As the second volume in the series, this book takes up the pack beta's story, and it turns out to be quite the tale! After the initial takeover of the troubled pack by Alpha Iben, there is lots more work to do to make this a secure place. We also find out how much has been going on behind the scenes, and the sinister plot of those wanting to take over is partially revealed. The villains are super-evil, and the good guys a bit clueless in the beginning, but it is all in the interest of creating an entertaining read.

Djal has stood by Iben, the new Aberdeen pack alpha we met in 'Pocket Sized Prince', for decades, and now his loyalty is challenged, at least in his mind: he thinks he cannot devote himself to keeping the pack safe at the same time as caring for and protecting a mate. And he thinks the pack is more important. It was fun watching him begin to see the error of his ways as the realization that he cannot fight his attraction to Julian slowly takes over. Djal has a long way to go, but once he gets a clue, he doesn’t let anyone or anything stop him.

Julian has suffered unimaginable hardship, both physical and emotional, and his reaction to Djal's rejection is utter devastation. I hated that he had to go through all of that, and the repeat violence while Djal was still figuring things out and they kept going back and forth. He has so much fight in him though, that he actually manages to survive – again. He deserves to reach his "happy place", as he calls his mated life with Djal, and I rooted for him all the way.

If you enjoy werewolf stories about pack members trying to find their place, if you like reading a series where individual stories link into a bigger picture (which is suitably dark), and if you're looking for a read with very hot man-on-man action on top of all that, you will probably like this book.
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