Reviews

Gone to the Wolves by John Wray

rvlgonzalez's review

Reading this was a bit friction-y for me, but I didn't dislike it. Perhaps it's because I didn't grow up in Florida or in the 80s, but the way the characters talked struck me as a little too slick, a little too sardonic, a little too quippy. Also, this is a world where people spend a lot of time antagonizing each other, both as a front to seem hardcore and just because violence, misogyny, and homophobia is more normalized. It wasn't necessarily more extreme than reflects reality or than that you would read in other "young people culture" narratives, it's just because it's more of the point, it felt more front-loaded. And I just don't really care as much about being immersed in that world. Ironically, the climax, which is sort of meant to be a dam break showing how the culture can tip over the edge into horror and violence, could have been way more detailed, illustrative, and narratively contributive. On the positives, it's a different world than I know and it's always interesting to hear someone discuss their passions with excitement and depth and precision, and it's pretty cool to read about such loving and deep, long lasting friendships.

ashonthepage's review

dark medium-paced

5.0

whatshereads727's review

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

My book ended at page 360 missing the last 40 pages. So I never find out the conclusion. Working on getting another copy. 
But, this is a dark, humorless story of a few friends that are deeply involved in the Metal music culture. 
The resulting lives are sad, destroyed, cultish existences. Causing one to go missing and the others to try to find them. The premise is interesting and if your at all a fan, even a mild fan of heavy metal music you will enjoy this story. 

haleydavis112's review

challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

clairevr's review

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Really enjoyed this. Not into metal but I loved the world Wray created and his vivid description of both the subculture and the three places the novel is set in; LA, small town Florida, and Norway. I found the storyline exciting with lots of room for character development as it spans nearly a ten year period. Someone else said they felt the characters were inconsistent and unlikeable - I firmly disagreed. I felt Leslie’s character and mannerisms remained constant while he maybe passed through various iterations of his personal style and presentation. While the characters are flawed and troubled young people, the way they love and relate to each other felt very real to me. Maybe not relatable via my own adolescent relationships per se, but deeply enjoyable to read about. I felt that if I had grown up in Venice, Florida, with little in the way of parental supervision and support, I would most definitely have wanted to be right there with them, front row at a local metal show.

boogsbooks's review

dark tense

3.0

Really struggling with the ending. Feels like too many ideas forced into the plot. I did enjoy the metal scene depiction.

theinkdarksea's review

dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Drug abuse, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Vomit

raechel's review

Having trouble getting into this, I feel like the beginning is really slow and I can't connect with the characters. May try it again later.

jimmypat's review

1.0

I bailed after about a third of the way through the book. Wray writes well, but the story was non existent and a lot of it felt inauthentic to me. It seemed like Wray was writing modern characters with modern attitudes in a story set 30 years ago, creating an unreal quality to the whole thing.

ady_soundslike80's review against another edition

I hate the reading. I only have it on audio. Might try again in print if I can find it at the library, but I really don’t like this on audio