Bearly Breathing

Emerald City Shifters #1

by Kit Tunstall, Kit Fawkes

Shy socialite Breanna is used to being overlooked, minimized, and ignored. She’s grown up in the suffocating household of her old-money parents and done her best to please them. Even her musical talent failed to do that, so she agreed to marry a man of their choosing in a last desperate bid to win their approval. Just weeks before the wedding, she runs away, knowing she can’t marry someone she doesn’t love. As she flees to her friend in Canada, she wrecks her car in the mountains. Rafe, the man who rescues her, is a bear-shifter wintering in his cabin. Snowed in together, the passion flares between them, and he soon realizes she is his mate. To keep him, Breanna will have to accept all of him—and stand up for her right to make her own decisions.

Genres: Paranormal, Romance, Shapeshifters, Paranormal Romance, Audiobook, Fantasy, Ebooks

Kindle Edition

First published August 20, 2015

About the author

Kit lives in Idaho with her husband and two sons. She enjoys writing several genres and subgenres. When she started publishing, dinosaurs roamed the earth, and authors had one pen name with their publisher. That was the name you wrote everything under, no matter how dissimilar. Thanks to advances in publishing, it's now easy to have more than one pen name, and many readers have come to expect a certain type of book experience from each author. The "brand," if you will.
Kit's catalog makes it difficult to tell what brand you're getting, so she has "co-authored" each type with a pen name, so you'll know what kind of book to expect.
* Paranormal Romances (including shifters): Kit Fawkes and Kit Tunstall
* Contemporary romance with some steam, but not erotic: Lilly LaRue and Kit Tunstall
* Contemporary romances that are erotic: Kit Kyndall and Kit Tunstall
* Edgier works (including fertile erotic romances, bad boys, and stepbrothers): Kristianna Sawyer and Kit Tunstall
* Science fiction romance: Aurelia Skye and Kit Tunstall.
* Horror and post-apocalyptic: T.K. Reilley and Kit Tunstall.
* Darker erotic romance: R.E. Saxton
Join her Mailing List to keep up with new releases across all pen names: http://eepurl.com/bpdvb9
http://www.kittunstall.com

Reviews

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's so easy to get whisked away in the hubbub of friends, work and busy-ness, but we need to take the time to be still and become aware of ourselves. The small things. The fact that we're still breathing. Our ability to move. The presence of love around and in us. Our strengths. Our opportunities. Our journeys.

- Grace Gealy

[Cheesecake]

I think Bearly Breathing, is because I wanted to fall asleep trying to read this one ; )
But actually I DNFed at about 75%... and it's a short read at less than 60 pages.
BBW chick crashes in stupid accident while driving to Canada on the back roads in a hatchback.
Rescued by bear shifter who after a quick how-de-do, proceeds to info dump on the reader like crazy. I mean, where is the frickin' story???
If I wanted an encyclopedia on how shifters live and procreate, I'd buy one.

[Siobhan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have this love-hate relationship with short stories. Either I love them or I hate them. In fact, I spent a lot of my earlier years hating them. I would avoid them like the plague, believing I would never find one I enjoyed. When I finally found one I did enjoy, I was shocked. Finding multiple I enjoyed was a real jolt to the system. I quickly realised, however, that I needed certain things to enjoy short stories. There is a very fine line between short stories I enjoy and those I do not enjoy – it can be just a small thing that decides which side of the line a short story falls upon.

Bearly Breathing, unfortunately, falls upon the side of the line where I didn’t really enjoy it. There was the potential there – it involves some of my favourite things in short stories: a shifter and his mate, a couple stuck in the wilderness, and a lot of lust – but it failed to deliver me the story I had hoped to receive.

For me, this felt more like a collection of scenes rather than a story with a start and an end. Although there was a clear start and end to the story, I feel as though the scenes failed to include enough to create an entire story. There was a lot of information dumping rather than showing how things were playing out. We were told our heroine’s backstory, we were told the details of the shifter world, and we have a small bit of drama at the very end of the story to make it seem as though the details were merged together to create something. However, it didn’t feel as though anything happened. It felt like elements of a larger – more interesting – story were plucked and thrown into this little snippet.

In other words, I had wanted more. There was the potential for enjoyment, but as a whole I failed to reach the point where I was truly enjoying myself. A few moments made me think it was possible – moments that have me believing this is closing in on being a two-point-five star read – but the collective wasn’t enough to win me over.

[Ryan - Sweet Red Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

(I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review)

I'm a fan of shifter romances and while this one wasn't particularly unique, I did enjoy it. It was a bit milder than others that I have read (the sex scenes were far more tame and less frequent), but I found it entertaining nonetheless. I did appreciate the attempt to explain the difference between humans and shifters (homo sapien vs. ursus sapien) and actually went so far as to read the second book in the series. I would like to continue and read the 3rd (its themes are of particular interest to me, but I can't seem to find it on Amazon).

[Angela Charles · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know this story is super short, however this story is incomplete. I want to know what happened to Breanna and Rafe. Yes, there was a bit of drama, which is always good, but that was it.

Someone in another review stated that this story had a lot of explanation when it came to shifters. Since this is the first book I can understand why the authors decided to let the readers know how being a shifter works. I am assuming that the authors think that this is the first book a reader has read when it comes to shifter or paranormal books. I liked the explanation only because different writes change up the shifter tale for their world.

I really want to see more of Rafe and Breanna and to explore their connection and see what her parents think. I also want to know more about Rafe and his family since there was a passing mention when it came to that.

David Quimby is new to me and I have to say that I enjoyed his voice. He did not make me feel as though he wanted to get this story over with. He also is made me feel like it was a short story because when I got into it, it was over.

[kay reads]

okay so this is a bear shifter novella, with a heroine on the curvy side, sort of runaway bride , gets into an accident and is rescued by the bear shifter, they mate, that's the story.

Imo, the beginning was so promising, a lot of cute moments between the two main characters, then it fell flat bc it practically rushed into the end in a sort of bow and tie way, was kinda boring at the end, predictable, provided a little intimacy. Wattpady style.

[Jennifer McGurk Finn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first book in the Emerald City Shifters series. Shy and curvy Breanna is used to being overlooked, minimized, and ignored. She’s grown up in the suffocating household of her old-money parents and done her best to please them. Even her musical talent failed to do that, so she agreed to marry a man of their choosing in a last desperate bid to win their approval. Just weeks before the wedding, she runs away, knowing she can’t marry someone she doesn’t love. As she flees to her friend in Canada, she wrecks her car in the mountains. Rafe, the man who rescues her, is a bear-shifter wintering in his cabin. Snowed in together, the passion flares between them, and he soon realizes she is his mate. To keep him, Breanna will have to accept all of him—and stand up for her right to make her own decisions.

[Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read · Rating 2 out of 5]

A quick and enjoyable read, but a bit predictable. Breanna's inner musings about how bad her life is got to be tedious and I was surprised at how much was mentioned about it in a story of this length. I realize that her parents are the reason that she doesn't think much of herself, but it started to feel like that point was being reiterated over and over. Rafe was a likable enough character, but I really didn't find anything that set him apart from a lot of other bear shifters in other books. Overall, the book is worth a read, but I would've preferred more development in the storyline.

[SouthernAngel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this quick and fun read, it is a promising and intriguing start to a series, although it's short and sweet, it keeps you engaged the entire time.
I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book.

[Jennifer Holzapfel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breanna is running away from a marriage to William, that her parents arranged to get more money to live the style they are accustomed to. She sent e-mails to her parents and to William, telling them the wedding is off. She took one of the cars the staff use to run errands, so her parents wouldn't even notice she was gone until the dress fitting. She is supposed to get married on Christmas to a man she doesn't even like, never mind love.
She is heading to Canada to try and find her old college roommate and hide out with her for a while.
As she is driving from California she hits a snowstorm in Idaho and sees a bear in the road with green eyes, she tries to swerve and over compensates so the car spins almost all the way around and then she slams into a tree and passes out.
The bear in question is really a shifter named Rafe, who was going to just walk away, but he sees she is injured and bleeding. His inner bear is yelling mate. He shifts and is out naked in the snow, trying to open the door, he goes to the trunk and grabs a bunjie cord and wraps it around the door handle and shifts back to bear and uses his strength to tear the door off. He shifts once again and bandages her arm with a piece of clothing from her trunk and then carries her all the way to his cabin. He definitely froze walking stark naked. He brings her in and put her on the bed in his cabin and quickly throws on some clothes. He finds it very difficult to undress her with his bear so excited, but he has to get her out of the wet clothes and into one of his flannel shirts that reaches nearly to her knees.
They are being snowed in and he wants to claim her as a mate, but first he has to show her he can shift into a bear and see if she will accept him.
Will she accept Rafe, and after the snowstorm when her intended groom lands a helicopter in Rafe's back yard, with 2 armed goons with him, what will happen?

[Jaime Fertal · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breanna is about to do the one thing in her life that she doesnt want to do but trying to get her parents approval is the only reason she is Marrying a guy she doesnt want or love, but one night she just cant take it any longer and runs away. She never expected to run her car off the road and end up meeting the love of her life. Rafe a half man half bear never expects to meet his Mate he has always heard that it happens at first sight/ first smell but that is exactly what he does when he rescues a woman from her car one night. Both Breanna and Rafe will finally find love and acceptances in all the right places with each other.

What I enjoyed most about Bearly Breathing is watching Breanna finally find someone in her life that is ready to accept her for who she is and not what she can do to make them look better. Breanna finally standing on her own two feet and sticking up for herself and not following the pressures of Marrying a Man that she doesnt even life for her parents gain but finding for herself what love is truly about. Rafe a man who doesnt show humans his true self but willing to do what ever it takes to protect Breanna at all costs.

This book was a easy fast amazing read, Its about Breanna who knows she doesnt want to Marry a Man just to help her parents due to Financial gain they would get with the marriage but she wants Marriage with someone she has attraction too and love, Rafe likes his life alone while in his Cabin and never expected to find his Mate and a love like he gets when he meets Breanna and his whole world changes for the better that he is willing to do what ever she wants to make her happy, A love story. If you like stories like this, then Bearly Breathing is a must!!

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the first page, Ms Chase snags us up into an adventure that leaves you holding your breathe from moment to moment. We meet Breanna, a human female who is on the run from not only her ex fiance but her parents. She's been sort of meek practically her entire life but that had more to do with trying to win her parents love and approval. Then days before a wedding she was being set up in she sends an email to the fiance breaking up with him and to her parents telling them she won't marry the guy they chose for her. She winds up driving one of the cars belonging to the household staff and takes off for parts unknown. Unfortunately those parts unknown include snow, alot of it, and to this California gal the two do not mesh. Especially when a bear is tossed into the mix. Then pencil in a bit of a car total crash and you have instant drama! The bear goes to check up on the "idiot' who can't drive snowey roads to come face to face with his mate---claimed by his bear who won't take any no from his human side. Picture silent battle of wills--lol. Well Rafe rescues Breanna from the car and takes her to his home.Now into this mixture add heightened sexual awareness between the two and the story gets better and better. Oh I mustn't forget the home invasion....but you need to read the book to see who invades whom!!
Fantastic story and it will keep you hanging on to the very last page!!!

I was gifted this book via Booksprout in return for an honest review

[CV · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brianna Dawson is a curvy woman. Rafe Cabello is the hot bear shifter. When I read the description it sounded like something I would enjoy reading. To my disappointment, it was just okay. This is your typical, "curvy woman thinks a man like him couldn't possibly find someone like her attractive" story. Granted, she does get more confident toward the end which is good. Every woman should be proud of the way she looks! Because like Meghan Trainor says, "Every inch of you is perfect from the bottom to the top".

As to character development, there's not much detail. Rafe runs a multimillion dollar business and is a bear shifter that hides away in a cabin for a few weeks a year. When he reveals himself to Brianna, there's kind of a non-reaction from her. She just gasped a few times and then got on her knees to pet his belly.

Brianna is shy and composes music. It was very convenient of Rafe to have a keyboard in his cabin with a record function on it for her to use. Her shyness is kind of extreme because she gets stage fright and freezes up in front of people. Not sure how she could have gotten into Julliard without playing in front of people....

This is a very short story with only seven chapters. There is a HEA with no cliffhanger.

I voluntarily reviewed a Hidden Gems ARC of this book.

[Linda Levine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Breanna is the poor little rich girl. Her family is very wealthy but they only give her things when she does what they want. When she fails to meet their expectations, there is hell to pay. She has finally had enough and calls off the wedding they wanted. Her journey to freedom ends in a car accident. Luckily she is rescued by Rafe who is a bear shifter and doing a little hibernating. Rafe is very much a loner and enjoys his work but also enjoys his freedom. He knows Breanna is his mate and his bear is determined to keep her close.

I thought it was an interesting storyline and like the characters. Breanna has finally wised up about her family and is ready to be happy for once. You could tell it was hard for her but she was strong and determined. Rafe is so loving and protective and really wanting to be honest with her about what he is so she can make a decision. I had a lot of respect for his character. I think they made a great couple and had wonderful chemistry from the beginning.

It is a pretty quick read and the relationship moves fast. I would have liked to spend more time with them as a couple but you do get to see more of them if you read the other books in the series.

[Rebecca Grove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breanne Is on the run. Her rich family want her to marry a rich businessman who she can't stand. She has always been a disappointment to her family since birth. She wasn't the boy they wanted and she wasn't thin an beautiful. Even her best asset of great musical talent is spoiled by her paralyzing stage fright. So to please her parents, she went along with their plan until she breaks out in a panic attack. Then she decides to break of her engagement by e-mail and leave her family behind. She travels north to find her old college roommate. On her way she is trying to drive in a snow storm when she sees a grizzly bear. In shock, she swerves and hits a tree and blacks out.
Rafe is a successful businessman and a bear shifter. He spends his winters in a cabin in the woods with plenty of bear time. When the car crashes near him, he checks on the driver. His bear is claiming Breanne as his. Rafe takes her back to his cabin. Slowly they get to know each other but Rafe still has to explain his bear before things go too far. Can she accept the truth and will her family ever find her?
This is a great story that i received voluntarily and this is my honest review.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bearly Breathing is the first book in the Emerald City Shifters series. It will offer you a lot of drama, a bit of romance and just a bit of action. Breanna is running from her life and her fiancé. She just really cannot stand the thought of marrying someone she isn't in love with just to appease her family. She decides to drive to Canada to see a friend. When she sees a big bear near the road, she loses control of her car and crashes into a tree. Rafe is a sexy man who is also a bear shifter who is trying to "hibernate". He just happens to be in his bear self when she gets into this accident and takes her to his cabin to heal. The chemistry between them is undeniable and Rafe and his "bear" know that she is their mate. Can two people who are shy come to grips with wanting each other so much? What will happen when Breanna finds out that he is part bear? I am not a reviewer to give too much away, so if you are interested please buy the book. It's a fast paced book that can be read in one sitting. I voluntarily read an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book.

[Mary Getz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I voluntarily ARC for honest review. For one of my favorite author, she writes as Kit Fawkes/Kit Turnstall . This story take place South California which 24 year old Brennan Dawson is leaving her parents Bernard Estelle Dawson and her cold fiancee Williams Keys. Her parents are keeping a secret why they arranged a marriage with Williams Keys. She had enough , she driving to her best friend Grace from college , who lives in Calgary , Canada. Before she gets there , she is an accident while driving in the snow in Idaho. She rescued by 30 year old Rafe Cabello , while staying at his cabin in the Coeur d'Alene Mountain. Brennan feels instant deep levels connections with Rafe. They have some obstacles to overcome before , they move on to the future. I love and recommend this book to everyone 😆 😙 The storyline and characters are brilliant exquisitely well written and story is drama rom-com adventure provocative animalistic hot streamy explosives sex secrets emotional roller coaster.

[Buffy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Breanna is a very likable character and we feel for her unhappy situation straight from the beginning of the book. Rafe sees her wreck and immediately tends to her and carries her to his cabin to heal. Him and his bear recognize her as their mate, but Rafe feels he comes on too strong and too fast with Breanna. Aria Chase gives a lot of detail in the story about the mating process and I like that. When Rafe reveals his bear, Breanna nervously giggles, but is not shocked like he thought she would be. Her ex-fiancé shows up to reclaim her without caring what she wants. He wants her to further his career and social life only. Rafe throws around his strength and Alpha attitude and he and Breanna are able to live out their HEA!!! I so enjoyed this book and loved to read a peek of their wedding in the next book!! Kudos to Aria Chase for an excellent book!!!

[Miriam · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't say there was anything really wrong with this story, but there was nothing that really grabbed me about it. It was a decent read, but it lacked depth (mostly because it is a very short story). I feel like if the book had been longer it could have added more to really show the connection between the MCs. It is still a decent read if you are only expecting a short, insta-love story.

I did find that how Breanna acts in the story and how she is described before meeting Rafe to be a bit odd. She goes through what appears to be a dramatic personality change in a very short period of time, I would have expected to see it take her longer to really change (again, if the story had been longer there would have been more room for this development).

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book

[Liz McNee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.Brenna is engaged to a silicon valley jerk whom she does not love at all but it keeps her family happy. However, she cant live the lie any longer and runs away telling the news of her engagemdnt being broken in an email. She tries to find hef friend but in the bad weather she spots a bear on the road and almost runs him over! Just as well she didn't as he is really a bear shifter called Rafe and he instantly recognises her as his mate! Oh the fun there is in this multi facetted story. We have lust, love, family loyalties, jealoysy and rage. But a HEA is on the cards but you need to read it yourself to enjoy the ride of the story. Very well written by Aria Chase who never fails to create a wonderful story that you will enjoy. Definitely recommended.

[MJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I must have missed that this was only 60pgs when I downloaded it, as I usually avoid 'chapter stories' because they generally don't pull it off.

This one was no exception. I actually liked the idea of the characters, and would have happily read 'a BOOK' on their story, but like most of these short ones, it was pretty much a plot outline. It over sold some info (especially in such a short story), and completely under sold others. I think the sex was supposed to be a highlight, but it was boring and underwhelming since we hadn't actually had a chance to get to know the characters, see a connection between them, or feel a connection to the story ourselves.

The characters in the next story are a bit interesting too, but given the slap-dash-done short style writing, they and their story will likely be wasted as this one was.

[Maria Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first Aria Chase book and I am glad I took a chance and read Bearly Breathing. Paranormal (shifter) romances are not my usual read but I thoroughly enjoyed this great short read. The storyline was well-developed and I really loved the characters. The chemistry between Rafe and Breanna was hot! I loved that Rafe tried to keep a tight hold on himself but in the end the nose knows. This book kept my attention with the suspense and love story that quickly unfolded. Included is an excerpt for another Aria Chase book that looks amazing as well. Bearly Breathing is a short and sexy read that will draw you in and make you want to continue the series, at least it did for me! I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

[Lisa Jolly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I voluntarily read an advanced reader copy of this book

Breanna Dawson has always tried to please her parent will little success. She is on the run towards Grace a friend she met in college after deciding to not marry the guy her parents want her to. She doesn’t know that she needs to marry William or her parents will lose their fortune. Rafe Cabello is a bear shifter, hibernating in his cabin in Idaho, he is a billionaire CEO to a tech company and rescuers Breanna when she crashes her car after seeing Rafe in in Bear form. Rafe and his bear know that Breanna is his mate, Breanna and Rafe feel the chemistry between them. Does Breanna become Rafe’s mate after she learns the truth about him, and when William finds her and wants her back?

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Breanna does everything to get her parents to be satisfied about her being their daughter, but now she discovers she doesn't want to do this anymore.She doesn't want to marry a cold man, because of her parents, so she escapes and runs, but not counting on a snowstorm and her bear on her way bringing her into trouble.

Rafe is a bear shifter who is doing a semi hibernation when he sees Breanna crash because of him. He saves her in more as one way.
Sparks fly between them and soon their is a more as sparks between them.

Of course her ex has to show up being all on fair and such, but Rafe protects her.

Great story about a strong woman who sticks up for herself finally and finds a hot man

[Tai Nelson-Barnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the first time reading Aria Chase for me and I have to say it was okay. I really wish this book had been longer with maybe more information on either character. It was pretty much "hi nice to meet you let's have sex, oh and by the way you're my mate". And for a woman who has no idea about supernaturals she takes pretty damn well to a man that turns into a bear. And yes I understand, it is a book. But come on, this woman shows no thought other than to rub his stomach?
So as a story, there are hit and misses but overall it is cute.
I voluntarily read this story for my honest review via Hidden Gems.

[Destiny Bridwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this as an ARC for my honest opinion and review. This is my first book by this author. I enjoyed it so there should be more I will want to read in the future. Breanna whole life has been planned out for her by her parents who want her to marry for money. That will help with the family money problems. Only that is not what she wants. She runs away and that is how she meets Rafe. He is the CEO of a multi-millionaire and when he sees Breanna he knows that she is his mate. He gives her all she needs. What to know all the details and her family's reaction. Grab a copy and read this sweet story.

[Sarah Hamilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a Bad read, but could be much better

It has been a while since I read a paranormal book featuring the shifter,so this book sounded intriguing. This is closer to a 3.5. It wasn't a bad story, but it just needed more of everything. More plot development, more character development, more everything. It has the bones for what could be a really fun read (& it was a fun super short read), but needs a lot more. The editing could also be a bit better. Although I liked it, I really don't see myself reading the remaining books in the series - especially since they appear as short as this first one.

[Yumeshi · Rating 1 out of 5]

How did this happen you ask? Let me explain this...
I was laying in my bed, too tired to read but not tired enough to sleep just yet. So my brilliant mind came with a solution! Let's listen to some audiobook! I wanted something short and preferably urban fantasy, so this short paranormal romance sounded like a somewhat solid choice. But a few minutes into this book, I had realized my mistake.
And, coincidentally, there was a great phrase the main heroine of this book has uttered, that portrayed my emotions exactly:
"She realized, how stupid and impulsive this plan has been. "

(I finished it though. Couldn't sleep afterwards still.)

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breanna was running away from an arranged marriage and unsupportive parents. Rafe was living in solitude during his time of "hibernation". Could a chance encounter actually bring Rafe to his mate and help Breanna find happiness? In the past Breanna tried to please everyone despite what she wanted. I loved seeing her find her voice and stand up for herself. Rafe was perfect. He was the strong dominant type who could also be tender and loving. I enjoyed the story and am looking forward to reading book two.
*I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book. This is my honest review.*

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breanna is running from uncaring parents who want her to marry a man she strongly dislikes. She is headed to a friend's house when she crashes her car during a nasty storm.
Rafe is a bear shifter who finds her while he is at his cabin for the winter months.
It doesn't take long for Rafe to realize that Breanna is his mate. With being snowed in together Rafe will have to use his time wisely to convince her that they are meant to be.
This is a very quick, sexy and sweet read. I voluntarily read an arc copy for my honest review!