Guide

EVERYTHING THATS HOT

Paranormal
Romance

WELCOME

AVERY
BURCH

Gale
Hawthorne
Gale has watched over Katniss right from the beginning.
He is her friend and her
hunting partner, and most
importantly, he is in love with
her. His commitment is absolute.

very Burch is the hottest new paranormal

romance author in the world and her series,
Shifter: City of Wolves, is going to make a
huge impact. We caught up with her at her
home in Toronto to find out what it is about

paranormal romance that makes her so passionate.

PNR: Avery, what made you want to write Paranormal Ro-

mance specifically?
Avery: I always wanted to write in this genre. Theres been a
huge amount of attention on it for years, and especially since the
success of Twilight. The great thing is that its not just the paranormal that has everyone excited, its the romance too.

AVERY BURCH
FEATURED GUEST

PNR: What do you think it is about the romance thats striking such a chord with readers?
Avery: I can only speak for myself, but theres a huge difference between the kind of guy youre likely to meet in your
normal life, and the guys in the hottest paranormal series.
PNR: Youre saying the guys in the books and movies are
more interesting?
Avery: The reason I love Paranormal Romance is because
the guys know how to be HOT! They know what it means to be
passionate about the woman the love. They know what it means
to be committed. Have you read any shifter books lately? Those
guys will kill for their girl. Theyll die for her. Once they imprint
on her and decide that shes their fated mate, or their soul mate,
thats it, game over. Theyll never let her go.
PNR: And you think thats appealing to girls?
Avery: Are you kidding me? Hell yes, I think thats appealing to girls. Who wouldnt want a wolf who was ready to die for

I love paranormal
romance because
the guys know how
to be HOT! They
know how to be
passionate. They
know how to die
for the woman they
love.

them?

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Content

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24
28
Welcome . 03

Journey of a Cover . 22

We hope this is an exciting and useful guide for all paranormal romance fans.

A behind the scenes look at the evolution of a paranormal romance book cover.

What is a Shifter? 08

Hot Movies . 26

We look at some of the defining instincts that make

shifters so attractive as mates.

We look at some of the sexiest tropes to be found in

recent movies such as Hunger Games and Twilight.

Are they Siblings? 12

Outlander . 28

We lay to rest one of the most startling plot points of

Shifter: City of Wolves.

Paranormal romance isnt only for the future. Outlander

is an amazing historical take on the genre.
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SPOTLIGHT

Shifter

City of Wolves
THE LOVE BETWEEN ZAC
AND LYLA IS ALL THE MORE
INTENSE BECAUSE ITS FORBIDDEN. AND THE REAL
REASON ITS FORBIDDEN IS
PRETTY SHOCKING!

EXCLUSIVE PREVIEW

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Defining Features of
a Shifter
Intense loyalty: Once they imprint on their female, nothing
will ever break that bond.
Fated Mates: They dont fully have a choice over the female
they imprint on. It just happens, as if it is their destiny, and once
it happens they have no control over it. They will live and die for
that woman from that point on.
Fiercely protective: They will not let anything harm a female
once they have imprinted on her.
Desire to Mate: And this doesnt just mean they want to have
sex with her! It means they will be strongly aware of the fact that
the female controls their ability to have young, and they will value her for this. When the mating fever comes over them and they
need to procreate, they will do anything for their female.
Highly Intelligent: Shifters are among the most intelligent
animals on the planet. They combine the most valuable traits of
humans and wolves.

hat are the things that distinguish shifers

from other men? Well, for one thing,
they are ferociously loyal. This isnt the
kind of loyalty that you see every day.
With shifters, its different. They dont

have a choice. Its in their genetics. Its in the instincts of the wolf
wihtin them. Once they love a female, they simply cant let her
go. They arent able to break that bond. Its just not an option.
This has a strong impact on stories such as City of Wolves. In
that book, once a shifter imprints on a female, he wont be able
to forget her, ever. It has an even stronger influence as the series
progresses. There will be times when shifters like Zac, Jason and
Jackman should run from the girl they love, the danger is simply
too great, but they cant.
In the second book in the series, when we learn about Shays
history, we see that his inability to break his bond with Edith is
the cause of his downfall. The thing to remember is that these
men arent entirely human, theyre part wolf, and the rules and
instincts that govern wolves are very different to what were used
to.

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Shifters are among

the most intelligent animals on
the planet. They
combine the most
valuable traits of
both humans and
wolves.

STRONG

Physically, shifters are unmatched.

Their strength and power goes
beyond that of ordinary men. Their
senses are also heightened, allowing
them to see, hear, smell and sense
danger long before anyone else.
SEXUAL

The physical intensity of a shifter

can be overwhelming. They have extremely aggressive sexual appetites,
sometimes even surprising themselves. For the women they love this
can be a blessing and a challenge.
LOYAL

If youre a woman who a shifter loves,

be ready to have a mate for life.
Once they imprint on you, they will
never let you go. They are physically
unable to.

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Gale Hawthorne
Hunger Games

Four
Divergent

Portrayed by the gorgeous Liam Hemsworth, Gale Hawthorne

Tobias Eaton, better known as Four, is Triss love interest in Di-

is one of the sexiest guys from recent dystopian romance. It is

vergent. He got his name because it was discovered that he only

his undying loyalty to Katniss, even when things get unbearably

had four fears. It is while training the new Dauntless initiates that

difficult, that endears him to fans. While he is not paranormal,

he and Tris fall in love for the first time. He is played by Theo

he lives in a world that is eerily similar to the dystopian future

James.

portrayed in Shifter: City of Wolves, and shows the same loyalty.

FRIEND

HUNTER

Liam Hemsworth as Gale Hawthorne

Theo James playing Four. It is the

in The Hunger Games

kindness and friendship he shows to

Tris that endears him to her.

Peeta Mellark
Hunger Games

Jacob Black
Twilight

While terrible things happen to Peeta at the hands of the govern-

When Jacob competes for Bellas love in Twilight, we see how

ment, he is still a compassionate character who has been in love

loyal a shifter can be. The shifters in Stephanie Meyers series are

with Katniss Everdeen ever since childhood. Even after he is

a bit different to those in Avery Burchs, but there are many sim-

hijacked, he doesnt fully forget the love he has for her.

ilarities. Plus, Jacob is pretty hot, especially when hes running

around the forest with his pack.

KILLER

WOLF

Josh Hutcherson as Peeta Mellark

Jacob Black, played by Taylor Lautner,

in The Hunger Games. He showed

showed the world how sexy wolf

kindness to Katniss, even when it cost

shifters could be.

him dearly.

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MAN FASHION

Are They
Siblings?
A huge story question that
arises in Shifter: City of
Wolves, is whether or not
Zac and Lyla are brother and
sister. The answer? Its more
complicated than it seems.

he reason the question is so important is obvious.

Zac and Lyla make love during the story! They
have sex multiple times, and the sex is described
graphically and realistically. If it turned out that
they were brother and sister, even without know-

ing it, it would be a major disaster for both of them, as well as for
the readers who were invested in their relationship.
Well, without giving away all the surprise, we can say here
that Zac and Lyla are not exactly blood siblings. That means they
do not share the same biological parents. It will emerge in Book
2 of the series that Zac was adopted by Shay, Lylas father, when
he was a young boy. So while they both think of Shay as a father,
their love is not incestuous.
If you really want to get the full story, youll have to read
both books. The question arises close to the end of Book 1 when
Oswald, Lylas uncle, tells her that Zac is her brother. This is of
course heartbreaking for Lyla as she has fallen deeply in love
with Zac by this time. Oswald does this to hurt Lyla, but the truth
of the matter is that he doesnt know all the facts. He doesnt
know that Zac was adopted, and he doesnt know that Zac still
hasnt figured out who Lyla is.
Oswald dropping this information on Lyla provides the impetus for the story that takes place in Book 2, when she goes back
to her mother to find out the truth about her past, and Zacs.

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The Sex Scenes in

Shifter
Just as a warning to readers before they buy the book, the sex
scenes are detailed and graphic. They are in no way gratuitous

REAL LOVE

The sex depicted in Shifter: City of

Wolves between Zac and Lyla is
between consenting adults who are
deeply in love with one another and
would do anything for each other.

or distasteful, they are between a loving couple who are deeply

committed to each other, but they show everything! The experience is even more intense because it is Lylas first time, and Zac
has the strength and instincts of a wolf, which make him posses-

Hot, Sexy, Graphic

and Descriptive!
Nothing is left to the imagination in this series. The entire
story is designed to show you what it would really be like to
fall in love and have a relationship with one of these shifters.

GRAPHIC

Full nudity, depictions of all sex acts,

and detailed descriptions of climax
are all included in this series.

Different books in the series will depict relationships between

different couples, but all of them will go into every detail about
what such relationships would really mean.

sive and dominating.

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IDENTIFIED

Hunting
Down
Jackman
Jackman is one of the shifters that Zac and Jason come
across in the city. As the series progresses he plays an increasingly important role in the story. He is fiercely passionate, but when the story begins he hasnt found a female to
imprint on.
This changes later on in the series when Jackmans story
comes to the forefront. Then we start to see the process he
goes through when he imprints on his female. He has one
of the hardest stories of all, and it is intensely emotional. He
shows what the love of a wolf truly means.

PHOTO BY JONATHAN DOE

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nstinct is an incredibly important word when it comes

to wolves. They are driven by it. Instinct is what tells
them who to hate, who to kill, and most crucially, who to
love. We all know the old story of love at first sight. With
wolves, thats literally the truth. A shifter sees a woman,

and instinctually he knows that shes his fated mate. Shes the one
hes going to love for the rest of his life. Its a powerful emotion,
and powerful instinct, and it can lead to intensely passionate
relationships.
At the very beginning of Shifter: City of Wolves, Zac sets
eyes on Lyla. Shes drving past him in her limousine, looking out
the window, and he sees her, just for a second.
Sure, theres normal attraction in that moment. They both
think the other is good-looking. Lyla thinks Zac is hot straight
away. But it doesnt go much deeper than that for her. Its her first
time in the capital and shes certain shell see a lot of attractive
men in the city. Plus she has the issue that shes already engaged
to marry Oswald.
For Zac, the situation is completely different. Even though he
doesnt know it yet, hes a shifter. He has a wolfs instincts. That
means, even though hes not aware of it, his wolf psyche already

What is it about the wolf instinct

that makes shifters so irresistable to
women?

knows that Lyla is the female he is going to mate with. She is the
one he is going to lay down his life for if it comes to it. And that
means hell never be able to forget her. Hell never be able to get
past her. Hell never be able to look at another woman the same
way again.
Its true love at first sight. And it creates enormous difficulties
for Zac because now he has to figure out how he can see Lyla
again, even though shes an elite and its against the law for him

DEEP LOOK

Wolf
Instinct

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to enter her part of the city.

Thats the power of the wolfs instinct on someone like Zac.

INSTINCTS

Wolves are among the most instinctual animals in all of nature. Everything they do is predicated on their
complex behavioural patterns, many
of which they have no conscious
control over.
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hands of foolish young boys

scape is one of oppression and fear, and in many ways, Lyla is a

and girls who think that they

product of her environment.

are in love. Marriage is a

other world that is just beyond her reach. The way Zac acts, the

powerful men in the family

confidence he displays, and the insights he gives her into the life

will usually decide who their

of the normals who live beyond the Quarter, all show Lyla that

daughters marry based on po-

there are more ways to live than the ways she has been taught.

litical and financial concerns.

VILLAINS

Oswald:
Lylas Uncle and
Fiance

Howevrer, once Lyla meets Zac, she sees that there is whole

political matter, and the most

It is a whole new beginning for Lyla.

This leads to many unhappy marriages, and Lyla is

all but resigned to her fate.
She knows that she will have
to marry Oswald and doesnt
even question that fact, at least
not until Zac comes along.
Oswald also has a viscious
man-servant who goes by the
name of Lex Vile. He obeys
every order Oswald gives
him, even when it is clearly
just an opportunity for cruelty.
Throughout the first book in
the series, Lyla has to make
sure she keeps one step ahead
of Lex.
The real difficulties for
Lyla arise when she realizes
that there is more to life than

Even though she holds no love for

him in her heart, Lyla is set to marry
her ambitious uncle, Oswald Caledon.

what she has learned from

Oswald and her mother. up
until that point, she has been
completely in their power. She
has never been given the opportunity to look at the world
and make up her own opinion
on things. The political land-

FORCED

In the world of the elite, forced or arranged marriages are commonplace.

There are many reasons for this, but
the most important is that marriage
is seen as a political tool to increase a
familys power and wealth.

swald Caledon is Lylas uncle. He is also a

fiercely ambitious man who harbors desires to
run for president one day. Everything he does
is centered on this goal and he will sacrifice
anything, and anyone, for it. The reason he is

marrying Lyla, even though she is much younger than he is, and
is his niece, is to enhance his political position and reputation.
In shifter society, marriage is far to important to leave in the

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LEX VILE

Lex Vile is Oswalds man-servant. His

job is to obey Oswalds every order,
and this often leads him to cause
great harm to Lyla, especially when
she is trying to escape Oswalds grip

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DESIGN

Designing Shifter:
City of Wolves

VARIATIONS

Hundreds of variations were considered before a winning design for the

cover was selected. The design shows
that the Shifter series is romantic
and paranormal, and takes place in a
futuristic New York.
WOLF EYES

A lot went into the design of the covers for this series. As you can see, there
were many great designs before a winner was selected.

The addition of the wolfs eyes above

the couple is a crucial aspect of the
design. It communicates immediately
that this is a wolf shifter book, and

Getting the cover design right is essential.

wtih a winning look. She had literally hundreds of designs to sift

These days, with so many books available, and

through, some of them not so good, but many of them excellent.

so many options out there for readers to choose

As you can see in the selection presented here, some of the de-

from, the design of the cover can be one of the

signs that werent chosen for the series are incredible in their own

most important aspects of the entire publishing

right and might be used for future projects.

process.

When coming up for the covers for this series, Avery Burch

worked with a wide range of talented cover designers to come up

that the love interest will be governed

by wolf instincts.
ROMANCE

Having a couple on the cover is common in all romance covers. It is a very

clear way of communicating the idea

The vast majority of these books will be sold on digital retail-

that this is a love story.

ers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble and the iBookstore. This
makes the cover image even more important as there is a tiny

thumbnail available for each book. This thumbnail must catch the
attention of readers in a short time.
Readers often ask what goes into designing and selecting a
book cover. The answer is that there are a lot of factors. First and
foremost, the job of the book cover is to let the reader know what
kind of story is being told. If it is a romance, the reader has to
know that immediately. Likewise if it is a thriller. In this case, the
series is firstly romantic, and secondly, paranormal. The romance
is communicated from the fact that there is a couple on the cover.
The paranormal elements are more subtle, and include the lighting, the clothing, and the typography. The Shifter logo shows that
something magical is taking place in this world, and thats really
important to know.
Once the style of the story is clear, showing the reader a sample scene from the book is also nice. This isnt always possible,
and communicating genre is the primary goal, but if it is possible
its a bonus. In this case, the Empire State Building, where Zac
and Lyla have their first kiss, is shown in the cover, with the New
York skyline in the background.
The eyes of the wolf show that it is a shifter story.
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LOREM IPSUM

CHEMISTRY

Right from the beginning, there was a

chemistry between Tris and Four that
was impossilbe to ignore. We knew
that they had to get together, and
when they finally had their first kiss, it
was worth waiting for.
SUPPORT

A strong part of the attraction

between Tris and Four is that Four
is protective over Tris. While he is
kind to all of his students, she is the

Great Paranormal Romances

from Movies

one he cares about most and goes

farthese to protect.

Tris and Four have one of the hottest paranormal romances. The heat
from the book series has been perfectly transported to the big screen.

MYSTERY

There is a lot of mystery surrounding

four. It is not until we are well into
the series that we start to realize who
he is and how much his love for Tris
means. The mystery keeps us reading
or watching till the very end.

e have been treated to some absolutely

exceptional paranormal romance love
stories in recent years. The success of
these books and their movie spinoffs
has meant that more effort is going into

portraying the passion and intensity of this type of love than

ever before. This is great for readers and lovers of paranormal
romance.
What is it that makes these romance stories so compelling for
readers?
Well, it is a variety of factors. Firstly, there is the excitement
of the world. All paranormal romances take place in a world that
is different from our own. Even when there are distinct similarities, they only serve to highlight how different our own world is
from the futuristic, dystopian worlds portrayed in these books. In
Divergent, we are presented with a world in which Tris is forced
to choose which faction she is going to belong to. In the Hunger
Games, Katniss Everdeen has been selected to fight to the death
while the whole of her society watches. These are incredibly
engaging worlds that grab our attention and force us to turn the
page.

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BONDING

In all of these stories, the heroine is

given time to bond with both love
interests, giving readers the opportunity to decide for themselves who
they like better.

Other Paranormal
Tropes
While love triangles are certainly popular in paranormal
romance, they are by no means the only trope that can be seen at
play. Divergent is a prime example of a series that does not center
on a triangle. Other tropes that might be at play include forbidden love. This is especially suitable because the dystopian world
in which the story takes place will often create a broad range
of opportunities for creating a class or caste based society. The
classic structure set out in Romeo and Juliet will provide a solid
Added to this is the excitement of the situation. In many of
these books, the heroine is a young girl in her teens who is being
forced to make an important decision. In fact, it is the most important decision of all. Who does she want to be? Any story that
takes place against the backdrop of that decision is going to be
highly engaging.

basis for this type of love story. Forced or arranged marriage is

TRIANGLES

another popular trope in this genre. This is becasue governmental

Bella Swan was forced to choose

between Edward Cullen and Jacob

or societal forces often play a prominent role in the plot, and will

Black. Katniss Everdeen was likewise

therefore present opportunities to restrict the heroines freedom.

forced to choose between Gale Hawthorne and Peeta Mellark.

Forced Marriage

And finally, we come to the love interest. Given that we have

already determined that the heroine is in an exciting world, and

Because the heroine in many dystopian stories lacks normal

an exciting situation in her life, the fact that there is suddenly a

freedoms, it is often the case that she will not be free to chose

sexy love interest only serves to heighten our interest and excite-

her own husband or lover. This creates a sense of oppression and

ment.
The guys who are presented to the heroine may be good or

between Edward Cullen and Jacob Black. It is excruciating to be

restriction, especially when she realizes that there is someone she

forced to choose between two hot guys who love you, but it is

is in love with. This is a classic trope going back centuries.

they may prove to be forces for evil, but in almost all cases, they

also intoxicating and exciting. Add in the fact that the guys have

are extremely sexy. Coming up against sexy guys like this at a

supernatural abilities and the entire story is supercharged.

time like this is intoxicating. The heroine must not only choose
what she wants her life to be, but also who she wants to share it
with.
An added complication is the love triangle element that often
emerges. Katniss Everdeen is forced to choose between Gale
Hawthorne and Peeta Mellark. Bella Swan is forced to choose
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There are many reasons why paranormal romance is so popular right now, but these are a few of the most common reasons.

DECISIONS

In many cases, it will not be until the

Forbidden Love
Forbidden love is one of the most popular tropes of all. Dystopian

very end of the series that the reader

fiction provides ample opportunity for it, by dividing society in to

finds out which love interest the

strict categories and castes who are not permitted to fall in love.

heroine will choose. It is an important

part of her journey and therefore is
not revealed till the end.

In Shifter: City of Wolves, Lyla is forbidden to love Zac because

he is a shifter.
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utlander provides an interesting variation on

the paranormal romance tropes we are used to.
For one thing, it is set in the past. Both Hunger
Games and Divergent are set in a dystopian
future. Twilight is set in a paranormal present.

Outlander is set in the past, and where the paranormal elements

come into play, is in the fact that Claire Fraser is transported back
in time.

THE ROGUE

Jamie MacKenzie is an intriguing love

interest for Claire. He is Jonathan
Randalls enemy, but since Jonathan
is played by the same actor as Frank,
it sets the two men up as perfect
rivals for Claires love.

The love triangle in this series differs from others in an

important wayClaires husband, Frank Randall, is not able to
compete for her love when Jamie arrives on the scene. This is
because he has not been able to travel into the past, as Claire has
done, but also because his position is somewhat usurped by his
ancestor Black Jack, who is the villain of the series.
While Frank is able to prove his love throughout the early
part of the series by refusing to give up on Claire, there is very

DILEMMA

Claire Fraser is presented with a very

difficult dilemma in the Outlander
series. On the one hand, she has
a husband who loves her. On the other, she is forced to battle his ancestor
while falling in love with Jamie.
THE VILLAIN

little he can do while she falls for, and marries, the handsome

Jonathan Black Jack Randall plays an

Jamie MacKenzie.

interesting villain in this series. He is

It is an interesting twist on the classic love triangle plot. Added to it is the extremely brutal behavior shown to both Claire and

Claires husbands evil ancestor, and

because Claire has travelled back in
time, she meets him face to face.

Jamie by Black Jack, and it becomes increasingly difficult for us

to maintain our relationship with Frank.
Nevertheless, throughout the first season of the hit television
adaptation, Frank refuses to give up on Claire.
He searches for her everywhere, coming so close that he

Historical
Paranormal
Romance

almost finds a way to communicate with her through the centuries. This stops us from losing hope for him, even while we are
simultaneously falling for Jamie.
Another thing that keeps us from giving up on Claires relationship with Frank, is that we never know if she is going to find
out a way to bring herself back to the present. The stone circle
she used to travel is so close, and appeared so easy to use the first
time, that there is always a chance her attempts to return home
will be successful. There is also the chance that Frank might find
a way back to the past.
All of this combines to create a complicated and interesting
romantic storyline where we are constantly guessing and second
guessing which direction Claires heart is going to go. While each
of us has our hopes, the fact that Claire is such a sympathetic
character gives her the freedom to choose for herself without

Diana Gabaldons Outlander is another example of a successful paranormal romance series taking off.
28

losing the audiences support.

All in all, Outlander is yet another example of how paranormal or supernatural elements can come together to create an
evocative and enticing romantic storyline.

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ALWAYS LOVE

Love Holds them

Together
While there are many factors at play in each of the stories discussed here, the one thing they all have in common is the power
of love. Whether it be the love of a wolf shifter, the love of an ancient warrior, or the love of a futuristic boy in a dystopian world,
they all prove that they have what it takes to give the woman of
their heart everything she needs.
Dont be distracted by the supernatural elements of the story
or the exotic setting. Dont be deceived by the magic and the
paranormal. While these stories are exciting, they are at their
core, stories about love. They are about the journey that one
woman takes in the path to finding her true soulmate. Whether it
be by deciding on one man over another, like in the love triangles, or overcoming the obstacles of forbidden love.

Intrigued?
Want more?
This publication was prepared on behalf of Avery
Burch, author of the stunning new paranormal series,
Shifter: City of Wolves.
We would like to take this opportunity to thank
you for taking the time to read it. All of the series
mentioned in this guide are well worth reading. If you
hunger for the lust and desire of the paranormal, then
you wont go wrong with any of them. They are available on Amazon, other ebook retailers, and physical
book stores.
Happy Reading!
Find more at averyburch.com

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averyburch.com
The paranormal that intrigues me?
The wolf instinct. The wolf passion. The way a shifter imprints on
one woman and never lets her go.
- Avery Burch

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