Hot For Her Bear

Montana Grizzlies #1

by Ariel Marie

She was warned to leave the grumpy bear alone, but she couldn’t help herself. Her curiosity was piqued. She wanted to see the bear roar!

Saffron Dakota knew she shouldn’t have specific thoughts about her best friend’s older sister. It was forbidden, but it didn’t keep her from smiling at her.

Or making sure she was dressed up nice when around her.

Or randomly showing up to her cabin in the woods.

All of this, hoping the beautiful grizzly would show her just a wee bit of interest. Her friend would be pissed if she knew Saffron was crazy over her sister.

Dasha Prime couldn’t believe the strong reaction her bear had to Saffron. After all of these years, it was clear what her bear was trying to tell her. It was something she had thought all along, but now her bear was roaring loud and clear.

Saffron was her mate, and Dasha would defend her woman against anyone who had a problem with it.

If you love steamy, wlw paranormal romance with a grumpy bear shifter and her sassy human mate, then you will enjoy Hot For Her Bear. This story was intended for mature readers only.

Genres: Lesbian, Paranormal, Shapeshifters, Romance, Fantasy, LGBT, Adult

121 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 14, 2023

About the author

Cleveland-born and raised, Ariel Marie has been delighting readers for over a decade with her signature blend of pulse-pounding action, steamy romance, and paranormal thrills. From shifters and vampires to fae and witches, she spins worlds where supernatural forces collide with intense emotion—and readers can't get enough.

Many of Ariel’s devoted fans appreciate her ability to transport them into richly imagined worlds, returning again and again to the characters they love. She’s proud to be an indie author, cherishing the freedom to deliver stories on her terms—and it shows in the passion behind every page.

When she’s not writing, you’ll find Ariel curled up planning her next novel—often inspired by a lifelong love of storytelling.

Reviews

[Rina Pride · Rating 4 out of 5]

Curti! Foi um bom e gostoso FF. Safron e Dasha são muito sexy, casal caliente 🔥🐻🔥

[Netgyrl (Laura) · Rating 3 out of 5]

a very weak 3 stars - readable but basic

This book has all the story beats you expect from a shifter romance: fated mates, intsa-lust/love, protective shifter vibes, hot smexy times, and some action. Unfortunately, there are some editing issues, missing words, repeated words, etc. Also, the writing is just ok and the story is somewhat 2-dimensional. Props that it kept my interest to the end but I will say I skimmed a bit and this story is very short. I probably will not read the next one.

shelved:
sapphic-romance, paranormal-romance, paranormal-shapeshifters, quick-read, read, skipped-pages-to-get-to-the-end, soul-mates, kinda-meh, kindle-unlimited

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A new series from the author.
The town of Lurton, Montana has a mix of humans, some witches and all types of shifters such as bears, wolves, panthers, etc. Human Saffron Dakota has moved back home after living out of state for some years. She owns her own business and home and really wants to settle down. Bear shifter Pola is Saffron's best friend and it is Dasha Prime (Pola's older sister) who piques her romantic interests.
This is quick read with humor, loving family, sex, a mating call, bear fight and much more before the guaranteed HEA.
Ariel Marie's hot little shifter stories are my guilty reading vice. I wonder what will happen next in Lurton.

I rec'd a copy from Booksprout and my review is voluntary.

[lauraღ · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Not bad, not the best. It was exactly what I was expecting. I've never had like, a grand success from this author, but if you're in the mood for a short, smutty, sapphic paranormal story, this fits the bill. Dasha is a grumpy (kinda) isolated (kinda) bear shifter, Saffron is her little sister's best friend who returns to town. They've both always kinda had crushes, and they realise that they're fated mates, and then they fuck it out. That's pretty much it! It's very tropey, and there's a sorta stalker situation with a terrible dude. Lots of growling. Some daring heroics. A fair bit of sex. The chemistry was there, even if I didn't feel the emotion. The writing wasn't my favourite, or like, particularly good? But like I said in an update, I was just going to read a little sample to see if I liked it, and ended up reading almost half the book. So, I mean, it was definitely readable. A good way to pass some time.

[Jamie (TheRebelliousReader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars. Cute and everything but I wasn’t really feeling the chemistry between Dasha and Saffron. I like fated mates but outside of sex they never really did anything or talked about anything meaningful to show their chemistry. The writing was good and the action at the end was entertaining but overall this was just okay.

[warhawke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre: Paranormal Romance
Type: Standalone novella book 1 of Montana Grizzlies series
POV: Third Person
Rating:




Saffron Dakota has been eyeing her best friend’s sister for years. Unknown to her, Dasha Prime had her own secret desires, waiting for the right time to be unleashed.



The story was decent, with all the typical shifter dynamics. While I wished for more intensity between the main characters, I did enjoy the addition of an external conflict that added some extra stakes.

Hot for Her Bear is a story of passion and determination. It would appeal to readers looking for a quick, easy, and smutty paranormal romance.



Books in the series:




🐻🌳🐻. . . (F)BR with Twinsie CC . . . 🐻🌳🐻



For more reviews/interviews/book talk/promo visit:



For graphics, trailers & author services visit Warhawke Design Studio.

[CC · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5★



Though Saffron Dakota knew her best friend’s older and grumpy sister, Dasha Prime, should be off limits, she always tried to remain on her radar over the years. Trying to avoid Saffron was a monumental task for Dasha, but when the temptation becomes too great to bear, Dasha acts on her attraction.

In this paranormal FF bear shifter romance, the pacing is quick as Dasha and Saffron build their relationship. Listening to her inner bear, Dasha is ready to claim her mate and will not let anyone interfere. Though parts were predictable, the connection between Saffron and Dasha is steamy and Dasha likes to please her mate in all ways


*This was a (F)BR with Twinsie Hawkey*


For more reviews/reveals/giveaways visit:

[Leala Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good quick read has a predictable plot (not in a bad way), love the concept of bear shifting similar to any other kind of animal shifting story. Mainly came for the smut, got the smut, and was left a happy reader.

[Emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

✔️bear shifter novella
✔️sapphic romance
✔️fated mates
✔️best friend’s sister
✔️age gap (10 years)
✔️a little bit of action/suspense
✔️no breakup

1.5⭐️

This was just…okay. I haven’t read any of this author’s books before, and I went in blind other than knowing the basics (that it was sapphic and bear shifter). Story wise it met my expectations I guess (it follows the typical shifter novella formula), but the writing just isn’t that great.

Do the main characters actually exist together outside the bedroom? I didn’t see that they had any chemistry aside from the fact they are mates and want to be intimate constantly. I don’t know if they have anything in common at all because they just don’t talk about it (other than the fact that one MC is best friends with the other MC’s sister). There was definitely a plot outside of the smut, but more time was focused on the suspense plot than the relationship we were supposed to be rooting for.

I wish I liked it more than I did. The smut was fine, and I’m sure a lot of readers will rate it higher than I did for that alone, but even with a smutty novella I want something (anything!) to show that the characters actually like being around each other and have something in common when they aren’t sleeping together.

[Caligo · Rating 3 out of 5]

What can I say...

5/10 (2.5 rounded up to 3/5)

I really wanted to enjoy this book. I'm a big fan of shifter romances and the premise of this one seemed interesting to me. It was also my first venture into sapphic romance books so my hopes were high and I was ready to potentially find a nice author to binge read. Unfortunately even though I really wanted to enjoy the story, it was not meant to be. In my honest opinion the writing was way worse than what I'm used to, the sentences were extremely short and therefore the reading flow was quite dissatisfying. I was intrigued by the story though, so I skimmed through the rest and while the plot was very basic, it was sufficient (not meant in a negative way, just a neutral thing).

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I probably would have given this a 2.5. The story had really good potential and I liked the characters and setting. The writing just fell kind of flat for me, I wished there was a bit more to each of the scenes and the story as a whole so I could get more invested in the characters. The terms used for the smexy scenes were kind of all over the place.

Tropes:
Insta-love/fated mates
Sisters best friend

If you are looking for a quick read that is fast paced and has spice then I would recommend.

[Lisa Rodriguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saffron

Saffron had moved back home and opened an ice cream shop. Her best friend invites her over for dinner with family one night and she wasn't expecting Dasha to react to her the way she did. She can't get her off of her mind and decides to visit her and take dinner. There they find that they want each other. They have some outside issues that come up, but they don't let that stop their mating.

[Wanika · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute story. Hot for Her Bear is the story of a human who ends up falling for her best friend’s sister who also happens to be a bear shifter and her fated mate. Even though her best friend’s sister is 10 years older, that doesn’t deter this determined human. Unfortunately things aren’t always smooth sailing, with problems coming in the shape of a man who doesn’t understand that no means no. All things work out at the end, with a happy HEA.

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was what I expected it to be, a fast paced, pretty surface level book. Saying that, it was still enjoyable and was exactly what it wanted to be. There was a lot of spice but also some nice feelings interspersed throughout between Saffron and Dasha.

The plotline around Bishop added a new element but I didn't think there needed to be two conflicts there. Especially with how quickly it was wrapped up.

[fred jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable F/F shifter story

This is an enjoyable F/F shifter romance with some nice heat. The characters are fun, I liked Dasha the grumpy grizzly bear artist and Saffron her human mate. Good storyline with a little danger. The ending is good. I like this authors work, this is a good one 4.5 stars.

[TJ Phillips · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 30%. I just could not with the language of how this was written. It's 3rd person but in a very "See Spot. See Spot run." sort of way. You don't have to use the persons name at the beginning of every sentence. Additionally, it reads very YA but with sex scenes. Adding sex doesn't automatically make your YA book, a NA book. Stop that.

[Angelina Torres · Rating 5 out of 5]

🥵🥵

LOVED my first wlw pnr 😭 I don’t often see ff in the wild and as someone who loves and CRAVES all things fated mates and shifter, I’m obsessed with Ariel Marie. 10/10 would recommend, 5 stars for an excellent bite (😘) sized story, loveable characters, great plot, and STEAMY HEAT!!

[Patricia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is pretty superficial though there is nothing truly offensive about it. Features scintillating prose like, “Was she Dasha’s mate? Was that why she kept saying ‘mate?’” I liked the narrator’s voice and performance but the audiobook had some oddities, like lines that were recorded twice with both versions left in the final product.

[EvaLovesRomance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow Loved this ff bear shifter book!

this book had best friends and best friend thinks best friend sister is sexy it also had some action too not only the lovey dovey type but fighting kind. Its a short story and I refuse to say much about this book, just want to say read it and enjoy it! I am going to get the next book now of th series. loved this book!!

[jr weightman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short but Sweet.....

Ok so not the longest book by any means. But a good one never the less. I enjoyed reading it. And I'm sure you would as well. Especially if your a fan of the author. Like I am.

So take a chance, you won't be disappointed.....

[Mayra Luria · Rating 5 out of 5]

always great

Ariel writes wonderful shifters. The story grabs your attention until it is finished. Powerful females with deep and uncompromising love… what could be better? Another story by Ariel Marie

[Olivia]

I’ve been trying out shifter books and this was recommended on KU. Very short story and not super interesting. I guess the fact the two knew each other was supposed to be enough to explain a relationship but it seemed very clinical and dry to me.

[Lee Tent · Rating 4 out of 5]

❤️✨❤️

Sweet, lovely, sapphic!!! This was a quick read, but I enjoyed every bit. Spicy, but balanced spicy, and grumpy-sweet was really lovely, n not to mention the beautiful landscapes, friendships and family.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this on stuff your Kindle day and I immediately thought this would be perfect for my BG3 reading challenge for the Halsin prompt!
This was a fun quick read with more & better of a plot than I expected in such a short book. The romance was pretty sweet.

[Eel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feminine Rage

This classic shifted/fated mates story took a common character archetype and stretched it to the extremes. I wasn’t expecting such a strong villain, and the ending is so cathartic. Also, the spice is ghost pepper level :O

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Possessive

Awesome story of longing and love when you didn't even realize that's what you wanted or needed
And the madness of power and money that makes you think you can have whatever you want

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ariel Marie did it again!

This book was soooo good! The story was well written and i loved the characters.I can’t wait to read more of the series!

[Devoncatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is expected, but could've been better

It's n story with an evil villain. It's more than a bit too formulaic but a fun read. I'm not sure if it's even 3 star...

[saint]

god I just want some good wlw shifter smut, is that too much to ask for?!

[Sheila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fates

Taking a chance to meet the fated one for you. There is someone out there for each of us, claiming us and giving us a HEA we all strive for.