From the blurb:
Sequel to Mind Magic
Triad: Book Two
A pack is only as strong as its weakest member. Rocky Harris knows how the system works. He’s been on the bottom rung his whole life. But when his alpha consigns him to the High Moon Pack to help them improve security, he finds his beliefs not just challenged but outright assaulted.
Cade Montgomery’s confidence took a hit when the pack’s cubs were kidnapped on his watch. He’s prepared to do anything to protect his family, even if it means working with Rocky. Maybe Cade doesn’t trust Rocky, but with the turmoil surrounding pack Alpha Gray’s unpopular decision to break tradition and mate with a mage named Simon, Cade knows more threats are coming.
Then someone declares war on shifters and puts the entire pack in danger. Cade and Rocky will need each other’s strengths to survive the impending battle—and the power of their growing attraction.
Review:
(Read our review of the first book, Mind Magic, here)
Body Magic is the second book in Poppy Dennison's Triad trilogy. The story follows two couples. Cade and Rocky are introduced at the new romance for this novel, but a lot of time is also spent focusing on the established couple, Gray and Simon.
Cade is from the High Moon Pack, the pack that we grew to know and love from the first novel, Mind Magic. Rocky, whom we also know from the first novel, has been brought in as a security expert from an outside pack. Rocky is not ostensibly a likeable character, and I must admit, when the first chapter focused on him, I was a little uneasy.
However, seeing things from Rocky's perspective really helped me to have more sympathy for him.
This novel is set right after the first. Unlike the first novel, Body Magic is less about action and mystery and more about exploring relationships. Despite the blurb of the book, which makes it sound like the novel is all about Cade and Rocky's romance, the story still hinges upon Simon and Gray and most of the narrative follows them in the lead up to their mating ceremony and Simon's important 25th birthday. It did feel like it took a while to build up to the action, but I really enjoyed just spending time with the High Moon Pack and Simon, whom I adore.
The stand out character in this novel was actually Cade. Cade is a biracial black man. It's great to see in this genre, which is more often than not totally white. Cade's inner musings on being different and dealing with difference were a very nice addition. We see a depth to Cade that we didn't in the first novel. Character wise, Dennison does a fab job with Cade. School was never his strong point, so he doesn't consider himself smart like college-educated Gray and Liam, however, Cade never comes across as being unintelligent in a hammy sort of way. His empathy and his loyalty to Gray and the High Moon Pack make him really loveable.
I would have like to have spent more time with Cade and Rocky. Their romance felt a little thin, comprised mostly of physical attraction and some other inexplicable pull. Both characters can be quite guarded and suspicious, but I would have like to see them talk more and add a bit more substance to their romantic feelings for one another.
The family scenes with Simon, Gray, Garon, and the new addition, orphan mountain-lion shifter cub Riley are undeniably adorable. I love them and their family so much.
Body Magic is a solid and sweet second book in the Triad trilogy.
More Information:
Title: Body Magic
Author: Poppy Dennison
Genre: Fantasy/Urban Fantasy/Romance
Length: Novel
Length: Novel
Publisher: Dreamspinners Press
Publishing Date: 10 Sept. 2012
Type: m/m
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