When fox-shifter librarian Kalyna Foxworthy vows to save her crumbling library, she’s prepared for some tough negotiations. She’s not expecting her biggest challenge to be a swoon-worthy, overprotective lion mayor whose rumbling purr makes her fox all but melt!

Rust Leonid thrives on solving civic conflicts, but the moment a fiery fox-shifter’s welfare is threatened, his mayoral calm shatters into raw, primal defense. Rust finds his cool lion composure tested by Kalyna’s mesmerizing beauty, charm, and her unwavering heart.

Between late-night library rescues and clash-of-clan stand-offs, Kalyna and Rust discover that beneath their differences lies a bond powerful enough to unite two warring worlds. But can they trust in a love that refuses to yield—before ancient rivalries and dark schemes tear them apart?

Titles in the Enchanted Falls series include: The Purrfect Rival ~ Grin and Bear It ~ Chasing Stripes ~ Fired Up Love ~ Fur Better or Worse ~ Howl on the Prowl ~ Mane Attraction ~

This is an adult 18+ story that contains language, possible violence, and/or sexual situations geared to an adult audience.

If you love this author’s work, be sure to visit our Milly Taiden page for reviews of other series, or just to discover series you might have missed.

Title:  The Purrfect Rival
Series:  Enchanted Falls #1
Author:  Milly Taiden
Published:  April 11, 2025
My Rating:  4.5 stars

The Purrfect Rival begins the Enchanted Falls series with Kalyna and Rust’s… sizzling, tradition-challenging romance.  The mate attraction was obvious from Kalyna and Rust’s very first meeting.  Although in this town, differing species rarely, deeply intermingle, let alone have a real mate bond.  Kalyna is a fox shifter, and Rust is a lion alpha.  Yet their magics are reaching for each other, enhancing the others, and yes, defying tradition to become something rarely seen in Enchanted Falls…a prophecy come true.  There is opposition that can be overcome in time, and there is defiance that will try to break them, steal their magic, and disrupt the entire town’s residents’ magic.  It’s up to this couple to solve a mystery, keep each other alive, and, somewhere along the way, solidify their mate bond into something to last beyond a lifetime.

I enjoyed this opening title in the Enchanted Falls series very much.  There is worldbuilding, there always is in the first story to some degree, but meeting the townsfolk, seeing where the division lies, and where acceptance of something different is made apparent brings this story to life.  Watching Kalyna and Rust navigate the politics, the emotions, and the dangers of their situation was a fascinating introduction to this world.  If you love a well-written, emotional shifter romance with touches of humor, steaminess, and tension-filled danger, then you’d love The Purrfect Rival by Milly Taiden.

I read this title through my Kindle Unlimited subscription.

If you love this author’s work, be sure to visit our Milly Taiden page for reviews of other series, or just to discover series you might have missed.

This title is available at Amazon (affiliate link)