The Nine Lives Detective: Book One: Shadow Shift

Felix Rayne has nine lives. He's already lost three. He has six left to finish what he started-or die trying.

Three years ago, Detective Marcus Holloway died in a warehouse, shot while investigating Portland's most dangerous human trafficking ring. In his final moments, bleeding out beside a stray kitten, Holloway made a wish: to finish the case, no matter what it took. The universe took him literally. Now Marcus Holloway's consciousness shares a body with Felix Rayne-a shapeshifter cursed to live as a man by day and a cat by night, with nine lives to complete his mission.

By day, Felix works as a police consultant, feeding Lieutenant Torres just enough information to keep the investigation moving. By night, he becomes Shadow-a silver-striped cat who prowls crime scenes and gathers evidence with enhanced senses. It's a lonely existence, made bearable only by Holloway's snarky ghost commentary and the satisfaction of slowly dismantling Shaw's empire.

Then Dr. Sage Carver enters the picture and ruins everything.

Sage is a forensic veterinarian who specializes in animal trafficking cases. She's brilliant, methodical, and convinced that the mysterious silver cat appearing at crime scenes holds the key to cracking the case. When Shadow shows up injured at her clinic, Sage takes him home-and finds herself opening up to a cat in ways she can't with the humans in her life.

The problem? She's also falling for Felix Rayne, the infuriating consultant who shows up at her door with questions and eyes the exact same shade of amber-gold as the cat curled on her couch.

Felix knows he should stay away. Every moment he spends with Sage puts her in danger and threatens to expose his secret. But with only six lives remaining and Holloway offering unhelpful commentary, he can't keep his distance. Sage makes him feel human again. She makes him remember what it's like to want something beyond revenge and justice.

When Victor Shaw discovers Sage has been tracking Shadow and realizes the cat's connection to his crumbling operation, he makes her a target. Suddenly Felix isn't just racing to solve the case-he's fighting to keep Sage alive while maintaining the lie that's kept them both safe. But lies unravel, and when Sage starts connecting the dots between the man she's falling for and the cat she confides in, Felix faces an impossible choice.

He can reveal the truth and risk losing her forever when she realizes he's been lying since they met. Or he can keep the secret and watch Shaw use her as bait, knowing that protecting his cover might cost her everything.

But Sage isn't the kind of woman who runs from impossible truths. She's a scientist who's built a career on examining evidence others overlook, and the evidence is overwhelming: the man she's falling for and the cat she's been cuddling every night are the same impossible, infuriating, heroic person. Now she has to decide if she can love someone who's been lying to her-even if those lies were meant to keep her safe.

With Shaw closing in, Felix's lives running out, and a ghost detective offering remarkably unhelpful romantic advice, Felix and Sage must learn to trust each other. Because some secrets have claws. Some truths have nine lives. And some love stories are absolutely impossible-until they're not.

Perfect for fans of Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson series, Jim Butcher's Dresden Files, and Ilona Andrews' Kate Daniels books.