Reviewed by Jen
TITLE: Riding the Whirlwind
SERIES: Strength of the Pack #5
AUTHOR: Joy Lynn Fielding
PUBLISHER: Independent
LENGTH: 252 pages
RELEASE DATE: February 26, 2026
BLURB:
They’re mates. They’re in love. So why does it feel like they’re falling apart?
Ever since finding out they were mates five years ago, Christian and Dave have been inseparable. They’re different from one another, sure—kind of like sandpaper and silk—but love smooths out the edges.
But now they’re in a strange town, away from their pack, investigating a decades-old murder for their alpha. And without their usual routine to distract them, those tiny differences are beginning to feel more like rifts they can’t quite bridge.
Christian loves his mate, fiercely and absolutely, but he’s allergic to talking. And Dave, always the one smoothing down the feathers that Christian’s antagonism ruffles, wants nothing more than for Christian to open up. To tell him how he feels instead of having to guess. But he can’t ask—asking for more drives people away. It always has.
Meanwhile, their murder investigation is getting nowhere fast, Christian’s thrown himself into the local pack’s fight ring, and the pack is circling, looking for weaknesses to exploit.
If they can finally say the things that matter, they might walk out of this town with a closeness they never knew they’d been missing. If not… they may not walk out at all.
Riding the Whirlwind is Book Five 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 2014.
REVIEW:
Christian and Dave are up this time around. They are an existing couple in the Elk Ridge pack who have been sent on an adventure/recon mission seeking information about Jesse’s old pack after the pack disappeared leaving Jesse as the only survivor. Bonus is getting them (mainly Christian) out of town while the political visitors are working with the pack. I honestly don’t think I realized these guys were a mated couple up to this point, but they certainly seem to fit each other perfectly. They are the yin to the others yang.
These guys have some issues to face with regard to their relationship and this trip allows them time to work through them as they seek the details of what happened to Jesse’s old pack. Christian has built walls from his past and has a difficult time communicating his feelings, something which the normally easy going Dave tries to change. Dave needs more from Christian and Christian must figure out a way to give Dave what he needs. His insecurities come front and center and his need to always smooth things over add to his needs of reassurance from Christian.
This story definitely sheds more light into Christian’s behavior over the past books. He and Dave are really good for each other and it was great to see them work through some of their issues. Don’t want to spoil too much with the details of what they found out, but suffice to say, the story will continue now with Karl’s story. I’m looking forward to seeking who his mate turns out to be and how he will handle that.
This is a solid, very enjoyable shifter story with plenty going on outside of the relationships. There is a heavy dose of smut thrown in, but the storyline is interesting and keeps the pages turning.
RATING: 
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