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Kiss Out Of Water: A Matched By The Unicorn Story
How far will you go to meet the person you are meant to be with?
After years of disappointing dates and even worse apps, I think I've finally met someone special. He's smart, thoughtful, and hot as hell. After weeks of late-night conversations and playful banter, he promised to meet me at my favorite coffee shop. It feels almost too good to be true—then again, we did meet on Date-A-Base.
Will Makko turn out to be the man of my dreams, or will Date-A-Base turn out like every other dating app…or worse?
Being a Mako Shark Fishman is challenging enough; falling for a land dweller is even harder. But love makes even the wisest of us do foolish things. So here I am, standing outside a coffee shop, farther from the sea than ever before, a jug of water in one hand and my brittle heart in the other.
I know Layla isn't shallow; in fact, she might be the only human to hold my attention, let alone capture my heart. I just worry if she can handle my monstrous baggage.
Kiss Out of Water is a steamy novella about an inquisitive marine biologist who discovers the man of her dreams might be even fishier than he seems. At least he's willing to risk everything for a chance at love. With a guaranteed happily-ever-after, no cliffhangers—just a woman and her monster navigating love, trust, and what it means to stay together against all odds.
After years of disappointing dates and even worse apps, I think I've finally met someone special. He's smart, thoughtful, and hot as hell. After weeks of late-night conversations and playful banter, he promised to meet me at my favorite coffee shop. It feels almost too good to be true—then again, we did meet on Date-A-Base.
Will Makko turn out to be the man of my dreams, or will Date-A-Base turn out like every other dating app…or worse?
Being a Mako Shark Fishman is challenging enough; falling for a land dweller is even harder. But love makes even the wisest of us do foolish things. So here I am, standing outside a coffee shop, farther from the sea than ever before, a jug of water in one hand and my brittle heart in the other.
I know Layla isn't shallow; in fact, she might be the only human to hold my attention, let alone capture my heart. I just worry if she can handle my monstrous baggage.
Kiss Out of Water is a steamy novella about an inquisitive marine biologist who discovers the man of her dreams might be even fishier than he seems. At least he's willing to risk everything for a chance at love. With a guaranteed happily-ever-after, no cliffhangers—just a woman and her monster navigating love, trust, and what it means to stay together against all odds.
36 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 17, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 21, 2026
Okay, Shayla Masse has quickly become one of my favorite go-tos for pallet cleansers. KISS OUT OF WATER is the second story I’ve read from her incredibly imaginative writer’s brain and it is whimsical, spicy, sweet, cozy, and it’s FUN: there’s a size difference that’s completely unexpected—perfectly adorable. *** Recommended ***
MMC:
✨Makko
FMC:
✨Layla
HEA/Cliffhanger:
✨HEA
Tropes:
👉monster romance
👉merman mmc x human fmc
👉size difference
👉sweetest mmc
Triggers:🛑see content warning page/author’s website for full list🛑
💥18+
💥 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️, mf, open🚪sex
💥profanity
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
MMC:
✨Makko
FMC:
✨Layla
HEA/Cliffhanger:
✨HEA
Tropes:
👉monster romance
👉merman mmc x human fmc
👉size difference
👉sweetest mmc
Triggers:🛑see content warning page/author’s website for full list🛑
💥18+
💥 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️, mf, open🚪sex
💥profanity
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
April 30, 2026
Thanks to BookSirens for the ARC!
Short (unlike the female main character) and sweet, at just over 30 pages, this novella is a perfect read for just before bed to prevent the "one more chapter" situation.
A surprising amount of plot is squeezed into those pages with our short King Makko and the beautifully lanky Layla rocking up to a first date after being matched by the Date-A-Base site that has been making match after perfect match, and it would seem that winning streak continues.
There's a brief moment where our FMC is understandably upset when a request for a shower by a clearly unwell Makko leads to a H2O just add water type transformation but this is soon overcome when she realizes that he's actually still incredibly hot and who would know how to fit "so actually I have fins" into a first date conversation!
For a short story this is bursting with puns and feels very well paced. Another hit for Sayla Masse, I can't wait to find out if she plans to dip her toes into the sea that is long form fiction to tell us all about the monsters that lurk beneath!
Short (unlike the female main character) and sweet, at just over 30 pages, this novella is a perfect read for just before bed to prevent the "one more chapter" situation.
A surprising amount of plot is squeezed into those pages with our short King Makko and the beautifully lanky Layla rocking up to a first date after being matched by the Date-A-Base site that has been making match after perfect match, and it would seem that winning streak continues.
There's a brief moment where our FMC is understandably upset when a request for a shower by a clearly unwell Makko leads to a H2O just add water type transformation but this is soon overcome when she realizes that he's actually still incredibly hot and who would know how to fit "so actually I have fins" into a first date conversation!
For a short story this is bursting with puns and feels very well paced. Another hit for Sayla Masse, I can't wait to find out if she plans to dip her toes into the sea that is long form fiction to tell us all about the monsters that lurk beneath!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 16, 2026
Cute premise, but this one wasn't for me.
I loved the idea of a marine biologist FMC matching with a shark merman, and the setup definitely caught my attention. Unfortunately this felt more like an extended first date than a full story for me.
The novella is very short, so things moved quickly from meeting to reveal to romance, and I personally prefer a bit more emotional build-up and connection. There was also a lot of fish and marine talk throughout — including a sushi date — which made me suspect the author is either very passionate about marine biology or has done a lot of research 😂
I think readers looking for a quick, spicy monster romance may enjoy it more than I did, but I tend to prefer more relationship development and story alongside the romance.
I loved the idea of a marine biologist FMC matching with a shark merman, and the setup definitely caught my attention. Unfortunately this felt more like an extended first date than a full story for me.
The novella is very short, so things moved quickly from meeting to reveal to romance, and I personally prefer a bit more emotional build-up and connection. There was also a lot of fish and marine talk throughout — including a sushi date — which made me suspect the author is either very passionate about marine biology or has done a lot of research 😂
I think readers looking for a quick, spicy monster romance may enjoy it more than I did, but I tend to prefer more relationship development and story alongside the romance.
April 22, 2026
Written in the first person, we follow the perspective of Layla- a marine biologist- who is going on a date arranged through an app with a man named Makko. As the date continues Layla believes she's starting to see some red flags, despite her initial infatuation, once things get heated she soon learns the truth. This was a fast paced, short read that ventured into themes of bravery and acceptance. Sometimes we have the power to choose whether things become barriers, like an incident in Layla's past, or if we can break through those barriers and see them for what they were- exactly what Layla does by falling in love with the ocean.
*I received an ARC of this book*
*I received an ARC of this book*
May 6, 2026
Thank you Sayla Masse for sending me this advance review copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This was adorable! I'm so sad it was less than 40 pages though.
There is so much more here to explore, especially with the backstory sprinkled! I wanted to see Makko in the ocean so bad. Because it was so short, the spice felt really sudden and out of place. We didn't get any buildup or time to savor it. The end just kinda suddenly cut off too.
I hope Sayla revisits this novella someday and writes a longer book about these two characters.
Overall I still loved it, and it is a really fun book snack to pick up.
This was adorable! I'm so sad it was less than 40 pages though.
There is so much more here to explore, especially with the backstory sprinkled! I wanted to see Makko in the ocean so bad. Because it was so short, the spice felt really sudden and out of place. We didn't get any buildup or time to savor it. The end just kinda suddenly cut off too.
I hope Sayla revisits this novella someday and writes a longer book about these two characters.
Overall I still loved it, and it is a really fun book snack to pick up.
May 24, 2026
The storyline is great with awesome and unique characters.
Layla is a sweet and spunky marine biologist. She has been looking for love only has not had any luck. Then one day she tries the dating app called Date-a-Base. On there she meets Makko who seems to have a lot in common with her.
Makko is a sexy Mako shark fishman shifter. He has been trying to find a woman like himself with no luck. Then he meets Layla a sweet,funny and spunky human. They get along so well texting that he decide to give it a shot!
At first Layla does not know he is what is called a monster. Did fate make it so they would meet?
You will love this Funny,Charming,Exciting, and Steamy Hot five star plus story!
Layla is a sweet and spunky marine biologist. She has been looking for love only has not had any luck. Then one day she tries the dating app called Date-a-Base. On there she meets Makko who seems to have a lot in common with her.
Makko is a sexy Mako shark fishman shifter. He has been trying to find a woman like himself with no luck. Then he meets Layla a sweet,funny and spunky human. They get along so well texting that he decide to give it a shot!
At first Layla does not know he is what is called a monster. Did fate make it so they would meet?
You will love this Funny,Charming,Exciting, and Steamy Hot five star plus story!
April 25, 2026
A book with less than 40 pages should stick to smut or plot. Unless they have a way to balance which this did not. We get a little of backstory. But leaves many unanswered questions. To the point I couldn't really get into the single spicy scene. Don't even know if that constitutes as a HEA. I get it it's very short book and what we got was great. Just for me it needed more balance. I'm looking forward to seeing where this author goes from here. Lastly I received this book as an arc and voluntarily read and left this review.
April 25, 2026
This is an ARC read
This is a monster romance or a shark romance with spice. Make sure you know what that means before reading
This is a novella part of a wonderful series about Miriam, a unicorn, who made a dating app to help humans and non-humans find their matches
Maako is the MMC and the shark-shifter. He is so sweet and can not be caught without his water bottle. He’s also got quite a tongue on him 😏
Layla, is the human FMC, and she’s a tall lady. She’s also tired of disappointing men. Thankfully, Maako, who gives short kind vibes btw, is quick with his words and is easily swooning her
Maako is not like all those disappointing men becasue he listens to Layla when she talks. For their first IRL date he takes her to his favorite sushi place.
We spend a lot of time at this sushi restaurant. It’s a yearn fest for the two of them. It’s really precious and cute. We also start to get hints that there’s something going on with Maako.
I appreciate the author commenting about sushi breath during their dinner kissing. It’s something I always think about and it was nice to also have an author think about it 🤭
Layla is a just go with it kind of FMC. Kind of. She does and they take a car to her place, but drama ensues because Maako has no water, so of course the secret must be revealed
Layla does a pretty good job of just accepting Maako as a fish-man in her tub. I mean, I would to so I appreciate her kind of thinking about it and then just diving in 🤭
You’ll neee to read to see what happens in that bathroom😏, but of course it’s a HEA and it’s cute, light hearted, very low stakes, and spicy
You’ll want to check out this series
This is a monster romance or a shark romance with spice. Make sure you know what that means before reading
This is a novella part of a wonderful series about Miriam, a unicorn, who made a dating app to help humans and non-humans find their matches
Maako is the MMC and the shark-shifter. He is so sweet and can not be caught without his water bottle. He’s also got quite a tongue on him 😏
Layla, is the human FMC, and she’s a tall lady. She’s also tired of disappointing men. Thankfully, Maako, who gives short kind vibes btw, is quick with his words and is easily swooning her
Maako is not like all those disappointing men becasue he listens to Layla when she talks. For their first IRL date he takes her to his favorite sushi place.
We spend a lot of time at this sushi restaurant. It’s a yearn fest for the two of them. It’s really precious and cute. We also start to get hints that there’s something going on with Maako.
I appreciate the author commenting about sushi breath during their dinner kissing. It’s something I always think about and it was nice to also have an author think about it 🤭
Layla is a just go with it kind of FMC. Kind of. She does and they take a car to her place, but drama ensues because Maako has no water, so of course the secret must be revealed
Layla does a pretty good job of just accepting Maako as a fish-man in her tub. I mean, I would to so I appreciate her kind of thinking about it and then just diving in 🤭
You’ll neee to read to see what happens in that bathroom😏, but of course it’s a HEA and it’s cute, light hearted, very low stakes, and spicy
You’ll want to check out this series
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 15, 2026
This is a cute little story where a marine biologist and a sharkish merman go on their first in-person date after meeting on a dating app. There’s sushi, lots of water, teeth, and shower fun times!
** I received an eARC from the author and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. **
** I received an eARC from the author and am voluntarily leaving an honest review. **
August 5, 2026
That story was a short paranormal read. Makko and Layla met on a dating site. Talking for a month they decided to meet in person. A few things Makko left out about himself. Layla will soon find out.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
May 24, 2026
It's a very short and sweet novella part of me wishes that it was built up more it's a good story just needed more.
September 1, 2026
Short, fast and extremely hot!
June 10, 2026
A slice of life between a marine biologist and a shark merman shifter, on their first date after meeting on a dating app. They have an insta-lust connection, and despite the short page count, their feelings and connection really resonates off the pages. I love how much the author was able to fit into this short story.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews