Kobo free download 7/20/113.5 stars - Once again, why haven’t I read this series yet? I received this book as a Kobo free download last summer and waited to fit it into the right challenge. Thanks, SOS Bookshelf Bingo – Shifters shelf! Calico cat shifters!Once Bitten is the story of Kita Nekai. Kita is the daughter of a Torin or clan leader. She’s left her home in Firth for Haven and is hiding in plain sight among the humans as a cute little calico cat. When in human form, Kita’s hair is beautifully streaked resembling her cat. Kita is being hunted by shifters who want to take her back to Firth. While running away from a wolf hunter, she runs into Bobby, a childhood friend and bobcat shifter. He wants to bring her home to take her rightful place as Dyre, heir to her clan’s leadership. Kita wants nothing to do with this and runs away. She ends up at a rave where her drink is spiked.When she wakes up, her world has changed. She cannot shift. Nathanial has “rescued” her. To further complicate matters, Kita is accused of biting a human and causing that human to become a rogue shifter. This accusation carries a death sentence in this world especially since this rogue is a sick serial killer, leaving a trail of murdered and beaten women. Nathanial, Bobby and Gil convince the judge to give them some time to prove Kita’s innocence and to capture the rogue. It took me a little while to warm up to this book. I wasn’t invested in the characters at first, although a calico cat shifter was intriguing. There isn’t a love triangle – a good thing, nor is there a romance per se, although there seems to be a possibility of one in upcoming books. Kita is bound to Nathanial as he is her maker, but I could see her getting to know him better. Nathanial was nicely understated. A vampire that likes to stay under the radar, Nathanial was known as The Hermit. He is a powerful vampire and has many interesting abilities. I liked Kita and found her character interesting. I liked her logical approach to finding the rogue. She lacked a little maturity and experience but I can see her character develop and grow as the series progresses. Poor Bobby! You could tell that he still loved Kita, even though he was mated to another shifter. Gil’s character was intriguing. I never really knew what to make of her. I’d love to learn more about her. All in all, a solid start to the series. I can’t wait to read the next book.
