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Wriggle & Sparkle - The Complete Collection

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Lynn is a kraken shifter in every way: detailed, tenacious, resilient, and hard-working. Also possessive, vain, arrogant, and demanding. It makes him an excellent agent for the Federal Bureau of Paranormal Security and Investigation—and impossible to work with, as the long list of partners who have transferred away from him will attest.

His newest partner is a unicorn, possibly the worst type of paranormal for work that often turns ugly and violent. Everyone knows unicorns are too delicate for such things. Then Anderson proves to be a unicorn like no other, the kind of partner Lynn has always wanted—the kind of partner he wishes was more. But if there's one thing he's learned, it's that the only thing harder to keep than a partner is a lover.

Warning: Contains tentacle porn

Publisher's note: This was originally published as a serial at Yaoifix. It has been edited and revised for release with LT3, but nothing significant has changed

439 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2014

108 people are currently reading
942 people want to read

About the author

Megan Derr

281 books2,929 followers
Megan is a long time resident of queer romance and keeps herself busy reading and writing it. She is often accused of fluff and nonsense. When she’s not involved in writing, she likes to cook, harass her wife and cats, or watch movies. She loves to hear from readers and can be found all over the internet.

meganderr.com
patreon.com/meganderr
meganderr.blogspot.com
facebook.com/meganaprilderr
meganaderr@gmail.com
@meganaderr

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5 stars
581 (41%)
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253 (17%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 225 reviews
Profile Image for Drusilla.
1,038 reviews405 followers
April 18, 2025
This was a light amusing read, just what I needed. There are five loosely linked stories of the adventures of Wriggle (Lynn) and Sparkle (Anderson). Yes, these are nicknames they have given themselves and these are not the only ones.
A few things that I think are important to mention:
The Kraken can change his gender. If, like me, you have a somewhat one-sided preference when it comes to body parts, you should be warned that there will be some switching. But I find it very fitting in this book and, surprisingly, it didn't bother me at all.

He drew back enough to kiss Anderson again, then gently carded fingers through his hair. "I'm glad you're okay, Sparkles."
Anderson didn't reply, just went back to leaning against Lynn, enjoying his warmth, his scent, the way he always felt like home. "You have the world's best boob pillow."
😳

They are detectives and not entrusted with easy tasks, there is quite a bit of violence here.
And yes, of course there is tentacle sex. BUT I wouldn't put this book in the smut category. There are a lot of sex scenes because they are just so attracted to each other. Still, if you prefer smut, look elsewhere.

He wrapped his arms tightly around Anderson's waist, held him close, kissing every patch of skin he could reach as he pressed another tentacle inside Anderson's body to join the first, moving them in and out in tandem, needing more of the groans and whimpers and soft, ragged pleas that Anderson gave him, needing to see him come apart, desperate to see him wrecked— 😳

Also, they get together quite quickly and most of the book follows them as an established couple.
Even if that might take some of the spice out of the whole thing, I felt wonderfully entertained and not a bit bored, just because the journey of coming together was quite short. There are also quite a few time jumps, so everything felt very genuine and not at all insta-ish.
These five stories live from the plot, the cases they have to solve and their snarky banter.

"I keep telling you it's your house, you useless unicorn. Can't you stop sparkling long enough to listen?"
Anderson tugged at his hair. "If it's my house, it's our house, you stupid piece of seafood."
😂

"Are you going to kiss me or not, you pickled anchovy?" 🤣

Towards the end, of course, there is a cheesy dream wedding, but even this one promised not to be boring and to surprise.
Oh and almost forgot: there is a lot of sweet stuff in this book it was almost hard not to get a craving on every third page.

Anderson tasted like cupcakes and sunshine, and Lynn would go to his grave before he ever said that aloud, but it was true. Lynn wanted more. He cradled Anderson's face in his hands and ate at his mouth, sucking and nibbling at those lush lips before licking into his mouth, tasting every crevice before sucking on his tongue. The kiss was hot, wet, sloppy, and utterly addicting. 🫠
Profile Image for Vivian.
2,919 reviews483 followers
August 15, 2016
"Let's go, Sparkleson."
"Right behind you, Wriggly."

This is fun and campy. If you're looking for an irreverent mockfest of unicorns and krakens, then you've found the right book. The jokes are rolled out regularly, and they're funny--only a few groans. I think I might have contracted diabetes just reading what Anderson ate--sugar-fueled supernatural being that he is. While it plays with the stereotypes it also deconstructs them and by association all stereotypes, thereby pointing out how ridiculous they are even if appearances are deceptive, or not.

No one is a ONE SIZE fits all. No one.

Add in some clever gender fluidity that's inherent in fishes and you have a wicked funny gender fluid hero/ine. I loved all of the snipping back and forth between Lynn and Anderson. It's the format of the book that I wasn't as thrilled with. Essentially, this is episodic with five separate incidents/dramas that weave Lynn and Anderson's lives together. It's well done, but it reads like four short stories. But... it has the most romantic and sweetest tentacle sex I've ever read!
"Once she's gone, I feel there should be some make-up role play."

Anderson heaved a long sigh. "Any excuse with you. Fine. But it's really hard to keep a straight face playing virgin sacrifice."

Overall, fun read for unicorn and kraken fans.
3.5 stars.

~Copy provided by NetGalley~
Profile Image for Eugenia.
1,892 reviews319 followers
June 1, 2019
Fun, Sexy & Snarky!!

What happens when you partner an irascible kraken with a snarky unicorn? Bombastic sex and funny as hell dialogue!

Say it with me: “tentacles are sexy, tentacles are sexy, tentacles are sexy...” I’ve gotta say that our kraken is one of the sexiest tentacled hotties I’ve come across. He’s so possessive and growly and such a huge a**hole that he’s impossible not to love!

Then we’ve got our self-admitted slutty unicorn who immediately falls into our kraken’s sexy coils. Although he can’t get enough sweets, nothing sweet ever comes out of his mouth. Talk about a dirty mouth!!

So Wriggles and Sparkles go on to deal with cases involving supernatural creatures—all shifters—and the violent crimes they’ve committed.

They get into all sorts of predicaments, but always come out alive. Along the way, they fall in love.

This collection of stories is chronological and the time skipped in between each one only serves to cement the idea that these two do belong together, regardless how opposite they might be.

I adored this!! I want a kraken of my very own and play “sacrifice the virgin” like these two prickly bastards did!

Oh....I forgot to mention: MANTIES! Our kraken loves the lace. Wriggles can also alter his gender at will...handy that!!
Profile Image for Kit (Metaphors and Moonlight).
972 reviews162 followers
September 8, 2016
4.5 Stars

Full Review:
*I received a free ecopy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*

I. LOVED. THIS. BOOK. Seriously, I just adored it! I was so sure when I started reading this that it would be too cutesy and fluffy for me, but I couldn’t resist reading about a genderfluid kraken and a bisexual unicorn, and now I am eating my words because this book was just fantastic. And no, I don’t mean fantastic for a fluffy book. There are no conditional statements here. This book was just fantastic. Period.

First things first, this book was definitely easy, fun, light reading, not my usual dark, disturbing fare, but it was so much more than “fluff.” It had depth and meaning. It had real stories and developed characters. Characters acted in ways that made sense. There were relationship, family, work, and society struggles. And there was emotion written in a way that actually made me feel it.

Second, the characters were so lovable! For the first 10% or so, they seemed stereotypical, but that changed after the first story. They became much more developed and unique. I’ve always loved those surly, constantly-complaining, doesn’t-play-well-with-others characters who secretly have a heart of gold—no joke, my favorite show was Becker when I was just 10 years old—and Lynn (kraken) was basically that character (though honestly he wasn’t even a jerk unless people deserved it). He appeared to be a total hardass on the outside, but he was an adorable closet softie on the inside who surprised me and whom I really wanted to hug whenever any emotional scars from his past came up. And Anderson (unicorn) was also snarky yet sweet with his own emotional scars, and I could relate to him in some ways.

Third, their relationship gave me a total case of the warm-fuzzies! I like slow-burn romances and normally get upset when I don’t get to see that tension-filled build-up, but I was enjoying their relationship far too much to care that that part was skipped over. By 30%, when it got to the third story, I was grinning like a damn fool while reading because they were so ADORABLE and basically my new favorite fictional couple. I also loved getting to see the way they saw each other through their individual perspectives because I could so absolutely feel the love they had.

Fourth, I’m putting this in a separate point even though it relates to the above one because it’s just that important to me, they waited EIGHT MONTHS to say I love you to each other. And Lynn himself was thinking about how eight months really wasn’t a long time to be together. THANK YOU, MEGAN DERR. It’s like every character in every book, movie, and show portrays this message that you have to say I love you within a month, and if you take any longer, there’s something wrong with you. You can say it in a week if you want to, but you don’t have to. And in this book, when the characters took things at their own pace, guess what? No one thought it was crazy.

Fifth, this was the first time I had ever read sex scenes that involved tentacles, and thankfully it really wasn’t extreme. I’ve seen some other reviewers mention that this book was pretty mild, so fear not, my fellow tentacle porn newbies.

Sixth, as I mentioned above, I loved that there were genderfluid and bisexual main characters. The gender-changing was especially unique.

Seventh, the animal traits were both well-written and adorable. Anderson’s were cute, like always wanted sweets and colorful things, but I especially loved Lynn’s, like how he always wanted to wrap his tentacles around Anderson and pull him in when he got emotional or possessive and that one time when he got upset and sank to the bottom of the pool where he just curled all his tentacles around himself, because awwwwwwwwww <3

Last but not least, the plot was episodic, but that’s because it was literally a collection of stories/episodes that were once published as a serial. There were overall character and relationship arcs though, so I didn’t have any issue with it.

Honestly, nothing was a major problem, but the pronouns could get a little confusing, what with people changing genders. And sometimes it was hard to figure out what gender Lynn was in and picture him female when I was so used to picturing him male most of the time. There were also one or two M/F sex scenes, which might bother some readers. Also, the last story and the epilogue weren’t quite as strong to me as the other stories, but they were still enjoyable, and there was a sweet ending.

Overall though, this was a book I never wanted to end with lovable characters, unique paranormal creatures, a completely adorable relationship, and snarky humor, and it just filled me with so much happiness!

Recommended For:
M/M paranormal readers who a) want something light and fun but still with depth and realism, b) like adorable relationships and lovable, surly-but-with-a-heart-of-gold characters, c) want to read about a genderfluid character who can actually change gender, and/or d) want to read about a kraken and a unicorn! Also anyone who just wants to be filled with happiness because that's how this book made me feel!

Original Review @ Metaphors and Moonlight
Profile Image for Drache.... (Angelika) .
1,504 reviews210 followers
Read
March 30, 2024
No rating, dnf 55%.

The book is funny, the MCs are great together, but since they were together nearly from the start, I got bored early on.
I have a hard time staying interested in a romance novel after the MCs get together.
I kept thinking about other books I'd rather read, so I'll set this aside for now.
Profile Image for Barbara➰.
1,657 reviews457 followers
March 24, 2019
I was kind of excited to start it because hello…a unicorn and a kraken which has to end in tentacle sex at some point. And oh boy, did it. Lots of filthy tentacle sex. But, this book surprised the hell out of me. I can’t believe I actually liked it, because:

1. I’m not much on the whole thing where mc’s say “fuck you” call each other assholes or talk in seemingly hostile words to each other. But it worked here. Once I figured out the mc’s, I got it. And at times, it was quite comical.

2. I don’t usually like girly bits in my MM books. Lynn, a kraken, can change from male to female at any time. I’m not talking about just dressing as a female or wearing make-up. I mean he can actually shift his form and grow breasts and other girly bits. And yes, there is vaginal penetration. Again, color me surprised when I was like “huh…okay, I can hang with it”.

3. Lastly, I don’t usually care for mc’s who, well shall we say, “get around” quite a bit. Putting it nicely, Anderson was a bit of a slut. Plus, exes were popping up left and right. But, you know he was a pretty unicorn so you can’t help but love his slutty sparkly self.

But it also had a sweet quality to it. Lynn is all monster of the deep “Mine, mine, mine” possessive, if not irrational at times. He gives Anderson the love and acceptance his family never did. And Anderson loves Lynn as he is…all the possessiveness, tentacles and girly bits. It was a fun read.
Profile Image for ~Nicole~.
851 reviews401 followers
March 10, 2024
I blame Drusilla. Her review made me miss these guys and now I fell into the rabbit hole ..I HAVE TO re-read and visit again the cranky kraken and the sassy badass unicorn . 😍
Profile Image for Camy.
1,661 reviews49 followers
September 14, 2016
DNF at 54%

I just can't.

This is politicized porn...and it's boring as all books written with an agenda are.

*gender fluidity
*promiscuity positive
*pansexual positive
*effeminate men affirming
*gender roles negation
*transexual positive
*body positive
Etc etc etc.

And all of the above are fine but this is written to turn typical romantic tropes on their heads and to celebrate all things tentacle. Its too much of a response to Goodreads readers, to the GR m/m community. There's nothing authentic herein. It's very specific. It's very plot-less. It's very tiresome.

Lendle loan.
Profile Image for Tamara.
871 reviews33 followers
May 14, 2018
This book was fun, cute, action-packed and angst-free.
It consists of five stores and an epilogue, and all of them are about two paranormal agents - Lynn, the gender fluid Kraken shifter with a tailored suit fetish, a foul temper and a barbed tongue; and Anderson, the Unicorn shifter with an equally barbed tongue and an addiction to everything sweet.
These two were a fun pair to follow, especially since they seem to attract every kind of trouble, even if and especially when they're not looking for it. There's also lots and lots of tentacle sexy sex scenes!
I would love another epilogue a few years after the ending -
Profile Image for namericanwordcat.
2,440 reviews439 followers
March 1, 2018
Oh this book is so much fun! Funny, witty, silly and yet at the heart of it is a really tender love story between our heroes.

Watch out there are tentacles (and they do things that aren't safe for work but under the water) , and gender/sex shifter as will as Kraken and Unicorn culture.

We have all kinds of paranormal beings and mysteries to be solved and banter and snark and love.

Since this is a serial, it feels that way a bit with one mystery per section but the relationship grows and I am happy to be with this couple for a long long time.

A little goofy treasure that made me smile and it will you as well as long as you don't take anything to seriously and like glitter, cake, and sarcastic bad assess.
Profile Image for Santy.
1,258 reviews75 followers
August 10, 2016
Megan Derr is one of my favorite MM/PNR/fantasy writers and when I saw the opportunity to review this book I jumped at it as I knew it would be awesome. I wasn't wrong . She is a fantastic writer.

As always with Ms Derr , the world building is impeccable. It is thorough, fascinating and unique. We have humans(normals) and the paranormals. The paranormals are further broken down into earth, wind, water, air, fire, divine and necro( think vampires) sub-segmentations.

They shift between their natural paranormal forms and human forms via magic/technology with aid from custom made and sometimes government-issued shifter rings which lessen the hassles inherent with shifting into and maintaining these human forms. Some (a rare few) ,of course, could do so without the rings though a majority need them. Some species, in addition to shifting into humans are more fluid gender-wise ( i.e. they have the ability to seamlessly shift between male and female in their human forms) . As I said, fascinating stuff.

Our MCs ,Lynn and Anderson, work for the Paranormal version of FBI and first meet when Anderson becomes Lynn's new partner. Lynn was snarky, whiny, bratty, hostile, obnoxious,generous, adorable , sweet and thoughtful with a heart of gold. He was basically a very sweet guy with a prickly shell, all bark and no real bite. He was my favorite, I adored him.

Anderson ( a unicorn like you've never read about before) was a tough as nails badass unicorn .A reformed "slutty" unicorn shifter( the number of exes he had were outstanding) , he was also mouthy, snarky ,sarcastic as hell and gave as good as he got when it came to Lynn. He was the perfect match for Lynn who spoiled him rotten precisely because he just got him and was there for him no matter what. Their relationship was full of snarky affectionate banter and real selfless love unique to them. I adored them together.

For the story itself, as the blurb says, it was"The collected adventures of a kraken and a unicorn" and adventures they were.I thoroughly enjoyed them. They moved from one insane, mostly dangerous adventure to another, solving cases officially or unofficially, while growing their relationship. I'm my opinion, this story must be read as the collection of adventures intertwined with growing relationship between the MCs . If you read with that notion in mind, it'll flow as smoothly as it did for me, if not, it might seem a tinsy bit choppy.

There is a whole lot more sex(quite a lot actually), than in previous books I've read from Ms Derr. Also, there was a lot more variety(who knew tentacle sex would be SO hot? You can judge me. I don't care I don't care) .

The sexy times were so freaking HOT regardless of what shape or form the MCs were in. Damn. You won't see me complaining about the copious amount of sex though..nope. Not a peep. My dirty mind was thoroughly satisfied.


However, I think I need to point out that there were two short M/F scenes (because of the gender-shift ability of one of the MCs) . They were also HOT as well but if you have issues with M/F(as some do) you've been notified. You're welcome. ;)

I do hope Ms Derr returns to this world(maybe not as a follow up to this story, but with another stand-alone) . I would LOVE to get my grabby hands on them!!!!

***eARC generously provided by publisher in exchange for a fair, honest and unbiased review ****
Profile Image for LenaRibka.
1,463 reviews433 followers
Read
August 23, 2016
DNF at 8%

I enjoyed Tournament of Losers, my first Megan Derr, it is why I asked for an ARC without even thinking twice.
Wriggle & Sparkle is kind of a funny story book that readers could like, but it is not a book for me: the plot is too brash, too loud, too weird, too excessive for my taste.

I'm not in the mood to read about too quirky and bizarre characters who are fooling around.

I hope that this was merely a slip-up.

No rating.


**Copy provided by Less Than Three Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review**
Profile Image for rebecca.
631 reviews21 followers
April 11, 2024
2.75/5. I surprised myself. I finished this book, even though the characters were too much and too loud for my taste.

What helped a lot was reading these stories as a collection of short stories (which they were anyway, I think) and not reading it as a 400 page long book. Otherwise I probably would’ve thrown it the towel after chapter one / story one.

To be fair, the stories weren’t bad (although I did skip through some). But the characters got together way too soon for my liking. Anderson and Lynn were kinda cute though. And kinda funny as well — sometimes at least.

"I knew there was a reason I kept you around, Sparkleson."
"Because I flatter and insult you in equal measure and that's what does it for you?”


And if this quote doesn’t tell you exactly what kind of relationship Wriggly and Sparkleson had, then I don’t know how else to warn you.
Profile Image for F..
1,343 reviews66 followers
April 5, 2018
My first tentacle story and I loved it!! The snark, especially at the beginning, had me lolling much to my TV watching DH's disgust!! Liked how each character wasn't stereotypical as others have written them. Lynn was a genderfluid, moody kraken at first but was revealed to be a closet teddy-bear with a passion for designer clothes. Anderson definitely wasn't an airhead, sparkle distracted unicorn but had a coma inducing sweet tooth.
The book is actually a collection of stories that takes us from when they first meet to their wedding with lots of paranormal baddies along the way.
Highly recommended to all PNR lovers who enjoy sugar snacks!!
4.5 stars
Profile Image for Daphne .
715 reviews1 follower
August 26, 2016
Wriggly/Lynn (a Kraken shifter) and Anderson (a unicorn shifter) started as coworkers in the supernatural version of the FBI. They quickly coupled up and dealt with a series of inept bad guys when they weren't hooking up.

As a prior reviewer mentioned, this book was made up of several stories, each of which had their own little arc. The relationship built throughout the "big picture" but this definitely read like a serial rather than one book.

I thought that the tentacle sex was going to be the most "whaaaat?" element of the story for me but that turned out to not be the case. Rather than the kraken loving, I struggled with the gender fluidity for Lynn that seemed to come out of nowhere later in the story. It was apparent early on that Leslie, Lynn's sibling, was gender fluid but not Lynn. As the story evolved, and Lynn started to plan their wedding, he was suddenly female often. Because this was not a part of his story for so long, it was jarring to me as a reader. When Anderson and Lynn got married, as a man and a woman, and Anderson referred to his wife and they were suddenly having heterosexual sex, it seemed like I was reading about a different couple. For avoidance of doubt, I am not criticizing the existence of gender fluidity or m/f love scenes in books etc. so much as 80% of a story going in one direction and then taking a sharp left turn that seemed to change the characters as they had previously been developed.

Interesting book for sure. Different.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for iam.
1,234 reviews155 followers
November 17, 2021
I adored this so much, and I can already tell I'll have a bookhangover now that it's over.

Content warnings include: violence, abduction, hostage situation, protagonists kill people, sex on-page (feat. tentacles), graphically violent language, family issues, brief descriptions of pregnancy.

Wriggle & Sparkle is a collection of stories about Lynn and Anderson, a kraken and a unicorn shifter, who meet when they are partnered up to work together while they are agents at the paranormal version of the FBI. The stories follows their delevoping relationship, and for the most part of the book they are an established couple.

I loved not just the shenanigans the two get up to, from their jobs and families and what else is going on (which tends to be a lot more exciting than either of them seek out,) but also their personalities and how they worked together.
Both of them are snarky and not the easiest to get along with, but they also aren't introverted or not-people-persons. Both deal with stereotypes and common expectations based on what they are (both kraken and unicorns come with a LOT of prejudices) and on how they seem on first glance.
It was wonderful to read about how they learn to trust each other and become more and more comfortable in who they are and their interactions with each other and outsiders.

Overall it wasn't the most original or unpredictable setting, but I enjoyed it a lot thanks to it's unconventional protagonists and just how much fun it was to read along. Lynn and Anderson love each other so much and it was so lovely to see them so happy together.

Kraken's natural tendency to be genderfluid was an interesting touch, though not as explored in depth as I would have liked. Lynn does change his body between typically male and female sexual characteristics several times, particularly towards the end. He always keeps he/him pronouns (though often refers to himself with terms labelled as female like wife or mother) and it rarely is remarked upon. His twin, Leslie, is alternatingly addressed as his sister or brother depending on the story, which I assume is based on how Leslie is presenting at the moment.

I would have liked a bit more variety in the quite frequent sex scenes, though they were still quite nice, and often features Lynn shifting in his half-form.

My biggest issue was with how frequently the protagonists resolved to verbal violence. They clearly didn't mean most of what they said, but it was still a little... overwhelming, at times.
Profile Image for Joyfully Jay.
9,013 reviews515 followers
August 15, 2016
A Joyfully Jay review.

4.25 stars


I’m a huge fan of Megan Derr’s work and she continues to surprise me with her inventive story telling and with her addictive characters. Wriggle & Sparkle is definitely no exception. It’s got everything you could want – action, romance, cupcakes, and tentacle sex. Maybe too much tentacle sex if we’re being honest. But more about that later.

Wriggle & Sparkle is a collection of stories that follow the working partnership and eventual romance between Lynn, a kraken shifter, and Anderson, a unicorn shifter. Lynn particularly charmed me. He tries very hard and often succeeds at being a jerk, but is head over heels for Anderson and it’s easy to forgive his natural obnoxiousness. Additionally, Lynn is gender fluid, as krakens in this world have the ability to become male or female, as they want. This added an extra layer of complexity to his character that I really enjoyed. Anderson is a bit pricklier and save for his obsession with sugar, he defies every stereotypical idea about unicorns. Which makes him both fun and intriguing on multiple levels. The best thing about these characters is the witty, grumbling, and silly banter between them. Some of their conversations left me laughing aloud. The storylines are relatively simple and they tend to read quickly and most are fairly enjoyable. There is one in particular towards the end of the book that was a bit too ridiculous, but Lynn and Anderson were still strong enough to save it. The overall world building could have used some further detailing, but there’s enough on page to draw the reader in.

Read Sue’s review in its entirety here.


Profile Image for Claudia.
3,010 reviews110 followers
January 31, 2020
2nd read
Fun again.... although I would have loved to see a bit more of the get to know each other phase


1st read
This was a fun read - or at least most of it was. it felt a bit like three or four books in one. which gave a lot of additional stories, which felt nice.

I loved both characters and thought they made a great pair. So all in all an author who I will read again
Profile Image for Erica.
1,691 reviews37 followers
June 21, 2021
This is a favorite story, my go-to when I'm in the mood for "comfort tentacles". (That's totally a thing, right?) I could read another ten books packed with these guys' adventures.
Profile Image for Gerbera_Reads.
1,671 reviews154 followers
July 16, 2021
This was very lighthearted fun collection of stories. The MCs, a unicorn with a major sweet tooth and a possessive kraken, fit well and were amusing to read about. I wished that some situations were a bit serious and more suspenseful. All of the cases they investigated were filled with too many jokes and not enough tension for me.

For the intimate part of the stories I will note the following: there was MM, MF and tentacle $*XX. (And it was descriptive on all accounts). Lynn the kraken, though, was always referred to as he/him no matter what form he took. So even MF part was not difficult to read.

The book is aptly named, and it tickled me pink every time I read their interactions. The stories ended with a nice epilogue that tied all loose ends and was rather sweet. All the stories were steadily paced and had a wide array of paranormals. Overall I enjoyed this book.
Profile Image for ~nikki the recovering book addict.
1,248 reviews2 followers
September 29, 2019
3.5 stars...

This was five long chapters. But it felt more like 5 different short stories. Each chapter concluded each case that cropped up and each chapter skipped many months ahead from the last chapter. So yeah, I’m inclined to view each chapter as separate short stories.

I love the banter between the two MCs. One is definitely sparkly and the other wriggly. While the characters brought me joy... I don’t know, it just didn’t hold my attention with it. It’s definitely well written. The characters have character and the fantasy aspect was definitely different. I mean, it is Megan Derr after all. But yeah, I don’t know why it didn’t wow me more. This is definitely a case of its me, not the book 🙊
Profile Image for The Novel Approach.
3,094 reviews136 followers
August 24, 2016
I’m going to throw this out there—I am not a big fan of tentacles… So why would I want to review a book that I knew going in had them and, more than likely, there would be scenes involving the wriggly things??? Because more than once Ms. Derr has managed to take something that isn’t my bag and make me love it, with her writing style and characters. I figured if anyone could make me enjoy the wriggly things it would be her. I was not disappointed. Once again the world building that Ms. Derr has created and the characters’ diverse personalities make up for any squeamish feelings I have about tentacles.

Lynn’s character is a wonderful mix of high maintenance, bratty, arrogant and even sometimes rude, with a sensitive heart and loyalty in spades. He was loveable as a character once you get a look inside his heart and thoughts. As a Kraken shifter, he and his sibling Leslie are both fluid. Not necessarily in the terms we use, but literally fluid. They shape shift in their human form to whichever gender they are currently feeling. I absolutely adored their relationship and how the siblings respected each other and dealt with those around them that truly didn’t understand their shifting abilities and the fluidness of their genders; their bond was clear from the beginning.

Anderson isn’t your stereotypical Unicorn. He doesn’t get his feelings hurt at the drop of a dime, puts Lynn in his/her place when needed, and breaks the mold of his heritage at nearly every turn. Anderson may be five feet nothing and look like a faerie prince, but he has balls of steel and make no mistake, he has will not put up with BS. He is self-aware and knows what others think of him, but doesn’t let that change who he is or what he wants.

The world that Wriggle & Sparkle takes place in is definitely not your average paranormal. Sure there are werewolves and faeries, but a lot of the shifters fall into the mythical beings category that I rarely hear of (or read) in a paranormal, such as basilisks, gorgons, kitsunes and (of course) krakens. They are a part of everyday society, but humans are mostly none the wiser of them. It was intriguing reading about a different types of shifters and their personalities and interactions with each other.

There are multiple mysteries during the course of the book that end up having resolution. Each was intriguing and different than the others, but there isn’t necessarily one main mystery that is the driving force of the story. Each mystery follows Lynn and Anderson from initial meeting forward, and different situations they find themselves in during the course of their relationship. Their relationship was fun to read and the banter between the two kept a smile on my face. They encounter some pretty crazy plots, interesting characters (both good and bad), find friends, face enemies and bigots, and deal with familial issues; all while their relationship progresses and they investigate the cases they find themselves involved in.

I found this a highly enjoyable read and really enjoyed how we got several mysteries, not just one. Since I absolutely loved the characters, Lynn’s tentacles didn’t even really bother me. I’m so glad I gave this book a try and would totally recommend it for someone who is looking for a mostly fun read with action and romance and a paranormal twist.

Reviewed by Lindsey for The Novel Approach Reviews
Profile Image for Melyna.
911 reviews15 followers
September 13, 2016
I saw this book reviewed on The Novel Approach Reviews when it released and loved the review. I am not usually a shifter fan, but a Kraken and a Unicorn? Cool. Tentacle sex. Well, that's a first for me. :-) The story turned out to be very enjoyable. Fun, light,sweet and romantic, filled with great characters and a cute, entertaining story. Lynn is a cranky Kraken that loves the finer things in life and Anderson is not your modern stereotype of the sweet , vulnerable unicorn, although he does have a pretty serious sweet tooth. They work together for the Federal Bureau of Paranormal Security and Investigation. As they work together solving cases, their relationship grows. They make a great team, on and off the job. It is quite a cast of mythical creatures and I liked the way the author portrays them and their characteristics.
I read after the fact that this was originally a serialized story. It helped explain the way the mini cases/mysteries felt in the book. That is not a negative. It was fun. I will never be able to call this book Wriggle and Sparkle - it will always be Wriggly and Sparkleson to me. If you want a fun, light, sexy read and aren't afraid of a little tentacle sex, give it a try.
Profile Image for Tamika♥RBF MOOD♥.
1,224 reviews146 followers
August 23, 2016
3.5 stars



This was a super cheesy and fun shifter story. I've never read a story featuring a unicorn & a kraken. LOL. I laughed alot. For all of Lynn uneasiness about having a partner and him swearing that a unicorn was to soft for him, he fell for Anderson quickly and hard. This was a cute collection about Lynn & Anderson two different species working together and falling in love.

It was snarky and campy to a joyous extent. I liked the writing and telling of the story. I'm super glad I wasn't annoyed about the sugary sweetness of it. It still had a plot, rather easy but it was still a plot. It was some of the silliest adventures ever and Derr wrote some of the steamiest scenes ever. I enjoyed it more then I thought I would. It was some tentacle/ shifting sex going on. I was a tad bashful, but I digress it was done and HAWT!!!! I enjoy laughing and it's no shortage of it. Kudos Megan, I enjoyed it alot.
Profile Image for Rachel Emily.
4,438 reviews378 followers
September 19, 2016
OMG. OMG I think this is the BEST story with tentacles I have ever read! I LOVED IT.

This story is actually several short stories all together, all revolving around Anderson, AKA Sparkleson who is a unicorn shifter, and Lynn, AKA Wriggly and a kraken shifter. I just LOVED reading about them together, from their first meeting with great chemistry, to them falling for each other and what happens over the course of their relationship.

I enjoyed the world building in this (something I have come to really love in all of her stories), how shifting works, getting to know Anderson and Lynn's family, and just EVERYTHING about Lynn and Anderson. Loved Lynn's brattiness and love of suits and opulence, and I loved Anderson's snark and sparkle and love of sugar.

These two were perfect for each other and I just did NOT want this story to end! HIGHLY recommended to those who love shifters and a bit of kink for some tentacles! ;)

I received a copy of this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Jane (PS).
2,764 reviews101 followers
March 5, 2017
Lots of fun, and it follows a similar story format to the Dance with the Devil series in that each chapter covers a separate event/case; however I find the Dance series is more charming and 'old world'; a little more special. This book is modern-day and immediate; the MCs are 'in your face' direct and abrassive, for all that they are very amusing.

So if you want some light fun that involves tentacles and glitter, set in easy to read portions - jump on this sparkle-horse!
Profile Image for Deeze.
1,766 reviews284 followers
August 11, 2018
Take away the tentacle porn and this was a fabulous read.

I absolutely loved Wriggly and Sparkleson lol. The snark and banter were brilliant. I easily fell in love with them both.

The mysteries were entertaining and very well handled. I loved all the different creatures we met, and the way they were all portrayed was very clever.

My only niggle is with the last chapter. First the mystery was rushed and felt clumsy, I couldn't believe in it the way I could with the previous mysteries. It felt more like something thrown together in a rush. Secondly Lynn marrying as a woman threw me off a little. While I enjoyed the more gender fluid roles I can't help feeling that Lynn and Anderson fell in love as males, so the whole female wedding was far to het like for my MM loving self.

However the epilogue more than made up for that. I adored it and can only hope one day we get to rejoin Wriggly and Sparkles on their journey into parenthood.
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