shonaningyo's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 out of 5 stars
I rated it that based on two things: One, my enjoyment of the book was marred and hurt by the extreme 'literariness' of the book. It was beautifully written, but the fact that I couldn't follow or completely understand what Glen Duncan was attempting to convey with the English language put me off.
The English language is actually pretty flawed, when you think of it. Many different languages have a word or term for a specific thing or type of person or a weird event; the English language rarely, if not never, has that sort of thing occuring. And words that are meant to describe complicated emotions are equally complicated in their definition and rarely find themselves to be strung along in such a way that an average reader could understand. That's what frustrates me about this book.
I could not decipher around 1/5th of what this book was trying to describe and 'paint' in terms of the inner musings of Jake, the protagonist. It was almost to the point where I thought about abandoning this book, because, though I am well-versed in the English language and can easily grasp things I am interested in, reading the ramblings of a werewolf who has lived a long life and has made it his mission to describe to the reader in flowery language his thoughts of everything around him with a sense of sardonic, detached nihilism is not my cup of tea.
It did read like an 18th century novel, though, which the back of my copy had expressly warned me it would be. I was not disappointed; it was more thoughtful than most books I've read, and since it was written during this time, I was lucky to find this to be a believable story and not the work of a pretentious writer who thinks they're hot shit because they write in this fashion in this current time period.
The story itself was rife with Jake's potent sexuality and extremely high libido, which all werewolf and vampire fans have suspected (correctly) they possess. I didn't bat an eye at his dropping the 'cunt' and 'cock' bombs so casually; with the narrator being a 400 year + werewolf, things such as modesty are just an aesthetic he couldn't care less about.
The action and progression of the book was written so that ... it's hard to explain. You had to read the book very closely or you'd miss something important... here's an excerpt as an example:
Glen Duncan's ideas and personal spin on the werewolf's senses, transformation, and the thoughts and sensations while in werewolf form and when about to transform are unique and interesting to read; it's as if these are text book thoughts and memories of a true-to-life werewolf, and I commend him for that.
I rated it that based on two things: One, my enjoyment of the book was marred and hurt by the extreme 'literariness' of the book. It was beautifully written, but the fact that I couldn't follow or completely understand what Glen Duncan was attempting to convey with the English language put me off.
The English language is actually pretty flawed, when you think of it. Many different languages have a word or term for a specific thing or type of person or a weird event; the English language rarely, if not never, has that sort of thing occuring. And words that are meant to describe complicated emotions are equally complicated in their definition and rarely find themselves to be strung along in such a way that an average reader could understand. That's what frustrates me about this book.
I could not decipher around 1/5th of what this book was trying to describe and 'paint' in terms of the inner musings of Jake, the protagonist. It was almost to the point where I thought about abandoning this book, because, though I am well-versed in the English language and can easily grasp things I am interested in, reading the ramblings of a werewolf who has lived a long life and has made it his mission to describe to the reader in flowery language his thoughts of everything around him with a sense of sardonic, detached nihilism is not my cup of tea.
It did read like an 18th century novel, though, which the back of my copy had expressly warned me it would be. I was not disappointed; it was more thoughtful than most books I've read, and since it was written during this time, I was lucky to find this to be a believable story and not the work of a pretentious writer who thinks they're hot shit because they write in this fashion in this current time period.
The story itself was rife with Jake's potent sexuality and extremely high libido, which all werewolf and vampire fans have suspected (correctly) they possess. I didn't bat an eye at his dropping the 'cunt' and 'cock' bombs so casually; with the narrator being a 400 year + werewolf, things such as modesty are just an aesthetic he couldn't care less about.
The action and progression of the book was written so that ... it's hard to explain. You had to read the book very closely or you'd miss something important... here's an excerpt as an example:
"...Jake in a reverie at a stately pace, yes, but with aura madly vigilant, trip-switched, motion-sensored, hair-triggered, so that when the figure launched itself from the trees' murk I was ludicrously ready.
It happened to me very fast, the reversal..."
Glen Duncan's ideas and personal spin on the werewolf's senses, transformation, and the thoughts and sensations while in werewolf form and when about to transform are unique and interesting to read; it's as if these are text book thoughts and memories of a true-to-life werewolf, and I commend him for that.
megoosh258's review against another edition
5.0
Interesting perspective of the werewolf story. Really enjoyed this book.
tomfairfax's review against another edition
3.0
Well thought through addition to the werewolf mythos with a coherent focus on the sensory and moral experience of being a werewolf. Plus lots of sex. My pedantic criticisms involve the multi-billionaire protagonist being unable to organise any sort of protection against his various pursuers, plus an overload of the sensory stuff that slows the narrative at times. Worth reading the next in the trilogy.
shayfiction's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
tine1789's review against another edition
4.0
Ik was bijna de hele eerste helft aan het twijfelen of ik zou stoppen met lezen (het hoofdpersonage kan een stukje wauwelen hoor), maar eenmaal in de tweede helft zat er een heleboel meer vaart in en las ik het boek snel uit.
Ik zou dit boek niet aan iedereen aanraden - het is soms wat filosofisch en vaak nogal disturbing. Met dat laatste kon ik meestal nog wel leven (ik heb ondertussen al wat horror-achtige toestanden gelezen), maar er waren een paar zinnen waarbij ik mijn ogen moest sluiten en even luidop "nee" moest zeggen voordat ik verder kon gaan.
Toch heb ik, als ik het in zijn geheel bekijk, een vrij prettige leeservaring gehad, dus rond ik de sterren genereus naar boven af.
Hier nog wat quotes om af te sluiten:
Ik zou dit boek niet aan iedereen aanraden - het is soms wat filosofisch en vaak nogal disturbing. Met dat laatste kon ik meestal nog wel leven (ik heb ondertussen al wat horror-achtige toestanden gelezen), maar er waren een paar zinnen waarbij ik mijn ogen moest sluiten en even luidop "nee" moest zeggen voordat ik verder kon gaan
Spoiler
zoals die keer dat Jake zich voorstelde dat seks hebben met Talullah voelde als seks hebben met een zus (die hij overigens niet heeft, goddank) - NEE NEE NEE denk dat aub nooit meerToch heb ik, als ik het in zijn geheel bekijk, een vrij prettige leeservaring gehad, dus rond ik de sterren genereus naar boven af.
Hier nog wat quotes om af te sluiten:
We houden van het leven omdat dat het enige is wat er is.
God bestaat niet en dat is Zijn enige gebod.
Ik heb eens een keer gelezen dat je als kind huilt om de wreedheid van mensen en als volwassene om hun aardigheid.
npshafer's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
jhammie's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! It surprised me in many ways, and was quite predictable in others, but I didn't mind that so much. Without getting too heady, it was a solidly entertaining read.
ventivantae's review against another edition
1.0
honestly this book was a mess of rambling purple prose i cannot believe i wasted my time on it
susanw's review against another edition
4.0
Really more of a 3.5 star. The story didn't really get going until the second half. But I'm intrigued enough that I will definitely read the next in the series.