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Lawn Ornament Shifters #2

Gnome Sweet Gnome

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He'll win her heart, gnome matter what.
As the brains behind Wilson Kinetic’s rocket to success, Tobias Underhill measures up in every way but height. He’s got money, connections, and any woman he wants. But he knows his success is hollow without someone to share it with.

Gnomes might not have fated mates, but when Tobias spies the gorgeous and fascinating Harriet Slade, he's sure that she's just the woman to make his house a home.

Owl shifter and jewel thief Harriet Slade doesn't bargain on meeting her mate at the holiday gala that she crashes, or getting caught with her hand in the cookie jar. But she's no prize to be won, and she's absolutely determined to be the one that got away.

Feathers fly in this fast-paced, hilarious, short shifter romance romp, with a sizzling happy ending and a lot of heart. An early draft of this book was previously published episodically in Vella.

136 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 5, 2022

122 people are currently reading
89 people want to read

About the author

Elva Birch

115 books273 followers
Elva Birch is an author of the impossible and irresistible. She is a fire dragon Gemini living in Alaska who belly dances outside at twenty below in the winter and loves to find tiny fairy moss worlds in the summer with her camera.

Elva also writes SHIFTING SANDS RESORT, GREEN VALLEY SHIFTERS, and FAE SHIFTER KNIGHTS as Zoe Chant.

Join her Reader's Retreat on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/elvab... for sneak previews or join her mailing list and get a free novella at: http://www.elvabirch.com/join-the-mai...

Not sure where to start? Take the quiz at her site to find your perfect book! https://www.elvabirch.com/find-a-book/

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5 stars
266 (56%)
4 stars
121 (25%)
3 stars
66 (14%)
2 stars
13 (2%)
1 star
4 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
Profile Image for Sarandah chrysalis.
598 reviews58 followers
September 27, 2023
SHORT KING! And a confident, sweet, funny guy. Okay, so maybe he’s a gnome, but still- incredibly refreshing to have a male romantic interest that’s five feet tall and totally owning it

Profile Image for Smut Report.
1,620 reviews195 followers
Read
December 23, 2022
Heat Factor: There’s definite heat intermingled with some absurdity and puns. And absurd puns.

Character Chemistry: It’s spelled out WHY they click but it doesn’t really…feel like they do?

Plot: Harriet is an owl shifting orphan and an incredibly wealthy thief who covers her criminal activity with a cupcake business. Tobias is a gnome billionaire who figures out her game–and then has to convince Harriet to give in to their mate connection and try being together.

Overall: It’s short and sweet, but it certainly feels like a bridge and doesn’t feel entirely fully developed, perhaps for that reason.

Read our full review at The Smut Report

I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

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Profile Image for Henne.
71 reviews
dnf-2024
July 10, 2024
DNF at 56 pages. The characters just did not the same as Anita and Frank did. 🥲
Profile Image for Laura.
2,166 reviews75 followers
November 7, 2024
uhm I need the next book please

This was super cute and sweet and the cover tickles me so much cuz the beard is so (intentionally) fake looking lol. This is a fun fated mates romance between a secret thief and a gnome who figures out her secrets and thinks she’s a delight. Plus! Shorter man! Just such a fun little story, and I need the next book after that teaser of an epilogue!!!
Profile Image for Ann Hupe.
500 reviews12 followers
January 16, 2024
3.5 stars.

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I knew I had to read this book. Not only does my mother own plenty of the cute garden gnomes who guard each door of our apartment, we both have seen a few of these gnomes actually wandering the place... Yeah, I know it sounds crazy, but right now with everything that's going on, it's good to have a little extra protection.

Anyway, I found this book amongst the many, many recommendations by Amazon, so I had to grab it. What did I think? Interesting prospect but this writer really needed a good editor. Wrong words. Singulars mixing up with plurals. "Past" being used incorrectly. Bad punctuation. Bad grammar. POV uncertain in places. I know I should have just dropped it, but I've ever read a garden gnome book before. Also, she does have talent. I could see it. But it needed a lot of help here.

I couldn't wrap my head around the über-growing facial hair bit. What was the scientific or evolutionary or biological reason for this?

More help with character development. There were some aspects that were quite cute. Her characterization of Harriet the Thief with the Heart of Gold was great. All the way to the psychiatric and psychological grit. That was work well done. I'm still trying to figure out Tobias. If she spent as much effort and energy on him, he wouldn't be such a stick-in-the-much. It's only about the last few pages that we call can see WHY he is in so much love with her and why the two of them will do so well together. But it makes the book appear rushed. That's not good writing.

The book should had been longer. It was so much like a couple meet, and it's ¡¡¡¡WHAM!!!! It's LOVE FOREVER! Okay, the girl notices it first rather than the usual opposite. I get it. I like it that way. I even like the fact that Harriet’s a great snowy owl. Cool. I also like the fact that it doesn't take Tobias a lot time to figure out what's going on, so we have a ton less angst going on. I love the fact that he’s got an ego bigger than Will Shatner’s. But that’ basically it in a nutshell.

Needed more action-adventure. Need more story(ies). Need more usage of extraneous characters. They are there. They needed to be plugged in.

So ignore my comments of personal gnomes. I would love to see this one rewritten so that the other stories will be EVEN BETTER!

Personally, I am so happy about the existence of independent writers. I’m sick to death of the publishing firms who believe they know good writers when they see them. There needs to be others out there willing to REALLY help them, not just coddle them. Have all the Vassar copy editors died?

Ratings (out of possible 5)
Character building: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
World building: 🌎 🌎 🌎
Relationship building: 💓 💓 💓
Romance: 💋 💋 💋
Heat/steam: 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥
Drama: 👀 👀 👀
Action: 🍿
Suspense: 💣
Dark: 💀
Triggers: Lost family members with major emotional disruption, bad fostership.
POV: Multiple (2)
Ending: HEA with rushing.
Length: Approximately 136 pages
Recommend: Read KU first then consider purchasing.

I know this is Book 2 of a series, and it did allow me to read without being lost since I didn't read Book 1. Yeah, it was good in that regard. But I wouldn't buy another one without passing muster via KU. I also noticed that she's written a TON of books, so I only hope that continued writing might have improved her ability to tell a good story with improved authorship skills. I do not accept what more than a few independent writers have told me — better to write poorly than to write well. What a waste of talent. One should always seek to improve oneself.
Profile Image for Kelly.
660 reviews15 followers
December 6, 2022
Great characters, highly entertaining

I love these books the author is not—or should that be gnot?—writing (if you’re not in on the joke, the first book was just supposed to be an April Fools Day prank). As the second book in the series, while characters carry over from book one, the author gives you enough background here that this can easily be read as a standalone.

This author always does a great job making her characters realistic and relatable, and this story is no exception. Harriet’s vulnerability is heart breaking, Tobias’s confidence and protectiveness is perfection, and Harriet’s owl made me laugh every time: “Tobias tacos!”, “ Bring him dead mice and dance!” 😂 While there’s a touch of Cinderella—Tobias makes the best version of a Prince Charming I’ve ever come across—Harriet is as much fairy godmother as part time princess, even as she pretends she’s helping people out of practicality and has no altruistic motives at all.

It was nice to get a glimpse of Frank and Anita from book one, but in terms of secondary characters, while there are several that had me intrigued (the next book is about three of them), it was Tobias’s mother that really stole the show. I would love to get the background story about how she and Tobias’s father got together; a short story maybe?

A highly entertaining story with some lovely fairytale vibes—a little heartbreak, plenty of humor, and, of course, a hea.
1,284 reviews9 followers
December 12, 2022
Fun with a series that was never going to happen!

Tobias is a gnome and the CEO of the lawn ornament business. Harriet was a key part of book one and now she has her own story. She is at the fundraiser to steal whatever she can. Then she meets Tobias and her owl is all aflutter! Now he is throwing her off her stride! What is a girl to do? Tobias can't figure out why Harriet keeps running away from him. But he is going to find out what he can do to change that! Will it be enough? Read this to see.

The pace is fast and the tone is uncertain yet hopeful with a character oriented storyline that has some steamy scenes. The characters are vivid and engaging. They are very complex. You can read this story on its own,but you will get much more out of it if you read the series in order. This story is thoughtful and fun. There is so much more than you expect. If that's what you like in your shifter romances, then this is for you! Enjoy!
Profile Image for Starfire.
1,376 reviews32 followers
December 18, 2024
I didn't enjoy this instalment of the Lawn Ornament Shifters as much as Book 1. Frank and Anita's story was clearly bonkerdoodles and wasn't trying to be anything else. This one... felt a bit like it was trying to take on something a bit more serious and wasn't quite managing it.

Also, it didn't help that I didn't really love Tobias OR Harriet as characters - they both seemed a bit all-over-the-place without giving me a sense of who they actually were as people. It's one thing to make characters complex and more-than-just-their-surface-stereotypes. But both main characters in this book seemed to flail around so much 'doing the unexpected' that they didn't feel like they were consistently anything.

I *am* curious about the taster of Book 3 we got at the end though. Ms Birch has done a couple of triad romances I've enjoyed so far, so I'm looking forward to how she handles the M/F/F romance thread in Bear in a Birdbath.
Profile Image for Tammy Moldovan.
1,977 reviews26 followers
December 26, 2023
Tobias and Harriet- deserving love

I enjoyed this heartwarming novella about Tobias and Harriet. Harriet is an owl shifter and a jewel thief. She is a wounded soul that needs healing. Frank is a gnome shifter and a rich businessman. Harriet recognizes Tobias as her fated mate as soon as she sees him and while Tobias is very drawn to her, he does not know she is his mate. Harriet is determined to ignore her instincts and getting prickly, guarded and wounded Harriet to let Tobias in will take all his experience, skill, and influence. This book has a little bit of everything - sweet moments, real life issues, imperfect characters, painful pasts, chuckles, and love. While short, the characters were well developed and the story was well written. 3.5 stars.
1,887 reviews5 followers
December 16, 2022
Fast

Paced story.
Absolutely loved that author wrote a story of a couple with female being taller and did not make a big deal of it.
I find it sad that so many people are so insecure of themselves and worried about others opinions that they do not se2 beyond the surface.
Now I would have given this higher rating but logic is big for me. Zero logic that she had so much money and would not believe in her proteges enough to say she would be there angel investor. Since that instills confidence in the person of their skills and talents. As well higher talented people to turn bakery into money maker.
Profile Image for Tammie Riso.
108 reviews
December 3, 2022
Super cute and a fun, quick read. Given the fact that her fans pretty much cajoled her into writing both this book, and its predecessor; The Flamingo's fated mate, it was a wonderful read. Both are tongue-in-cheek and were originally part of a prank that Elva played on her reader fans, but the joke was on her. Both stories apparently demanded to be written and we're the luckier for it. Read and enjoy in the lighthearted spirit that they were intended.
Profile Image for Eden.
2,222 reviews
April 10, 2023
2023 bk 114. A very sweet sequel to the Flamingo book - with perhaps a bit more plotting involved. A former foster child uses her skills for theft to aid those this talents in the arts to start their businesses until a gnome figures out what is going on. My favorite scene from this is when he takes her home for Christmas and she realizes this is what she is looking for (doesn't actually say it, but the actions speak for this.) I'm hoping for book #3 now.
80 reviews
December 6, 2022
Pretty good read

Tobias and Harriet make a good couple. Like that Tobias isn't the regular buff alpha. Instead he's short, confident, intelligent and funny.
Harriet is surprisingly likeable. There's a method to her madness.
Quick fun read.

Can't wait to see what happens with Bruno, Eva, and Margo.
836 reviews2 followers
December 10, 2022
No holding back

This is a funny story of an owl shifter hat takes from the rich and helps the that she feels needs a helping hand to for full their dreams,and now her has been found out. By a gnome that turns out to be her mate,I would like to say thank you for all your hard work and may fortune smile 😃on you always 😁from a bookworm
Profile Image for Elle Sabine.
Author 17 books18 followers
December 13, 2023
I read Gnome Sweet Gnome by Elva Birch because it was free on Amazon today & the cover/title made me laugh. This Christmas story takes rom-com almost to absurd romance. I was entertained. While there’s hot sex, it doesn’t feel like the author intends the readers to themselves have any orgasm profits from reading. So expect to giggle-snort at the bad puns.
Profile Image for Dirty Dayna.
2,155 reviews109 followers
December 16, 2023
It's not for me it's rated highly so it's probably for everyone else. This is a story about a genome man who has wild hair that's grows all the way back every day who meets his fated mate an owl shifter girl. The book spends a lot of time telling me they love eachother are fated mates and connect more than I feel it
Profile Image for Brad.
700 reviews3 followers
January 10, 2024
Definitely a Difference Romance

Harriet and Tobias are from opposite sides of the track. A chance meeting sets the story in motion. The character development is well done. While both protagonists go through changes, Harriet has the largest chasm to cross.

Nice story and fun to read.
Profile Image for Silvita Wake.
195 reviews
November 21, 2024
Super quick, easy and fun. Not as spicy as I normally enjoy my books, but it's short enough with a satisfying enough storyline to keep me interested. An absolutely wild start to reading from this author considering how mostly unserious it is. I'm not a super fan of the billionaire trope, but again, it's so short, I can look past that and read/recommend it.
29 reviews1 follower
November 8, 2025
Liked these folks too

Okay, I should have read all three of these before my last review, because every character trait I said that was weird in the last book (that I REALLY liked) was gently made fun of and accepted by friends.

Also I like the third book as well. More in this world would be nice!
Profile Image for Estrellita.
65 reviews1 follower
December 15, 2022
Sweet Story That Wasn't Written

Love this series that started out as an April Fool's joke that wasn't going to be written! Happy it was written! So happy to read it! Fun and fanciful! Tobias and Harriet make it work! Waiting for what comes next that Elva Birch is not writing!
1,553 reviews4 followers
December 18, 2022
Gnot gonna lie I enjoyed this story

So glad that this story was written and published. Gnot gonna lie because I did enjoy the silly story. I could really use some of those sugar diamonds got gonna lie that would be totally awesome especially now. Thanks Elva!
23 reviews1 follower
December 19, 2022
Silly and fun short shifter romance

What happens when you mix a Jewel thief with a heart of gold and a garden ornament making gnome? You get a fun romance capable of whining away my otherwise dreary afternoon.
4 reviews
Read
December 26, 2022
Gnow you're gonna love it!

It's got puns and funs, and a bad owl girl hoo just can't say gno to a certain gnome billionaire when he calls her bluff. Another irresistible love story by Elva Birch - loved all the fun characters and snappy bilines!
1,236 reviews3 followers
January 16, 2023
Lighthearted Fun

Somehow a Christmas gnome just works. So do puns galore, quirky characters, dubious business practices and fated mates. A jolly good time await you when you read this truly delightful book. Enjoy!
79 reviews1 follower
April 21, 2023
Very good

A fun light story about Frank and Harriet. I found myself laughing at times at the puns. It took a while for me to get into the story but once I did, I enjoyed reading it.
958 reviews5 followers
October 22, 2023
Cute

This was such a sweet story, with puns and ridiculous shenanigans. Short story. Also adult content but nothing detailed. I enjoyed watching Harriet and Tobias figure things out.
Profile Image for Gnome Patronus.
422 reviews22 followers
November 4, 2023
⭐️Overall 3/5
🌶️ Spice 2/5
🖤Dark 0/5

If you have wanted to read a steamy cozy book about a millionaire gnome, a high end thief that is an owl shifter, cupcake adversaries, and a few shake your head gnome puns….Yep, that about sums it up, grab some hot cocoa, and enjoy this quick read.
412 reviews2 followers
February 11, 2024
Gnome Sweet Gnome (Lawn Ornament Shifters Bk 2))

This was a funny tale of love in a gnome fashion. Tobias has fallen for Harriet, who is an owl shifter. Their paths meet in a strange fashion, but goes to show that anyone and/or anything can fall in love.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
Author 1 book11 followers
November 16, 2024
I’m sorry what.
This is a hidden gem
Well written, funny, clever, deep. Like wow.
This healed a piece of me. I want to cry.
The banter? The jokes. The everything. I’m in shock this author is amazing.
Profile Image for Kailey.
225 reviews13 followers
December 29, 2024
This was a fun sequel! I only wish we had gotten more of the catty banter Harriet had in the first book. "Cotton candy goose" killed me in Flamingo. But I get we were seeing more of her insecurity. Only other thing I wanted was a bit more on gnome heritage.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews

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