering attempts at flirtation that make him so endearing. A host of secondary characters, including Annette’s wacky roommate, Pat, and mysterious colleague, Nadia, serve as entertaining diversions from the procedural mystery at the center of the story. Slow-burn sexual tension and playful paranormal elements make this hilarious, sizzling romance perfect for fans of Kresley Cole’s Immortals After Dark series. Agent: Ethan Ellenberg, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency. (Apr.)