Lycanthrope Library

Wolf's Bluff

2010-08-06T10:56:00.000-07:00

Author: W. D. Gagliani

Genre: Horror, Suspense

Setting: Wisconsin

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal and Quadrupedal

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Infection from a bite

Synopsis: The story picks up after the events in Wolf's Gambit. Werewolf cop Nick Lupo has recently discovered a hive of private mercenaries in Georgia who also happen to be werewolves. After a trip to gather information on them, he realizes that he has led the other werewolves right to the people he cares about the most. If that wasn't enough of a problem, a series of brutal "animal attacks" are plaguing the nearby town of Wausau.

Review: The latest installment of Gagliani's Nick Lupo series doesn't disappoint. The beginning starts with a bang but then things slow down a bit to focus on some of the tension that's been building up between Jessie and Nick. After that the momentum of the story steadily builds up to the suspenseful and blood drenched finale. The emotions are raw and the violence is even more so. Combine that with one hell of a cliffhanger for an ending, and you've got another successful werewolf novel from Mr. Gagliani!

Author's Website: http://www.williamdgagliani.com/

Review By: PenningtonBeast

Cursed to Death

2010-01-23T18:57:00.000-08:00

Author: L.A. Banks

Genre: Paranormal/Urban Fantasy

Setting: New Orleans, LA

Types of Werewolves: Normal wolves, bipedal wolf monsters, "Shadow Wolves"

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics, Infection from a bite

Synopsis: Sasha and Hunter are still in New Orleans after their battle with the rival werewolves and the vampire cartel. Now they owe the Fae a favor since they stood by them in court. When two Phoenixes end up murdered, Sir Rodney, the leader of the Fae, sends Sasha and Hunter to investigate. What they discover is a dark curse that causes the Fae to lose their glamour and become visible to average humans. Things go downhill from there after the same curse causes Hunter the Shadow Wolf and Shogun the werewolf to become irrational and territorial over Sasha. As usual, the vampires are the main suspects.

Review: Disappointed in this one. It was mostly about the Fae characters and not the werewolves. Plus, Sasha gets sexually assaulted and nearly sexually assaulted multiple times throughout the book. And most of the characters don't seem to care much about their behavior, even after the dark curse that causes them to act that way is lifted. Because of this, I was left unsure about whether I wanted to continue reading the series or not. It just seemed like such a cop-out excuse to me. And the whole story arc with Hunter and Shogun competing with each other has gotten old, to say the least. There were a few good parts, such as when Sasha and Hunter enter the shadow realm to fight the ethereal demon wolf forms of themselves, but most of it was rather uninteresting.

It's not a complete disaster, but it could have been MUCH better. So, unless you're a hardcore L.A. Banks fan, I'd skip this one. I'll probably read the next in the series and hope that it's an improvement and that the werewolves are a more prominent feature. Also, I'm interested to see the president's response to learning about the supernatural in the next installment. I would also like to see the story arc about the disembodied were-snow leopard fleshed out (no pun intended). But if the next "Crimson Moon" novel is as disappointing as this one, I'll be cutting the series from my reading list.

-Reviewed by: PenningtonBeast

For more info: http://crimsonmoonnovels.com

Wyrm Wolf

2010-01-11T04:51:00.000-08:00

Author: Edo Van Belkom

Genre: Horror, Dark Fantasy

Setting: San Francisco, California

Types of Werewolves: Different Forms: Bipedal Wolf Monsters, Normal Wolves, Larger Than Normal Wolves

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Heredity

Synopsis: Father Oldman, a werewolf posing as a Catholic priest, runs a homeless shelter and soup kitchen in the "Tenderloin" area of San Francisco. When gruesome murders of the local homeless start occurring, he suspects it's the work of a werewolf, or "Garou", who has succumbed to the evils of the Wyrm.

Review: I enjoyed Edo Van Belkom's werewolf series for teens and was excited to see his take on Werewolf: The Apocalypse. Wyrm Wolf definitely has the author's unique way of taking monstrous creatures and making them noble and humane. Father Oldman's great concern for the homeless is an example. This book was different from the other Werewolf: The Apocalypse novels in that the characters never crossed over into the spirit world, the Umbra, which is a major component of the Garou's existence. Also, I thought the Garou in the forest were too lenient with the reporter in showing her their caern, it seemed like an uncharacteristic thing for them to do. The only thing I would have liked to improve would be for the evil werewolf, Wingnut, to have more frequent gory scenes.

-Reviewed by : PenningtonBeast

The Pack: Winter Kill

2010-01-06T23:59:00.000-08:00

Author: Mike Oliveri

Illustrator: Dirk Shearer

Genre: Horror, Suspense, Crime

Setting: Rural Minnesota

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal Wolf Monsters

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Heredity?

Synopsis: A gun smuggler named Rod and his cronies meet up with a gang of skinheads out in the Minnesota wilderness. The deal goes bad when two hiker stumble upon them and end up shot to death by the skinheads, and Rod's pilot gets killed in the crossfire. This sets off an investigation by FBI agent Angela Wallace and her partner. She suspects that something strange is going on with the Tyler's, the family that owns the nearby cabins and lodge. The story takes place two years after the events in the comic Werewolves: Call of the Wild by Moonstone Press.

Review: The Pack: Winter Kill is a promising start to a new series, even though the majority of the first novel doesn't offer much information on the werewolf family and is rather brief in length. The parts where the werewolves feature, though, are delightfully bloody and vicious. I think the character Angela could have used some more attention and backstory since it appears that she will be a central character in the upcoming installments.

However, what I'm not thrilled about is the fact that the next installment of the story is going to be in graphic novel form. It's not that I dislike graphic novels, but the switch back and forth between print and pictures seems like it will make the story inconsistent and be less effective. I would rather the series be in all print or in all comic form. It also bothers me that part of the stort revolves around the events from the author's previous comic release, Werewolves: Call of the Wild. I think it would have been helpful for the readers who haven't read the comic to have a prologue about the events with Will Tyler and his wife. Hopefully, the graphic novel will be illustrated by the same artist who did the cover art for Winter Kill.

-Reviewed by: PenningtonBeast

For more Info: http://www.mikeoliveri.com/

Evil Moon

2010-01-05T22:52:00.000-08:00

Author: Harrison Ray

Genre: Horror, Crime, Mystery

Setting: Lincoln, Nebraska; Manitou Springs, Colorado

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal wolf monsters

How Lycanthropy is Caused: By a magic curse, Transmitted by a bite.

Synopsis: Davis Veoh, a police officer from Lincoln, Nebraska, is searching for a wild animal that has attacked and killed several young girls in the area. Things take a turn when he discovers that the only survivor of the attacks is his own daughter. Meanwhile a wealthy ex-safari hunter, Randolph Wetstone Jr., is trying to make a bid for senate in the next election, while also trafficking drugs with the local motorcycle gang, the Necromancers. There's also more to Wetstone than meets the eye.

Review: While Evil Moon is an entertaining read, there are some major flaws with the novel. First of all, there are WAY too many spelling and grammatical errors. Mostly it's extra commas inserted in the middle of sentences and the incorrect uses of "to", "too", and "two". Quotation marks are sometimes left out when the characters are speaking. Another problem with the story is the abrupt cut-off of some of the story arcs, such as the conflict with the terrorist militia and the discovery of Randolph's mother. I think a lot of that could have been cut out to reduce the overall length of the story. There are almost too many minor characters to keep track of. The author should definitely hire a editor if he chooses to submit Evil Moon to a major publisher in the future, or if he is considering a sequel.

Other than that, Evil Moon is an enjoyable read with interesting characters and plenty of horror action. This author has a lot of potential, and it would be good to see a sequel to Evil Moon in the future, as long as the same mistakes aren't made twice.

-Reviewed by: PenningtonBeast

For more info, Visit: http://www.harisonraynovels.com/

The Werewolf Of London

2009-12-25T21:28:00.000-08:00

Author: Carl Dreadstone aka Ramsey Campbell

Genre: Movie Tie-In

Setting: London, England

Types of Werewolves: Wolf man

How Lycanthropy is Caused: By being bitten.

Synopsis: The search for a rare plant takes Wilfred Glendon on a expedition into the Himalayas, where he gets attacked by wolf like creatures. Back home he discovers that a bestial curse has followed him from the snows of Tibet to the fogs of London. Now he cowers in his laboratory, disgusted by his own weird transformation, yet unable to prevent it. The extract of the night blooming Mariphasa provides a passing relief on the nights of the full moon from the curse of the beast, but the plant is difficult to cultivate outside of its mountain home and in Wilfred Glendon grows the longing to just give in to the werewolf, aware that the creature instinctively seeks to kill what he loves best.

Review: The Werewolf of London is a movie tie-in adapted from a script written by John Colton after Robert Harris’s short story. Campbell avoids to simply follow the movie, instead he presents us the events from the perspective of Wilfred Glendon, and here actually lays a true strength of the book. He details the growing emotional desperation with which Glendon alternately searches for a cure, to prevent himself from slaughtering the one he loves best, and his longing to give in to the beast. Fans will note that Campbell took some liberties with the movie’s tale and we find only two fleshed out characters in his take: Glendon and Yogami. Some of the changes did make sense to me and provided for a more interesting read than if he had just retold the movie, others jarred too much against what I remembered from it. I did feel the end to be rather anti-climatic, but nonetheless enjoyed the rest of the story. Bottom line: At a short, fast written 160 pages the book offers a worthwhile diversion for a couple hours.

-Reviewed By Daninsky

Wolves of War

2009-12-20T15:30:00.000-08:00

Editor: Eric S. Brown

Illustrator: Jodi Lee

Genre: Anthology; Horror, Historical Fiction, Suspense

Synopsis: Wolves of War is a werewolf anthology from Library of Horror Press featuring werewolves in combat during the American Civil War, World War II, turf wars between lycanthropic gangs, and even futuristic battles in space. Featuring stories from A. P. Fuchs, David Dunwoody, Tim Curran, Rhiannon Frater, Franklin E. Wales and more.

Review: Wolves of War is an entertaining and quick read that has a good variety of style and tone. The stories offer fresh ideas for the werewolf genre, and most left wishing that it was entire novel and not just a short tale. If you're looking for some great historical war fiction with a lycanthropic twist, then Wolves of War from Library of Horror Press is just what you need.

-Reviewed by: PenningtonBeast

Warrior Wolf Women of the Wasteland

2009-11-17T09:39:00.000-08:00

Author: Carlton Mellick III
Illustrator: Ed Mironiuk (cover), Carlton Mellick III (interior)
Genre: Bizarro, Science Fiction, Horror
Setting: Post-Apocalyptic USA
Types of Werewolves: Wolf women in various stages of transformation, Wolves as big as city busses.
How Lycanthropy is Caused: By a parasite that activates during sexual activity.

Synopsis: In the future, people live in a walled community created by the Blessed McDonalds Corporation aptly dubbed "McDonaldland" where they work at McDonalds, eat at McDonalds and worship McDonalds. Unfortunately for the women living in McDonaldland, a parasite in the food causes them to grow wolf-like features after any sexual activity, and after the women become too feral they're banished from the city to live in the wastelands. Now the same parasite has started turning the men into multi-limbed mutants. One of the new male mutants is Daniel Togg, who gets banished and must survive being a captive of the warrior wolf women of the wasteland.

Review: Two things I love: werewolves and alliteration, and Werewolf Women of the Wasteland has both of those things. It also has a very original take on the werewolf genre and plenty of action. It was nice to see the characters grow and reevaluate their views throughout the story. As bizarre and creative as the story may be, it still deals with some heavy issues such as gender discrimination, exploitation, and corporations growing out of control. But most of all, the story is fun!

-Reviewed By PenningtonBeast

For more info:
http://www.edmironiuk.com/
http://carltonmellick.com/

The Sacred Book of the Werewolf

2009-11-11T17:09:00.000-08:00

Author: Victor Pelevin

Genre: Fantasy

Setting: Moscow, Russia

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal werewolves, werefoxes with magic tails, black dogs.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Hypnotism, meditation involving the chakras.

Synopsis: 2,000-year-old werefox A Hu-Li works as a high end prostitute in modern Russia where she hypnotizes her clients with her tail in order to obtain their life force. Eventually she meets client who is a werewolf named Alexander and together they debate the existence of the "Super-Werewolf" while falling in love. The book is written in the form of A Hu-Li's memoirs.

Review: The Sacred Book of the Werewolf is really a discussion about Russian politics and the elements of Buddhism disguised as a werewolf romance novel. The history and explanations about how werefoxes and werewolves exist is interesting, but the never ending debates between the characters about the reality of existence is tedious at best. The relationship between A Hu-Li and Alexander is a strange one since he is technically her rapist and yet she still agrees to see him and eventually grows to love him. The book was original, but not great. Unless you have an interest in contemporary Russia or Buddhism, this book isn't as entertaining from a werewolf fan's point of view.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

Frostbite

2009-11-09T09:49:00.000-08:00

Author: David Wellington
Genre: Horror, Suspense
Setting: Northern Canada
Types of Werewolves: Dire Wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: By a magic curse, from being bitten or scratched.

Synopsis: Chey Clark is lost in the Canadian wilderness searching for the werewolf who devoured her father years ago. When she stumbles upon him, he scratches her and passed on his curse.

Review: Frostbite is fast-paced and full of action, it did not disappoint. The characters are interesting and the brand of lycanthropy in the book is so devastating to their lives that it's hard not to sympathize with them. The settings are fleshed out and vivid. The only thing I didn't care much for were the transformation scenes, they were just too simple. Otherwise, Frostbite is a fresh and fun new addition to the werewolf genre.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

You can read the book here for free.
http://www.brokentype.com/frostbite/

Werewolves: A Field Guide to Shapeshifters, Lycanthropes, and Man-Beasts

2009-11-04T11:28:00.000-08:00

Author: Dr. Bob Curran
Illustrator: Ian Daniels
Genre: Non-fiction

Review: Werewolves: a Field Guide to Shapeshifters, Laycanthropes, and Man-Beasts is an informative anthology of werewolf myths and related material. It shows how the perception of the werewolf has evolved throughout Western history from an agent of Satan himself to the unfortunate victim of circumstance. There are a few typos, but not enough to distract from the reading. It also features beautiful illustrations from Ian Daniels. A must-have for the werewolf researcher.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

Full Moonster

2009-11-04T10:09:00.000-08:00

Author: Nick Pollotta
Genre: RPG, Horror, Fantasy
Setting: Ohio
Types of Werewolves: Bipedal / Normal Wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Dimensional rift / Infection

Synopsis: The book opens with a veterinary who finds a unusual large wolf lying in the woods, dropped as it seems from a passing plane. After she removes some silver bullets from the body what appeared to be a wolf changes into a terrifying wolfman, a furred and clawed Hollywood killing machine skip ahead one month and we encounter the members of Bureau 13 who were on their way home from Exorcising a prison building which they, just to be on the sure side, blew up afterwards, when they encountered a urgent new assignment: The complete village of Hadleyville vanished from the map, coinciding with a psychic blast equivalent to an H-Bomb that killed every telepath in North America, leaving the Bureau practically blind. When they finally enter the remains of the town they realize that this blast was just the first step in a large scale invasion attempt from the next dimension.

Review: The 1992 published Full Moonster is set in the Bureau 13 universe, a Role Playing Game by TriTac Systems, and I can't shake the feeling that I would have enjoyed the novel more if I knew the particulars of that game setting.As it is, I had to stop reading half-ways through because Pollotta's forced humorous style and the heavy RPG influences with wizards of different colour matched up with a Chuck Norris style task force just didn't work for me.From what I gathered from the book, Bureau 13 is a high-tech government agency that employs ex-mercenaries and wizards to prevent invasion attempts of otherworldly beasties from a parallel dimension. While the idea of mixing super-spy action with D&D wizardry possesses a lot of potential, Pollotta fails to make good use of it, instead his writing becomes tedious to read after a while as we begin to sense a jokes per sentence attitude that doesn't care much for plot or character development. Fans of Tarantino movies might still find some amusement in the over the top action and off-beat dialogue, though.

-Reviewed by: Daninsky

The Other People

2009-10-28T09:47:00.000-07:00

Author: Pat A. Brisco
Genre: Horror
Setting: USA / undisclosed
Types of Werewolves: Normal Wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Hereditary

Synopsis: When Mrs. Constantine Vidor hires private detective Carl Denner to
search her missing brother, Ladius Doln, he assumes it to turn into a routine
case, but his investigations soon after indicate that there is more to it.
Everything points toward a involvement of "the others", a race of Witches,
Vampires and other beings. And Carl Denner should know, because he's one of
them.

Review: The 1970 written novel The Other People would by today's standards
fall under "Urban Fantasy", and what stands out while reading, is that it seems
to have been set-up as opener for a planned series which then never got written.
As such the book makes for nice, light reading material but there's a lot of
unnecessary character backdrop for something that runs only about 140 pages, and
the actual plot is paper thin.
The main character of the book, Carl Denner is a werewolf by birth and as such
he's part of "the others", a race consisting of Werewolves, Vampires, Witches
and other things that go bump in the night, that, so we are told, evolved along
side the human race as predators, but the unexpected growth of the human
population forced them to live in secret among them.
Brisco weaved with her book a mix of classic sleuth novel and supernatural
folklore that has it's roots in story serials with their typical brand of smart,
irresistible heroes.
Fans of "Pulp Novels" and "Urban Fantasy" fans should find it entertaining
enough for a day at the beach or a winter's evening, but for fans of the Horror
genre it likely lacks enough supernatural content to satisfy them.

-Reviewed by Daninsky

High Bloods

2009-10-27T09:31:00.000-07:00

Author: John Farris
Genre: Crime, Noir, Science Fiction
Setting: California (future)
Types of Werewolves: Bipedal
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Viral Infection, Through Tainted Blood Transfusions.

Synopsis: In the future a virus that causes Lycanthropy is unleashed upon the human population, those who contract it transform into werewolves once a month during a full moon. Those who remain wholly human are referred to as "High Bloods" and are the ruling class of society. International Lycan Control officer Rawson is searching for a missing movie star named Mallory Scarlett. He suspects that she's been kidnapped by a rouge motorcycle gang called the Diamondbackers, High Bloods who enjoy killing Lycans for sport.

Review: High Bloods was disappointing to say the least. It promised post-apocalyptic werewolf action, a disease run rampant, and a cult of werewolves seeking control, but the story only barely touched on these subjects. Mostly it was about a kidnapping/murder investigation with dry dialogue, a bunch of technical jargon, and too many secondary characters to keep track of. It started out promising in the beginning but soon went flat for the majority of the book. The main character, Rawson, has about as much personality as a wet rag and I couldn't really care much about what happened to him. His relationship with the character Bea is nonsensical and i think the story would have been improved without her. The ending of the book is pretty decent, but it just didn't cut it for me. If you're a fan of crime drama, this might be for you, but if you're a hardcore werewolf fan, I'd just skip it.

-Reviewed by: PenningtonBeast

The Howling

2009-09-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

Author: Gary Brandner
Genre: Horror
Setting: California
Types of Werewolves: Large Normal Wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Infection From a Bite.

Synopsis: Karen Beatty is attacked and raped in her Los Angeles apartment and her physician suggests that she and her husband move out of the city for a while so that Karen can recover in peace. They move to the small town of Drago where all of the locals seem a bit odd. While in Drago, Karen befriends an ex-nun who shares her theory with Karen that Drago is cursed and one of it's inhabitants is a werewolf.

Review: Spoilers Ahead! The original novel of The Howling is nothing like the movie and it falls somewhat short the Hollywood hit. For one, Eddie Quist doesn't make an appearance at all. Karen's rapist shares the same last name with Eddie, but he never shows up further along in the novel to reveal him self as a werewolf. Which leads me to the point about Karen's rape not being that necessary to the story. I think it was included for shock value since the rest of the novel moves rather slowly. Karen and her husband could have moved to Drago for a number of other reasons. At least the seductive Marcia is there to rescue the novel. The book still has a fun "who's the werewolf" vibe, even if the movie is clearly the better version of the tale.

-Reviewed by Penningtonbeast

Vengeance

2009-09-29T09:17:00.000-07:00

Author: Kelly Phillips
Illustrator: Kelly Phillips
Genre: Teen Drama, Horror
Setting: Oregon
Types of Werewolves: Bipedal Wolf Monsters
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics

Synopsis: Teenage werewolf Versa Novak is sick and tired of the hubris and narcissism of fellow classmate and school bully Kayleigh Monroe. Together, Versa and her two best friends devise a plan to scare some humility into Kayleigh and her cohorts during the prom after party.

Review: Vengeance is a vivid and fast-paced look at what the tribulations of high school life would look like through the eyes of a young werewolf. Anyone who has survived high school can relate to the frustrations that Versa and her friends have to put up with on a daily basis. One thing that would have greatly improved the book would have been to include a scene about the original prank that Versa pulled while in werewolf form just so there could be a little more action. Also, if there's going to be a sequel (which I hope there is) I'd like to see Versa take on someone or something with equal or greater power to herself. Maybe another werewolf, but at least something more formidable than the school's alpha bitch. Another thing the book could use is a little more description about the author's version of werewolves (like why Versa has a glowing insignia on her back). And I would have liked to know a little more about what happened to Versa's mother. Other than that, Vengeance is a promising debut novel from a young author and I'd love to see more of Versa in the future.

Vengeance also contains a short graphic novel which, along with the cover, is illustrated by the author herself.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

For more info:

http://saxgirl1010.deviantart.com/

To purchase the novel:

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/756079

Call of the Highland Moon

2009-09-24T07:17:00.000-07:00

Author: Kendra Leigh Castle
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Setting: Upstate New York, Scotland
Types of Werewolves: Large Normal Wolves and Bipedal Monsters
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics, Infection from a Bite.

Synopsis: Gideon MacInnes is a Highland werewolf taking a break from the stress of pack life while visiting the USA. When in Upstate New York, he is attacked by a pack of rogue werewolves and nearly killed. He wanders into town and lands on the back steps of Carly Silver's book store, Bodice Rippers and Baubles. Thinking he's nothing more than a large, wounded dog she takes him home only to discover the truth about her guest the following morning. Gideon believes that his cousin is behind the attack and now has to keep himself and Carly safe.

Review: Call of the Highland Moon unfortunately contains several of the factors that normally keep me away from the paranormal romance genre. For one, the main male character, Gideon, has little personality traits other than tall, dark, and grotesquely muscular. Carly Silver's character is only slightly more interesting. Another issue I have with the paranormal romance genre, and the werewolf romances in particular is that the whole "destined to be life-mates FOREVAR!" scenario is about as far away from romantic as you can get. The characters don't grow to like each other over time, they just automatically "love" each other as if it's just something they're obligated to do. And it feels particularly forced in this novel. Also, the author spends too much time describing most of the mundane tasks in the book and gives less detail to the action.

The villains of this book and the secondary characters are what keep it readable, I only kept going because I wanted to learn just what the Drakkyn were and how the Destiny Stone gave them power. Overall, I didn't find the characters to be interesting enough to read the sequels. Call of the Highland Moon is okay, but nowhere near great.

For more Info: http://kendraleighcastle.com/

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

Never Cry Werewolf

2009-09-18T10:41:00.000-07:00

Author: Heather Davis
Genre: Teen romance
Setting: Oregon, Beverly Hills -Present Day
Types of Werewolves: Large Normal Wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics

Synopsis: A girl from Beverly Hills gets sent to "brat camp" in the remote forests of Oregon where she meets the mysterious son of a rock star who just happens to also be a werewolf.

Review: It was cute, but simple. I thought the characters were a little hard to relate to because they were all from wealthy families and it made the story a little hard to believe. I don't know if "brat camps" for rich kids really exist. The author relies a little too much on stereotypes instead of trying to come up with unique characters. Also, like, um, like the overuse of the valley girl accent is like, totally annoying. It's a good quick read, but it could have used a little more focus on the werewolf aspect of the story and less of the trials of the main female character at camp. I'd recommend it for kids, but there's not much in it for adults.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast.

Wolfbreed

2009-09-14T14:05:00.000-07:00

Author: S. A. Swann

Genre: Horror, Historical Fiction, Romance

Setting: Prussia 1220's-1230's

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal Wolf Monsters

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics

Synopsis: A knight of the Teutonic Order discovers a litter of werewolf pups and decides to train them into lethal weapons for use against the local pagans. One werewolf named Lilly escapes from her captors and seeks refuge with a local farmer's family.

Review: Don't let the cover of this book fool you, what looks like a whimsical fairy tale romance is anything but! Wolfbreed offers plenty of bite and brutality. This is one of the best and most original werewolf novels I've read this year. The characters are complex and the emotions are raw. Werewolf fans won't be disappointed in Wolfbreed.

Reviewed by PenningtonBeast.

For more info:

http://www.sandrewswann.com/

Hunting Ground

2009-09-09T19:10:00.000-07:00

Author: Patricia Briggs

Illustrator: Daniel Dos Santos

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Romance

Setting: Seattle, WA. Present Day

Types of Werewolves: Larger Than Normal Wolves

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Surviving a Werewolf Attack, Genetics.

Synopsis: The sequel to Cry Wolf. Anna and Charles travel to Seattle to hold a discussion with the European werewolf alphas about the Marrok's decision to reveal the werewolves to the human world. During the meetings Anna is attacked by a group of vampires, prompting Anna and Charles to find the motivation for the attack.

Review: While I think this story is an improvement from the first novel in the series, Cry Wolf, there are still some things that I find bothersome. First of all, the character who is supposed to be the Beast of Gevaudan is more pompous and cowardly than monstrous and threatening. That left me more than a little disappointed. Second, while Anna's character has developed more since the first novel, Charles still lacks much of a personality. He's overprotective to the point of being smothering. I also thought that the werewolves acted too much like vampires in this novel and most lacked any ferocity. For fantasy fans, especially those interested in Arthurian legends, this book may be for you. For werewolf fans, it's okay but it could have been better.

- Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

For more info:

http://www.patriciabriggs.com/

http://www.dandossantos.com/home.html

The Werewolf's Guide to Life

2009-09-03T13:58:00.000-07:00

First of all, I want to thank the authors for sending me a free copy of this book to review. That was extremely nice of you guys and I really appreciate it!

Authors: Ritch Duncan and Bob Powers.

Illustrations By: Emily Flake.

Genre: humor, parody

Types of Werewolves: bipedal and quadrupedal.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: by getting bitten by a werewolf in his/her "wild" state or by having a werewolf father.

Synopsis: A manual for all the questions and concerns that every newly bitten werewolf has, and a survival guide that every werewolf needs.

Review: The Werewolf's Guide to life is an original and extensive look into the lifestyles of lycanthropes. It offers in depth explanations about the cause of lycanthropy and how to manage both your wild and dormant states. The book is full of great, humorous illustrations ("We're Here! We're Hungry! Hide!!!") and hilarious titles ( "Navigating Your

Interactions with the Smug, Effeminate Undead"). The tone is serious during the more urgent of topics, like how to avoid being hunted, which gives the guide a sense of believability. Overall, The Werewolf's Guide to Life is a fast and fun addition to any werewolf fan's reading list!

For More info:

http://www.werewolfguidetolife.com/

Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

Animals

2009-09-01T20:02:00.000-07:00

Authors: John Skipp and Craig Spector

Genre: Horror, Suspense

Types of Werewolves: Normal wolves and bipedal wolf monsters.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: by genetics and the use of magic and/or intoxication.

Synopsis: Blue collar divorcee Syd meets Nora, the most stunningly beautiful woman he's ever seen, and discovers that there's something wild beneath her surface. Unfortunately, her bloodthirsty werewolf ex-boyfriend, Vic, is hot on her trail and Syd gets caught in the middle, fighting for his life.

Review: For the first 150 pages or so, Animals reads more like a trashy romance than a horror novel. Once you make it past those pages though, the pace and violence begin to pick up. There's plenty of raw emotion to go around and you can adequately feel the panic and helplessness of the characters in tight situations. Some of the characters you empathize with, others inspire nothing but disgust. Overall, I would have liked to see some more werewolf gore and less human violence, but it was still an interesting novel.

-Reviewed by PeningtonBeast

Wolf's Gambit

2009-08-27T12:07:00.000-07:00

Author: W.D. Gagliani
Genre: Horror, Crime
Types of Werewolves: Large normal wolves
How Lycanthropy is Caused: Spread by a bite.

Synopsis: Nick Lupo returns to a rual Wisconsin town after hearing about several grisly murders involving victims being ripped apart and partially eaten. He suspects that he has finally found more werewolves like him, only they're on far from friendly terms.

Review: Wolf's Gambit greatly surpasses it's prequel, Wolf's Trap in its action, suspense, and ferocity. The characters are far more interesting and formidable than those of the original. I never saw the twist at the end coming and suspected that the werewolves-for-hire were workimg for another character. The ending didn't disappoint and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. i should mention though, there are some graphic scenes of rape/sexual violence for those of you who would like to avoid that.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

For more info visit :

http://www.williamdgagliani.com/

Shapes

2009-08-25T11:02:00.000-07:00

Author: Steve Vance

Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal

How Lycanthropy of Caused: By a parasitic microorganism, transmitted by biting/body fluids.

Synopsis: The survivors of the contained werewolf attack in The Hyde Effect discover a colony of lycanthropes living in New York state. The colony, which call themselves "the associates" show Blake, Nick and Meg that their transformations can be controlled and even modified.

Review: I hate to admit that I was rather disappointed in Steve Vance's Shapes. I felt that it paled in comparison to the pure terror that is evident in it's predecessor The Hyde Effect. Also, the werewolves in the sequel are werewolves-in-name-only, really they're shapeshifters that can take any form they please after mastering the feral state of their first several changes. I thought that the character's reactions to "the associates" and their plans were hard to believe following the events in the first book. Also, there isn't nearly enough werewolf action, things only start to get gory near the end. Although I think Shapes could have been a better werewolf story, it's still an interesting sci-fi read for fans of the genre. The Hyde Effect still remains one of my favorite novels despite the let down of the sequel.

- Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

The Better to Hold You

2009-08-22T02:04:00.000-07:00

Author: Alisa Sheckley

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Types of Werewolves: Normal wolves. Some change by the full moon and others can change on their own.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Infection from a bite or genetics.

Synopsis: Veterinarian intern Abra Barrow finds out her husband Hunter cheated on her while in Romania researching werewolf legends. He became infected by his werewolf mistress while away and convinces Abra to move to upstate New York with him in order to become more comfortable with his new condition. While in the town of Northside, Abra falls in love with another shapeshifter named Red.

Review: Welcome to my first completely negative review at Lycanthrope Library. Where should I start with this little piece of work? CAUTION: Spoilers ahead. The first two chapters of this book are so uninteresting that I thought about returning it but I needed something to read in the car. In the following chapters we find that Abra is a complete pushover and not too bright at that. Instead of leaving her emotionally abusive and unfaithful husband, she quits her work as an intern and gives into his wishes in a desperate attempt to save what little, unsatisfying marriage they have. All throughout the book Abra is either discussing her fixation with her mother's movie career or talking about her menstrual cycle in detail.

I tried to like this book but the only two interesting aspects of the story are never really developed. One is the genetic research with the Lycanthropy virus that Abra's former vet instructor was conducting, and the other was the story of what happened to Hunter in Romania, which is never fully explained. All throughout the book I was hoping that either one or both of the main characters would get eaten, but unfortunately I know there's a sequel which I will not be reading.

At one point in the story after having a heated argument with hunter, Abra suspects she's pregnant with his child and decides to once again put up with his abuse. Thankfully her lover, Red the stereotypical Native American shapeshifter, explains to her that she's not pregnant and that it's only her hormones going overboard from the werewolf infection she caught from Hunter like chlamydia. When Hunter's werewolf mistress comes over from Romania to join in on the fun, they attempt to murder Abra's mother resulting in an extremely unsatisfying ending to this snorefest of a novel.

To all the hardcore werewolf fans out there, I recommend that you just skip this one. There's nothing new or exciting about this book, it's just your typical misogynistic "paranormal romance" filled with questionably consensual sex and a dash of zoophilia. As for me, I'll be putting it in my yard sale box in the basement.

Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

2009-08-16T01:43:00.000-07:00

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Genre: Young Adult, Romance, Suspense.

Types of Werewolves: Normal wolves with human eyes. The temperature has an effect on their shifting, turning them into wolves for the winter and back to humans in the spring.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Infection from a bite.

Synopsis: A teenage girl named Grace is attacked by wolves as a child, but one wolf in particular saves her life and brings her home. Ever since then, Grace eagerly waits for winter to come so that she can see her savior wolf's return. Then a student from her high school is attacked by the local wolves and presumed dead. After a local hunting spree, a naked, wounded teenage boy ends up on Grace's porch with has the exact same eyes as her favorite wolf.

Review: In a world where sparklepires and pedowolves are now the epitome of teenage lust, I was quite skeptical about the new romance novel Shiver. Thankfully, Stiefvater proved me wrong. Even though there's a slight amount of cheesiness (and what contemporary romance is without it?), Shiver is still an engaging and satisfying story. The characters are well developed with interesting pasts and there is plenty of suspense to keep you reading.

The werewolves are a little unconventional in that instead of the moon having an influence over their shifts, it's the temperature. As the weather gets colder, the more imminent a transformation becomes until finally the werewolves remain in wolf form for the remainder of the winter. They still retain some of the more typical werewolf traits, like fast healing, but there's a catch. Eventually they will stop shifting back to human altogether and will remain a wolf until death. This creates quite a predicament for the two protagonists as they search for a cure.

Unfortunately, if you're looking for blood and gore, this book is on the light side. Personally, I'll take disembowelment over finding true love any day, but I would still recommend Shiver as a fun read.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast.

For more information visit:

http://www.maggiestiefvater.com/shiver.php

Dreadful Skin

2009-08-08T23:12:00.000-07:00

Author: Cherie Priest

Genre: Horror, Thriller, Western

Types of Werewolves: Bipedal

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Attacked by a werewolf, possibly genetics.

Synopsis: A gun-toting, lycanthropic nun from Ireland is on the hunt for a murderous werewolf named Jack. She follows him across the American West where he eventually teams up with a traveling werewolf preacher looking to form a pack.

Review: Dreadful Skin is like a fast-paced, condensed version of S.P. Somtow's Moon Dance. Both stories are set in the Wild West and told from the perspectives of several different characters. In the beginning it's sometimes hard to tell which character is speaking, but the author makes the distinction clear at the beginning of each sequence further along in the story. Other than that, Dreadful Skin is an interesting and bloody addition to the werewolf genre. There's plenty of ethos and pathos to appeal to the reader, along with a good dose of violence and gore. Overall, I'd rate Dreadful Skin a 4 out of 5.

Also, I absolutely love the cover illustration.

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast.

For more information visit http://www.cheriepriest.com/

Chasing the Dragon

2009-06-11T16:00:00.000-07:00

Author: Percival Constantine

Genre: horror, crime

Types of Werewolves: bipedal

How Lycanthropy is Caused: genetics

Synopsis: Werewolf Riker Stone meets a waitress whose daughter has run away with her drug dealing boyfriend. Riker goes to bring her daughter back and runs into lots of action along the way.

Review: This book is full of suspense and gut-wrenching violence; just the ingredients a good werewolf novel needs! The story is fast-paced and I couldn't put the book down. The only downside is that Riker's past isn't revealed in great detail and it left me confused about his relation to the drug lord Bola. Perhaps that will be explained further in a sequel. I hope that Constantine keeps his promise and that there are plenty of new Riker Stone adventures to sink my teeth into!

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast

For more info:

http://percivalconstantine.omegacen.com/

Undead on Arrival

2009-06-06T22:14:00.000-07:00

Author: L.A. Banks

Genre: Action/Fantasy/Romance

Types of Werewolves: There are three different types of werewolves in the "Crimson Moon" series, normal werewolves that look like larger versions of natural wolves, Shadow Wolves that look the same but have special powers, and Demon-Infected Werewolves that are bipedal, hulking monsters.

How Lycanthropy is Caused: Genetics, genetic engineering, and by infection.

Synopsis: The story is the third installment of the "Crimson Moon" series and involves the main characters Sasha Trudeau and Max Hunter trying to control and find a cure for Hunter's Demon Infection. In the process a clan war between the North American Shadow Wolves and the Southeast Asian Werewolf clans is about to break loose with the vampires instigating the impending chaos.

Review: while not as fast-paced as the second book, Bite the Bullet, Undead on Arrival doesn't disappoint. There is plenty of psychological drama and tension within the story and the character's emotions are believable. My only complaint is that the inclusion of the Fae castle and fairy realm made the book seem more "Harry Potter" than "The Howling." Personally, I prefer my werewolves to exist separate from other mythical beings. Other than that, it was an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to the next book, Cursed to Death, which is out this October.

More about the series can be found here:

http://crimsonmoonnovels.com/indexmonitor.php

-Reviewed by PenningtonBeast.

Welcome!

2009-04-30T21:14:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Lycanthrope Library! A werewolf novel review blog made by a werewolf enthusiast for other werewolf enthusiasts. Right now there's nothing, but I believe that the first novel I'll be reviewing is Undead on Arrival by L.A. Banks. So for now enjoy my noobish Photoshop skills and come back in a few weeks!

-KMP