Book Review: Secret Energy by Chris T. Kat

Immediately following the events of Secret Chemistry, Tim's younger brother, Robin, finds himself sequestered from the world due to the fact that members of his pack are hunting hybrids. Robin is pure-blood, but he also possesses powers others in the pack would like to extinguish. Tim struggles with trying to protect his hybrid mate, Jay, and keep his feisty little brother in line.

While on a rare run through the forest without his protective brother by his side, Robin discovers his mate. The only problem is that his mate isn't a wolf, but a hybrid wolf/bear.

Peter has been searching for his mate for literally hundreds of years. Just when he thought all hope was lost, a sarcastic, rebellious young man crashes into his life and changes it forever. However, the joy of mating is short-lived when Tim, Jay and Jay's father are viciously attacked.

I enjoyed Secret Chemistry when I originally read it a couple of years ago and hoped Chris T. Kat would write Robin's story. He was adorable and made me want to know more about him, so you can imagine my excitement when I learned of this book. The writing is engaging and kept me on the edge of my seat much of the time, and it was nice to see Tim and Jay again, who play quite a large role in this book. The emotional roller coaster many of the characters experience is heartbreaking and their pain is palpable.

The only thing I didn't really understand was Robin's attitude, especially towards Peter. He seemed extra snarky, sarcastic and at times downright mean to his mate just because Peter didn't react the way Robin preferred. So often I wanted to reach into the book and tell Robin, "just because Peter isn't reacting, speaking or acting the way you want doesn't make it wrong." His reactions seemed childish and petulant, even for a 19-year-old, so Peter often treated him like a child.

Seeing the ebbs and flows of the two main relationships (Tim & Jay and Robin & Peter) was very interesting because the readers saw so clearly that even the most love-filled and fated relationships have issues. The introduction of Peter's pack was a nice addition, and I would thoroughly enjoy more about the relationship dynamic between Will and Shawn. Also, the social commentary applied to the intolerance a few wolves had for hybrids is so applicable to what's going on in today's society concerning racial, marriage and gender inequality.

All in all, I enjoyed this emotional and fascinating story; however, the attitudes of Robin, especially towards Peter, and occasionally Jay (even though I gave him a pass much of the time due to his situation) rubbed me the wrong way.

Buy Links
Dreamspinner Press | Amazon

The author provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

~ M

Chris T. Kat

Chris T. Kat lives in the middle of Europe, together with her husband of many years and their two children. She stumbled upon the M/M genre by luck and was swiftly drawn into it. She divides her time between work, her family—which includes chasing after escaping horses and lugging around huge instruments such as a harp—and writing. She enjoys a variety of genres, such as mystery/suspense, paranormal, and romance. If there's any spare time, she happily reads for hours, listens to audiobooks, or crafts.

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