Thanks to Twilight young readers are falling in love with werewolves all over again and are hungry for more young adult books featuring our furry friends. But when you look up books on werewolves most of them are adult books, many of which are trashy romance novels not really fit for a 13-year-old. So today I’ll shine some light onto an awesome shapeshifter series I absolutely loved as a teenager, the Kiesha’ra series by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. Now, for those that have already read this series you are probably thinking, “but we don’t meet the wolves until book 4!!!” That is true, but just because this series has more than wolf shapeshifters doesn’t mean it isn’t fantastic. But be rest assured readers, there are werewolves in the series, you do have to read about snake-shifters and bird-shifters first but it is so totally worth it.
The Kiesha’ra series has five books in it, which are:
1. Hawksong
2. Snakecharm
3. Falcondance
4. Wolfcry
5. Wyvernhail
Now I won’t go through every book and ruin the story for you guys so I’ll just cover the first book in the series. The Kiesha’ra Series is a set of five fantasy novels set way back before modern times, which focus on several races of shapeshifters, including the avians (bird people), the serpiente (snake people), and the shm’Ahnmik (falcon people). In the first book, Hawksong, the story is told by Danica Shardae, an avian shapeshifter. She is a princess of her people who, like the birds they become, is reserved and disciplined, yet full of passion. Her people have been at war with the wild serpiente, a people who shapeshift into serpent forms, for so many years that no one remembers how it all started. The hatred and bloodshed have taken a heavy toll on both sides, and Danica and Zane Cobriana, the sexy serpiente prince, are determined to stop it, at any cost. He is the last of his line as is Danica and so he proposes that the avian and serpiente royalty meet at a neutral place and seek mediation to end the war. The mediator proposal – that Danica and Zane marry – is so crazy and revolting a plan that both parties leave immediately. The two young royals, however, consider it in spite of the apparent lunacy, for it would mean an end to the fighting. But can they pull it off? This book takes the Romeo and Juliet angle to new heights and is dealt with in a completely new and original way. It’s a love story and a plea for peace, and an intriguing look at a world that is full of tension and danger and beauty.
The book is full of romance and passion that puts many young adult romances to shame. But there is more than just romance in it, there is a deep story involving turmoil and hatred among two races. As the series goes on you meet the other animal races as well, including a book all about the wolves, a race that values honor, duty, hunting skills, and strength. It is for sure a series any young (or old) fantasy lover should pick up.
If you also like vampires, Amelia Atwater-Rhodes has a rad vampire series as well, Den of Shadows.
– Moonlight
I love her books. :) She’s coming out with a new one I really want to read. But there are quite a few YA werewolf novels, you know, recent ones, too. :) Never Cry Werewolf by Heather Davies, Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause, Shiver by Maggie Stiefvator and it’s sequel Linger which isn’t out yet, the Wereling series by Stephen… sorry, I don’t remember his last name, Strange Angels by Lili St. Crow has werewolves I think, Soulless by Gail Carriger, I think as well (haven’t read those), The Dark Guardian Series by Rachel Hawthorne, Melissa De La Cruz’s new Wolf Pack series, Tantalize… and that’s what I can name off the top of my head. I could find more if I asked.
Sorry for the long comment!! I’m a YA book blogger, so I get really into this kinda thing. XD
Oh, and I have a question for you, and I’ll put it in this comment since I’ve left two others and that’s to the point of stalkerish. (I’m really not a stalker, I’m just procrastinating like crazy.)
Anyways, you know how in Twilight, the werewolves’ body temperatures are a lot higher than humans? I’ve heard that the werewolves in Charlaine Harris’ books (Trueblood’s base for anyone who doesn’t know) have the same trait. Would you know if that has some traditional origin?
i’ll look for those books.in this book i read two years ago or so,called Vampire Island,when the vampires get angry their irises in their eyes go white,leaving only the black pupils(which enlarge like hunting felines’ at night),simler to how the twilight vampires eyes get so dark that you cant even see the pupils. the vampires in vampire island are kinda corny ,batlike(fruitbat-vampirebat hybrid???)and they have weird names like madison and lexington lyvingstone and they live in new york and they were born mortal in europe.still,it was a pretty good book for kids.there is a wolf boy named peter stube,he is soposed to be cute and have platnum blond hair.
i luv all of Amelia Atwater-Rhodes’ books! they’re so awesome! and chocolate was also a good book although the movie for that one was so different??? kinda wierd but watevr. the twilight books were pretty good, ive read them all in like 10 days, they were really good!!
I honey your articles really often because they are published in an understandable perspicuous. So I can read them although I come from Germany and get some troubles to understand English articles.
I have been looking around for some vampire and shifter romance books for teens, but I can find any that I like. I read Blood and Chocolate and Shiver but I cannot find anymore that are as good as them. So if you can could you find more vampire and shifter romance books for teens? Thanks.
There is a young adult series I know of, it’s not about werewolves though, but about a girl that can shapeshift into any animal she wants. It’s The Immortals by Tamora Pierce. It’s set in a fantasy world with wizards and dragons and stuff. I LOVED it when I was a teen.