Score one for the underdog…er…wolf.

TJ Lynus is a legend in Granite Lake, both for his easygoing demeanor—and his clumsiness. His carefree acceptance of his lot vanishes, though, when his position as best man brings him face to face with someone he didn’t expect. His mate. His very human mate. Suddenly, one thing is crystal clear: if he intends to claim her, his usual laid-back attitude isn’t going to cut it.

After fulfilling her maid-of-honor duties, Pam Quinn has just enough time for a Yukon wilderness trip before returning south. The instant attraction between her and TJ tempts her to indulge in some Northern Delight, but when he drops the F-bomb—“forever”—she has second thoughts. In her world, true love is a fairytale that seldom, if ever, comes true.

Okay, so maybe staging a kidnapping wasn’t TJ’s best idea, but at least Pam has the good humour to agree to his deal. He’ll give her all the northern exposure she can stand—and she won’t break his kneecaps.

Now to convince her that fairytales can remake her world—and that forever is worth fighting for.

By popular demand: Clumsy sidekick wolf grows up, sarcasm reigns, and the wilderness gets wilder. Includes hot nookie in places you expect—like a remote cabin—and places you don’t.

Title: Wolf Tracks
Author: Vivian Arend
Series: Granite Lake Wolves, book 4
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Year of release: 2010, October 26
Format: eBook
Source: Received digital ARC from author for review

First line: Pam let out a long, slow whistle and stared out the window to admire the scenery one more time.

Memorable Scene:
- TJ singing a-capella to Pam > so lovely

TJ is the younger brother the Granite Lake Wolves’ Alpha and from the moment he appeared in WOLF SIGNS and WOLF GAMES I fell for him and his klutzy, clumsy ways. He’s a wilderness guide and has the keenest and best sense of smell in the pack. His clumsiness makes him prone to accidents. TJ is a sweet, cute combination of lighthearted and goofy with protective, calm and reassuring. His boyish charm and confidence come across very clearly and he has many hidden talents. When I read TJ sang I got a little giddy, when he whipped out a guitar I positively swooned.

Pam is a dog handler for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Maggie's (heroine WOLF GAMES) best friend. She’s a little cynical and very outspoken. She’s competent and doesn’t hesitate to say what’s on her mind. The last thing she’s looking for is a relationship, let alone a life mate but unfortunately it doesn’t work like that when you’re the mate of a wolf shifter like TJ.

The chemistry between Pam and TJ is strong and palpable. It carried the story wonderfully next to the witty bantering between them. There were moments it seemed Pam would outshine and predominate TJ but those moments were rare.

Pam took the news of TJ, Maggie and the others being wolves better than I thought. The being mated to TJ was more difficult for her to come to terms with but eventually she took that in stride too. I thought it was very refreshing and inventive of Vivian Arend to pair TJ with a full human, this was new to the series as previous pairings have all been werewolf with werewolf (full-blood and half-breed). It just fitted TJ and the set-up for his character perfectly. Why take the easy road when the hard road is so much more likely to trip you up?

While my very high expectations for TJ's book were definitely met in terms of heat, chemistry and humor I did miss some sort of conflict in the story...expected something like TJ having to make a choice between Pam and his pack or Pam resisting more. However, I understand that with the low page count (in other words WAY too short) there was no room for a conflict to be set up and resolved without sacrificing the strongpoint of the story.

I would have liked a more elaborate epilogue though, especially after finding out this is the final book in the Granite Lake Wolves Series. But...as I also found out there'll be a spin-off series (Yay Shaun! Yay Jared?) I'm hoping for glimpses of the Pam, TJ and the others of the Granite Lake Pack.

Having thoroughly enjoyed reading this series I know that if you loved the previous books in the series, you shouldn’t miss WOLF TRACKS. It’s a worthy last installment of a lovely and humorous set of books and I’m glad I won’t have to miss the wolfies forever as there is more coming from the same world and setting.

I was all hot and bothered and laughing at the same time. I really like this combination in Vivian Arend's writing that never fails to please me. The humor, her signature humor was there in full force from the start. The smile that leeched itself on my face from the second sentence stayed there throughout the entire book. Another great read from one of my favorite Samhain Publishing authors.

Favorite Quotes:

He leaned forward and kissed her knuckles. An icy chill slipped up her spine and oh my God, her body grew instantly wet. Damn! Did he just lick her skin? She knew she was staring, but there seemed to be no way to tear her gaze from his. Even after he straightened, he refused to let her fingers drop and she stood there like some freaking garden gnome statue with her hand limp-wristed in his, hoping by some weird circumstance they’d magically turn out to be standing alone in a bedroom with a mattress on the firm side bumping the back of her knees. Lust stole her tongue.

It was a good thing Maggie had warned him, because incredibly his first impulse upon laying eyes on the beauty was to shift and bury his nose in her dark brown hair. He wanted to sniff her all over, then change back to human form to lick her, starting at her toes and getting delightfully distracted long before reaching anywhere near her throat.

This was driving him mad. He smelled her skin, the natural perfume of her body. Her arousal. His heart pounded, and he strove to keep his face neutral and not pant like a dog.

“I can feel your heart in my soul.”

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Make sure you stop by Vivian's Blog to check out her 'Fans and Favorites'-week in honor of WOLF TRACK's release. Just click on the image below to get there.