Reviewed by Jen
TITLE: A Liar’s Moon
SERIES: Strength of the Pack #2
AUTHOR: Joy Lynn Fielding
PUBLISHER: Independent
LENGTH: 252 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 5, 2026
BLURB:
Chasing this story could make him. But it might also break him.
This should be easy—slide into town undercover, dig up the local pack’s dangerous secret, and score a headline that finally gets his father’s attention. Too bad Riley hasn’t counted on meeting Jason—and that dimpled smile that knocks him sideways, making it hard to remember what he’s here to do.
For Jason, guys like Riley don’t come to Elk Ridge. They definitely don’t walk into his diner. But it wouldn’t matter even if they did—Jason’s used to feeling like the background to everyone else’s life, even in his pack. Except, somehow, Riley notices him. Really sees him. And for the first time, Jason believes he could be wanted. Maybe… even loved.
Riley’s great at lying, especially to himself. He tells himself he can break his story, earn back his father’s love, and still keep Jason. But those flashes of guilt when Jason looks at him, open and trusting, are getting harder to ignore.
If Riley walks away from the story, he loses his last shot at redemption. His last chance not to be a failure. But if Jason finds out the truth, Riley will break the sweetest man he’s ever known.
A Liar’s Moon is Book Two in Strength of the Pack—a complete series of character-driven MM fated-mates romances with standalone love stories, an overarching series plot, slow-burn tension, and shifters who absolutely do not talk about their feelings (until they do).
Content note: This series includes material that some readers may find upsetting. Full details are available on the author’s website, with a link at the beginning of the book.
Note: This novel is a substantially reworked and expanded new edition of the novella originally published by Siren Bookstrand in 2013.
REVIEW:
This story picks up pretty much were the first one left off. Here, we have the sweet Jason, the pack chef, who works at the diner in town. Jason is a bit insecure, especially where his place in the pack is concerned, and he questions this pretty consistently, even though there is not really any reason for him to do so. When he meets the town newcomer, Riley, he is smitten and it doesn’t take long for him to ignore any potential red flags while he allows himself to question his pack status even more.
Riley is a bit of a mess. Seeking the approval of is father where he doesn’t seem to have ever really gotten any, he takes a job trying to get the scoop on a shifter pack supposedly hiding an elusive Argent. In his quest for information for his article, he meets more of the pack, but it is his interest in Jason that really opens the door to getting the scoop he needs.
As you can imagine, things don’t look like they will end well, regardless of how things go. Alpha Matt is keeping an eye on him and feels something isn’t right. It isn’t until Jason learns the truth that things really heat up. Thankfully, he puts the pack first and goes straight there to spill the beans.
We get to see a bit more of the pack dynamics in this story. While the story of the rogue wolves causing trouble for them didn’t go any further, although the pack still patrols regularly just in case, it seems as though there are a number of directions from the outside that trouble could come for this pack who just want to live their lives in peace in this sleepy little town. I loved how they all showed they care about Jason and solidified his insecurities about his role in the pack in a good way. They even pushed him to give Riley a chance knowing they were mates.
This story seems to be rolling steadily along now and I’m really looking forward to seeing the rest of it play out.
RATING: 
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