Review: Pack of Lies by Charlie Adhara

Title: Pack of Lies

Series: Monster Hunt: Book One

Author: Charlie Adhara

Publisher: Carina Adores

Length: 310 Pages

Category: Paranormal, Murder Mystery, Romantic Suspense

Rating: 5 Stars

At a Glance: Pack of Lies is, simply stated, a fast paced and action packed mystery elegantly intertwined with the relationship between a prickly and secretive Eli and a secretive and captivated Julien. I devoured this book, and it will easily end up on my Best Of list this year.

Reviewed By: Lisa

Blurb: Julien Doran arrived in sleepy Maudit Falls, North Carolina, with a heart full of hurt and a head full of questions. The key to his brother’s mysterious last days might be found in this tiny town, and now Julien’s amateur investigation is starting to unearth things the locals would rather keep buried.

Perhaps most especially the strange, magnetic manager of a deserted retreat that’s nearly as odd as its staff.

Eli Smith is a lot of things: thief, werewolf, glamour-puss, liar. And now the manager of a haven for rebel pack runaways. He’s spent years cultivating a persona to disguise his origins, but for the first time ever he’s been entrusted with a real responsibility—and he plans to take that seriously.

Even if the handsome tourist who claims to be in town for some R & R is clearly on a hunt for all things paranormal. And hasn’t taken his brooding gaze off Eli since he’s arrived.

When an old skeleton and a fresh corpse turn a grief errand into a murder investigation, the unlikely Eli is the only person Julien can turn to. Trust is hard to come by in a town known for its monsters, but so is time…

Review: Despite the fact that Charlie Adhara’s Big Bad Wolf series is wildly popular, Pack of Lies is the first time I’ve had the immense pleasure of reading her work. This new series is connected to but not dependent upon having read the former; in fact, Oliver Park and Cooper Dayton make a cameo appearance, but no need to worry about being lost or unacquainted with the world in which these characters exist. This book fully belongs to Julien Doran and Eli Smith, and I’m about to heap praises on it and its author.

When Julien sets out on a search for clues to his brother’s final days that leads him to the mountain resort town of Maudit Falls, North Carolina, he’s mired in grief and guilt. Grief over his brother’s untimely death, and guilt over how he treated Rocky the last time they spoke. Figuratively speaking, Rocky spent his days chasing rainbows. At least that’s what Julien thought until, it turns out, Rocky’s pursuit of the improbable turned out not to be so fanciful after all. Not all the monsters he chased could be proven to exist. Only the deadliest one did. Who, or what, his killer is as well as the full circumstances surrounding his death remain elusive.

Julien meeting the gorgeous, enigmatic, cheeky, Eli was, perhaps, both a blessing and a curse. Eli holds at least as many secrets close to the vest as Julien, but their attraction to each other isn’t one of them, and Adhara expertly parses it all out for maximum suspense, heat, and impact. Of course, Eli being a wolf eclipses them all, and his budding relationship with Julien also happens to still be a work-in-progress which will fuel some romantic suspense in future books, guaranteed. The way they gravitate to each other, the way they are drawn to each other, and the ways they respond to each other are like two live wires sparking when they connect, leaving me more compelled by and invested in them with every turn of a page.

Pack of Lies is, simply stated, a fast paced and action packed mystery elegantly intertwined with the relationship between a brash and prickly Eli and a secretive and thoroughly captivated Julien. Adhara’s prose is lush and her characters interesting, no one merely taking up space but rather adding to the scenery of this dangerous collaboration between a wolf and a human and them fighting the unknown enemies without. I devoured this book, and it will easily end up on my Best Of list this year.

You can buy Pack of Lies here:
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