Book Review: Secret of the Wolf by Cynthia Garner

Secret of the Wolf
Author: Cynthia Garner
Series: Warriors of the Rift, book 2
Publisher: Forever
ISBN-10: 0446585122
ISBN-13: 978-0446585125
Source: From publisher for review
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For more information visit Cynthia Garner's website


Tori Joseph is a werewolf liaison to the Council of Preternaturals. She loves her job and working with a man who makes her wolf want to roll over and beg. Human Detective Dante MacMillan won't deny the growing attraction between him and Tori but personal troubles and the fact she's immortal has him hesitant to act. Turning to their case, Tori and Dante are working to find who is responsible for werewolf attacks against humans. When Tori has a troubling suspicion as to who is behind it all, not only is her job in jeopardy but Dante is put in danger.

Every 73 years, a rift between the supernatural world and earth opens and creatures cross over to take a human host. Tori has been on earth for over 150 years. Her travels have brought her to Arizona where she now acts as a liaison for the Council of Preternaturals. I was drawn to Tori pretty quickly. As a werewolf in law enforcement, I was worried she'd have the need to prove how strong she is but that never was an issue. She knows she's good at what she does and I never got the feeling she had the need to prove her worth to others. Tori does want to have family around and when a couple relatives show up, she makes questionable decisions but I found neither to be a reason for animosity towards her character.

Like Tori, I was worried Dante felt like he needed to show he could hold his own because he works with shifters, vampires and demons. Again, this wasn't the case. Dante is a down to earth man who loves his sister and likes catching the bad guys. He's the type of guy you could take home to meet the parents while still having a naughty side that keeps things interesting. The big thing that bothered me about him was that I felt that he strung Tori along in the beginning. He'd flirt with her one minute and back off the next because it wouldn't be a good idea to get involved with an immortal. It's obvious she has feelings for him and I got annoyed with how long he played hot and cold with her.

I think because of Dante not knowing how to handle is feelings towards Tori, they didn't do much for me as a couple. Their sexy times were hot but because I wasn't sure if or when Dante would emotionally pull away; I didn't want to get upset along with Tori so I never fully invested into their relationship.

In the first book in the series, Dante is one of three who discovered a device that allows communication with the other dimension and will have some kind of effect during the upcoming rift opening. In Secret of the Wolf, Dante and Tori are trying to figure out exactly what it does and how it works while keeping it out of the wrong hands. I was happy to see this story continued. The mastermind behind the device is also back and he has an interesting connection to Tori I didn't expect and thought was nice twist. This doesn't really blend into what's happening with Dante and Tori's case involving the werewolf who is attacking and turning humans but I still thought they worked really well side by side.

Secret of the Wolf was an improvement over Kiss of the Vampire. I still wasn't keen on the romance and I wasn't 100% happy with the hero, but I did find that the heroine had more depth and it was an all-around more satisfying read. I'm still waiting for more information about what the world on the other side of the rift is like but I was given some clues from Tori to tide me over for now. For me, it was obvious who is behind the human attacks but I still enjoyed watching the investigation unfold. Overall, this was a quick read with a good mystery, a memorable heroine and a hero that will charm you into forgiving his faults.
My Rating: