20sidedbi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Sexual content, Body horror, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, and Stalking
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
Minor: Sexual violence
dododenise's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I have a hard time summarising the experience I had with this book. I guess that's what a three star experience is: It was fine but not remarkable.
It was hard getting into this world. I hadn't read such a werewolf heavy story before and it was a struggle at first. I grew more into it as I went though. I can see how you would get attached to this series. The found family in this is strong with interesting characters that give space for exploring.
What I struggled with most was the age gap. For most of this book the gap is icky and weird, because Joe is so young. The fact that they met as kids just doesn't sit right with me. The possessiveness of their relationship also wasn't my taste. It was just too much. This book really focuses on their relationship, so that's a big chunk of book that I have uneasy feelings about.
Will I read more? I'm not sure to be honest. While curious I also think there are other books I would rather spend my time on.
It was hard getting into this world. I hadn't read such a werewolf heavy story before and it was a struggle at first. I grew more into it as I went though. I can see how you would get attached to this series. The found family in this is strong with interesting characters that give space for exploring.
What I struggled with most was the age gap. For most of this book the gap is icky and weird, because Joe is so young. The fact that they met as kids just doesn't sit right with me. The possessiveness of their relationship also wasn't my taste. It was just too much. This book really focuses on their relationship, so that's a big chunk of book that I have uneasy feelings about.
Will I read more? I'm not sure to be honest. While curious I also think there are other books I would rather spend my time on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Violence, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Moderate: Gore, Torture, and Body horror
elizakay's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence
Moderate: Body horror
elkboy23's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Abandonment, Blood, and Body horror
Moderate: Mental illness, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Rape, Grief, and Domestic abuse
lizzzardbean's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Body horror, and Sexual content
axel_p's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, Gun violence, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Rape, Torture, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gore, Grief, Physical abuse, Abandonment, and Body horror
becah's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of those books I literally couldn't put down. I read this book in 4 days when I usually take about a month. I am a sucker for fiercely devoted, loyal love and I got my fair share of it in this book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Gore, Abandonment, Kidnapping, Torture, Blood, Death of parent, Body horror, Violence, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Sexual content
Moderate: Alcoholism and Domestic abuse
girloutoftime's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Body horror, Murder, and Grief
saestrah's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A free advanced reading copy of this title was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review:
After hearing a lot about this series, I was very excited to get an advanced copy of Wolfsong to review, and unfortunately I think the hype made me a little disappointed by the end result. I've seen a few other reviews for this book, which describe the main romance as reading just like fanfiction, and I see where the similiarities lay. The dialogue between the characters is often lighthearted and funny, but I found that the text as a whole lacked the depth I wanted from this book. The topics discussed (poverty, abandonment, kidnapping, and child abuse to name a few) could have lended this book a much richer (albeit darker) texture, but instead a lot of it felt glossed over and for the Bennett's in particular, I never felt like it had a lasting effect on them. Ox's personal fears and motivations felt considerably more developed in comparison, making him easily my favourite character of the book and the only one that I could say that I even liked. His first chapter where his father is leaving the family, and he tries to tell Ox but Ox doesn't pick up on it and believes his father will be returning, broke my heart. There was something so tangible about Ox missing the cues of the conversation and believing himself to be stupid, perhaps due to his narrative style that has a rhythmic and repetitive nature that felt like it would be best read aloud. For all that Gordo claims that Ox didn't talk much as a kid, Ox's inner-voice reminds me of slam poetry.
As for the plot, a lot of it felt predictable in that it follows a lot of YA-werewolf-story tropes and patterns. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the was one that I saw coming and enjoyed a lot. While I've mostly grown out of YA and haven't read a paranormal romance book for a long time, I found that plots similiar to that of Wolfsong work best with a rich and dynamic worldbuilding, which for me this book was lacking. Witches-in-packs and werewolf-governments felt thrown in without a moment's pause, and I kept expecting parts of the story to connect and come together, such as why Ox's father left their family, but unfortunately that aspect of the story was as realistic as it comes. These both relate to the fact that unlike most books I read, where I experience the narrative fluidly and anticipate that my questions will be answered at the narrative's own pace, I expected to be told rather than to be shown. Unfortunately, this also relates to the characters' dynamics. For a main romantic couple that I'd seen a lot of love for online, I didn't see what Ox and Joe saw in each other or why they were supposed to be mates, other than that I was explicitly told that's what they were.
From the start of the book I believed that the love interest would be Carter, being a character closer to Ox's age. Joe was never an option for me until it was made clear that the other characters weren't going to be given nearly as much page time (throughout the book I felt like every character other than Ox had only just been introduced in passing, without giving me a chance to connect with any of them—perhaps since Klune was leaving their development for their own narratives in the series).
On another note, I'm definitely falling on the side of reviewers uncomfortable with the age gap between Ox and Joe. I would have had less of a problem of the two meeting at such a young age if romantic feelings hadn't developed until they were both much older, but as it was, reading about a twenty-three year old being sexually attracted to a seventeen year old that he had 'suddenly' seen as more than a kid, didn't sit right with me.
All in all, I read this book rather quickly and found it easy to binge-read as Ox's narration is easy to follow and the plot exciting enough to draw a reader in, even though I didn't feel the 'pull' that many readers had with this story. It's unlikely that I will read the rest of this series given that they're from other characters' perspectives and I felt like Ox's narrative reached a satisfying ending, but I'm still glad to have read Wolfsong and grateful for the introduction of Ox into my life (as I now have a houseplant named after him).
After hearing a lot about this series, I was very excited to get an advanced copy of Wolfsong to review, and unfortunately I think the hype made me a little disappointed by the end result. I've seen a few other reviews for this book, which describe the main romance as reading just like fanfiction, and I see where the similiarities lay. The dialogue between the characters is often lighthearted and funny, but I found that the text as a whole lacked the depth I wanted from this book. The topics discussed (poverty, abandonment, kidnapping, and child abuse to name a few) could have lended this book a much richer (albeit darker) texture, but instead a lot of it felt glossed over and for the Bennett's in particular, I never felt like it had a lasting effect on them. Ox's personal fears and motivations felt considerably more developed in comparison, making him easily my favourite character of the book and the only one that I could say that I even liked. His first chapter where his father is leaving the family, and he tries to tell Ox but Ox doesn't pick up on it and believes his father will be returning, broke my heart. There was something so tangible about Ox missing the cues of the conversation and believing himself to be stupid, perhaps due to his narrative style that has a rhythmic and repetitive nature that felt like it would be best read aloud. For all that Gordo claims that Ox didn't talk much as a kid, Ox's inner-voice reminds me of slam poetry.
As for the plot, a lot of it felt predictable in that it follows a lot of YA-werewolf-story tropes and patterns. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the
Spoiler
part where Ox finds himself a human-AlphaFrom the start of the book I believed that the love interest would be Carter, being a character closer to Ox's age. Joe was never an option for me until it was made clear that the other characters weren't going to be given nearly as much page time (throughout the book I felt like every character other than Ox had only just been introduced in passing, without giving me a chance to connect with any of them—perhaps since Klune was leaving their development for their own narratives in the series).
On another note, I'm definitely falling on the side of reviewers uncomfortable with the age gap between Ox and Joe. I would have had less of a problem of the two meeting at such a young age if romantic feelings hadn't developed until they were both much older, but as it was, reading about a twenty-three year old being sexually attracted to a seventeen year old that he had 'suddenly' seen as more than a kid, didn't sit right with me.
All in all, I read this book rather quickly and found it easy to binge-read as Ox's narration is easy to follow and the plot exciting enough to draw a reader in, even though I didn't feel the 'pull' that many readers had with this story. It's unlikely that I will read the rest of this series given that they're from other characters' perspectives and I felt like Ox's narrative reached a satisfying ending, but I'm still glad to have read Wolfsong and grateful for the introduction of Ox into my life (as I now have a houseplant named after him).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, Gore, Rape, Abandonment, Death of parent, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Alcoholism, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Bullying
booksbutmakeitgay's review against another edition
5.0
one of the easiest five stars i’ve ever given.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcohol, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Grief, Kidnapping, Torture, Blood, Death, and Murder